San Diego is America’s finest city plus it hosts numerous types of ballroom dancing. You can find every kind of ballroom dancing from International style Dancesport to American social dancing, Argentine tango performance teams as well
Another important event was the opening involving Betty’s Dance Scene in La Jolla on Faye Avenue around 1980. The owner was Betty Summer’s, who had been rumored to be the actual spouse of a Texas oil magnate. A half million us dollars was placed into the interior adornment and also the reigning national Latin dance champ, Ron Montez, was brought in from Arizona to become the actual dancing director.
When Ron Montez moved to San Diego, other Latin dance champions followed in order to proceed education with him like Rick Valenzuela. Also, Ron’s professional partner Liz Curtis changed moved to San Diego. Once more the education from Ron Montez, Rick Valenzuela among others raised the level of dancing and dance expertise in the San Diego dancing professionals. Many of the present dancing studio owners dance skills and knowledge benefited from Stephen Cullip, Ron Montez, Lynn Vogen, Liz Curtis among others that followed the champion competition dancers to San Diego.
Betty’s Dance Scene only stayed open for a handful of years but other dance professionals like Pattie Wells, Michael Kiehm and Lowell Gosser continued to teach and foster the San Diego dance community. Lots ballroom dance organizations also cranked up within the last few decades like USA Dance and also the National Smooth Dancers.
During the 1980′s, Mary Murphy, judge for “So You Think You Can Dance”, arrived in San Diego and taught at the Ballroom Dance Academy, owned by Steve Cheatham, a previous teacher at the Sunshine Ballroom. Mary opened her own studio having a strong focus on International style Dance-sport.
Meanwhile, Pattie Wells opened up the premier San Diego dance studio after many years of teaching all over San Diego County, in baypark in 1998, the Pattie Wells’ Dancetime Center. It is really a stunning 4,000 sq. ft. facility with an upstairs and downstairs ballroom. It is a great success since it opened and remains a hub of dancing within the West Coast including salsa San Diego and all other kinds of ballroom dancing.