Class:
- Discuss positions and tone.
- Stay parallel to your partner when you cha cha.
- Teach "L-shaped" pattern that combines cha cha basic to the side with cha cha basic forward and back.
- (teach cha cha walk, teach basic with rock on either foot, keep arms level and rounded forward. Soften the knees, and don't bounce the shoulders.
Starting the Cha Cha: You can start the Cha Cha on either count 2 or count 1. Get everyone to clap on count 2.)
- Teach how to start the cha cha on count 2 with the man stepping forward and the lady stepping back.
- Teach how to start cha cha on count 1 into the basic to the side or into the basic forward and back.
Cha Cha Side Basic
- Closed basic to the side (Z pattern)
(Half basic vs. Full basic)
- swivels: crossover break → hold both hands on 4-and- → both man and lady swivel on counts 1, 2, 3 (remember to track the feet) → regular footwork 4-and-1 → crossover break 2, 3 → repeat
- open promenade
- closed promenade
- Each partner is at a 45º angle and partners are slightly apart. The man's right hand can hold the lady's side to keep her from turning.
- (explain difference between side breaks and back breaks)
- cross backs w/body turn and brace
- cross backs w/o body turn
- advanced side breaks: crossover break, switch hands to a loose handshake hold, and reach behind her with the other arm (keep outstretched arm level)
- passing hand change: switch to handshake position → open break → the man pulls her to his side while he passes behind her and goes to the opposite side (as the man passes her he lets his opposite hand slide down her opposite shoulder to switch the hands) → repeat the passing hand change 3 times
- While still in closed position, the guy should lead the lady into the cha cha basic forward and back → then while maintaining the rhythm, gradually let go of her until you are doing the cha cha apart.
Cha Cha Progressive Basic
- The Cha Cha progressive (forward and back) basic can be combined with a variety of holds including the Ballroom hold, left hand hold, right hand hold, "No hand" hold, hands-together hold, and more.
- Apart Position
- Recapture the lady into closed
- Transition back to the side basic
- Can include a spot turn for the lady
Cuban motion
- Cuban motion: step on the ball of the foot and lower to the flat on every step. Transfer weight completely with each step. This ball-flat footwork accentuates the movement of the hips on every step.
- Foot placement: The basic cha cha foot placement is ball-flat with leg actions of flex then straighten, taking small steps.
- Body motion: Make your movements smoothly, and keep your upper body still.
5th Position Breaks
- Side breaks
- Open Side breaks
Crossover Breaks or New York
- crossover break 2, 3 → 4-and-1 → while continuing the hold the same hand lead spot turn for both man and lady with outside hand
- crossovers with dual free spins: crossover break with over-extended hand lead → lady and man free spin (place hands near pockets during spin) → crossover break → lady and man free spin → crossover break. Count: 2, 3, (½ turn) 4, (½ turn) AND, (½ turn) 1, 2, 3
- crossover hand-change breaks → crossover hand-change breaks with lady free spin (lady places hands near pockets during spin)
- crossover break → left underarm spot arch turn (lady put opposite hand on hip) → switch hands → right underarm spot arch turn → crossover break
- You can exit crossover breaks with a turnaround.
- Crossovers → hold onto outside hand → change the grip → both turn around → use left hand to hold lady's right → crossover.
Open Break
- You can transition into an open break any time that the lady is stepping back with her right foot; the guy can then step back with his left foot to make the open break.
- Open break (compression) lead
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Back Breaks or Hand to hand
- single back break with side break on right side.
- back breaks (extend free hand outward and up)
- double back breaks
- back breaks with interlocking arms
- Exit from back breaks with a brace and turn-around.
Parallel Breaks or Shoulder to shoulder
Chase Turns
- start with a basic forward
- half turns
- full turns (side together side)
- chase spins: spot turn (2, 3) → ½ pivot turn (4) → ½ pivot turn (1) → spot turn (2,3) → ½ pivot turn (4) → ½ pivot turn (1) → rock step.
- You can put your hands on your sides or behind your back.
- Ladies, if you are facing away from your partner during the chase, you should turn at your very next opportunity.
- Ladies, if you are facing your partner during the chase, you should turn only if your partner has just turned.
- You can start the chase after a spot turn (don't take the lady's hand).
Spot turns
- Figure-8 underarm turns
- arch turns (underarm turns)
- double arch turns (on both sides): The lady can put her free hand on her waist.
- Outside hand turns
- Arch turns with joined hands: Both man and lady do an outside turn simultaneously with outside hands held throughout the turn.
