{"id":2327,"date":"2016-05-23T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-05-23T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/?p=2327"},"modified":"2016-05-23T10:00:00","modified_gmt":"2016-05-23T10:00:00","slug":"why-stephen-knight-loves-dance-so-much","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/blog\/dance-info-news-trends\/why-stephen-knight-loves-dance-so-much\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Stephen Knight Loves Dance So Much"},"content":{"rendered":"

An Interview with Fred Astaire Dance Studio\u2019s Co-National Dance Director<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Stephen<\/a>
Stephen Knight<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On a recent vacation with his partner, Stephen Knight listened as his friends at the end of the trip complained about having to return to work once they got home. \u201cSomeone turned to me and said, \u2018How come you\u2019re not saying anything?\u2019 I said, \u2018I\u2019m ready to go back to work. I love work. I\u2019m the luckiest guy in the world that I have a career that enables me to spread so much happiness.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Stephen started with our company in 1977, rising through the ranks from dance instructor and professional dancer to studio owner, judge, coach and then the Fred Astaire National Dance Board. He says he\u2019ll teach from a wheelchair when he\u2019s old if he has to, he loves it that much.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love getting up in the morning and changing people\u2019s lives,\u201d he says. \u201cI see the excitement. I see how they feel better about themselves, laugh more, smile more, engage with more people, and I always say I will never retire. The product of dance lessons builds self-esteem, feeling good, it\u2019s a good cardio workout, and dancers use their brains, build balance and coordination.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s seen students who were taking medicine for diabetes or high blood pressure after a year of dancing no longer need their medication at all. He sees students who come in hunched over within a year standing tall and confident.<\/p>\n

Stephen believes dancing can reverse aging. \u201cIt\u2019s the only product in the world that continues to increase in value.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Senior<\/a>Overseeing all regional and studio dance directors, Stephen guides our instructors nationwide on dance instruction. \u201cWe\u2019re in charge of the product and the service,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Stephen gushes about the Fred Astaire approach to dance instruction, calling it \u201cthe country club of ballroom dancing as far as instruction goes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fred Astaire uses the Trophy System of dance instruction, Stephen explains. Social dancers not only learn to dance; they can dance with the characteristics of the dance, using the techniques, he attests.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are many dancers out there who simply know the steps. We bring the feeling into what it means to dance,\u201d Stephen explains.<\/p>\n

Fred Astaire\u2019s Trophy System consists of bronze, silver and gold levels of social dancing. Students move through the levels, learning at a quick rate because of their level of commitment.<\/p>\n

Instructors chart student progress. A national dance council of more than 50 members keeps the curriculum current and oversees instructor training.<\/p>\n

Learning to dance is \u201cabout having good rise and fall, understanding what sway is, being able to be rhythmical, knowing the difference between time and rhythm, building partner skills,\u201d Stephen says. \u201cAll these things make a good dancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause dancing is an intangible product, we really concentrate on making sure the student feels the difference, that they feel graceful when they dance the waltz, powerful and strong when they dance a tango, have the sensuous rhythm of a beautiful rumba.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Fashion<\/a>It\u2019s imperative, says Stephen, to use your body to express the music.<\/p>\n

Of course, it takes time to develop this, but once you possess the feeling of dancing, you have it for life.<\/p>\n

And dance does wonders, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe bring the romance back into couples that have been married 25-30 years, empty-nesters, all of a sudden looking at each other and saying, \u2018Wow how did we get to this place.\u2019 We ignite that spark again, they\u2019re holding hands, kissing, in their arms, the romance is back. The number of people who came to me and said \u2018You saved our marriage because we didn\u2019t know each other anymore\u2026\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Stephen relays that there have been widows and widowers who come to him after taking up dancing and saying dancing saved their lives. \u201cThey come in and feel so alone and lost after losing a spouse, and thanks to dance, they feel safe and excited. There is something to get up in the morning for, they\u2019re doing it for themselves, all positive good health and wellness.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Stephen started in the 1970s, it was mostly seniors who danced. Today people of all ages and life stages come into the studio.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have millennials dancing with a baby boomer,\u201d Stephen says. \u201cWe know the generations are totally different. Dancing connects everybod. I call coming into the studio Adult Disneyland, it\u2019s a place now more than ever where people can escape the stress and tension of normal life. They find that they\u2019re so much better for everything else. Because they take that time to energize themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stephen\u2019s approach to dance instruction is to really get to know students.<\/p>\n

\u201cI find out everything about them from birth \u2013 siblings, schools attended, what they do in their spare time, career \u2026 the more I know about them, the more I can personalize training.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Young<\/a>But what\u2019s more important, says Stephen, is that he gets students to believe in the possibility that they can dance and dance well.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get them feeling. Once we get there, the magic just runs.\u201d<\/p>\n

When he started with the company at 17, Stephen was drawn to the excitement and the glamour of dance. As time evolved, he became more excited about learning the stories of the people who came to dance. His energy went into helping other people change their lives.<\/p>\n

How, you might ask?<\/p>\n

Recent college grads come in, scared about entering the work force, frustrated at not being able to find a job. When Stephen guides them in dance lessons, they gain confidence and positivity and before you know it, they\u2019re different in job interviews, and receiving offers for jobs.<\/p>\n

Single adults come in, looking to meet someone but not interested in the bar scene or online dating. They have fun at the group lessons, studio parties, and before you know it, they\u2019ve met someone because they started feeling good and happy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe beauty of Fred Astaire is that we have the ability to hone in on exactly what the students\u2019 wants and needs are; it\u2019s our job to deliver,\u201d Stephen says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn my opinion, this product, bar none, can enrich lives, can change lives\u2026there is no better medicine than dancing,\u201d says Stephen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An Interview with Fred Astaire Dance Studio\u2019s Co-National Dance Director On a recent vacation with his partner, Stephen Knight listened as his friends at the end of the trip complained about having to return to work once they got home. \u201cSomeone turned to me and said, \u2018How come you\u2019re not saying anything?\u2019 I said, \u2018I\u2019m […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dance-info-news-trends"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2327","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2327"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2327\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/bloomfield-hills\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}