Bluesalicious is back!

Bluesalicious 2009 is set for March 20-22, less than 9 months away. Yeah, we're back & we're proud, to steal a term from James Brown, The Godfather of Soul himself.

Last year Memphis hosted almost 100 dancers from all over the world, with total attendance of 160 heads. We're switching it up a bit for 2009, but you can bet it's going to be even better this time, with bigger events, more music, more dancers, and moremoremore dancing!! Whew!

Bluesalicious is here!

Sometimes we thought it would never come, and other times it felt like this weekend was approaching at warp speed. It's now down to the last-minute nitty-gritty! We have about 120 folks from 22 states and 4 or 5 countries descending upon Memphis this Friday, Feb. 29 (that's not a joke; it's Leap Year!). We plan on painting the town blue for 3 days... it's gonna rock!

If you're in town on Thurs., Feb. 28, join us for blues dance lessons with Mihai (at Candace's house) starting at 7:30 and 8:30. If you've never danced before, come for the 1st class and stick around if you feel like it; if you have some dance experience, count on taking both.

Price: $15 or $10 for Bluesalicious attendees!
Times: 7:30 Beginning Blues and 8:30 Continuing Blues
Location: Email getinfo@newvoblues.com for address

Happy 2008, Memphis!

Happy New Year... now, let's celebrate!

If you want to join NewVo Blues in ringing in 2008, come to the Memphis Blues Society Jam every 1st & 3rd Thursday at Neil's (1835 Madison Ave.). It's free, fun, and a casual way to get lots of good dance practice. We're usually there by 9 and stay til 11:30 or later. Some of the best blues musicians in Memphis show up to play their hearts out... and did I mention it's absolutely free?

Re-Enter the Blues, Jan. 25-27

Pre-Registration closes on the 16th for this Blues dance workshop in Atlanta. Featuring some of the top Blues instructors from around the nation, the 3-day event offers 18 different classes on a very flexible schedule. Last year, you signed up for one level (Beginner or Int/Advanced) and stuck with it. Great for many, but those dancers who fell somewhere between could end up feeling a class was too easy or too hard. I even had to repeat at least one class I'd already taken. So I'm very excited about the flexibility of taking whatever classes you're interested in, as long as you feel you're prepared for them. (Meaning, for example, if you've just been dancing a few months, you'd feel most at home with all Beginner classes.) Personally, I plan to take advantage of the mix & match offerings and take from my favorite instructors, plus a couple of new folks who I've never learned from. If you want to carpool with us, email getinfo@newvoblues.com to coordinate with us.

IBC is back in town...

The world's largest gathering of blues bands is coming to Memphis! Sponsored each year by the Blues Foundation, the International Blues Challenge showcases over 150 live blues acts on the world-famous Beale Street. Looks like we'll be out til dawn on Feb. 1st... just the way to prepare for...

Bluesalicious Feb. 29-Mar. 2!

I can't believe it's less than 8 weeks until Memphis' first-ever official Blues dance exchange! Many of you remember hanging out on Beale over the IBC weekend last year. Well, we're still doing a night of dancing on Beale Street, but without the crowds from the Blues Challenge. It's the Friday night Pub Crawl, followed by Saturday's Burgers & Blues, and big Blow-Out (with dance competition!) that night. Sunday has more than hours of dancing scheduled, for everyone who really gets into their groove on the last day of an exchange. YES, this is JUST an exchange -- no classes to wear you out during the daytime! Check out the schedule online or sign up for our email list. Early Bird Registration opens next week, so don't miss out on the savings!

oooh, we did it again!

So, you didn't think it could be done: two totally terrific workshops in two weeks in such a small scene? Well, we did it up right, that's fo' sho'.

NewVo Blues hosted what can only be called a kick-@$$ blues dance workshop (AGAIN!), this time featuring Chris Ransdell as our imported lead instructor. Thanks goes to all the folks who helped make it happen---either by participating in lessons, helping with setup/cleanup, coming out dancing with us, and/or providing moral support & encouragement for our efforts this weekend. We especially appreciate the teaching, extra help, and support of Asian Alan who came all the way from NashVegas to DJ and teach a blues class with Candace Saturday night. What did we do to deserve such great friends in the blues dance world? We kinda feel all warm & fuzzy after this weekend (but it was sad to see everyone go, and we miss our new friend Eka already!).

