Bell y Fiyona

“It used to be that the guy just stood there and used his hand to tell the girl to circle — but the trend these days is that the guy and the girl move together.”

Explaining how circle leading has changed, at the Bell & Fiona workshop

“Lead her with the feeling of, 'Hey, I'm working hard and moving too, so come move with me.'”

Explaining that the lead can't just signal with his hands — he has to use his body along with it

“Even while you're moving, the guy's arm frame can't break. Don't just use your hands — use your body with them.”

Stressing that the lead keeps his frame, during the body lead breakdown

“But you don't need to move as big as the ladies do. The guys move small, small.”

Explaining the difference in movement size between lead and follow

“They say every move was made by a person, so any person can do it. Even if it doesn't come on day one, practice and you'll get it.”

Encouraging the participants at the close of the workshop

“You do the Madrid step like you're being careful not to break a clay jar.”

A metaphor for the up-down energy of the Madrid step

“Your weight has to shift all the way, 0 to 100. The move always has to travel together with your weight.”

Stressing weight placement during the circle movement breakdown at the Bell & Fiona workshop

“The most important thing for the guys is using your body as well as the women do.”

Stressing the importance of men's movement during a media and mantón lesson

“This is what every dancer is saying these days, Luis y Andrea included: lead with your body, don't lead with your hands.”

Bringing up body lead as a current bachata trend

“The women's move is a front-and-back wave, but the men's move is a side wave and chest up. The energy has to be clearly there.”

Explaining the difference between men's and women's movement

“All the energy starts from the up-down, so weight up is priority number one.”

Explaining the underlying principle of how energy flows

“The key is holding the energy all the way to the end.”

Wrapping up the key point after demoing mantón and salida

“Before we had this principle, we used to fight a lot, even before we started teaching. But it gave us the answer for how to teach and how to move, and that was so good.”

An interview on the friction of teaching together as a couple, and the fix they found in the Korke y Judith principle

“Dancer, social dancer, performer — whatever you are, what I wanted wasn't to show how good I am. I wanted to show how much I'm enjoying it.”

An interview on how to approach dancing

“It's important to hit all four directions of the circle exactly.”

Stressing directionality while going over circle movement details