Happy Birthday wishes to  Donna Boyle,  Tommy "Oz" Osborn,  Dennis Harris  and Carl Free.

Our heart felt condolences go out to two dance familles in the Washington, DC area.  Ed Cagley passed away from cancer and Craig Hutchinson passed from cortico basilar ganglionic degeneration. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. See more on Craig, below, and his contributions to the dance world. 

The living legend and godfather of Adagio, Francois Szony, has his new website up and running.  http://francoisszony.spaces.live.com/default.aspx

If you love the hustle then check out the Hustle Dance Club of Philadelphia and South Jersey. Organized by "Disco" Donna Boyle,  visit her new site at http:// www.Donnaboyle.com

Its a Stardust weekend....and not to late for you to joy the fun. See more details below and visit the website at  http://www.stardustdance.com  

Do you have a secret desire to dance with a cast member from Dancing With The Stars? Now you can, well, almost. Wii video games has now released an action game with cast members from multiple seasons. You can partner with Stacey Keibler, Mario Lopez, Cheryl Berke, Emmit Smith, Brian Fortuna plus many others. 

Pictures from Brian Gallagher's Halloween birthday party celebrated at Michael's Cafe, courtesy of Scott Michielli  http://share.shutterfly.com/action/slideshow? a=67b0de21b35539fac4f5&sid=8FYuW7Rw5Zx Y&auto=1&idx=-1&m=1&d=1193 970724247

Ballroom dance competitors Marek G'¡bor & Denisa Jancusova, have just opened their own dance studio. G & J Studios, 5 Jill ct, Building 14, Suite 15, Hillsborough, NJ 08844  -  908.892.0344 http://www.gandjstudios.com/aboutus.html

Get ready, next week starts the 6th Annual Readers Choice Awards, where you get to vote for your favorites.  Here are the winners from 2006
*** Favorite DJ - Johnny Ortiz
*** Favorite Female Dancer - Donna DeSimone
*** Favorite Male Dancer - Derrick Allen 
*** Favorite Dance Couple - Jamie Serna & Jerise Massone
*** Favorite Dance Couple (not hustle) - Robert & Nicola Royston
*** Favorite Female Instructor - Diane Nardone
*** Favorite Male Instructor - Arte Phillips
***Most Improved Dancer - Cathy Ricci
***Favorite All Time Dancer - Eddie Vega
***Person of the Year -  Gary Ulaner   

This weeks edition of DanceTalk is sponsored by The Big Easy coming to New Orleans. Read all about it below. http://www.bigeasydanceclassic.com/details.htm

Make it a great week,
Ron

The Big Easy
What do you get when you take a world dance champion, the king of New Orleans and put them under a mirror ball at the Big Easy.....you get one of the most eagerly awaited events of the year, the second annual Big Easy 2007. Hosts Katie Marlow and Keith Gussoni invite you to their Dance Classic November 29th thru December 2nd at the Double Tree Hotel on Canal Street in New Orleans. Your be located right at the center of all the action. The famous French Quarter and so much more. But, the Mardi Gras takes place inside as live bands, a Friday night Salsa Room, an all Star Saturday night show, New Orleans style buffet dinner and an incredible list of dance professionals and Deejays. The Big Easy includes dance competitions in Latin, Swing and Hustle dancing in all levels for novice, intermediate, advanced for professionals, amateurs and pro/ams.   

The Guy Nobody Wants to Dance With
This is a "how to guide"  in case you would like to be the guy, nobody wants to dance with. Courtesy of the Dance Primer. 

Craig Hutchinson - RIP
Craig R. Hutchinson, D.C.'s original Swing Daddy, founder and former director of the Potomac Swing Dance Club based in the Washington, D.C. area taught, did social exhibitions, competitive ballroom, night club dancing and swing for over 48 years (from 1954 to 2002). The PSDC was formed in 1985 to preserve and promote all forms of swing in the D.C. area. Craig is a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers who holds a Mineral Engineer- Mathematics degree from the Colorado School of Mines and a MA degree in Mathematics from the University of Arizona. He formed the United States Military Academy Swing Dance Club at West Point, NY in 1975 and wrote a West Coast Swing Syllabus for its use. He is the author of Swing Dancer, a Swing Dancers Manual and has written over 30 articles on Swing dancing. He is also the editor of the Swing Dancer Newsletter. - MORE COMPLETE INFO @ SITE -

November It reminds me that another year has come full circle. What harvest have we reaped this past year? Our lives are cyclical too. We can look at mini beginnings and endings. We can ask ourselves, "what have we completed?, what is done?, what is over?"
By truly experiencing and savoring the fruits of our labor, we're able to let go of that which no longer serves us. Just as the mighty oak tree naturally lets go of its leaves, we can let go of our own "leaves" to make room for our new blossoms.
My thoughts are turning to the power and courage of letting go:

--- To let go is not to deny, but to accept.
--- To let go is not to regret the past, but to grow and live fully in the present.
--- To let go is to fear less and to love more. My very best wishes to you, as ever, Dr. Duffy

Wilkins & Katusha - Another US Champion - now broken up

Salsa Shine