European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 05, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Letting Loose with by Keith Bradsher new York times ight pairs of professional dancers did Stow turns on a shiny Black floor at the palladium nightclub in new York City to the thump of tropical music the right thigh of each Man Between his partner s legs As their hips swivelled in unison. Asunde their partners right Knees the women occasionally performed deep Back bends followed by several fast pirouettes that set their miniskirts flying lambada dancing a growing hit in nightclubs across the United states is nol for the bashful the hip grinding dance which looks like a mixture of Salsa merengue. Dirty dancing and Lango. Became popular nearly a decade ago in northeastern Brazil but was commercialized and mixed with other dance styles last summer in France ii has also taken Germany by storm it has now washed ashore in the United Stales and slowly developed a following in the last several months with the Best known band. Karma. Playing to packed houses from Miami to san Francisco while disc pc keys take requests for the music from new York to san Antonio even for professional dancers. The intimacy of lambada dancing can be awkward letting Loose was the hardest  said Marianne Summers a Young professional dancer m the troupe that rehearsed the dance in preparation for a performance at the palladium ii is a bit embarrassing to do it with someone you Don t know " other dancers said the close Contact of the lambada was part of its Appeal its like a definite form of Safe  said Victor m Safir Temple. A classical ballot dancer with the dance theater of Harlem the Basic step can be Learned in 15 mules. Although it requires some practice from the Waist up. The partners positions look Little different from the positions in a Lango or Fox Lrol the Man puts his right Arm around the woman s Waist and lakes her right hand in his left held out to the Side the woman rests her led hand on his shoulder the footwork is a step followed by two quicker Steps and of course there is the infamous thigh straddle which keeps the partners hips to Gelhar As they gyrate 1 you basically move up and Down and in and out with your hips said Barbara Browning whose partner at the palladium rehearsal was her Boyfriend lore Mil Souza Machado some of the women Al the palladium rehearsal initially added a Little two step of their own trying to place a Little distance Between themselves and their partners but by the end of the rehearsal most of the couples were dancing enthusiastically you have to he open minded " said Sophia Morns a dancer a so with the dance theater of Harlem for Export dancers and the truly reckless lambada also includes More challenging Steps like the deep Back bends i Don t think that s going to be very popular with average  said Lygya barrel. The artistic director and choreographer of roots of Brazil in Manhattan who was teaching the group it can be dangerous you can Hurt yourself " the meaning of the word lambada is disputed. It s not hot Loir a like people originally thought Laid Vivian Piazza a spokeswoman for epic records which has released in the United slates an album by Karma the French group that plays and sings the Best known lambada songs at least part of the popularity of lambada dancing May reflect aggressive promotion of Karma a spokeswoman for the brazilian cultural foundation in new York said. Lambada is when you Bach someone when you hit someone with a  the lambada s uninhibited movements Are not for the shy or faint of heart. Early dancers of the lambada May have been punished for lascivious behaviour some brazilians say. Whatever the meaning May be the dance is increasingly popular now in the United Stales especially in cities with Large hispanic communities at the Bonham Exchange a san Antonio nightclub More and More customers request la lambada by Karma said Adam Dimas the disc jockey. It s a very popular song its like a  Karma is involved in a lawsuit concerning authorship of the song and at the dance City studio in South Miami Simon Albani is teaching 20 couples the dance. It s like dirty dancing with a tropical beat he said men sometimes Are a Little shy about moving their hips and grabbing the girl the Way they Are supposed to Barreto  you re shy you re going to have a hard  Erma Bombeck while 1 was waiting in line at a convenience store. The woman in front of me giggled to a Friend hey Deb. Did you hear Tom cruise is a Bachelor again Deb turned and said you know what thai Means sandy9 there s Hope for us i watched Sandy balance a baby in one Arm Ana a gallon of milk and a Carton of ice Cream m the other Deb had a toddler who Clung to her Teg like Ivy  the Walls at Harvard i thought. Hope Lor what7 this had to be the height of optimism this was As Good As fantasy got driving Home. I could t shake the Absurdity of imagining what the Odds were of Tom cruise stopping off Al a convenience store in Phoenix and whisking away Deb and Sandy were they crazy7 then i remembered the lottery ticket i had ust purchased what were the Odds of those Little pm Pong balls coming up with the Ages of our family7 i remembered this morning when All the cars in the family started All we of them that has never happened before and if someone raid told me thai five motors would turn Over without one of them needing a jump Starl. Id have laughed i guess we All dream in the darkness of a theater and in the secret Corners of our minds if we did to then How come All those servicemen who yearn for Home have Kim Basinger s Calendar hanging Over their bunks instead of a picture of Sara Lee Pound cake i used to fantasize about giving an Amway party and the Only person who showed up Vas Robert Redford but it did t last Long when i told my husband it was Over he said "why7 it sounds great i told him i was nine years older than Redford he said. Foi crying out loud it s a fantasy what different does it make7 i did i want to loll him i also had t turned in an order in three months it had to Stop How could i expect a Man to understand whose idea of a fantasy was to dream of being a contestant on jeopardy and answering every question under greek mythology9 men probably Don t sit around lip syncing records i was alone in the House one Day and put on a cassette of Liza Monelli singing new York new York " i had every move Down. As i was bowing Lor the applause my head resting on my knee. I saw another pair of feet belonging to one of the kids. I pretended my Back went out and crawled to the Couch. We All feel a Little foolish pretending Taul if Deb and Sandy behave that Tom cruise will pull up in Iron of a convenience store in Phoenix and ask them to split a Burn to. Who am i to Lake the smiles off their faces7 c l990�frnabomw cd Page 16 the stars and stripes monday. February 5. 1990