CLASS LEVELS | All Balboa Weekend |

BEGINNER

The Beginner level is for pure beginners and dancers that have some knowledge of, or are somewhat comfortable with, the basic, progressive forwards and backwards, scootches, paddle turns, come arounds, out and ins, and lollies. This will still be an informative level for the more seasoned beginner. Pure beginners don’t be afraid though, after all of these classes (and the nightly dances) you will be very comfortable with Balboa. Consider the All Balboa Weekend your immersion program!

*There will be a one hour guided practice session for beginner and intermediate dancers at the end of the day on both Friday and Saturday. These sessions will be staffed by experienced Balboa dancers and instructors. They will be ready to dance with you, give you feedback and address any questions or concerns you may have. Please take advantage of these guided practice times as many past beginner and intermediate students have found these sessions to be extremely helpful. See the schedule for exact times and locations.

INTERMEDIATE

The Intermediate level is for Balboa dancers that would like to work on improving the technique of their basic Balboa and Bal-Swing vocabulary. These moves include progressive forwards and backwards, crabwalks, scootches, paddle turns, come arounds, out and ins, lollies, throw outs and pop turns. By the end of the weekend you will have more than a few new moves in your tool box, be able to transition better between movements, feel better equipped on the social dance floor and be able to more easily dance at faster tempos.

INTERMEDIATE-ADVANCED

The Intermediate/Advanced level is for the Balboa dancer who is proficient in all of the basic Bal and Bal-Swing moves and can demonstrate any of these moves WITHOUT a partner. You frequently dance an entire song using balboa and feel comfortable dancing at any tempo up to 180 beats per minute. You have begun to learn simple footwork variations for both Bal and Bal-Swing and are eager to learn more. You are interested in finessing the flow in and between moves. You would like to understand musicality better and are hoping to have several new moves, ideas and concepts to take back home with you by the end of the weekend.

ADVANCED

The Advanced level is for Balboa dancers who really know their stuff. You can do everything mentioned in the lower level descriptions and you are fluent in way more than just the basics of Balboa and Bal-Swing. You know quite a few footwork and styling variations and you easily do them to songs of all tempos; including ones that are up to 200 beats per minute. You quickly learn new moves and have begun to make up your own moves and variations. You are starting to develop your own style. You find that other Bal dancers in your area come to you for guidance and maybe you are even teaching a little bit in your area. You have been to a few Balboa workshops before and probably a big Balboa event or two. Doing demonstrations or level tests doesn’t fluster you that much as you are fairly confident in your abilities.

Students who sign up to be considered for the Advanced or Advanced-Plus level are required to take part in a level placement on Friday morning. Students taking this 30-45 minute Friday morning assessment will be split into two levels at the completion of this class. If you have signed up for either of these levels in error you will be moved to the appropriate level at the end of the class. It is NOT recommended that you sign up for this level if it is above your current knowledge and abilities.

Please do not assume that if you have been placed in the Advanced level in years’ past that it will happen again this year. Each year is unique, so please do not consider it a demotion if you are placed in a lower level than previous years. The levels are decided based on the overall level of the attendees each year. The love of Balboa is growing rapidly around the World and so is the overall ability of Balboa dancers—and that is a wonderful thing! See Level Placement for more information.

ADVANCED-PLUS

The Advanced-Plus level is for the very well-seasoned Balboa dancer. You can do everything mentioned in the lower level descriptions and probably demonstrate both the leaders and followers roles without a partner. (You may be asked to do this in the level placement on Friday morning, so be ready.) You definitely have your own distinct style when you dance. You look and feel good dancing Bal to songs of all tempos; including ones that are up to 220+ beats per minute. You quickly learn new figures and easily think of variations on entrances, exits, footwork and other adaptations of the figures. You are a key player in your local Balboa scene and you teach Balboa classes regularly both in your home scene and out of town as well. You are a familiar face at many national and international Balboa events. You are often seen dancing up a storm on both the social and competitive dance floor. Level tests are no big deal to you as you relish the thought of showing off your great technique, partnering skills, finesse and musicality in front of others.

MASTERS

The Masters level is by invitation only.

Mandatory Level Placement for Advanced and Advanced-Plus Levels

This will ensure the accuracy of our class levels and will evenly distribute the students that have registered for classes at the weekend. On Friday at 9:30am there will be a mandatory level placement for anyone who signed up for the Advanced or Advanced-Plus level. If you fail to attend this mandatory level test then you may not be placed in the level you have selected during registration.

Level Placement (Advanced & Advanced-Plus only):

Students wishing to be considered for the Advanced and Advanced-Plus level will participate in the level test lasting which will last at least 30 minutes on Friday morning starting at 9:30 am. This class will be held in the main ballroom.

Each student will be given a number to wear during the entirety of this class. Numbers will be given prior to the start of the level placement. Registration opens at 5pm on Thursday and 9am on Friday. If you are not on the student roster for the Advanced or Advanced-Plus level you may not participate in the level test without approval. This level placement will begin promptly at 9:30am on Friday morning. It is highly recommended that you check in at the registration table on Thursday afternoon or evening if you plan on doing the level test. By doing this you will avoid the line at the registration table on Friday morning. Arriving on time is late. Arriving early is on time.

Students will be arranged with random partners. Students without partners will be placed as evenly as possible within the rotation. Instructors will show a portion of a sequence of moves. Students will be given a few opportunities to demonstrate what they have just been shown. Partners will be rotated and the same sequence will be shown again. Students will be given a few more opportunities to demonstrate what they have just been shown. Partners will be rotated and a new short sequence will be shown by a different set of instructors and the process will be repeated. At the completion of the level test students will be placed in the appropriate level with others of the level. If you have signed up for either of these levels in error you will be moved to the appropriate level at the end of the level test. Please so not sign up for the level test if it is above your current knowledge and abilities. The dancers in the Advanced and Advanced-Plus levels are highly skilled and dedicated Balboa dancers and competitors from all over the U.S and the world.

Instructors will be conducting a make-up Level Test during the lunch break on Friday. New and different material will be taught at this class and students will be given less time to learn and demonstrate this material. It will benefit students to take the level placement on Friday morning as they will have more time to learn the material than in the Friday afternoon make up session.