Kiddies Latin dance

THERE is rhythm in nature.

Rhythm is, in fact, woven into the fabric of life. The cycle of night and day is a rhythm. The ebb and flow of tide is a rhythm. The sound from a rippling stream is a rhythm, so is the pitter-patter of rain.

There is rhythm everywhere if we care to listen. Even the high-pitch sound of cicadas and the singing of birds can be rhythms.

Ever notice how a baby seems to get very excited when he or she bangs a spoon against a plate? That’s the sign that even as a baby, we already have started to love rhythm.

Then as the baby grows a little bigger and able to stand, we can see that he or she sometimes would rock their body to the rhythm in music. That’s dancing in us humans at its earliest form. So, dancing is a form of rhythm.

We love rhythm. In fact, we all are born with an inherent liking for rhythm in that we have the urge to move our body to the sound of rhythm which is why we tap our feet when we hear music.

For Jennifer Chen, a dance instructor-choreographer and professional dancer of Beats Dance and Vocal Studio, our love to dance has created many dance forms and made dancing an art.

She was talking to thesundaypost while conducting the ‘Kiddies Latin Dance Workshop’ at the Old Court House during the What About Kuching (WAK) Festival recently.

On Latin dance specifically, Jennifer said there were some people who thought it was not suitable for children.

Disagreeing with such a notion, she pointed out that every kid could learn Latin dance as long as they had the interest.

According to her, the ‘Cha Cha’ is perhaps the best dance to introduce to children because of its simplicity. Usually, kids start off with this dance, followed by Samba, then Jive.

She noticed children, by nature, seemed to love these dances because the rhythm is fast and dynamic.

The youngsters could subsequently go into Paso Doble or Rumba, she added.

“Rumba is more of a passionate dance, normally for adults, but there’s nothing wrong for kids to learn Rumba, okay?”

Jennifer said although Latin dance was getting more popular, many people still did not know much about it.

The most popular style, she noted, is Salsa, one of the most entertaining and widely practised social dances in the world today because of its casual style.

“Others, among the most common Latin dance styles, are Cha Cha, Jive, Rumba, Samba, and Paso Doble.

“The Samba is known for requiring quick feet and high energy and can be performed individually or in pairs.”

A healthy activity

Jennifer believes dancing is beneficial for children because it’s a very healthy activity.

“Dancing is not only fun but also a good form of exercise,” she enthused.

Through regular dancing, she said, stamina and body flexibility could be developed, adding that dancing could even carve the physique into beautiful contours as well as improve posture and grace.

“Besides, children will enjoy it as a social activity. They can make new friends and learn the essence of teamwork and what cooperation is all about.

“There’s also this effect of gaining some form of self-esteem as accomplishing a series of moves to the rhythm of music can provide the feeling of gratification and build personal pride and confidence.”

Jennifer pointed that mastering the art dancing required a lot of perseverance and discipline.

“It takes hours of practice and focus to achieve some of the basic moves. In fact, by learning to dance, a person will develop a high sense of discipline.”

Stress reliever

Jennifer said from the articles she has read, dancing could help children in their studies because the physical activity helped to relieve stress.

“The discipline gained from dancing can also be applied to the pursuit of education,” she added.

Asked whether one has to be gifted to be become a professional dancer, Jennifer said: “Of course, if you have the natural talent, you can master a dance faster. But I believe with determination and passion, anyone can be a professional.

“The bottom line is don’t let the negative comments from others and your own negative thoughts stop you from doing what you love.”

On how early should a person start, she revealed in her class was a learner just three years old.

“As soon as a child can follow instructions, he or she can start dancing, she said, adding: “Well, everyone knows the benefit of starting young.”

Losing weight

According to Jennifer, there are some people who take up dancing to lose weight. She had a 70kg student who lost 15kg after just four months.

She welcomes people with different physical attributes and age to join her class, saying it’s fine as long as they have the interest.

On the risk of injuries, Jennifer said it would be not be true to say they never happened.

She noted that minor bruises or sprains were common in any form of dancing.

To prevent or reduce the occurrence of injury, she said it was necessary to warm up and cool down properly, adding that such a routine also applied to other sports.

On the costumes for the different types of dances, she said they were easily available online.

“For Latin dance costumes, there are a variety of styles, fabrics and decorations to choose from. Children are usually very excited to see all the lovely dresses. They love all of them and would look like they are having so much fun wearing them.”

Jennifer said she was actually quite surprised at the response to the workshop and there were seven new intakes on the first two days.

She said she did not expect to take in anyone since the workshop was just an exhibition or introduction of the studio to the public.

She said she was very encouraged by the good response as her dancing class started only in May last year. She thanked parents for enrolling their children.

Started at 16

Jennifer started dancing when she was 16. She just loves to dance, especially ballroom.

She said when she was young, her parents had sent her for many sporting activities such as swimming, tennis, badminton, drawing class, piano, and, of course, dancing.

She revealed that back then, these activities were quite a burden to her and she did not really like them.

Now she feels thankful to her parents for through their foresight, she has been able to develop the social skills, courage and confidence in meeting and interacting with people, not forgetting the knowledge gained from the exposure.

On how the Beats Dance and Vocal Studio came about, she said her best friend, Christine, who is a vocalist, had asked why not they opened a studio since she is a professional dancer while Christine can conduct vocal classes.

Jennifer mulled over the idea and decided it might be worth a try. So they went for it.

She admitted to having doubts at first but the enthusiasm and confidence of her best friend spurred her to take up the challenge — and she’s glad she did.

Jennifer said she was thankful to WAK for giving them opportunity to promote their dance studio.

She said she would participate in future WAK Festivals as it’s a good avenue to introduce Latin dances to the public.

She added that besides Latin dance class for children and adults, they also had sessions for fitness, hip hop, boxing, modern jazz, and belly dancing.

On her future plans, Jennifer said she had quite a few in mind, one of which is taking part in the Sarawak Dance Sport Championship to be organised by Sarawak Dance Sport Association next year.

She said she had never taken part in any competition before but this time around, she would give the matter some serious thought and also get her students to participate.