Hello Fellow Dancers,

The next USA Dance Olympia event is this Saturday, March 6 at the Olympia Eagles Ballroom. USA DANCE OLYMPIA chapter's Mardi Gras Ballroom Dance. (Masks are optional, family friendly costumes are welcome). Arrive at 7 PM for a Foxtrot lesson by Arlene Hoiland. Dance from 8 to 11 PM to live music by the RAINY CITY RIFF RAFF band from Seattle. Enjoy amazing intermission performances by Erik Linder & Rickie Taylor, the 9 year old ballroom dancers who recently made the semi-finals on America's Got Talent (see photo above). Admission is $10 for the general public, $7 for members of any USA DANCE chapter & students and $5 for ages 17 and under. All ages & skill levels, singles, couples & families welcome. This dance is in the upstairs ballroom of the Olympia Eagles, 805 4th Ave E, Olympia. For info call 360-561-4872. Bring your family and see Erik & Rickie perform in person! Proceeds from the raffle at this dance will go towards helping pay Erik & Rickie's expenses to compete for Team USA at Blackpool, England in April. If you have something special to contribute to the raffle please call (360)561-4872.

Dance Events from March 5 - March 11 in Olympia, Tacoma, etc.

Friday, March 5
Olympia ELKS (1818 - 4th Ave E, Olympia)
Dancing to live music by the DREAMCHASERS from 7:30-11:00. Cover charge for the evening is $7 per person. Guests are welcome. Dinner is available from 5:30-7:30. Call (360)753-0186 to make dinner reservations or for more information. No smoking. Wheelchair accessible. Ballroom dances at the Olympia Elks are on the 1st & 3rd Friday of each month. http://olympiaelks.org

Friday, March 5

DJ BOB DANCE AT THE AERIE BALLROOM IN CENTRALIA, WA

8 - 10:30 pm $5 per person 219 S Tower Ave. Centralia, WA. All Ages.

Music by: djbob.dancing@gmail.com

Saturday, March 6

USA DANCE OLYMPIA chapter's Mardi Gras Ballroom Dance. Arrive at 7 PM for a Foxtrot lesson by Arlene Hoiland. Dance from 8 to 11 PM to live music by the RAINY CITY RIFF RAFF band from Seattle. Enjoy amazing intermission performances by Erik Linder & Rickie Taylor, the 9 year old ballroom dancers who recently made the semi-finals on America's Got Talent. Admission is $10 for the general public, $7 for members of any USA DANCE chapter and students, $5 for ages 17 & under. All ages & skill levels, singles & couples welcome. This dance is in the upstairs ballroom of the Olympia Eagles, 805 4th Ave E, Olympia. For info call 360-561-4872. Bring your family and see Erik & Rickie perform in person!

Highlights from USA Dance Olympia's Anniversary Snowball are being featured on TCTV cable channel 22. This 25 minute episode of In Case You Missed It includes interviews with Ralph Osgood, Steve Fisher, Terri Taylor, Anne La Zara, Shona Powers, Thelma Hauge and her grandson Austin. See the wonderful performances by Ernie Ong & Karen Ideker and by The Black Hills Shufflers. The show will be aired 4 more times during March. It includes some clips from our New Year's Eve Ball which will be another episode later this year. Don't miss it! Below is the remaining schedule:

Tuesday, March 2 10:30 am channel 22

Saturday, March 6 2:30 pm channel 22

Sunday, March 7 5:00 pm channel 22

Friday, March 12 6:30 pm channel 22

Dance Your Way to a Better Dating Life!
Read more: http://advice.eharmony.com/article/dance-your-way-to-a-better-dating-life.html?cid=2091&aid=02241002#ixzz0gVjlS8ac

THE FOLLOWING DANCES ARE WEEKLY (except for some holidays)

1st, 3rd & 5th Sundays

SWEDE HALL DANCE 1:30-4:30 PM Swede Hall, 18543 Albany St. SW, Rochester, WA. Live music. Sponsored by Grand Mound/Rochester Citizen's Group. $5 donation. (360)273-7974

