Dance, Indulge, Enjoy: It’s Valentine’s Day in Mystic

Dance, Indulge, Enjoy: It’s Valentine’s Day in Mystic

Posted by Kristal Spence on Feb 13 2008, 07:45 AM

So it’s Valentine’s Day, a day historically dedicated to spending time with the one you love. It’s also a day that can become a bit stressful when it’s time to figure out what to do! There are plenty of things to enjoy within Mystic, which makes it a romantic getaway for a partner or simply for yourself. Why travel when everything’s at your fingertips?

 
 

At the Fred Astaire Dance Studio at 12 Roosevelt Avenue, from couples to singles, anyone can join a class to learn how to sweep that special someone off their feet. Co-owners Rogelio Garcia and Vadim Asmolov said the studio has been open for a year as of Feb. 10 and they plan to celebrate during a potluck event open to the public Feb. 15.

 
 

Asmolov gave examples of the different dances taught at Fred Astaire, mentioning the Fox Trot, the Waltz, swing, and the renowned Tango. Asmolov teaches about 100 lessons a week and said he and Garcia got into the business of dancing because they’ve been dancing for many years. Garcia added that during lessons, they take the students’ nervousness away and strive to make class time relaxed.

 
 

Cliff and Cathy McCullouth of Griswold have been taking lessons since the studio opened in Mystic and have found the experience enjoyable.

 
 

“My wife’s been talking about it for quite a few years, and we never did anything about it,” Cliff explained. “She went to a bridal show with my daughter, who was getting married last fall and [members of the Fred Astaire Dance Studio] were up there giving out cards for the grand opening. So she picked up one of them, talked me into it, and…we went down, checked it out, decided to sign up for the introductory class.

 
 

Once we started it, we enjoyed it tremendously and have stayed with it.”

“It just looks so cool,” Cathy said. “You go out to parties and see people that know how to dance. They just look so great on the dance floor and you’re sitting there thinking, ‘Someday I would like to do that.’ So we’re doing it…it’s just amazing to see what you start as and what you can become. When you start out, you’re step step step step…now you actually float across the floor and you look good.”

 
 

“I’m into it as much as she is if not more so,” Cliff admitted.

 
 

Cathy said together, they’ve already been involved in two competitions and are signed up to participate in a national competition in April in Las Vegas. She said that a lot of the couple’s success is due to the great bunch of people, from instructors to other clients, at the studio.

 
 

“We’ve made such nice relationships and friendships with people there; once we stop going to classes, I’m sure the friendships are going to last,” she said.

 
 

“We have a large variety of teachers from around the world,” Garcia said, mentioning local instructor Brenda Campbell and introducing two instructors, Dmytro Filltov and Olga Golubko from the Ukraine. Each one has danced for 17 years and seven years together as partners. Filltov said he came to America for the experience of teaching.

 
 

“We like the American dance style, and we wanted to become acquainted to American culture,” Golubko said.

 
 

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