In support of the upcoming Portland west coast swing dance competition Come Rain Come Shine (CRCS), this column will be conducting interviews with some of the top professional dancers participating from all over the United States. You can find out more about the competition in last week's article “Portland dance event: Come Rain Come Shine.”
Jimmy Ho is an active competitor on the west coast swing circuit who's won many Strictly Swing and Jack & Jill contests. He is currently an exciting competitor at the All-Star/Champions level. Jimmy also travels all over the nation to teach and judge at national dance events.
Portland Dance Examiner (PDE): “When and how did you first get started in social partner dancing?”
Jimmy Ho (JH): “In the late 90s, a friend of mine took me to a ballroom/swing dance. The lesson before the dance was beginning Cha Cha. It was a lot of fun and that was my first social partner dancing. Ever since then, I continued to pursue more dance lessons in different style as Ballroom, Latin, Night Club 2-Step, East Coast Swing, Hustle, Lindy Hop, Modern, Jazz, Salsa and etc. As I've gotten more serious, I started to participate in OSU dance performance troupe. In addition, I have competed in many different dance competitions and have placed or won in many of them. Eventually, I became a dance instructor.”
PDE: “What is a great tip for beginning west coast swing dancers to improve their dancing?”
JH: “I've been instructing and judging at many different places over the nation. My tips that I usually give the beginners to do well in west coast swing or any other dances are:
1) Find the rhythm – Tap your fingers, your toes, or count out loud if it helps. This will help you and your partner to swing into action.
2) Practice regularly – Even if you are outside of class, you can still practice with or without a partner. If you do not have a partner, you can try to improve your rhythm by counting to a song that has west coast swing rhythm. Additionally, you can practice your movement by dancing to the dance song you used for rhythm counting.
3) Relax your body – Your body will dance its best if you are in a stress-free state. This will also help you to dance with the music rather than dancing on top of the music.
For more dance tips, song list, social dance calendar and videos, you may go to my personal website – http://jimmyswing.net for more details.”
PDE: “What is one of your favorite moments from attending a dance convention?”
JH: “One of my favorite moments is a chance to catch up with friends or make friends from all over the world. Over the years, I’ve created many different friends from all over the nation and internationally. Attending a dance convention is the greatest opportunity for us to catch up, hang out, dance with each other and have a great time. It is priceless.”
Keep checking back to learn more from some of the best west coast swing dancers in the nation coming to Portland for “Come Rain Come Shine!”
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