Sundays

SUNDAY NIGHT SWING IN OLYMPIA. Swing dance every Sunday from 7 to 10:30 PM at the Urban Onion Ballroom in Olympia. Admission is $5 and includes a beginner swing lesson at 7 PM. Dancing to recorded music is from 7:30-10:30 PM. The ballroom is large with a nice wood floor. All ages are welcome. The Urban Onion Ballrom is located on the 2nd floor above the Urban Onion Restaurant at 116 Legion Way across from Sylvester Park in Downtown Olympia. For more information contact Bradford at

sundaynightswing@hotmail.com

Sundays
SUNDAY NIGHT SWING DANCE IN TACOMA. Swing dance from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. The dance will contain East and West Coast Swing, a few Foxtrots and the occasional Hustle for fun. Admission is $7. Every Sunday at the ABBEY BALLROOM, 1901 S Fawcett Ave, Tacoma. All ages are welcome. For venue info visit www.abbeyballroom.com. For more information or to request a song email DJ Paul LaCombe at: mousai@live.com

Sundays

SOUTH PARK COMMUNITY CENTER IN TACOMA (50th and South Tacoma Way) has ballroom dancing every Sunday night from 6:30-8:30 pm and every Monday afternoon. There is live music by CASANOVA. Admission is $6. Phone: 253-591-5299. It is a good idea to come with a dance partner.

Mondays

SOUTH PARK COMMUNITY CENTER IN TACOMA (50th and South Tacoma Way) has ballroom dancing every Sunday night and every Monday afternoon from 1-3 pm. There is live music by CASANOVA. Admission is $6.. Phone: 253-591-5299. It is a good idea to come with a dance partner.

Tuesdays
OLYMPIA SWING DANCE. Swing every Tuesday from 7 to 10:30 PM at the Olympia Eagles Ballroom. Admission is $5 and includes a beginning lesson at 7 PM with Christine Corey. The ballroom is large with a nice wood floor. All ages are welcome. Olympia Eagles Ballroom, 805 4th Ave E, Olympia, at the corner of 4th and Plum, above the Eagles Hall. For info email olykidsswing@yahoo.com, call 360-943-4010 or visit www.olyswing.com.

Tuesdays

TACOMA ELKS, 1965 S. Union Ave., Tacoma (253) 272-1117

Every Tuesday there is ballroom dancing at the Tacoma Elks with the CASANOVA duo providing the music from 7:30-10:30 pm. You do not need to be an Elks member to attend. The cover charge is $5 for everyone including Elks members. It is a good idea to come with a dance partner on Tues. night or contact Wendy 253-219-4333 or Steve Forbes 253-307-1499 with USA Dance Tacoma to see if their group will be there at the South end table. Doug Henry hosts this dancing opportunity. http://www.dancetacoma.org/USADanceWebsite/WeeklyDance.htm

Wednesdays

Ballroom dancing with live music at the Olympia Senior Center from 2-4 pm every Wednesday. $5 members/$6 nonmembers. 222 Columbia St NW, Olympia 360-586-6181 for info.

Wednesdays
MANHATTAN BALLROOM DANCE CLUB. Dance to live music on a 3,200 square foot floor every Wednesday evening from 7:30 to 10 PM. The cover charge is $6 for guests or $5 for members. Admission is free the first time you attend. Membership fee is $15. Ages 21 and over. Held at the Tacoma American Veterans Club (upper level), 5717 Tyler, Tacoma. For more info visit www.manhattanclub.org or call Sid O'Hare at 253-534-5475.

Rhapsody plays March 3, Randy Litch March 10

Wednesdays

Salsa/Latin dancing every Wednesday from 9:30 - 11 pm (or later) at the South Pacific Restaurant, 3507 Capitol Blvd. SE in Tumwater. 360-352-0701. Beginning Salsa lesson from 9-9:30 pm for $5. Ages 21+

Thursdays

Ballroom dancing with live music at the Lacey Senior Center from 2-4 pm every Thursday. $5 members/$6 nonmembers. 6757 Pacific Ave. SE, Lacey 360-407-3967 for more info.

Thursdays

TACOMA ELKS 1965 S. Union Ave., Tacoma 253-272-1117

Every Thursday the Tacoma Elks Singles group has a dance from 7:00-10:30 pm. There is always live music. Elks members & their spouses attend free. Cover charge for guests is $5. There are lots of dance partners and a crowded dance floor.

Thursdays

Blues dancing is alive and well in Olympia these days. Thursday nights at Ben Moore's Cafe come to The Slow Dance. No Cover. 21 and over. It all starts at 9:15pm. Ben Moore's Cafe is on 4th Ave between Columbia and Capitol in downtown Olympia. For more information please email olyblues@gmail.com

Fridays
ABBEY BALLROOM DANCE. Arrive at 7 PM for a beginning Ballroom lesson, $12. Dance every Friday to a variety of Ballroom music with DJ ROB from 8 to 10 PM in a renovated historic church in downtown Tacoma. Admission is $8 for the dance. Abbey Ballroom, 1901 S Fawcett Ave, Tacoma. For more info call 253-572-5424, email info@abbeyballroom.com or visit www.abbeyballroom.com

Saturdays
SATURDAY LATIN DANCE AT THE ABBEY. South Sound Salseros invite you to groove to the sensuous rhythms of the most popular Latin music every Saturday. Work up a steam to Salsa, Merengue, Rumba, Cha-Cha-Cha, and Bachata with DJ ANGEL all in the comforts of the beautiful Abbey Ballroom.. Come for an introductory Salsa lesson at 9 PM by STEPHANIE PERCEFUL, then dance from 9:30 PM to 1 AM. Admission is $5 adults, $3 for 12 and under. Admission is $15 when there is live music. Abbey Ballroom, 1901 S Fawcett Ave, Tacoma. For more info call Angel Ortiz Hernandez at 253-503-6614 or email angelortiz2007@comcast.net. For venue info visit www.abbeyballroom.com.

UPCOMING USA DANCE OLYMPIA EVENTS:

Saturday, March 6

DANCE TEACHERS at USA DANCE OLYMPIA events in 2009/10:

Kay Andrews taught American Tango in January 2009. Kay teaches private & group classes at her studio in Centralia. Contact Kay at: (360)736-6842 or kaydance1@comcast.net

Doug Henry taught Foxtrot in March 2009. Doug teaches private & group classes in the Tacoma/Pierce County area. Contact Doug at: (253)684-9236 or (253)206-5804.

Char Alexander & Alan Provencher taught Night Club 2 Step in April 2009. Char & Alan teach private & group classes in Thurston & Pierce counties. Contact Char & Alan at: char-alan@comcast.net, dj-alan@comcast.net, or (360)561-3517.

Karen Ideker taught Cha Cha in May and October 2009. Karen teaches classes in the Olympia area at Bally's & Dance Direction. Contact Karen at: (360)438-9776 or karenideker@comcast.net

Arlene Hoiland taught Waltz in July 2009 and will teach Foxtrot in March 2010. Arlene teaches ballroom classes in the Aberdeen area. Contact Arlene at: (360)533-1412 or rogerandarlene@comcast.net

Johnny Bryant taught Salsa, Cha Cha and Rumba in August 2009. Johnny teaches workshops in Tacoma and Olympia. Contact Johnny at: estaire@hotmail.com or (206)778-3415

Rhett & Shona Powers taught swing for USA Dance Olympia at the Anniversary Snowball on January 29, 2010. They teach group classes at the Loft on Cherry St. in Olympia on Thursday nights at 7:30 PM. Contact Rhett & Shona at: (253)472-0391 or rhettshona@comcast.net
Class rates are monthly - 3 weeks = $36/person, 4 weeks = $48/person.

The classes are intended for beginning to intermediate dancers.
Rhett & Shona want to remind those of you who are interested in attending the
Thursday evening group class at The Loft in March - (they will be teaching the
Rumba) you must be signed up by the 25th of February so that they know how
many of you will be participating in the class series.   Please call
253-472-0391, to confirm that you'll be attending.
You will pay for the series at the first class of the month on March 4th -
$48 per person.   This is a 4 week class and they will have to do a make up
class for March 11th as they will be in Oregon for a Ballroom Dance
Competition - City of Roses.  They will discuss your preferences for the make
up lesson during March. They urge you to confirm your commitment to attend the Rumba class, as they have another group of people in Tacoma that wants them to move the class to Tacoma, so they need to know by the 25th if you plan to attend.   If they have enough participation they will remain teaching at The Loft.

For information on other dances go to:

http://www.seattledanceinfo.com/calendar.shtml (Ron Bolin's website)

http://calendar.yahoo.com/dancetacoma (calendar by USA Dance, Tacoma)

http://www.portlanddancing.com/ (Portland, Oregon dances)

http://www.lazydancer.com/default.aspx?dancing-in=Seattle (more Seattle dances)

South Sound Dance Classes (from The Olympian 2/19/09):

http://www.theolympian.com/arts/story/763213.html

See you on the dance floors,

Steve Fisher