Inclusive study group for complex dances

I started a Friday Balkan group in my house in January '08, named Zabava ("fun"). It's intentionally an intermediate/advanced group, because I want to learn all those cool Balkan dances (a lot of them from Yves Moreau) which the longtime dancers can do in their sleep, as well as practice the new dances we learn in workshops. Novices are also welcomed, and we alternate easy/hard dances and tone down teaching toward their level. This is a group for anyone who is passionate about learning and doing the dances.

Luckily for me, there are people who fit that description and come almost every week. There are longtime dancers who drop by and generously share their knowledge. There are novices who excitedly take in all the new music and dance. Attendance varies from 1-10, generally around 5 people, which is a good size for my living room!

I'm labeling this group Inclusive, even though we do harder dances, because standards are internally rather than externally driven. Each dancer decides how hard to work on styling and details for themselves. "Different villages" is a frequent comment - people from different villages do dances differently, and that's okay with us.

I see it as an incubator for the next generation of local leaders. I'm encouraging people to borrow my dance DVDs and learn a dance well enough to teach it, or lead the line for the first time, or join the line for the first time. Everyone (including me) is learning and growing in the accepting atmosphere. It's been a delight!

Sonia