Level 1

Welcome to the new learners and how these courses work and support your weekly group classes

All of the Mambo Collective studio classes run to one or more 12 week syllabuses. Here’s the syllabus for the Level 0 Novice class

This week we start learning a whole new set of partnerwork and shines. The partnerwork requires more complex lead and follow technique but shouldn’t be too much of a jump up from the novice class.

The showcase this week is a performance by the Santo Rico Dance Company from New York.

Spiral Kick

Introduction to the Crucifix turn

Daily Practice – Slow/Medium

Daily Practice – Challenging

That’s it for the first week of the level 1 syllabus. Hopefully you will all find it challenging enough but not too challenging.

his week we look at leading the crucifix footwork with two hands.

This weeks dance showcase feature a UK, London born dancer, teacher and performer, Leon Rose

We introduce Spiral Tap

The second week based upon the core technique of the crucifix

This weeks daily practice at standard class speed.

This weeks daily practice at a challenging speed.

No one learns to dance by just coming to classes. You only ever really learn to dance at the socials. It’s a bit like only ever flying an aeroplane on your PC flight sim. Until you fly an aeroplane for real you never be able to call yourself a pilot.

This is the final week for the crucifix technique and we learn a third variation on the lead.

The third shine of the syllabus, Uptown, downtown.

The third and final variation of the crucifix lead that we teach in level 1. There’s a couple of variations on the “fluff” we add at the end just for variety.

Daily practice at standard class speed. Incorporates Spiral Kick, Spiral Tap and Uptown, downtown.

Daily practice at a more challenging speed. Incorporates Spiral Kick, Spiral Tap and Uptown, downtown.

Well, that’s the end of the crucifix … for now.

This week we start a new “mini” block on a new core technique, outside turn.

This weeks dance showcase highlights to dancers: Panagiotis Aglamisis from Greece and Edyta Czagowiec, a Polish dancer currently residing in Milan.

Braid Step

Introduction of outside (pivot) turn.

This weeks daily practice to standard class speed music incorporating the braid step

This weeks daily practice to more challenging, club speed speed music incorporating the braid step

This week sees the introduction of a new core technique, that of an outside pivot turn. We also have a dance showcase that highlights not just the technique of the lead but also how vital good technique in the follower is.

We continue with the core concept of outside pivot turns. We also have two new shines: Strut, for the men, Chord Beat Crossovers for the women.

This weeks showcase is one for the women. It features a very talented woman, Magna Gopal.

The Strut, whilst not exclusively a “mens” shine, we teach to the men at the same time as week teach Chord beat crossovers to the women.

hord beat crossovers is much more of a women’s shine due to the arm and body styling that’s usually done with it.

Outside turn, second variation on the lead.

A daily practice video for women. It integrates the Chord beat crossover shine and styling.

Daily practice at standard class speed

Daily practice video at a challenging speed.

We’ve learnt five new shines and we’re dancing to music we’d never have thought we could manage when we walked through the doors of our first novice class 3 or 4 months ago.

We’ve reached the halfway mark! Congratulations.

This weeks dance showcase isn’t just one dance, it’s a whole collection revolving around a single track.

Suzie Q Tap

Third and final outside turn variation

Daily practice video at standard class speed

Daily practice video at a challenging speed.

Well, there we have it, halfway through the level 1 syllabus.

This week we introduce the Copa and teach the first longer shine routine.

This weeks featured dancers are Mike Faya & Maureen Ortin.

A complete shine routine broken down. We’ll be working on this routine for the next 3 weeks.

Introduction the the Copa partnerwork. A breakdown of the basic footwork patterns for leaders and followers along with the basic lead variant.

The shine routine danced at a standard class speed. We’ll be increasing the practice speed with each week.

Why do we teach shines and why in the way we do?

Whilst we will go over last weeks shine routine again in a little detail it won’t be as much detail or as slow as last week.

This weeks dance showcase is a tribute to the one person who has and still is probably the most influential person on modern day Salsa in the World, Eddie Torres

This weeks footwork is a repeat of the previous weeks shine routine. We go over it in a little detail in class but we assume you’ve been practicing.

The second week of copa variations. The footowork for both leads and followers remains unchanged

This weeks daily practice is the shine routine to a medium tempo track.

Week 8, so that means many of you will have been dancing between 20 and 25 weeks. That’s not even 6 months. Look around at your next class and see how many people who started the level 1 class with you, let alone the novice class.

The third and final week of the current shine routine. Let’s blitz it.

This weeks dance showcase feature Adolfo Indacochea and Magna Gopal

No footwork video this week. Make sure you revise using the previous weeks videos.

Final copa variation for this level of class. Again the footwork doesn’t change for leader or followers.

This weeks daily practice is the current shine routine to music with a challenging tempo.

Why go to a congress?

Week 10 sees us learn a new shine routine along with the introduction of the broken left turn partnerwork.

I’ve chosen this weeks dance show case not because I think it’s an amazing social dance or performance but because it highlights a few points that we reiterate over and over again during classes.

This week sees us teach a new shine routine. Again it’s based on the shines we learnt in the first half of this level. We tear them apart and recombine pieces of them to create something a little longer.

This week we introduce the broken left or basic left turn partner work. We start with a detailed break down of the footwork pattern and then follow it with 3 or 4 of the basic leads for this footwork pattern.

The new shine routine drilled to standard class speed music.

Shines themselves are excellent tools for teaching and practicing a whole host of required dance techniques.

Week 11, nearly there, just a couple more weeks and you’ll have the second of our class syllabuses under your belts.

I’ve chosen this weeks dance showcase, not because it’s massively technical or phenominally musical. I’ve chose it because it’s two dancers enjoying the dance and the leader isn’t leading much we don’t actually teach in the level 1 classes.

No new footwork this week. We’ll be going through the shine routine from last week in a little detail at the class but we’re expecting you to have practiced it a few times since last week.

This weeks partner work builds on the basic broken left turn footwork and leads that we learned last week. If you need to go back to last weeks partner work and revise the footwork and basic leads.

Last weeks shine routine drilled to a mid-tempo track.

You don’t need to be a turn pattern monster or a million moves man for your partner to enjoy the dance. You just need to be confident with a few basics, lead them well, smile and look like you’re actually enjoying the dance with your partner.

You’ve made it. The final week of the level 1 syllabus

This weeks dance showcase highlights Adolfo Indacochea and his Latin Soul Dancers.

No new footwork this week. We’re just drilling the shine routine from the previous two weeks. Make sure you can dance it to all three speeds we’ve given in the practice videos and don’t just be happy with the standard speed.

We’ve made to the end. Those of you still here, well done. You should now have the foundations to take you as far as you want.