Jose Garafalo March 2024

All steps move the center of gravity: pay attention to this. Three styles of step:

Maintain axis at all times.

Maintain the space we are dancing in with the arms.

Maintain the flow around the dance floor. In Portland, there is insufficient flow.

Basic step is side - cross in front - side - cross in back. Here the steps are in a line, and without pivoting, and with all the steps about the same size. The leader is facing out, the follow facing in. Move in line of dance.

Next, on the leader front step, the follow does a giro while the leader does an enrosque. The leaders feet should be far enough apart so they don’t bump. The leader takes a forward cross on the follow’s 5th step, a back step: thus this can repeat.

Next, after a side step, the leader reverses and does a back step with R foot, tucking it behind. The follow steps side, front, side, back as the leader enrosques. Since the leader is taking a back step, this should start after leader’s front - side.

Jose did not demonstrate this, but it should be possible for the leader to do the giro and the follow the enrosque. The first one, without reversing direction, would start with the leader’s back step, the follow’s front step. The second one, reversing direction, would start after a side step: this should start after the follows front - side steps.

Practice standing on one foot and projecting, circling, and other ornaments with the other. Move the free leg at the hip, using the hip muscles. Keep the ball of the big toe on the floor. Try out different positions for front and back cross.

Now, take a step, ornament, take a step, ornament.

With a partner, one person gets to ornament at a time. Practice signalling "go ahead and ornament", "lets take a step soon", "it’s my turn to ornament", "I’m done".

As an exercise, take one step between ornaments, taking turns doing ornaments.

Close embrace has the connection between center of gravity, as in stomachs touching. We can roll to do back paradas, giros, etc. This is possible without arms.

Review belly connection. Walk with this embrace. Hands are both on partner’s lower back: later try an embrace.

Walking, we can get thigh connection and even foot connection. With foot connection we can get barridas.

Giros are easiest by stepping back: follow takes side-front-side.

If the follow pivots to back, leader can sacada the back step. Then roll front-side-back to sacada on the other side. Ganchos also work.

I am unsure how to lead enough of a pivot to get an easy sacada.

Giros also work starting with follow back-side-forward, but this is more difficult. Perhaps this is because the leaders forward step is on the outside and needs a lot of contrabody rotation.

Linear sacadas: