Wandering And Dancing, NYC

Yesterday I did a little dancing at Steps on Broadway on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

 The first time I went there the entrance eluded me. I thought I was going crazy.

With Fairway‘s fruits and vegetables filling up most of the block. it is not surprising.  Marked with 2121, but set back a little, it appears to be a delivery entrance, but it’s not. 

Take the elevator or walk to the third floor and enter Dance Heaven.

Immediately, there is energy, movement, and music.  Dancers in all stages of dress and undress sprawl in  hallways, stretching limbs, waiting for classes to begin or recovering from ones just completed.

I am right at home in the dance studio with its hardwood floors and smooth surfaces,  mirrors, and ballet barres .

Dancing since the age of 8, I have never stopped. Styles, steps, and rhythms have changed, but my love for the dance has deepened over the years.

Less technical, I have become more expressive, sacrificing the big fancy move for the emotion.

With multiple classes on two levels, starting at 10 AM and going into the evening, 7 days a week, there are always too many choices at Steps. On any given day there might be a dozen or more each of tap, and ballet, in addition to various other tempting choices like contemporary, jazz, hip hop, and theater dance.

To maximize my infrequent NYC dance days,  I take two classes back to back. Today it’s  an Advanced Beginner Contemporary Jazz class followed by Advanced Beginner Tap.

Tap is one of my main interests these days. As I kid I took classes, then returned to the dance some years ago when I was a teacher directing and choreographing my school’s production of “42^nd Street.”

Amazingly, 20 years later, it is all coming back to me.

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 The jazz class was decent but uninspiring.  About 3 times as old as many of the students, I was fine in the warm up, which lasted a full hour. The choreography was okay until we started to go down on the floor and that’s when I took my leave to get ready for the tap class, the main event.

I like to be inspired.

With a more diverse population, tap was way more exciting. Gotta give  cudos to the “senior” member of the class, pushing 90, who, wearing her “Keep on Moving” tee shirt, held her own. I want to be her when I’m in my 80’s!!

Inspiring us with great jazz and challenging rhythms, instructor and performer Lynne Schwab sees and hears all mistakes and cares enough to take time to help students improve.

I love a good teacher.

Full of endorphins, I hopped on the subway at 72^nd Street for the first leg of my journey back to the Bolt which brought me home to Philly. While waiting for my next connection at 59th Street, I happen upon this tapper. Sweet!

There is always more dancing!