But we had to hit the ground running on Monday. Bluesalicious---our first official Memphis Blues Dance Exchange---is fast approaching, so watch out: it just may blow you away! You know you can expect a lot from a blues exchange in the Home of the Blues / Birthplace of Rock'n'Roll. Check out some other Memphis stuff here:

Elvis
Lantana
Art Memphis
Peace & Justice
Get Down[town]
Blues Dance in Memphis
Get Your Mojo Workin'
Live from Memphis
Culture Grits
Goner Records
Smart Growth
Smart City
Snax

Get ready for the next level...

Evolve your blues dancing! Cause this weekend is EvoBluesion, a 2-day workshop brought to you by NewVo Blues. Registration is still only $60 for all Saturday & Sunday classes with Candace & Reuel. This event is the first of its kind for our area -- don't miss out on all the great classes, from the 4th Dimension to Peel the Layers. This workshop will definitely evolve your blues dancing in a positive way!
Our Story:
Following the success of the Feburary IBC weekend blues dance classes & workshop with teachers in town for an instructors retreat, Candace Gustine & Sarah Beth Larson formed NewVo Blues to promote blues dancing in Memphis, TN. Monthly events followed, from dance lessons on Beale St., to road trips to the Juke Joint Festival & Buenos Aires Blues, to last month's house party. Good times were had by all, you can be sure... .

Blues is a Feeling...
The best thing about blues is its versatility -- it can be danced to a range of tempos, styles, and moods. After all, everyone knows the blues ain't always blue... .
It's also a conversation. Our focus is bringing more dancers to blues, since the music is so prevalent in this area. So far, we are happy to have brought dancers of salsa, tango, ballroom, contra, and swing dancing together to share and enjoy the blues. What could be more natural in the the Home of the Blues, Birthplace of Rock'n'Roll?
Next weekend is the Booze'n'Blues Festival in Indianola, MS. Carpool down for some of the hottest blues in the hottest month of the year. Join us! Check it out online -- or email us at getinfo@newvoblues.com for more details.
Sarah B

hOuSe PaRtY!!

Ever been to a blues dance event in Memphis? I mean anything---a workshop, road trip, one lesson, dancing with us at The Blue Worm---anything put on by either us or the local swing dance group, Red Hot Lindy Hop (some of which is also "us"). If so, you're invited! Yeah, you!

NewVo Blues is hosting our first house party, and we couldn't be more excited! We wanted a fun way to say THANKS to everyone who has supported us so far, and spend some time enjoying the friendships we've found through blues dancing in Memphis. The night will kick off with an informal Q&A/lesson for an hour, followed by a pasta dinner (donations gratefully accepted, but not required), then a blues movie---which one is still up to the nominating committee (i.e. Candace & Sarah B!). Of course there will always be dancing, so bring your (any color) suede-bottom shoes. Email us to get the address, or you can add us on MySpace to stay in the loop. (I highly recommend doing both to make sure you get all the updates.)

Get ready... next month is going to bring a big, exciting announcement about July events. Or watch the calendar to see what's coming up....

Traveling to dance weekends

WOW!

I could leave it at WOW, but I guess you want to know more, huh??

This past weekend I traveled to my second Blues event with classes and all night dancing. This trip to BluesShout was the first time where I really got to see Blues Dancing at its craziest.

(I suggest getting on YouTube and searching for BluesShout (2007) and watching some of the competition clips. I'm in the prelims, but not the finals.)

Competing against dancers from the west coast was quite an experience. I learned a lot. Next time I come better prepared - so watch out!

If you want to start traveling to blues dance weekends, there are 3 great events with classes and dancing to choose from this summer:
1. Buenos Aires Blues - Knoxville TN - June 1-3
2. Denver Blues Summit - Denver CO - June 29-July 1
3. Austin Blues Party - Austin TX - July 6-8

And stayed tuned...coming Feb 2008...
Bluesalicious ~the 1st Offical Memphis Blues Exchange.