Workshops with the Wheelers!!

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Save the Date! Brad and Sarah Wheeler will be teaching a day of workshops on July 12, 2014.

The schedule will be as follows:
2:30-3:30pm- Move it like you mean it
4-5pm- Blend it, Bend it, Send it
5-7pm- Dinner break
7-8pm- Kick it up a notch
8-11pm- Dance

Pricing
$40/$25 for entire day by July 5
$45/$30 After July 5
OR
$15/$10 per workshop
$10/$8 for the dance only
*Make all checks out to Kathryn Mazaitis
** To schedule private lessons please email Lauren Stoffer at PGHWCS@gmail.com

2241_1087453072440_8452_n Brad and Sarah are accomplished dance competitors on the national WCS circuit, and passionate dance instructors that have taught at national and international venues. They first met in a dance class and quickly became dance partners, which eventually led to them becoming life-long partners as well. You can now find them placing in competitions from Boston to San Francisco, and teaching in locations as distant as Madrid, Spain (enseñamos lecciones en español también). As instructors Brad and Sarah are known for their engaging style that makes advanced WCS concepts accessible to many levels of dancers, and for helping others develop their own unique dancing style.

Kris and Rebecca in Pittsburgh!!

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On March 22nd, Rebecca Ludwick and Kris Swearingen will teach workshops, followed by a dance party. Here are the details.
12-1pm: “Catch and Release”
1:30-2:30: “Call and Response”
8-9: “Delicious Patterns”

9-11: Dance party. Something really special – Kris and Rebecca will dance their newest routine for us. If you haven’t seen their routines live, check out this link. They are amazing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxmgUQfnHj0

Cost is $20 for each workshop or $50 for all three. The dance is free for workshop participants, or $10 otherwise. Student discounts are available. Paying at the door is fine.

Kris and Rebecca will teach private lessons throughout the weekend. If you’d like a lesson, email Lauren at ljs5020@gmail.com. You won’t believe how much a private lesson will do for your dancing.

KRdance

Let’s welcome Tessa back to Pittsburgh!

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Tessa is coming to Pittsburgh! She will be here January 7th, and she will teach our group classes that night. The 7:30 class will focus on technique, and the 8:15 class will focus on patterns and styling.

Tessa is available for private lessons Wednesday evening, and during the day Tuesday and Wednesday. The cost of a private is $90 (which is a $10 discount from her usual rate!!) and in addition, there will be a $15 floor fee. To book a private, email lauren@pghwcs.com

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If you haven’t encountered Tessa yet, you’re in for a treat. Tessa Cunningham-Munroe is one of the very best West Coast Swing dancers there is. She and Myles just placed 2nd in the Showcase division at this year’s US Open. If you haven’t seen their video yet, you should check it out. It’s amazing. We’re thrilled Tessa will be making her third trip to Pittsburgh to teach us.

Tessa has a natural kinesthetic ability and musical sense which she used in her youth through sports and music. She coached competitive swimming and designed, published and lead coach training programs since the age of 15. She discovered her talent for dance after university and quickly made up for lost time with an intense learning curve. She has 2 Bachelors degrees: one in Kinesiology which gives her a deep technical understanding of body movement, and one in Education which enables her to breakdown and explain those movements to learners of all abilities and tendencies. As a result of her academic training and extensive diverse experience, Tessa is an advocate of progressive skill learning, which is reflected in her group classes, workshops, private lessons, dvds, and written instructional materials.

Thank You!!

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A big thanks to Chris and Melissa Moy for coming out this past weekend to teach workshops!!! We truly enjoyed the weekend!!!!

Also, another huge thank you to Ben McHenry for your amazing workshop weekend this month! We are so glad you came!!!

Chris and Melissa Moy invade PghWCS!!

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Chris and Melissa Moy will be in town teaching workshops on Saturday, September 21st. They will also be teaching privates the morning of the workshops as well as Sunday afternoon. To book a private, email Lauren at lauren@pghwcs.com.

Check out a video of Melissa and Chris!

Satuday, September 21st workshops:
2pm-3pm Let the Music Move You: Musicality techniques for all levels (requires only familiarity with basic patterns: basic whip, push break, left side & right side pass.)
Regular:$15 Student: $10

3pm-4pm Breaking Out of the Slot: Dimension & Level changes for the rebel dancer (requires familiarity with basic patterns: basic whip, push break, left side & right side pass.) Regular:$15 Student: $10

8pm-9pm Jump-start Your Basics: supercharge your basics with added body movement and flair (for all dancers) Regular:$15 Student: $10

9pm-11pm Dance Regular:$10 Student: $8

Bundle:
All 3 workshops + dance Regular:$40 Student: $25
Did you take a Ben McHenry workshop? $5 off!

Known for their entertaining style and emotionally captivating musicality, Chris and Melissa Moy are premier West Coast Swing Dance Instructors in the Ann Arbor and Metro Detroit area. They offer a unique teaching experience focused on technique, purposeful practice and fun all while adapting their instruction technique to each student and fostering each dancer’s unique style. Melissa and Chris enjoy coaching competitors as much as they enjoy teaching beginners and offer a wide variety of learning experiences. As two of the original members of the Ann Arbor Swing Society, they are enthusiastic about competing, teaching, traveling and dancing with one of Michigan’s newest WCS clubs.

