Saturday, June 28, 2014

Baby Back Volcadas with NO Pivot Ochos (Intermediate)

Song: Gato by Edgardo Donato
Instructors: Homer & Cristina Ladas
http://theorganictangoschool.org/
May 26, 2014, Ardingly College, England





We began with a warm-up dance doing back ochos in close embrace. 

We refined the Follower’s no pivot ocho.  Ochos do not pivot because there is no chest rotation from the Leader.

Exercise:
Leader’s rollerblading footwork: he does not turn his spine, and walks side to side into the center of the circle, keeping his chest square and collecting at every step.

Follower’s no pivot ocho footwork: her hips are open, and she reaches across, behind her self, transfers the weight and collects. She should not fall back in her steps.

Exercise:
In partnership, we did baby back ochos together, with Leader focusing on his rollerblading footwork and not pivoting in his spine, an the Follower being very clean in her footwork and not falling back and not pivoting in her feet while she reaches back across herself.

Follower: 
The perfect step is when the heel goes down. If her step is too long, the heel won’t go down because the Leader is too far away.  If this is the case, she should make a shorter step.  She can create extension by reaching without a bent knee.  Resistance starts on the standing leg.  The other leg takes resistance as the weight transfers.

Leader:
Needs to collect with thighs touching, with ankles touching in between step as if “I have to pee”.

Exercise:
In partnership, we were still to do the no pivot ochos, but we also add double-time ochos. So we would do S-S-S and then add Q-Q-S.

In single time, we should collect in between each step.
In double time, the Leader does not have time to collect in between each step
The Follower should have tone in her inner thighs.
Followers: When wearing heels, be aware of how your whole foot is connected to your leg.  Have an active turnout.

Exercise:
The Leader leads the Follower to hook behind on the easy side (the Follower’s right foot hooks behind the left foot).  The Leader leads this because his right foot does not pass his left foot.  Then he exits by walking forward with his left foot at the close of the embrace.

The Follower’s weight is on her right foot, and she articulates the left foot to get out.  The Leader can hug the Follower a little bit more during her hook behind.  The Leader should be as even as possible in his footwork, rollerblading equally.

We experimented doing multiple hooks behind.

The Follower’s crosses need to be deep enough and tight enough otherwise she will move the couple through space.

Exercise:
Cross behind while walking forward.  Here, the top of the thighs always come together, and the feet are in an A shape.  The Hook Behind is a “cross behind weight change”.  The lead is just side to side, a slight shift in weight, with minimum side to side movement. 

The Leader’s lungs fill with air, so he has naturally compression.

In the psychology of Following the close embrace ochos, the Follower should collect faster but reach slower.

The Baby Back Volcada
The farther back the Leader leaves his right foot back, the more the Leader can take her back.
The Follower hugs the Leader more and gives him compression and suspension energy.
The dancers legs are close when the Leader exits.
The Follower falls a little bit more than her usual A embrace.

Follower: Be aware of her free leg.  She can do adornos and express the music (doing little lapices) as she decides the shape of her free leg.

Leaders: Hug and lift
Followers: As if getting out of a pool, push down to lift yourself up and have compression in the embrace.

Maestros conclude with a class quiz and a demo to Donato’s Gato.

Notes courtesy of Anne at http://scoutingtour.blogspot.com

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