"Best Dirty Dancing North of Rio"

RedEye Edition
Chris McNamara CHRIS MCNAMARA IS A REDEYE SPECIAL
CONTRIBUTOR. Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Ill.: Dec 11,


There's nothing as rhythmic, sensual and downright
sexual as Irish dancing.

Wait ... my mistake ... make that Brazilian dancing.
Growing up in a Celtic household wasn't exposed to the
samba, olodum or pagode. My parents led the coalition
to forbid the lambada.

Now that's not to say I wasn't attracted to the
Trinity Irish Dancers who'd perform at our parades and
weddings. Those leaden arms, expressionless faces and
fast-moving ankles (swathed in the most erotic of
textiles --wool) would send a blush to my pale Irish cheeks.

But despite my heritage, I've always been jealous of
Brazilians. They're just sexier than the rest of us
with their Carnival, public nudity and rules-be-damned
dancing. So I attended the Brazilian Cultural Dance
Workshop last weekend and tried to see if I could
steal some Rio mojo.

"KEEPOUT" was spray painted on the wall of the
Dancer's Delight Studio at Melrose Street and Lincoln
Avenue. They must have known I was coming. Thumping
samba music poured out of second-floor windows. It was
Chicago winter on the street and Brazilian summer
indoors. I decided to warm up.

Edilson Lima, in a mesh sleeveless shirt with hips
that pivot like pistons, was leading a class of about
20 who followed his every twirl, rump shake and
shimmy. Born and raised in Sao Paolo, Brazil, Lima is
mission. "I want to get people involved Brazilian
culture," he said. His workshops use percussion,
language and food, but the dance that students most
want to learn.

"I love this--it just feels right in my body," said
dancer Sarah Davis of Chicago.

"We are trying to turn America into little Brazil,"
added Ariel Samuels, Lima's assistant and a Brazilian
culture buff.

Chicago's Jessica Newport is a seasoned hoofer, but
she wanted to add some culture to her dance
repertoire. So she listened when Lima described unique
aspects Brazilian society. Just when the dancers
were breaking good sweat, Lima
cut the music and gathered the crowd for a Portuguese
tutorial. After a few minutes of language instruction
--Where is the aspirin/ Onde ha aspirina?--the pupils
seemed cooled down and ready for more dancing.
After what seemed like uma hora, the tutorial ended
and the music resumed. "You don't have to be a
stripper to do samba," Helen Jutsen, an Australian
native living Chicago. "You don't have to be a slut."
With that cleared up, I decided to dance.
I paired with Samuels and we did the olodum, an
African-inspired Brazilian style perfect for
embarrassing Irish Catholics.

"American's movements are sometimesstiff;
Brazilians are more comfortable
in their bodies," Samuels said. I would have
contradicted her, but she'd just seen me dance. "It's
not only women that can shake their hips."
And with that, I looked over at Jonathan Jutsen--the
only other guy in the class and my fiercest competitor
for the Worst Dancer title. Jonathan was with his
wife, Helen "You Don't Have to be a Slut" Jutsen, and
was having a blast. "Where are all the red- blooded
men of America?" Jonathan said. "They're afraid of
expressing themselves physically. I come here to have
a good time with all these gorgeous women."
You don't normally hear an Australian accent in a
Brazilian samba workshop. Then again, I'm probably not
the best barometer of what is normal in a Brazilian
samba workshop.

But in my first exposure I got to practice my samba
dancing while learning about Brazilian culture. I
heard a new style of music and I can now ask for
aspirin the next time I have a headache in Angra dos Reis.
In short, I managed to steal a little Rio mojo. And
I'm interested in learning more. This week I'm trying
out something called Brazilian wax.

2003. Copyright 2003 by the Chicago Tribune