DIRTY DANCING by Kate Manson
from FitnessLife Magazine, Issue 19, July 2005.

Eighteen years may have slipped by but I still get shivers listening to that 80s classic (I’ve had) The Time of My Life. As the song picks up tempo from its lazy beginnings, the toe-tapper in me longs to be on a dance floor filled with twirling bodies, swirling skirts, and of course a fit young Patrick Swayze. It’s tragic, I know, but just cast your mind back to the time when that ultimate chic flick, Dirty Dancing, and its accompanying theme song were released. It was 1987. Going out dancing involved heading to some club and shaking your thing in the same general vicinity as your friends, boyfriend or the dodgy looking guy wearing pastel who’d bought you a Miami Cooler. You didn’t actually dance with anyone, just near them.

Sure it was fun, but there was no intimacy, no romance – and more to the point, there was no Patrick.

Dirty Dancing opened my eyes to a whole new – or rather old – way of dancing. Partner dancing with all its twirls and twists, spins and jiving looked like so much fun. Suddenly I wanted to be Jennifer Grey, the curly-headed actress who learned some pretty fancy moves from her light-footed leading man. However, it would be nearly two decades before I would attempt my first jive at Wellington’s Ceroc club run by Kiwi Mandy Britnell and her English husband, Adam Nathanson.

And arriving for a mid- week class at Wellington’s Performing Arts Centre, I discovered I’m not alone in wanting to learn how to really dance. There were around 90 people from all walks of life attending the Ceroc class. While the majority was in their 30’s, there was a good representation of people on either side of this age bracket. Mandy says during the term, a lot of students come along and numbers can jump to over 100. Ceroc dancing is becoming increasingly popular, not just in Wellington but there whole of New Zealand and around the world. Described as a funky partner dance generally done to chart, nightclub and swing music, Ceroc has its roots in French partner dancing. This in turn traces back to the US jive scene.

"While you’re dancing you use every part of your body, and you simply don’t stop moving."

During WWII, American GIs based in France introduced the jive and the jitterbug to the French dance world. A Franco spin was put on the American import and C’est Le Roc – which later became Ceroc – was born. Ceroc was brought to the UK in the 1980s by James Cronin, who had been introduced to the French dance style while visiting his grandmother in Normandy.

During the ‘90s, Ceroc franchises sprung up around the globe. Before long, people in places as far afield as the UK, Singapore, Dubai and New Zealand were taking up this type of dancing as a way to have a lot of fun and keep fit. Always after different way to stay in shape, I was looking forward to my first Ceroc experience. However, despite my earlier longings to be the Dirty Dancing girl, I was also a little apprehensive arriving for my first beginners’ class. I’d tried a Salsa class a few years ago and have to say in that instance, while the mind was more than willing; the feet were not so able. I needn’t have been worried. As Adam later said, Ceroc is the “dance of everyone, it’s an accessible form of dance that anyone can do.

The classes run by Adam and Mandy are well structured and Adam has that bone-dry English sense of humour that lends a certain comedy to the experience. The beginners’ classes are designed so that while initially challenging, the steps can be mastered in an evening. And so we began. As the clock struck 7pm Adam, dressed head to toe in black, took to a small podium at the front of the room to take us through some slow stretches and a bit of soft shoe shuffling to get us in the rhythm. Okay, so far so good. Once we were suitably warmed up we formed two snaking rows through the room, ‘ladies’ on side, ‘gentlemen’ opposite. Throughout the class we were never referred to as guys and girls, men and women, only ever ladies and gentlemen – I loved it. It was like being on the Strictly Dancing set. Each beginner’s class covers four routines, and believe me, that’s plenty to start off with.

Adam, who was joined by a female Ceroc teacher, slowly walked and talked the class through the first move, the Arm Jive. We then practised the move (sans music), to varying degrees of success. Next, all the ‘ladies’ were asked to move along to the next ‘gentleman’ and we repeated the scenario a couple more times before practising to music. The regular changing of partners was a great ice breaker. Before you know it you are introduced yourself to, and danced with, everyone in the room. It also ensures absolute beginners dance with those who have a bit more experience. Next up was the Slidebreak, which is a little more complicated than the Arm jive, and I have to say it presented me with quite a challenge. After we had practised this move a few more times, we combined it with the other moves. I kept getting horribly mixed up but found trying to get it right a blast. At this point, it should be mentioned that as a ‘lady’ I was getting off lightly. The ‘gentlemen’ always leads, so while it was still a challenge to get the routine right I always had a gallant partner leading the way. The last two moves, the Mans comb – a twisting, spinning combination – and finally the Wurlitzer were added into the mix. My first thought was, “You’ve go to be joking”, but after nearly an hour of going over and over the same moves they suddenly gelled.

Michelle, an experienced Ceroc dancer, is adamant anyone can master the dance. “I defy anyone to say, ‘I can’t do Ceroc’. It’s the kind of activity that anyone can do, it’s so accessible. It’s instant; after the first lesson you can feel good about it. And this, for me, is Ceroc’s selling point. Although I still have a lot to learn, after that first lesson I know that in the not too distant future, I will be cutting it on the dance floor. As the lesson progressed, Adam gave us helpful tips on spinning, how to get into the rhythm, and basically just how to relax and enjoy what we were doing. At the end of the session we were left to Freestyle – using the moves we’d just learnt, plus any other routines dancers had in their repertoire. And if you had any questions, needed a few tips or just wanted to practice with an experienced dancer, the Taxi Dancers were on hand. The Taxi Dancers are teachers or experienced dancers who are there to lend a helping hand where needed. And they are invaluable. Taxi Dancer Peter very kindly took me under his wing for the Freestyle dancing and had me spinning, Arm jiving, and Slidebreaking better than I could have believed possible an hour earlier. While the intermediate and advanced classes are in progress, a beginners’ review class is held. It’s a much smaller class and you have the chance to ask questions and go over the tricky stuff as often as you like.

"As well as being good for the body, Ceroc is also good for the spirit. Everyone I spoke to during class said they loved the French dance style because it made them feel so good"

Ceroc’s popularity lies in it being an activity that is fun, social and a fantastic way of getting and staying fit. In fact, the UK Heart Foundation and Weight Watchers recommend Ceroc as a way of getting into shape. Taxi Dancer Rochelle, who is part of the Wellington Ceroc team travelling to Auckland for the NZ International Ceroc Championships, says meeting people and making friends is a great part of the Ceroc scene. “I really enjoy the social side and the atmosphere is just awesome…when I walk out of here I just feel good,” she says. Mandy, who has been dancing for 10 years, says she saw immediate results when she took up Ceroc. “When I first started, I lost four kilos.” Judging by the lithe figure of the 37-year-old mother of two, Ceroc is a sure-fire way to maintain body form and strength. “I was back on the dance floor two weeks after giving birth,” she says. Mandy agrees that an evening of dancing is a great way to work out. “You’re dancing for three hours, from 8pn to 11pm…that’s close to running a marathon.” That’s not to say you have to be a marathon runner to dance Ceroc. Adam says the great thing about the dance style is that it’s an activity you can take at your own pace. “It is as aerobic as you want it to be,” he says.

The health benefits of Ceroc appear to be twofold. Firstly you get a good all-over workout. While you are dancing, you use every part of your body, and you simply don’t stop moving. And because the steps are relatively easy to master, even debutantes can get a good aerobic workout. As well as being good for the body, Ceroc is also good for the spirit. Everyone I spoke to during class said they loved the French dance style because it made them feel so good. I could see what they meant. At the end of the evening I, too, felt I’d had the time of my life.

END

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