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14 | OHCC LIVING | AUGUST 2022 | When the dance troupe came back from our after-performance break, our teacher, Yvonne Jensen, started teaching us a Bob Fosse dance. It has been both fun and challenging. Fosse's inventive style of dancing won many Tonys for his productions, as well as several Oscars for their big-screen adaptations. His frequent use of props, signature moves, and provocative steps revolutionized the Broadway musical. Born in 1927, Fosse grew up in Vaudeville and began dancing professionally at the age of thirteen. By 1950, he was dancing on Broadway and on television variety shows. In 1954, he choreographed The Pajama Game, where his clever angular groupings of dancers and fresh stylistically exaggerated staging earned him his first Tony. Throughout his career, his dance numbers, many of which were sensual in nature, frequently featured props, including chairs, canes and bowler hats. His signature moves included turned out knees, the sideways shuffle, rolled shoulder and the famous splayed finger shaking "jazz hand." Fosse also utilized the spotlight to guide and manipulate audience attention. Throughout the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, Fosse choreographed and directed both stage musicals and feature films. He often chose to produce projects with darker and more-introspective themes, such as Cabaret and Chicago. In 1973, Fosse became the first person to win an Oscar, a Tony and an Emmy in the same year for Pippin. He continued to push the dancing world to be more inventive until his death in 1987. His productions are still produced today, and his style continues to challenge both professionals and amateurs like us to be bolder. If you missed our show Dancing Under the Big Top, it is now showing on OHCC TV and OHCC TV On Demand. It is the perfect time for you to join us in one or more of our classes. You can learn the elements of dance in a fun and easy atmosphere. If you are interested in tap or jazz, please contact us at ohccdancetroupe@gmail.com. If you are interested in Hawaiian dancing, please contact Valerie Thompson at valgene2@cox.net. If you are interested in belly dancing, please contact Sharon Lair at (760) 822-2670. And to join our new ballet class, please contact Diane Hillman at drdianehillman@icloud.com Ocean Hills Dance Troupe Ballroom Dance Our August dance will be on Fri., Aug. 12 in Abravanel Hall from 7:00 to 9:45 pm. We will dance to recorded music provided by our member DJ Tai Lien. We will be setting up for tables of eight. Checks are due by Fri., Aug. 5. Our monthly dances are on the second Friday of the month from 7 to 9:45 pm. (The times will vary for dinner dances.) The dance music is typically provided by a live band although we will be using recorded music for the next few months. The Ballroom Dance Club offers lessons each week on Wednesdays. Beginner lessons are at 2 pm and Intermediate lessons are at 3 pm. Cost is $10 for both members and non-members. Pay at the door (no reservations required, just come). Carrie Kloss, a champion dancer, and professional instructor, will provide the dance instruction. She is a Master Examiner for DVIDA Dance Vision. In August, we will start a series of lessons on Swing if there is enough of an interest to pay for the lessons. The Beginner lessons will feature East Coast Swing. The Intermediate lessons will feature West Coast Swing. East Coast Swing traces its roots to Lindy Hop (also called Jitterbug). It was originally danced in the 1920s and 1930s to big band music. In the 1940s it became a ballroom dance called Eastern Swing that eventually was changed to be called, East Coast Swing. It is a fun, upbeat, non-progressive dance that is characterized by its bounce, back break (rock step), and swing hip action. East Coast Swing is best suited to being danced to the 1950s rock and roll style of music. West Coast Swing also traces its roots to Lindy Hop although it evolved later than East Coast Swing in the 1940s. This was toward the end of the big band era when some dancers moved to smaller spaces and began dancing to slower blues music. West Coast Swing is smooth (no bounce) and is danced in a slot. It can be danced to a wide range of music including rhythm and blues, soul, and country western that have slower tempos that the East Coast Swing music. The Ballroom Dance Club has Practice Parties on Mondays, weekly in Abravanel Hall from 2:30 to 4:30 pm. Experienced OHCC dancers will review Wednesday's lessons and provide help upon request. You can practice your dancing to a variety of ballroom music. The party is FREE, just drop in. These parties are open to all residents of OHCC and guests of members. The annual membership in the Ballroom Dance Club is $10. With this membership, you will receive regular emails describing club activities as well as discounts for dances and lessons. To join, just drop your check off at the front desk. Indicate your email address(s) on the check.

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