Ballroom Blitz #030

Video

youtu.be/tvpWaERkEss

Transcript

Ian: Hey random dancer on the internet. My name's Ian,

Lindsey: and my name's Lindsey,

Ian & Lindsey: and this is a Ballroom Blitz.

Lindsey: Hello blitzers, today we're looking at a [Slow] Foxtrot figure and it's an absolute classic; it's the reverse turn incorporating feather finish.

Now this move has some absolute staples that come up in the Foxtrot Rhythm. For starters it has a heel turn, that's performed by the follower, and then at the end it is taking us into a feather position.

Now, if you want to study up on what exactly the Heel Turn is, what we have to do to lead and to perform one of those we've made a video of that you'll find it in the description underneath.

Also we have had a look not at the Feather Finish but at the Feather Step and that's got some important information in there again the link is down below.

[Demonstration without music]

Lindsey: As the name reverse turn suggests this figure turns to the left. First the leader drives forward on the left creating that turn anti-clockwise and then halfway through the follower follow suit.

Ian: Leaders, we're going to commence the figure facing roughly Diagonal Center ready to go forward driving on our left foot, putting the follower into their heel turn.

So, we're going to drive forward, move around the follow into the heel turn, stepping back in the stock standard classic exit. Straight back, taking that second quick and settling in; this sets up for the follows drive step.

[The] follows are now going to drive forward we are going to let them and then move into our feathered position to create our feather finish, and of course because we don't want to end here with feathered feet and offer quick, we're going to add one more settling slow into whatever we put next.

So with counts we would have:

[Demonstration of leaders steps]

Lindsey: We are in a closed position when we start this figure so, as the leader comes forward on the left followers we want to go backwards on the right. And because we have a Heel Turn to perform then we'll feel that being led by the leader steps sort of stepping past us and keeping us on our foot.

Wherever our heel lands on that first backward step that's where we will be performing our Heel Turn so we have: backwards on the right, heel turn and we change weight at this point onto our left foot so we can step out of our Heel Turn forwards on the right foot.

That's just a toe step, it shouldn't go terribly far but it should set up the direction of our next drive. As promised that's on our left foot to keep us turning to the left so we have a drive forward on the left, the leaders will then take over again we'll feel ourselves taken to the side, put into a feathered position, so we'll be crossed in the legs there and then it will finish with a slow once more will be going backwards on our right foot.

So we have:

[Demonstration of the followers steps]

Lindsey: Performing heel steps and turns and feathers isn't always the easiest but there's a few things that can help us keep our balance and keep together and get a nice smooth action.

The first one is for the followers to really try to just take that initial step and then close their feet, we don't really want to help with the turn by sort of jerking our frame or our shoulder or our head around it's for the leaders second step that we don't have that sort of swings us around into position. So, if we can take a back seat on that one and just try and keep nice and upright keep our own balance over our heel that is for the best.

Leaders when you get to your backward steps after that, again you kind of want your balance and to have a back seat that's for the followers to take their forward steps at you so they should sort of be setting the length of step at that point.

And with the feather finish as with any other feather step one or other of us in most cases and in this case the leader is stepping past their partner, that doesn't mean that we come off the hip we should still be in a nice close position right hip to right hip. It's the angle and the turn that allows that step to come past the followers rather than at them.

So, what we have is: the leaders drive and I'm just going to close my feet there Ian then goes to sleep I take my forward work he takes over again and we're through.

So, from this angle you should see at the end when we do our feather we're still nice and close on the hip, we haven't come apart.

[Demonstration with counts]

[Demonstration with music]

And that is it for the Reverse Turn Incorporating Feather Finish in the Slow Foxtrot. So, have a go, keep it smooth and we'll see you next time.