Friday Night Waltz - Holiday Ball - Richard Powers teaches Bohemian National Polka
Schedule
Fri Dec 12 2025 at 07:15 pm to 11:45 pm
UTC-08:00Location
625 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA, United States, California 94301 | Palo Alto, CA
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Friday Night Waltz Holiday Dance Party!
This is always a big one. Treat yourself to a fun night out, dancing with friendly people and fun music.
Yes, it's also BNP Night! Just in time for this month's Gaskell Ball, December 27th
and the upcoming Stanford Viennese Ball, February 27th.
NOTE! we will have a beginner rotary waltz class in a separate room from 7:15 to 9:00 for beginner dancers!
Bohemian National Polka is on the bucket list for all serious FNW, Gaskells and Viennese Ball dancers. It's the most widely known polka choreography in the world, danced by over a million dancers in dozens of countries. Here are 600 videos of BNP being danced in the U.S., France, Italy, China, Japan, Philippines, Korea, Russia, Belgium, Brazil, Uruguay, Portugal, Corsica and Liechtenstein.
7:15-9:15 pm - Richard Powers and Rocky Aikens teach a special intermediate/advanced class in the Bohemian National Polka, with enough time for all of the details, including pivots. Whether learning it for the first time or catching reminders of the many details, here is a rare chance to have a full class in the BNP, taught by the choreographer himself.
Pre-requirement: Intermediate/advanced level means that all participants must already know how to do a rotary waltz, Viennese waltz, or polka. If you already waltz but are a newer waltzer, be sure to arrive for the start of the class at 7:15 pm. This class is definitely not for beginners, but there will be a beginners class in polka at the same time, in a nearby room, so newcomers are welcome to take that class.
As you can see from the videos, BNP is a five-part choreography, where each part builds upon the previous steps. Students in the class hate it when they have to dance with someone who came to the class late, and doesn't know the first parts of the choreography, so no one will be allowed to join the class after 8pm, unless they already know BNP, and wish to assist those learning it for the first time. But arriving late after missing 30 minutes will still be too difficult for most people, so the first advice is best: be there at the beginning of the class, at 7:15 pm, ready for a fun challenge!
9:15 pm - Holiday Dance Party!
Richard Powers will play his favorite Holiday tunes and recent finds.
For those who don't know about Richard Powers, he is one of the world's foremost experts in social dance. He has taught dance in Paris, London, Rome, Venice, Prague, Vienna, Verona, Geneva, Seville, St. Petersburg, Moscow and Tokyo, including 34 workshops in France (teaching in French) and 28 in Japan (teaching in Japanese). Richard is currently the full-time social dance instructor at Stanford University.
This Friday, December 12th
Doors open at 6:45.
Class starts at 7:15. Please arrive 15 minutes early to avoid the rush.
$15 general. $10 for students with ID.
Cash, Check, Credit Card, Apple Pay. We do not accept Venmo. Tickets at the door.
No partner necessary. We rotate rapidly in class.
All Ages. Casual comfortable attire.
Masks are optional. Free Masks. Free bottles of water.
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First United Methodist Church, 625 Hamilton Ave., Palo Alto CA, upstairs Fellowship Hall.
Parking in rear parking lot. Many on-street parking spaces available.
Large Webster/Cowper parking garage one block away.
http://www.fridaynightwaltz.com
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Where is it happening?
625 Hamilton Ave, Palo Alto, CA, United States, California 94301Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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