Do you see any similarity in the
two pictures above?? The
eerie comparison is no accident. This lovely couple planned
their first Waltz in great detail.
They are the perfect
answer to the question: "What does the First Dance at a
wedding look like when two people who already know how to
dance get married?"
The answer is: "They look awesome!"
From what I gather, the large crowd thought they were
watching professional dancers in action. Many people come up
to tell Aubrey and Billye that was the finest display of
dancing they had ever personally witnessed in their lives.
The response was very touching.
So what is the background story?
Aubrey Smith and Billye Kridner had
been taking lessons here at SSQQ for several years dating
back to 2002.
They met here at SSQQ in one of the dance classes. They went
together for a couple of years before they became
engaged.
When Aubrey and Billye decided to get married in August 2005, they agreed
they wanted to dance as if it were a scene from a fairy
tale wedding. After all, they had already been
practicing just for the fun of it for a long time. So
they took some private lessons for more polish, practiced
whenever they could, and concentrated on showing the world
what it is like to see two people in love dance together.
Then they hired a live band and had their reception in a
Hotel Ballroom.
For extra flourish, Aubrey brought his
parents and family all the way from South Africa to see them
get married and dance!
I was honored to be asked to help this
couple prepare for their
first dance. The truth be told, I contributed a few moves
and made some suggestions on leads, but Aubrey and Billye
had already done their homework - they were wonderful
dancers!
One look at the gorgeous dress, the handsome groom, and the
beautiful bride with her wonderful smile illustrate clearly
they succeeded beyond the shadow of a doubt.
Indeed the smiles on their faces tell the whole story...
"Could I Have this Dance for the Rest of my Life..."
The Interview
After their Wedding, I sat down with
Aubrey and Billye to ask them about their
Waltz preparation.
Aubrey,
I have one more favor… would you spare a couple
moments to tell me more about your wedding?
Your pictures are going to absolutely knock
people out and they will likely want to know
more about the two of you. Here are some questions I
had:
How did you two meet?
We met in Steve Gabino’s Beginning Swing class
in June 2003. We started dating sometime during
the whip classes later that year. We were
engaged on November 23, 2004.
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Where did you get
married?
We were married on December 3rd at the Emerson
Unitarian Universalist church and the reception
was at the Courtyard on St James.
We honeymooned in the Cape Winelands in South
Africa.
Did you two consciously
decide to put energy into your first dance?
Absolutely.
How often did you
practice?
Half an hour every day for the three
weeks before the wedding.
What song did you dance
to?
I love you more today than yesterday (but
only half as much as tomorrow) by Spiral
Staircase.
What did the people say
when they saw you?
We received too many compliments to list.
Did Billye have trouble
dancing in that gorgeous dress?
A little.
What dances did you dance
at your wedding?
We danced a Foxtrot for our First Song,
then, as you can see from the pictures, during
the Reception we danced Swing, Foxtrot, Waltz,
and Whip.
Any suggestions for other
couples getting ready for the first dance?
Billye:
If you are planning to dance in a fancy
outfit, do some practices with a similar outfit
so that you get used to the way it moves when
you dance.
Aubrey:
Spring for the band because live music really
makes a big difference. And take lots of lessons at SSQQ!
Aubrey, judging from Billye's smiles,
you get my supreme compliment for a job well
done! I am so proud of you! Let me
change that, I am so proud of both of you!
By the way, I have one more question:
Marla asked me to
ask how Billye’s dress got shorter in the
last Whip picture. It must be a girl thing
because I would have never noticed LOL!
Billye:
I had two dresses.
The floor length dress I wore at
the church and through the first set of dance
music at the reception.
There was one swing
tune in that set and the petticoat was quite
heavy. It seemed to have a life of it own in a
spin. I was glad I had planned for a change. I
wore the tea-length to dance the rest of the
reception.
Any final thoughts?
Aubrey: Yes. Preparing for this dance was
time consuming and a lot of work. I
would do it again in a flash because I fell
more in love with my wife every day.
It was wonderful being on a team together
preparing for a challenge. We made
mistakes, we changed the routine, we changed
the music, we disagreed on things, but there
was always respect and love. By the
time we were done learning, I knew I was in
love forever.
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