The Second Oldest Franchise…
Arthur Murray Mania…
The Legend Continues…
The degree of dancing you will achieve varies depending on your desire, goals, commitment and interest. After your Introductory Program the dance levels (degrees) progress from Associate and Full Medallist programs in Bronze, Silver, Gold and Gold Bar Standards.(See Dance Programs) These courses are designed for people like yourself who desire a fundamental foundation or more advance training in the social, as well as competitive (dance sport) styles.
The majority of students who come to an Arthur Murray Dance Studio are interested in becoming good social dancers and our medallist programs will help you achieve that goal. If competitive dancing (dance sport) is your desire, Arthur Murray Dance Studios can train you in the latest technique, steps and styles. Indeed, we boast some of the top competitive couples in the world today.
Our Instructors
Private Lessons
Group Lessons
Practice Parties
Medal Ball
Showcase
DANCE-O-RAMA (DANCE SPORT)
Cha-Cha
Country
Foxtrot
Hustle
Lindy Hop
Mambo
Merengue
Rumba
Salsa
Samba
Swing
Tango
Viennese Waltz
Waltz
West Coast Swing
A Dance Legend begins…
Arthur Murray Dance Studios began with the vision of Arthur Murray himself where in 1912 at the age of 17, he began teaching dance. In 1920, Arthur Murray organized the world's first "radio dance" where a band played on the Georgia Tech campus, which was broadcast to a group of about 150 dancers situated atop the roof of the Capital City Club in downtown Atlanta.
Arthur Murray’s success was largely due to the famous "footprints" mail order business, which soon to be dancers could place on the floor and follow to learn how to dance. In 1923 he opened his first studio on 43rd street in New York City and in 1925, he launched the first Arthur Murray System of Teaching where he trained dance instructors for the Statler Hotel chain, who then went to various hotels and gave lessons. His slogan was: If you can walk, we teach you how to dance.
After World War II, Arthur Murray Dance Studios grew further with the rise of interest in Latin dance, and he regularly taught and broadcast in Cuba. Arthur Murray then went on television with a dance program hosted by his wife Kathryn called The Arthur Murray Party, which ran from 1950 to 1960, on CBS, NBC, DuMont, and ABC.
Arthur Murray Mania was so great that in 1942 Johnny Mercer and Victor Schertzinger wrote the hit song "Arthur Murray Taught Me Dancing in a Hurry", sung by Betty Hutton. It also caught the attention of many greats like singer/ actor Desi Arnaz who recorded Cuban Pete using Murray in his lyrics and actress Lucille Ball, whom in an episode had Desi take lessons from Arthur Murray to learn the Mexican hat dance. In the film The Sky's the Limit (1943), when Fred Astaire and Joan Leslie finish a dance number, Joan asks him "Where did you learn to dance like that?" and Astaire answers "Arthur Murray".
Hollywood frequently used and still uses Arthur Murray for dance sequences and choreography. You can even find Arthur Murray Dance instructors on TV today including “Good Morning America“, “America’s Ballroom Challenge” and “Dancing With the Stars“, just to name a few.
Today, Arthur Murray Franchised Dance Studios have grown to over 200 studios worldwide and now have studios on six continents including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, England, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Latvia, Puerto Rico, South Africa and the United States. Arthur Murray's dream of teaching the world to dance is being fulfilled.
How Students Are Taught
The Arthur Murray Franchised Dance Studio has found that students learn most quickly and effectively on a scholastic basis. Your introductory program is the first student level. You will be taught the basic patterns of the most popular dances today. Your instructor will explain how the Medal Standards are taught and will plan a personalized program to fulfill your specific needs and desires.
Our instructors are carefully selected and thoroughly trained in the exclusive Arthur Murray teaching method. This assures you the finest instruction in dancing. You will have a regular dance dance teacher who will be responsible for your progress. Periodically, you will have exchange lessons with other teachers which will give you experience and practice in adapting to a variety of dance partners and dance styles.
During your one-on-one private lessons, you will receive personalized instruction that will help you achieve your goals in dancing. Your instructor will spend the time necessary on technique, styling and general dance improvement. An up-to-date record of everything you have learned will also be kept as part of your instruction.