- Double-arch turns with joined hands
Triple cha cha's
- face-to-face: two-hand open-position hold → cross-body lead → face-to-face triple cha cha's (men backup) → face-to-face triple cha cha's (men go forward)
- pattycake: cross-body lead → hand change to patty cake (the three 3's) → cross-body lead
- side-by-side: from cross-over break 2, 3, 4-and-1 facing each other → (hands out) 2-and-3 side-by-side → (hands in) 4-and-1 side-by-side → (hands out) 2, 3 → repeat
- the walk around (pivot turns)
Open break
- walk-around underarm turn
- lady goes under
- man goes under
Shoulder Check or Peekaboo
- yo-yo, tuck turn and re-wrap: cuddle position → tuck turn out → rewrap → cuddle position
Charge
- (Can add rotation: forward turning left, backward turning left):
- side-by-side charge
- cuddle charge
- sweetheart charge
- open skater charge
- closed skater charge
- open promenade charge
- closed promenade charge
Sweetheart or Shadow
- The sweetheart hold and shadow patterns start with an open break in handshake position. Pull her into sweetheart while doing the fake step to transition to same foot.
- The sweetheart shadow, skater shadow, cuddle shadow, and Don Sohn all start from shake-hands position.
- A nice way to transition to shake hands is to lead a spot turn and switch to shake-hands position as the hand comes down from the turn.
- The lead must use a fake step to transition from parallel to same-foot footwork, and vice versa.
- Go side-to-side in double sweetheart shadow matching her footwork
- To exit, fake back to the basic and switch the hands.
- with both arms over the lady's head
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Passing patterns (from open break)
- passing hand change: switch to handshake position → open break → the man pulls her to his side while he passes behind her and goes to the opposite side (as the man passes her he lets his opposite hand slide down her opposite shoulder to switch the hands) → repeat the passing hand change 3 times
- Don Sohn
- passing underarm turn ("swing turn")
- cross-hold two-hand passing turns
- (From shake-hands position, start this pattern by first bringing one hand over her head, then ask for the other hand.)
- with man doing forward crossovers
- with man doing back breaks
Turkish Towel
- (Guys, when starting the Turkish towel from peek-a-boo, step with your right when she in cuddle to start)
- start with double sweetheart
- Look at your partner on both sides of the Turkish Towel.
- lady starts in right sweetheart position and walks around man's left side → Turkish Towel
- lady starts in left sweetheart position and walks around man's right side → Turkish Towel
- from cross-hand hold: cross-body lead → switch hands → collect other hand underneath → lead lady forward 4-and-1 → lady turns clockwise and both hands go over her head on 2, 3 → walk around and behind the guy on 4-and-1 → Turkish Towel → to free-spin exit
- advanced entrance to Turkish Towel: cross body lead 2, 3, 4-and-1 → spin her into sweetheart 2, 3, 4-and-1 → rock forward and back 2, 3 → let go of her left hand and take her right hand back and cause her to do a full turn clockwise 4-and-1 → as she finishes the turn catch her left hand a take her around again 2, 3 and behind you 4-and-1 → Turkish Towel
Cross-body Lead
- closed cross-body lead → 180º turn → cha cha forward or to the side
- closed cross-body lead → 90º turn → cha cha forward or to the side
- closed cross-body lead → crossover break
- closed cross-body lead → after lady passes on 2, 3, lead left underarm full turn 4-and-1 → crossover break
Open hip twist
- open hip twist: Man's left holds lady's right. One-hand side pass (lady makes ½ turn on 2, 3
- open hip twist: two-hand side pass. Lady passes to man's left.
- open hip twist: Man's left holds lady's right. Side pass → cha cha spin → crossover break
- outside turns: cross-body lead → switch hands → lead lady forward and to man's right side 4-and-1 → lead double outside turn on 2, 3, 4-and-1 → facing partner lady does rock step 2, 3
- side pass: starting in one-hand open facing position, do a one-hand side pass.
- underarm pass (or "hockey stick"): Man's left holds lady's right. cross-body lead with underarm turn. Lady passes to man's right.
- fake step:
To fake (or omit) a step in Cha Cha, leave out the step between counts 4 and 1.
- sweetheart shadow (with free spin): handshake position → fake to double sweetheart shadow → lady raises both arms and man catches her shoulders → lady free spin → shoulder catch → lady free spin → shoulder catch → lady free spin → either basic or chase
- open break and a back spot turn: open break, side-together-side, cross unwind, straight-to-the-side, side break, cha cha cha. (Partners must face each other during the spot turn)
- spin and hand change: with man's left hand holding ladies right hand → outside break 2, 3 → walk around underarm, 4-and-1 → walk forward 2 → spin her clockwise 3, 4-and-1 → lady does side break 2, 3 → turn, turn, turn (in one place 4-and-1) → repeat. Man does forward crossovers after crossover to the left, go forward cha cha cha, catch her for the closed basic
- arm hook leg flick pattern: lady turns clockwise → arm hook leg flick → counterclockwise turn.
- open break and a back spot turn: ??
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