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robd
4th-July-2005, 11:21 AM
Just wondered if anyone else made it along to the recent MJC at Bisley?

It's the first event of its kind I have been to, though I only attended the Saturday and didn't stay over. I really enjoyed it and feel it has helped me improve my dancing both through the classes/workshops and the evening freestyle. I didn't fare too well in the first class - Beginners Lindy with Nathalie and Yuval - as I found I was getting dizzy on the turns which was probably a combination of the time of day and my spinning inexperience but did perk up for an interesting MJ routine with Alex and Emma. One annoyance at this was a couple who were not rotating (no problem in that) positioning themselves at the head of the last row thus completely confusing everyone who was rotating. Isn't the etiquette for non-rotaters to move out of the rows entirely? Nonetheless still a nice routine. A brief but enjoyable 2 Step class with Cat and Amir (late stand-in though you wouldn't know it) followed before a welcome respite for lunch.
Lunch meant I missed an advanced MJ class with Simon Borland though was back in time to watch the end of it. I did get in the intermediate MJ class that followed with some interesting moves (aerial yo-yos, towels, etc) that were different to the usual stuff we get in class. It took some acclimatising and I didn't find some of it too smooth but I am now using a couple of bits regularly in freestyle and really like them. I liked Simon's teaching style too.
The day ended with a class in styling from Amir and various tips on posture and movement. The class was v well attended and certainly gave much food for thought.
Freestyle was preceded by a Jango lesson from Will and Kate that my partner and I both enjoyed a great deal. Freestyle itself was fine, a good mix of abilities there so I did not feel too intimidated (have only been dancing 6 months) and asked a good number of ladies to dance. Some dances went well, others less so but it's all good practice.
The showcase started around 11 o clock and was a good mix - Nicky Haslam and co did a couple of routines and Will and Kate did the one they had done at the Championships though it seemed snappier to me this time around but the real highlight was Nathalie and Yuval who did 2 routines both of which were jaw-droppingly sensational (there is footage of them doing a similar routine somewhere on the web but that's nothing like the impact of seeing it live). They brought a whole new meaning to the word aerial. Seeing this performance alone made the day worthwhile.
In terms of the reason for posting this, I guess I want to know if more seasoned eventgoers had the same impressions and what other similar events I should look out for to further my dance education?

Robert

robd
4th-July-2005, 01:58 PM
Ahhh.

Was too lazy to scroll down and see a LONG thread on the proper forum "Social Events" for this - I'll read that now!

Robert

Minnie M
4th-July-2005, 02:03 PM
Natalie & Yuval are coming back in August for a workshop at Fleet :clap: :clap:

Where are you based Robert ?

robd
4th-July-2005, 02:27 PM
Am based at Cambridge so was quite a trek there and back and boy, did I ache the next day. I think I need to build up to a full weekender!

I never would have known so many forumites (including the ladies on the door : Linda - we were the ones trying to cadge a free key to a room with a shower in to prepare for the Saturday evening!) were there if I hadn't read the other MJC thread though I did recognise one or two faces I had seen competing at the Championships. And for those bemoaning how busy it was in the main ballroom on the Saturday evening it seemed to be a little quieter nearer to the stage.

Robert

Minnie M
4th-July-2005, 02:53 PM
I never would have known so many forumites (including the ladies on the door : Linda - we were the ones trying to cadge a free key to a room with a shower in to prepare for the Saturday evening!)
Ah.... remember you now, you should have told me you were forumites and I would have given you one of the lovely wristbands.

There may be others but all the ones below are for the Modern Jive market with daytime workshops and evening dances

There is Beach Boogie next, July 23rd to 30th Isle of Wight
16th-19th September 2005 Southport Jive Extravaganza.
21st - 24th October - BFG Scotland :clap:
28th to 31st October 2005 Rock Bottoms Weekend Isle of Wight
4th to 7th November 2005 Party Weekender in Weymouth
11th to 14th November 2005 Jive Spree Weekend

Purple Sparkler
4th-July-2005, 04:46 PM
Any progress on the DVD of the weekend, Minnie?

Minnie M
4th-July-2005, 04:56 PM
Any progress on the DVD of the weekend, Minnie?
You need to ask RobC, he did the filming

RobC
1st-August-2005, 12:25 PM
Any progress on the DVD of the weekend, Minnie?
The DVD is still a number of weeks away from being ready - got a lot of things on at the moment and I'm still recovering from the lack of sleep at Beach Boogie last week.

If anyone still wants to order a copy of the DVD from MJC9 in June, they should contact Annalisa @ Ceroc Surrey - see www.ceroc.org.uk for contact details. The DVD will contain a mixture of the evening cabarets and the teachers demoing the classes they taught.

I couldn't honestly tell you how much they are being sold for - I don't know myself, but they will be worth every penny for the Natalie and Yuval cabarets alone - they were awesome..... :worthy:

Did anyone mention that Natalie and Yuval are back in the UK and teaching a day of workshops in Fleet on Sat 20th Aug - and they will have another cabaret for the evening freestyle as well. :clap: