Letting rip to the rap
There’s a club in Paphos where even men can learn to dance
Strictly Come Dancing it isn’t. There’s no flurry of sequins and feathers, no perfectly coiffed hair. But it is sassy, loud and swinging.
Every Tuesday night, enthusiastic groups of dancers arrive at the Latin Hall in Paphos clad in a variety of costumes from proper ‘swing’ frocks to brightly coloured pucci pants or jeans.
The dancers have come to learn how to hip hop, jitterbug, rock‘n’roll – basically, how to jive. The night I visited, the selection of ‘swing out’ brothers and sisters ranged in age from twenty-somethings to pairs of quite elderly but sprightly retro swingers.
I went with Anne and Rupert Hearn, my two guest ‘jive virgins’ who had sportingly accepted an invitation to take a class. Jean Goodwin, the instructor, is a cross between a diminutive Joyce Grenfell and a mature Baby Spice. She combines syncopating hip movements with belting out clear instructions via her Madonna style voice mike. She may be small in stature, but she can certainly hold a class enthralled as she smoothly demonstrates nifty steps and turns that would have normal folk fracturing their coccyx. She leads a very talented, very cheerful class.
In Rupert’s case she was also miraculously instructive.
Rupert is the first to agree that he is not a natural force on the dance floor. Regardless of the beat or dance step, he has the tendency to swing into instant windmill mode, arms flaying, feet carving unintentional heel scoots. His moves are executed with savvy intention unfortunately coupled with a great deal of callow frenzy. As he ‘warmed’ up with wife Anne, it was immediately clear Jean had a huge challenge ahead.
Jive originated in the USA during the 1920s and 30s. It then faded out until it was revived by the trendy dance clubs of the 1970s, although many of the original steps had been incorporated into rock‘n’roll dance steps in the 1950s.
Jive uses a series of single and triple steps all to 4/4 time, four beats to the measure. Just as complex is the huge challenge of trying to remember all the different footwork patterns whilst smoothly executing sharp turns and using a variety of hand/arm movements. There’s also a lot of fast-twisting passes, and, before you can fully let rip to the rap, a deep and instinctive awareness is required so couples can speedily interlock both sets of arms without recourse to mutual strangulation.
Rupert is quite a tall chap. He also looks as fit as a butcher’s dog. The problem was more to do with re-educating his dubious belief that he – like all men – has been blessed from birth with great rhythm and balance.
On his first foray out onto the dance floor, rather than displaying an erotically throbbing torso ready to jive, he looked for the entire world as if suffering from a severe case of rickets.
His wife Anne, on the other hand, displayed a smooth natural dancing talent.
Unfortunately for her, this only came to light when all dancers were obliged to regularly change partners during the course of the evening. Obvious and deep trepidation was etched on faces of the ladies Rupert was then required to partner.
One fifty-something blonde retro rocker, having decided to take him in hand, soon made her excuses. She left the dance floor clutching the side of her neck after Rupert accidentally caught her in a high pressure arm lock instead of what’s known in the business as a fast release interlock turn.
As in so many styles of dancing, the key to jiving is to train the man, as he is the one who always takes the lead. By using a series of hand gestures he indicates to the lady what he is going to do next, and the music is designed to stimulate the man into getting out there on the floor to ‘cut a rug’.
Jean encourages her pupils to develop their own individual style, adding little twists and turns to each dance so the routines are never ever exactly the same each time. This more liberal approach suited Rupert who, under the tutelage of Jean, started to make some progress. The wind-milling ceased somewhat, and he started to look up from his feet and to feel the beat, without counting out loud.
Jean is keen to encourage more men to take up the dance, and her success with Rupert suggests more men should consider it.
The evening is also a bit of a social with a well-stocked bar and seats all around the dance floor for those dancers ‘pegged’ out pirouetting. All in all, it’s a really fun evening out, a sort of tea dance but with gin and jive – and a perfect way for folk to meet and make friends.
Cyprock Cyprus Modern Jive
Contact Jean on 99 866 271
www.cyprusmodernjive.com