Ben McHenry in the Burgh!

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Ben is internationally recognized as a professional dancer, teacher, and event promoter.
He will be here the weekend of September 6th, to teach workshops and private lessons.
Here’s the schedule:
~ Friday September 6th, 8-9 pm
Ben will teach a group lesson before the our “first Friday” dance. The class is called “How to create patterns you haven’t even thought of yet.” Then, the dance is from 9-11. Ben and Stephanie will dance a demo for us – you don’t want to miss this! As usual, $10 for the evening, $8 for students.
~Saturday September 7th – Workshops
1:30-3:00 pm: “Tangible Musicality”
3:15-4:45 pm: “Physical vs visual connection”
5:00-6:30 pm: “Making people want to dance with you more”
$20 per workshop, or $50 for all three. For students – $15 per workshop or $35 for all three.
You can register by cash, or check made out to Katie Mazaitis. Paying at the door is fine too. Click here to download the registration form.
Saturday evening from 8-10 pm the ballroom will be open for us to practice what we learned and to socialize with Ben. Free for workshop attendees, $5 otherwise. Thanks Beth!!!
~Sunday September 8th – Private lessons
Ben is offering us a great discount on his private lesson rate. For us, his rate will be $80. There is also a $15 floor fee. He offers a student discount – inquire when you register. Please email lauren@pghwcs.com to book your private. Book soon – his day will fill up.

Doug and Lori Rousar in Pittsburgh!

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We are so excited to have Doug and Lori Rousar come to teach at PghWCS this month!!

When:
~ They will be here on Saturday, June 15, 2013

What:
~ Both Doug and Lori will be teaching private lessons during the day so make sure to schedule early!!

~ They will be teaching a workshop on Saturday from 8-9pm and then will be dancing with us from 9-11pm!!

To book a private, contact frank@pghwcs.com 

Check out their video from Spotlight, 2012.

Doug was born and raised in Wisconsin and spent most of his life there until recently moving to Ohio to be with the love of his life. He has an extensive background in musical theater having held the position of Director, Choreographer, Conductor and Producer for many productions.  Doug’s formal training in dance started when he stumbled upon West Coast Swing in 2001.  Since then he has won numerous titles across the country, including US Open Champion.  He taught many forms of dance full time from 2005 to 2011, including ECCS, Hustle, Salsa, Night Club 2, Country 2 and of course West Coast Swing.  He continues to travel on average 40 weekends a year now teaching with his beautiful wife, Lori. They try to spread the message in dance that if it’s not fun, it’s not worth it. In addition to teaching, Doug and Lori host 2 major events a year (Spotlight New Years and Michigan Classic) and also organizes and runs a dance cruise.

Lori was born and raised in Ohio.  She began dancing and competing at country events in 1998.  After a few years, she changed her focus to West Coast Swing and Hustle.   Currently Lori competes at the All-Star level in West Coast Swing and travels the country on average 40 weekends a year teaching with her husband. She truly loves the social aspect of dance and is grateful for the wonderful people it has brought into her life.

Such amazing things happing in PghWCS…

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Wow!! May was such a great month for PghWCS!!!

Firstly, we had the ever so fabulous pro’s, Myles and Tessa Munroe in from Canada for an entire week!! Not only did they teach private lessons, they also taught our Tuesday night classes. Needless to say it was an amazing week! Thank you Myles and Tessa for coming to Pittsburgh! You gave us so many wonderful things to work on that will help to improve our dancing as a whole community!!

Secondly, we had the phenomenal Leify Green in to play a set for us!! What a treat!! Leif is well known in the WCS circuit for his live music consisting of not only covers, but also songs that he has written based on his travels and life experiences. His music makes for some amazing dancing!! If you missed him this time… he is rumored to be back at some point this year… stay tuned!

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Leify with our very own rock star, Victoria!

Myles and Tessa are Coming to PghWCS!!!!

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When:
~They will be giving private lessons from May 20th- May 23rd
~They will be taking over group classes on May 21st

Private and Group lessons:
~Both Myles and Tessa can teach 1 to 2 students a lesson
~If you book them together, they will teach up to 4 at a time. (If you aren’t yet acquainted with private lessons, this may be a good way to try it out)

To book a private, contact lauren@pghwcs.com

Cost:
~We are getting a discount on lessons! $90 instead of their usual rate!!
~To take a private with both of them, the rate is $180 (or $45 each if you have 4 people in your group).
~There’s a $15 floor fee that is paid to Absolute Ballroom  for your private.

To see their amazing dancing, check out their latest showcase routine from the 2012 US Open

Myles and Tessa tour internationally, teaching, competing, performing, coaching, and judging at dance events all over the world. They are globally ranked top 5 in the world, according to the World Swing Dance Council (WSDC) and National Association of Swing Dance Events (NASDE).
To learn more about Tessa and Myles, go to www.canadianswingchampions.com