Bachata Training Program or any other kinds of dance training programs are very different from a regular dance class (Studio), dance lesson in a nightclub or a dance workshop from a congress event.

While a regular weekly dance class or lesson in a studio, or a club emphasizes dance moves rehearsed by a teacher an hour prior to teaching them, training programs, such as offered by Rodchata, focuses on the dance structure (The way Dominicans dances it in DR), fundamentals from beginner to advance.

The training program is a proven system that emphasizes a step by step guide in creating and guiding a true bachata dancer.


The Six Training Levels of Bachata Rodchata System

Level 1 - Foundational Footwork and Structure

Level 2 - Foundational Partnering and Structure

Structure is the cornerstone of bachata dance. A student must be grounded with all the fundamental techniques before he/she can move up to Level 3.

Level 3 - Fundamentals of Partner Connection - Leading and Following (Postures, Attitude, Musicality, Hand Movements)

Level 4 - Intermediate Footwork (Syncopations)
Focuses on more advanced syncopations that is either individual or complimentary (partners) with hand and foot coordination

 Level 5 - Advance Footwork, Partnering and Advance Timing (Breaking on2 or on3)

Level 6 - Fusion and Innovation
 How to incorporate other moves and techniques from other dance disciplines (Salsa, Merengue, Tango, Kizomba, etc) without demolishing the original structure of bachata

The Rodchata Bachata Training Program offers a comprehensive step-by-step course for any students desiring to dance bachata socially or teach it.

Rodchata teaches Bachata training class every Wednesday at the Allegro Ballroom (www.allegroballroom.com - 730pm)

Contact:
Phone (415-577-0212)
Email ([email protected])

FAQ

Q: What if I am already an advance dancer, do I have to take Level 1 instead of jumping to Level 4?
A: You will need to start on Level 1 first. The teacher will decide if you are ready to move up or skip certain levels of the training program

Q: How much are the rates, do you charge hourly?
A: No, I don't charge hourly. Depending on your dance skill and familiarity of the dance structure, you will go through six training sessions or more. And you will be charged for the whole training sessions in advanced.

Q: What is the difference between other bachata "styles" than the one you are offering?
A: It's very simple, this training program focuses on original bachata structure, the way the Dominicans dance it. All you need to do is look at a person dancing the Dominican Way versus non-Dominican Way, the difference is like night and day.

Q: Where can you teach?
A: Anywhere. I travel a lot. If I happen to be in your city, email me. Or if you happen to live in the Bay Area, Sacramento, or any driveable locations, as long as it's planned in advance, I'm there.


Rodney Rodchata's Bio
Rodney Rodchata Aquino is an Afro-Latin Dance instructor, promoter and lecturer in the world. He was the first man in history to ever organize the very 1st international bachata festival in USA (Reno Bachata Festival and SF Bachata Festival), and co-organized 2nd Lithuanian Bachata Festival, 1st Dominican Republic Bachata Festival,  Hawaii Bachata Festival, Flirt Seattle Dance Festival , SF Kizomba Zouk Festival, Boise Afro-Latin Festival and is involved with over 15 dance festivals all over the world.

Responsible for revolutionizing bachata dance in USA, RODCHATA, as bachateros intimately calls him, has been in the Latin Dance scene for over 18 years and is considered the foremost authority in the bachata dance, both Dominican and Modern styles. He has sold his DVD line up, a 5-volume of dance instructional DVDs of bachata, salsa and merengue, to over 60 countries, and just produced  new DVDs; The Secrets of Dominican Bachata - How Bachata is Danced.

A certified dance instructor, Rodchata's solid dance background includes Latin International Ballroom, Kizomba, salsa (on1, on2 mambo, and Cuban son), chachacha, merengue and bachata. He had been studying the bachata culture by visiting the Dominican Republic, and eventually getting involved in starting the 1st bachata festival there. He has since revolutionized bachata dancing in USA and the world.

The "Walk"  is just ridiculous to look at amongst salsa dancers lately!

I have been noticing that the Bay Area Salsa performers are getting quite friendly with "the walk" entering a stage. My aim in this article is to critique "their walk" and hopefully they'd take this criticism as constructive.What is "the walk" and where did it come from?

The walk is just that, a walk. But it is different from the normal walk everyone does going about their own business everyday, everywhere. "The walk' exudes confidence. It gets attention. It could be included in an introduction or at the end of a routine.

Where does "the walk" come from?

It is my belief that it came from the ballroom dance, to be specific, ballroom standard (Foxtrot, Waltz, Tango and Quickstep). The Latin Ballroom then later adopted it (Paso doble, jive, rumba, samba & cha-cha). Culturally, Europeans practice such "walk" in their lavish parties and events (you can see the walk most of the English movies such as Beethoven, Casanova, etc).

Maybe it's just me, but I have never seen "the walk" adopted by salsa performers 'till less than two years ago. In fact, I don't think East Coast salsa performers practice such walk. Not even Los Angeles. I have only noticed this from Bay Area performers. With that in mind, I commend them for being creative. But here comes the critique...

"The walk" falls short. It looks funny and annoying at the same time. There's a difference between confidence and arrogance. To be honest, it doesn't even look arrogant. If you have ever seen a geek trying to be a playa, you'd instantly notice that his gestures, actions and even words just don't fit him - this is how I see some of the performers when they do "the walk."  I am not saying everyone does that type of walk, but I think that the dance directors should at least pay attention to their dancers and critique them if need be.

What is the proper walk?

The answer depends on what theme is in their routine. Is it an elegant routine? Walk elegantly. If you don't know how to walk elegantly,  watch movies, search the web and study everything about being elegant. If your routine is sluttish, it's the same thing, do a good amount of research.

In Ballroom, we train to develop the proper posture e.g., posture of our faces, shoulders and entire body. If you ever watch ballroom performers, you'd notice that their chin is not higher than the ceiling. There's a big difference between being snobby and confident.

A year ago, I was talking to several Swing instructors after teaching bachata at the Chico Dance Sensation. In fact, I remember Felipe was present as well. We got into discussing "stepping out of the box" meaning being creative and innovating a dance. It was a roundtable of discussion to the point that we even went back to the history of dancing. We all agreed that the essence of any original dance shouldn't be phased out or "throw out" altogether but that it should be respected, acknowledge and improved upon. We finished such discussion as very educational and  Sarah Vann Drake, a respected Swing performer and teacher, said it so brilliantly, "there's a difference between getting out of the box and stepping out of the box. When we step out of the box, it basically means, one of our foot is out of the box while the other foot never left the box."

Salsa is a street and social dance. Yes it has evolved and we owe a great deal to many dance innovators out there, but let's not forget where it came from and what it was all about. A street dance is never snobby or arrogant. It's non-intimidating and fun.