by Helen McCall

This past week kicked off the new Ballroom and Swing Dance class at Sweet Briar College. For dance partners, Sweet Briar, a small women’s liberal arts college in rural central Virginia, is partnering with Hampden-Sydney College, an all-men’s school in nearby Farmville. It is taught by Sweet Briar alum Courtney Lewandowski, who in 2012 graduated with a B.A. in Dance. Lewandowski is short lady with short blonde hair and always has navy blue eyeliner on. On Wednesdays class is at Hampden-Sydney and on Saturdays at Sweet Briar, the student dancers will learn to salsa, waltz, and even some swing. Dean Marcia said she “Hopes this class will be a new great way for Sweet Briar students to partner with local colleges.”

The first of many classes was one to remember according the Seneca Baller: “The class started off with her nerves being off the charts, but ending up being a really fun night with her friends.” This was the first class with both Hampden-Sydney and Sweet Briar students. It was a class to mark the budding partnership between the two colleges. Baller had signed up for the class because it was a way to meet boys and because she wanted to learn to dance. When one walked into the first day of class you could see girls giggling in a corner, whispering about how excited and nervous they were while the guys were in their corner joking around. One guy was doing the floss, a dance popularized by memes. How one does the floss is to move their arms to and fro repeatedly from behind to front of their body while their feet stay in place. While this man was dancing the floss the others around him were laughing and filming him.

Girls and guys had different interpretations of “comfortable casual.” The guys were dressed in their polos, khakis, boat shoes, and Martha Vineyard belts. The girls had come in comfortable athletic clothing and sneakers. Baller asked the teacher, “Should we have dressed up like the guys did?” To which Ms. Lewandowski responded “No, I said comfortable casual and this is just a Hampden-Sydney thing. I knew the guys would show up like this, but no, you girls are fine.”

Lewandowski called the class to attention telling the girls and guys to pair up. The students were all stiff and uncomfortable with each other, but as the class progressed their salsa dance become more fluid. The first move the students learned was the basic eight count of stepping back and forth. The youtube mix of salsa songs all in Spanish blasted through the speakers which helped the dancers fall into a rhythm. People were feeling comfortable with one another while smiles and laughter were all about the room. Later that night building off the basic eight count Mrs. Lewandowski added a spin for the girls to incorporate. The added move had many students struggle and had to get one on one assistance with the teacher. At the end of the night all the partners had mostly mastered a spin and the basic eight count footwork. Conversation could be heard by every couple as they were practicing the moves they had just learned. Everyone was having a fun time as the room was filled with laughter and smiles. The last thing the class did that night was to have Ms. Lewandowski go over the syllabus. After the syllabus had been read over and all the questions had been answered the girls started to head towards the exit. The girls got into the van and immediately started talking about which guy was the cutest. Samantha Pacora said, “The tallest guy there with the navy blue polo was definitely the cutest.” To which Baller agreed. Boys were the conversation the entire drive back.

A week later, driving through torrential downpour for the third class, the Sweet Briar van  arrived at Hampden-Sydney for ballroom and swing class. Sill unfamiliar with the campus, it took the three girls, Baller, Pacora, and Caroline Thomas, three tries – dashing in and out of the rain – before finding the correct building. When they finally found it, they were drenched and their shoes sloshed with water. As they came further into the room, they heard the sound of salsa music and saw some guys dancing the salsa with each other. The girls were relieved: they had found the right building and the right room even though they were late. Sizing up the guys, the girls realized there were seventeen guys and only three of them. The teacher directed everyone to pick a partner and the guys each tried to get a girl, resorting at one point to Rock, Paper, Scissors, but most ended up with another male. Once everyone paired up Lewandowski reviewed the basics and the spin from the previou class. The girls arrived in leggings and T-shirt while the guys were dressed down compared to what they wore the previous class. Students danced the night away with their beginning moves of salsa while the latin music played on. The teacher Ms. Lewandowski went around and corrected where she saw fit. As the students were shaking their hips there was a peaceful rhythm. When asked about how well Ms. Lewandowski thought the dance class was going she said, “The kids are having fun, showing effort, and rapidly picking up the dance moves.”