MILTON — For the past six weeks, Butch Antone and his wife, Marie, have offered line dancing lessons at the Guy Thompson Community Center.
The Pensacola couple share their passion and expertise with residents each Monday morning.
GALLERY: PHOTOS from line dancing lessons at the Guy Thompson Community Center>
“We have a good group and they have been very supportive since we have taken over,” Butch Antone said. “You could not ask for a nicer group of people to work with. They have really been fun.”
WATCH: Video of Antone giving instruction during line dancing lesson>
Antone, 69, has seen the number of participants — mostly women — gradually increase since bringing lessons back to the Milton community center.
“We average around 15 to 20 every week,” he said.
The lessons initially started with less than 10 participants.
Antone said he works with each participant to ensure he or she is not intimidated in learning the choreographed dance.
“It’s my job to teach them while the others are walking through it,” he said.
Most attendees quickly learn to line dance, Antone said. But really, he said, it’s as simple as just moving to the music.
“Dancing to me is your interpretation of you and the music,” he said. “If you enjoy the music and you know the dance, you get into another world for two and a half minutes, and that is what I like to see.”
There are several music formats and styles of music for line dancing, from classic country to rock and roll to international music.
“Line dancing is great exercise, and I think that is a main reason why a lot of the ladies come out,” Antone said.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Pensacola couple bring line dancing to Guy Thompson Community Center (VIDEO, PHOTOS)