[Tango-L] What's the trick??

[Jay Rabe]

I disagree that sacadas are all that difficult. Here are some key things:

* You are leading her to take a step in the way you usually lead, that is, with a movement or rotation of your torso. 
* As she commits her momentum to taking the step, you place your foot just in front of her trailing foot.
* It's important to place your foot very close to her trailing leg (but not so close that you trip her as she steps).
* Generally you want to transfer your weight at the same time that she does.
* You can "enter," that is, step past her foot, in varying degrees. Start small, that is just stepping close to but not past her foot (which of course in its triviality is not properly a sacada), until you get a feel for the timing, then try stepping in (past her foot) further (re previous post about low vs. high sacadas). 
* Note that you are generally stepping sort of away from her, so that you must often rotate back towards her as you step (or rotate her back towards you) so that you remain facing/connected to her.
* Experiment with all three of her possible steps: side, fwd, and back.
* Similarly your possible steps can be with either your left or your right foot, and you can step either forward, side or back to execute the sacada.
* You'll discover that most combinations are easier on one side than on the other.
* If you experiment with back sacadas, take your shoes off and just wear socks until you get it down.

Good luck   :-)

         J
   TangoMoments.com




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