Reference – pro-am dance

For a few years, I took adult dance classes with a friend, and we reached a point where it was more of a social gathering and basically, there was no more dancing. At that time, I was given a voucher from a work colleague for one dance lesson with a professional dancer. My initial enthusiasm turned into fear, and my nervousness peaked when I was greeted at the door of the dance studio by “Cosi”, very young, very tall and very, very thin… This “Cosi” turned out to be a professional dancer Vítězslav Rázek, among others the Czech national champion in show dance, who surprised me with his humour, his empathy and his approach to total wood. In the very first lesson he told me that according to him anyone can learn to dance and that the most difficult step is the first one. This inspired me and we immediately arranged another lesson. And then another. Then we met regularly at the training once a week, after a while twice a week and now we see each other 2-3 times a week. And it’s been going on for three years now.

What is the result of all this effort? The realization that what looks so graceful and natural in the performances of professional dancers is the result of years of hard work and there is nothing natural about it at all. I’ve known for a long time that I’ll never look like a fairy on the dance floor, but I still can’t let it get to me. I check my posture in front of the bathroom mirror, rehearse steps in the hallway, and repeat routines as I fall asleep. I know that I’m fighting Alzheimer’s, that I’m keeping physically fit in a very enjoyable way, that I’ve met new friends in class who have brought a lot of joy to my life, and not just the dance life. I can now tell when I’ve made a mistake and why I made it, and I can tell when I’ve done it right. Because at that moment, you just fall in love with your partner, everything goes so smoothly, and suddenly you know you’re getting one step closer to that dream fairy. You just feel the dance.

And then there came a time when I decided and could afford to allow more time for myself, my own wants and needs. I decided to satisfy my hunger for dance and dance with a professional. To my surprise, I actually tracked down an experience voucher online for a six-hour lesson in a row, Star Dance style. It completely met my expectations and I arranged for more lessons.

Now in my sixth year, I have been fine-tuning my energy and perfecting my movement and posture with a dance master who has been dispensing his knowledge to me from the very beginning, step by step and drop by drop. He proved to me that he does it well when we won ProAm bronze together in all the individual standard dances in competition with other schools. The experience of dancing in competition was completely different to a normal lesson and all the more intense because it was really “live” and in the piece, in a beautiful dress, with matching hair and make-up.

Winning the competition can be the goal. But for me, the goal is to dance – the experience of dancing itself. I want to be able to get along on the floor with every dance partner, whether they are a layperson or a professional. The amazing thing is that my dance master respects my vision and doesn’t push me uncompromisingly into cramming and refining routines that we would later present to the jury and audience. In my case, he focuses on the basic principles of steps, movements, and leading in each dance, which, when executed correctly, will “single-handedly” guide me into every single element of any dance routine.