I have been taking weekly West Coast Swing classes at SwingShoes since January 2018, with no prior dance experience. During that time, I have also taken Erik’s workshops in Hustle, Salsa, and Nightclub Two-Step. In 2019, I pursued additional lessons in Salsa at another studio to continue to expand my dance vocabulary. Socially I’ve been dancing West Coast Swing in NYC and CT, have attended a few dance events in CT and MA, and various workshops in the tri-state area. I competed in a West Coast Swing Jack & Jill competition at the dance event Swingin’ Into Spring in 2019 for the very first time. It was new and scary, but also tremendously exciting and educational. Shockingly, I placed fifth!
I was born in Tokyo, Japan and moved to Chicago when I was 11 years old. I went to school in Japan and in the U.S. so I am bilingual and bicultural. In the U.S., I lived in Chicago, San Francisco and New York. Prior to establishing my IT company, CMIT Solutions, I worked for major global banks in New York and Tokyo and traveled to countries in Asia, North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Russia, China, India, Australia, etc. for business.
When I used to travel to different countries, I used to dance with local people. I was able to dance Tango in Argentina, dance Samba in Brazil and danced Waltz and Salsa in Beijing, China. It did not matter that I did not speak Spanish or Portuguese or Chinese. Dancing is international language and immediately you can become friends with the local people.
I have always loved dancing. I never had any formal dance training until after college, when I signed up to take an Adult Ballet class in Syracuse, New York. I loved the ballet class and eventually added jazz classes as well. Once I started, I never stopped. I moved to Torrington CT thirty two years ago and I am now retired, and still attend an adult ballet class once a week.
I started dancing in grammar school—I think my mother made me go. Fast forward to the rock n' roll era, jitterbug, the twist, etc. Going to weddings after college I always wanted to dance like the older folks watching them glide around the floor. After a stint in country line dancing and 2 step, I started into ballroom. Slipped in and out of dancing for some years and got serious about 6 years ago. About 3 yrs ago, I met a wonderful retiring teacher who introduced me to West Coast Swing and the Thursday night SwingShoes class. She’s made me a better dancer and a better partner. What could be better! Swingshoes is Great fun and great people. What’s better than dancing?
My father was an artist and my mother was an activist, I’m a little bit of both. I was born in Manhattan, where my family and I spent every Sunday at the Met exploring the endless galleries of armor and art. Later we moved to Fairfield where my siblings and I spent countless hours creating fantasy worlds hidden within the towering rhododendron plants in our back yard. At the age of five I was introduced to dance at Miss Comer’s ballet classes in Bridgeport. Although my ballet potential was frequently questioned, my interest in tap dancing took off. What I lacked in talent I more than made up for with enthusiasm. The special mix of music, rhythm and music made me feel alive. The energy, excitement, not to mention all that noise, were intoxicating. But, after a bout of extremely ferocious tapping on plasterboard walls, my shoes were confiscated. Further forays into the world of dance were strongly discouraged.
