The song is by Matthew Fisher and is called “Ballroom For Ghosts”, at first we were expecting something perhaps a little more Disney than Debussy? But we were surprised- this is an elegant and moving bit of music that would be perfect for a riveting showcase should anyone take up the challenge! I’m sure Matthew Fisher would love to see it! So please take a listen- you won’t regret it.

Also, when Coral Gables announced their Valentine’s Party they dropped a good reminder of two major events coming up very soon!

Upcoming Arthur Murray Events!

Don’t forget about…

Fun-O-Rama – Orlando

Fun-O-Rama dance competition is just around the corner! This year’s Fun-O-Rama will be in Orlando, FL and will be hosted at the Hilton Orlando Hotel on February 24-25. If you’d like to find out more information on signing-up please call 305-444-6136!

And

World Dance-O-Rama NYC

Next Month is The World Dance-O-Rama and will be hosted in New York City at The Sheraton Manhattan! This is one of the largest competitions of the year and it will be between March 21-25.

We found a very charming blog written by Daniel J. Hogan, a writer, wine drinker, collector of old typewriters, adventurer and man who wears a very stylish eyepatch. It seems Mr. Hogan stepped into his ballroom dance class, expecting the usual assortment of samba, swing, jazz and what have you- but was instead greeted with a (perfectly dance-able!) big band version of both Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit and Van Halen’s classic cut JUMP from 1984.

Read his (hilarious) reaction here:  http://danieljhogan.com/home/2012/02/16/lets-dance-ii-the-dancening/

While there are a number of great Jazz versions of modern songs- we think Daneil’s melting-reaction might have been caused by the uncanny Paul Anka cover!

Country Western night at Arthur Murray Dance Studios of Etobicoke

Our friends at Arthur Murray Dance Studios of Etobicoke posted on Facebook last week reminding their followers of where their blog is located (http://arthurmurrayto.wordpress.com/). As followers we of course clicked the link to explore the wide world of Dance Lessons at Etobicoke!

How can we say it? Their blog is a wonderful example! There is so much to explore on that site- from updates on events and studio news to simple notes direct from the studio to their students. We just kept scrolling and truly learned the story of the dancers at Etobicoke!

So take a look- you won’t be disappointed!

 What can we say.  He’s a man made of almost steel with an almost steel head and can almost see through anything.  He can however see what we need to work on.  Students had a blast working with him one on one and in his workshop.  Have you ever witnessed a miracle in your life?  That’s what takes place during a lesson with a coach like Ron.  He not only astonished and amazed our students, but our staff as well.  We had a field day trying to understand the man known as Ron Christy.

They’re in for a great night of ballroom dancing and fun!

They’ve made a blog series out of this new venture and we invite you to stay tuned to Kenilworth’s weekly blog updates! They’re full of great tips, inspiration and rules for every type of social dancing.

Click here to see what they’ve come up with: http://arthurmurraynewjersey.com/category/blog/

ARTHUR MURRAY INTERNATIONAL CELEBRATES 100 YEARS OF TEACHING THE WORLD TO DANCE

Arthur Murray Dance Studios - 100 Years of Ballroom Dancing

CORAL GABLES, FL – February 1 ‐ 2012 marks 100 years since a shy young man named Arthur Murray stepped onto the dance floor and into the history of American pop culture. Known best for the iconic Arthur Murray Dance Studios, Arthur Murray was a brilliant marketer and innovator, starting his dance teaching career in 1912.

“Most people remember Arthur as an older gentleman smiling in grainy dance photo poses from the 1950s, many times accompanied by his wife Kathryn, a television celebrity in her own right.  But Arthur was a visionary,” said John Kimmins, President of Arthur Murray International. “Fueled by a passion for sharing  his  love  of  dance,  Murray  created  new  marketing  methods  and  embraced  the  latest  in technology and media to bring joy to millions.”

As a student in college, Arthur developed and marketed the idea of selling dance lessons one footstep at a time by mail.  During the 1920s, he arranged for the first live radio broadcast of dance music, with the help of a group of young engineering students from Georgia Tech, bringing live music to a rooftop party in downtown Atlanta.

Later, after developing his own dance studios, Arthur made sure that every first‐class steamship cruise included  dance  teachers  from  his  studio  system.  When  travelers  returned  home,  they  wanted  to continue their  dance  lessons, and relied on the familiar brand name to continue with their dance lessons.

Arthur was a dance impresario, travelling throughout the Caribbean and Latin America to bring Latin dances to America – still the most popular dances today.  At his direction, many Arthur Murray Dance events took place in Cuba so that the dance instructors would learn the Latin dances in as authentic a manner as possible.

In the 1950s, Arthur embraced television, still in its infancy, creating the celebrated Arthur Murray’s

Dance Party television show.  The show was a huge success, and ran for ten years on national television– enormously popular even by contemporary standards.   These hugely popular TV shows were the precursor to today’s ABC mega‐hit “Dancing with the Stars.”   Indeed, many of the Arthur Murray’s Dance Party shows had well known celebrities paired with dance professionals as dance contestants – voted on by judges and the TV viewing audience.  The Arthur Murray Dance Party is being updated, re‐ edited, and will be made public in the early spring of 2012.

In celebration of the 100th   anniversary of teaching the world to dance, Arthur Murray Dance Studios world‐wide will hold a variety of special events and dance competitions in the dance studios.

Larger events scheduled for 2012 include:

• March 21 – 25 ‐‐ World Dance‐O‐Rama ‐ New York City, NY
• April 4 – World‐wide 24 hour dance party to celebrate Arthur Murray’s Birthday
• April 11 – 14 ‐‐ International Franchise Convention – Miami Beach, FL
• October 31 – November 4 – Superama 2012 – Las Vegas, NV

For dance celebrations in your community, contact your local Arthur Murray Dance Studio, and as Kathryn Murray always said at the close of each TV episode, “Put a little fun in your life. Try Dancing.”

Arthur Murray Dance Studios are located in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Austria, Latvia, Ukraine, Poland, Italy, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, UAE, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa, United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia.  For more information about ballroom dance, visit the Arthur Murray International website at www.arthurmurray.com.

For  history,  photographs  from  the  historical  archives  of  Arthur  Murray  International  and  more information, visit www.100yearsofdance.com.

You can view the archive at Arthur Murray Federal Way’s Website!

Dear Hoda Kotb & Kathie Lee Gifford

c/o The Today Show, NBC

I’ve watched your show for many years and enjoyed it very much.  However, a few months ago, you had a segment featuring five women in different age groups (20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s).  The five women were talking about going after one’s dreams and passions at any age.  I thought:  how about after the 60s?  I took exception to this.  It was as if you were saying that no one past their 60s was worth knowing or listening to.

I am an 89 year old woman who has taken up ballroom dancing at ARTHUR MURRAYa little over a year ago and it has really become my passion.  I’m striving to become a good dancer without making allowances for my age.  Dancing has given me a new lease on life.  I’d hate to think what I would be doing now if I hadn’t gone after my new passion.  I know I would not feel as if I were getting younger all the time.

I am sending you a DVD [see clip in this article] showing my Solo Dance featuring my instructor, JOSH BECKET (28 years old) and myself dancing.  The music is titled “Sugar Mama” to show you I have a sense of humor.  The audience, as you’ll see/hear, went crazy.

Thank you for listening to me.

Goldie Levenstein

Valley Village, CA

Go get ‘em, Goldie!!