First Party--Dancing on the New Floor!

The wait is over and the floor is glowing at our first party of 2016!  If you haven't stopped by yet, be sure to come out and dance on Saturday nights from 7-10pm--you're gonna love our new "make-over"!

First Party Night!

Marian and Michael

Jim and Pat

Jeff and Else and Friends

Lynn and Carla

Tammy with Bud and Diane

Old DJ--New DJ Booth!

Joanne and Nancy

We're ready to PARTY!!

The wait is over, and just like a woman who has a new dress to wear, our studio is ready to show off our new floor at a party!  The floor is beautiful, the studio is almost complete (excuse our dust!) but we are ready to show you what we've been working on this month.  Come and join us at our Saturday Open Public Dance party this weekend--the party is from 7-10pm on Saturday, January 30.  Our instructors--Jim, Mac and Justinas--will be there to dance host with all the ladies and admission is $15 per person.  We will have refreshments and and great music, and we know you will be delighted with the new improvements we have made.  A special invitation to all of our active students--FREE admission this weekend because you are all so supportive of us, and we want you to be here to share our joy.  So come one, come all to our Saturday ball--can't wait to see you!!

Sizzling Hot Dancing in Cuba!

Thelma Negley and Jim Clemens
at the Havana Dancesport Classic

There's nothing like getting the New Year off to a great start with some sizzlin' hot dancing!  Jim Clemens and Thelma Negley brought home top honors from their recent trip to Cuba for the Havana Dancesport Classic.  Here are a few quotes from Thelma recounting her trip to the island just south of our Florida border:

"I honestly never go to a comp hoping or expecting to win, but this time, I did hope that I would be the one to make history, and someday my grandchildren might tell their children that their Grammy won First Place in the first Ballroom competition in Cuba.
I am very proud to report that I danced in both bronze and silver categories, and I won First Place Top Bronze, Forst Place Top Silver and First Place Overall.  I also won two Multi-Dance Challenges and first and second place in four Scholarship challenges."

Well done, Thelma!  Thanks for being a great representative for Modern Steps and the U.S. in this first-time competition in Cuba.  Congratulations on your success from all of us!

Progress Report: Great Dancing Just Ahead!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks but we are almost there!  Our new dance floor is just about complete and we are so excited to show it to you!  And even though there are lots of memories that were attached to the old floor, we know that the memories are the people and the joy that we get from dancing.  Keep watching for more updates--you'll be the first to know when we are ready to add new memories to our studio!

New flooring delivered and ready

First leg of the installation process

The process begins and the beauty starts to shine

Getting closer to party time!

Merry Christmas from Modern Steps

We want to wish you and all our friends the merriest of Christmas wishes and blessings in the New Year!  2015 has been a wonderful year and we are so grateful to have been a part of your lives!

Come and and celebrate the end of a great year with us tomorrow at our final Open Public Dance Party of 2015!  It will be a great night of dancing and wonderful music, and we want to share it with you!  It will be our last night to celebrate before our big SURPRISE!!  We are installing a brand new dance floor to make your dance experience the best it can be!  But the flipside to that wonderful news is that our studio will be closed until the project is completed.  We are hopeful that it will only be a short time, but as many of you know, contractors and un-expected delays may postpone our re-opening.

Please watch for our email announcements in the next few weeks--we will try to keep you updated on our progress and will let you know as soon as our doors are open again for lessons and and Saturday night parties.  We will also post updates on our blog at http://modernstepspurrfecttimes.blogspot.com/ 

In the meantime, we hope to see you dancing at Row on Wednesday nights at 5:30pm, dancing to Manhatten Connection and Jerzey Boys and at Bill's Steak and Seafood on Fridays and Sundays.

Happy New Year from all of us at Modern Steps School of Dance!  May you enjoy nothing but the best in 2016!

Social Dancing at its Finest at Modern Steps

"So what are you doing on Saturday night?"  Sounds like a pickup line from a bad movie or it could be an invitation to join in a great social activity: ballroom dance.  Since the early 1900's what we call "ballroom" dance has been one of America's favorite pastimes and a great way to meet people.  And although the foxtrot may have been brand new in 1919, today it may be the "new" dance that you want to learn and there is no better place to practice than at Modern Steps School of Dance on Saturday nights from 7-10pm.  With all kinds of music to enjoy, our Saturday Night Public Dance party if a great way to beat those blues.  Whether you hook up with some old friends, or you meet some new faces, its a great way to get off the couch and have some fun.                                          

Dancing at Modern Steps on Saturday Nights

Glittering Gold Performances in Chicago

The Chicago Dancesport Challenge was the place to be last weekend and the Windy City was a perfect place for Lynn and Brenda Griebahn to shine as our Modern Steps amateur couple placed First in four divisions.  It may have been Halloween weekend, but there was nothing scary or frightening about their performances in the American Smooth Gold Divisions.  The USADance National Qualifying event was held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare and was a highly attended event, with many of the multi-dance divisions including more than 15 couples, and requiring quarter-finals.  The Griebahns placed first in the Senior 2 and Senior 3 Gold divisions, and also place first in the Senior 2 Silver division, taking first in all three dances.  They also placed first in the Senior 3 Bronze Standard, dancing the International Waltz and Quickstep.

      Unlike many pro-am competition, the USADance competitions are multi-dance events in specific age groups and proficiency levels.  Amateur couples, and teacher-student couples compete in the four dance divisions (American Smooth, American Rhythm, International Standard and International Latin).  Lower level proficiency divisions dance 2, 3 or 4 dances specific to the genre, and the Championship level (the highest proficiency level) includes 5 dances.
     In addition to the Smooth and Standard divisions, the Griebahns also danced in American Rhythm and were finalists in each age group.
     When asked why they compete, Brenda said, "Going to competition is a great way to meet other dancers in our age group who love to dance.  Meeting dancers from across the country has opened up a whole new world of ballroom for us."
    Divisions for Newcomers are available at every competition, and according to the latest information from USADance, worldwide the fastest growing group of ballroom dancers is the 45-65 year age group.  If you are interested in getting more information about local or national competitions, contact Tammy Clemens at Modern Steps School of Dance.