Who, Me?
07.10.07

For those of you that figure you are as good as your going to get, just ignore this. For the rest of us, let me set this question in your head; "How much info can you retain from a group workshop?"
 
There is no absolute right answer. The only answer that you do not want to ever have in these classes is "Nothing"
 
I have heard many students complain about not being able to do this particular workshop or that specific pattern. It is too much info is something we here frequently as well.
 
Here is my philosophy on classes and workshops since I started dancing. In the hour that I invest in these lessons, I want to find at least one idea that I can embrace and make my own. Not a pattern, amalgamation or sequence, but an idea.
 
If the instructor is worth the time to listen to, he or she is going to give you a key. That key unlocks a door to a new aspect of dance that you may not have even been aware of. Whether it relates to how to execute a particular pattern, how the material relates to the music or how to adjust your body flight and center to make something easier to do, these examples are what you are really after.
 
Grasping the underlying technique is so much more important than the pattern that is used to illustrate the idea. I have seen so many students take one move from a class, never realizing that the technique under it unlocks the doors to so many more.
 
If you can retain just one idea from a class, it will have been worth your time and money. Getting two little gems makes your time and energy even more valuable. Three nuggets means you got one incredible lesson.
 
Remember the old saw about giving someone a fish and feeding them for a day? Learn a pattern and you get a short term return on a class. Learn a technique and gain so much more in your dancing.