Group lessons are an important addendum to your private instruction. They give you the opportunity to dance with a variety of partners, develop good dance habits and meet other students in the studio. Group lessons are held for different dances and levels. Please ask your teacher for the schedule and take advantage of another fine way to help you become a more proficient and confident dancer.
We hold Scheduled dance parties (practice sessions) for all our students. These practice parties are held on a weekly basis on Wednesday and Friday nights. You will have fun dancing with the instructors and students in a relaxed and comfortable environment. This gives you the opportunity to practice and try out all the new dance skills that you've learned in you Private and Group Lessons.
An Arthur Murray Medal Ball is a gala dance event honoring students who "graduate" from one level of their dance program to the next. Medal Ball also afford students the opportunity to enjoy their dancing in a fun and elegant setting.
A Showcase is a one-day event where students present dance routines with personalized choreography. These routines make an exiting addition to your Medallist Program because they allow you to develop showmanship and musical expression along with social dance skills.
A Dance-O-Rama (or Dance Sport Competition) is an exciting two or three day event that brings students together from many Arthur Murray studios to compete, at their level, in dances of their choice. This requires specialized dance training to polish and perfect choreography, technique and style. The weekend is full of activities such as dance competitions, cocktail parties, dinner dances and exiting professional shows.
Bolero
Originally a Spanish dance in 3/4 time, it was changed in Cuba initially into 2/4 time then eventually into 4/4. It is now present as a very slow type of Rumba rhythm. The music is frequently arranged with Spanish vocals and a subtle percussion effect, usually implemented with Conga or Bongos.
From the less inhibited night clubs and dance halls the Mambo underwent subtle changes. It was triple mambo, and then peculiar scraping and shuffling sounds during the "tripling" produced the imitative sound of Cha Cha Cha. This then became a dance in itself. Mambo or triple Mambo or Cha Cha as it is now called, is but an advanced stage in interpretive social dancing born of the fusion of progressive American and Latin music.
English Folk dances as opposed to the court dances of bygone times. During the Colonial days of America these Country dances became our present day square dance, jig reels, as well as our Virginia Reel, Arkansas Traveler and Paul Jones.
Said by some to have been originated by Harry Fox (1913). It is now a standard ballroom dance the world over and serves as a good foundation for social dances in 2/4 or 4/4 time. NOTE: See also Two Step.
A number if similar style disco dances which had its beginning in the mid-70's and enjoys some continuing popularity as a swing style today. The record "Do The Hustle" was followed by the movie "Saturday Night Fever." The movie portrayal of partner dancing by John Travolta to the popular beat of top selling music from the Bee Gees and the introduction to America of the Discotheque setting, popular for some years in Europe, took America by storm. Flashing lights, mirrors everywhere, loud throbbing beat, and high fashion were in. Large numbers of popular Discos sprang up in every city and everyone was waiting in line to dance.
Named by Ray Bolger, after Colonel Lindbergh's flight across the Atlantic. This Swing had as much "getting into the air" as possible. However, the violently acrobatic style used for exhibitions is not the same as the quietly rhythmic Lindy enjoyed by good dancers on the ballroom floor. The rhythmic patterns takes place over two measures of music. The more acrobatic versions were limited to ballrooms of which the most famous was the New York's Savoy Harlem. NOTE: At one time the Jitterbug included the Charleston, Black Bottom, Shag and Lindy Hop. It has now been consolidated into Lindy Hop in Eastern U.S. and on the West Coast the West Coast Swing.
The fusion of Swing and Cuban music produced this fascinating rhythm and in turn created a new sensational dance. The Mambo could not have been conceived earlier since up until that time Cuba and the American Jazz were still not wedded. The Victor records of Anselmo Sacaras entitled "Mambo" in 1944 were probably the beginning and since then other Latin American bandleaders such as Tito Rodriguez, Pupi Campo, Tito Puente, Perez Prado, Machito and Xavier Cugat have achieved styling of their own and furthered the Mambo craze. The Mambo was originally played as any Rumba with a riff ending. It may be described as a riff or a Rumba with emphasis on the fourth beat 4/4' time. Originally played by some musicians in 2/4 time with a break or emphasis on 2 and 4. Native Cubans or dancers, without any training would break on any beat. MARCHA: Latin American counterpart of our One-Step.
