Dance classes for adults at Encino Community Center

One of Encino’s best kept secrets should not be a secret at all. We have excellent dance classes for adults – each session covers swing, salsa, tango, waltz, rumba, foxtrot – available right now at Encino Community Center and not enough residents take advantage of them. It’s a missed opportunity!

The classes are a bargain at $110 for 10 weeks. Every Thursday evening there are two sessions: 7:00-8:20PM and 8:30-9:50PM. We prefer the later one since it allows us time for dinner and there are more couples than in the earlier one. The current Winter Session has had only one class so far, so there is time to sign up. Call the ECC at (818) 995-1690, or drop by, if you want to explore the idea.

The main hesitation for hanging back is because one member of a couple thinks they have two left feet. Being an original member of that club myself, the instructor, Cynthia Harper, is a brilliant teacher and I can hold my own now with my wife. A few singles attend and generally Cynthia works something out so they are all engaged. It’s very encouraging. Even if I have forgotten most of it by the following week, it comes back quickly.

Cynthia also teaches a Latin Sizzle Workout (salsa, cha-cha-cha, merengue), 10-weeks for $85 on Wednesdays at 9:00-9:50AM.

Cynthia and her associate James Zimmer have been teaching classes around Los Angeles for years and they are much appreciated by everyone in the dance world for their efforts, whether it is historical dances at the Getty or ballroom and international folk dances at UCLA or in Beverly Hills or at Santa Monica College. They do it because they love dance. If you want to email Cynthia directly, she can be reached at cynthiadances (at) hotmail.

For kids, I need to mention that there are 10-weekclasses at ECC for floor gymnastics and ballet tap and tumble for $80 for 10 weeks. If these aren’t what you’re interested in, there is also piano and guitar classes, tai chi, karate, tennis, cooking and more. The ECC website is here and then click on the Winter brochure (pdf).

Photo: Wikipedia/Che