Latin American music and dance with a two-step beat. Partners hold each other in a closed position. The leader holds the follower's waist with his right hand, while holding her right hand with his left hand at the follower's eye level. Partners bend their knees slightly left and right, thus making the hips move left and right. The hips of the leader and follower move in the same direction throughout the song. Partners may walk sideways or circle each other, in small steps. They can switch to a double handhold position and do separate turns without letting go each other's hands or momentarily releasing one hand. During these turns they may twist and tie their handhold into intricate pretzels. Other choreography is possible.
The Rumba was originally a marriage dance. Many of its movements and actions which seem to have an erotic meaning are merely depictions of simple farm tasks. The shoeing of the mare, the climbing of a rope, the courtship of the rooster and the hen, etc. It was done for amusement on the farms by the black population of Cuba. However, it became a popular ballroom dance and was introduced in the United States about 1933. It was the Americanized version for the Cuban Son and Danzon. It is in 4/4 time. The characteristic feature is to take each step without initially placing the weight on that step. Steps are made with a slightly bent knee which, when straightened, causes the hips to sway from side to side in what has come to be known as "Cuban Motion."
This is a favored name for a type of Latin music which, for the most part, has its roots in Cuban culture and is enhanced by jazz textures. The word, Salsa, means sauce denoting a "hot" flavor and is best distinguished from other Latin music styles by defining it as the New York sound developed by Puerto Rican musicians in New York. The dance structure is largely associated with mambo type patterns and has a particular feeling that is associated mainly with the Clave and the Montuno.
This Brazilian dance was first introduced in 1917 but was finally adopted by Brazilian society in 1930 as a ballroom dance. It is sometimes referred to as a Samba, Carioca, a Baion or a Batucado. The difference is mostly in the tempo played since the steps in all three dance are very similar. The style is to bounce steadily and smoothly in 2/4 meter. They say that the Samba was introduced in the United States in 1939 by the late Carmen Miranda.
An ever popular blend of several African American dances, which include Lindy and Ragtime Jazz and Blues, as well as all the other dance music to accompanying dances of the past ninety years. Today it generally refers to the ballroom and night club version which is based on two slow and two quick counts or the slow and two quick counts of rhythm dances.
There are essentially three types of Tango - Argentine, American and International Style. Argentine Tango: (arrabalero) A dance created by the Gauchos in Buenos Aires. It was actually an attempt on their part to imitate the Spanish dance except that they danced it in a closed ballroom position. The Tango caused a sensation and was soon to be seen the world over in a more subdued version. American Tango: Unlike the Argentine Tango, in which the dancer interprets the music spontaneously without any predetermined slows or quicks, the American Tango features a structure which is correlated to the musical phrasing. The dance is executed both in closed position and in various types of extravagant dance relationships which incorporate a particular freedom of expression that is not present in the International style. International Tango: This is a highly disciplined and distinctively structured form of the Tango which is accepted worldwide as the format for dancesport events. The dancers remain in traditional closed position throughout and expresses both legato and staccato aspects of the type of music appropriate to this style.
With such wonderful composers as Johann Strauss and others, the Waltz became more and more refined. The steps became smaller with the turns smoother and more compact. Adding the graceful lilt of the flowing skirts we have today's Viennese Waltz.
The real origin of the Waltz is rather obscure, but a dance of turns and glides, leaping and stomping appeared in various parts of Europe at the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century. In Italy it was the Volta, France has its Volte, Germany the Weller and Austria had its Landler. These were round dances but at the end of the dance itself there was a short period in which the circle would break up into couples who would whirl madly round and round and finish with a jump in the air. In the Landler the hopping gave way more to a gliding motion and that is why it is considered the forerunner of the Waltz. The Waltz can be traced back as far as 400+ years. The Waltz regained its real popularity in the 20th century. The Waltz blossomed out as the Hesitation Waltz in 1913. Until the development of the hesitation, couples had waltzed in one direction until dizzy and then reversed until ready to drop. The Waltz had degenerated into an endurance contest. The Hesitation resulted in the Waltz it is done today. The slow Waltz was once known as the Boston Waltz. Today the slow Waltz is the American Waltz, English Waltz or just Waltz, and the faster is the Viennese Waltz.
A stylized Swing dance popular west of the Mississippi from Kansas to California. Danced in a slot to medium to slow Swing or Disco music and characterized by slot movements, taps and shuffles, coaster steps, and push and pull action of the dancers.
