The Tea-Time Foxtrot is an extremely smooth, progressive dance characterized by long, continuous flowing movements across the ice. The rise and fall action should be present in up and down knee actions, as well as continuity of the steps, so that if there is a full cup of tea on the head of a dancing lady, no drop would be spilled.

Essential to a comfortable and effective Tea-Time Foxtrot is a dance frame, correct posture, connection, and foxtrot timing. The body should be held erect without either partner leaning toward the other. While in closed hold, partners should maintain light contact in the diaphragm area. But posture is not just how you hold your own body, but also how you connect with your partner. The man should present the lady, and the dance holds should be very elegant throughout the whole dance.

Steps are mostly choreographed in the typical foxtrot timing of “slow-quick-quick, slow-quick-quick,” using all dance holds, without any break of hold, even during the twizzles.

This dance should be performed easily, smoothly and effortlessly, as if the dancers were having a relaxing tea-time break during a long day of work.

Opening Section

The opening section starts in Foxtrot hold with the right forward inside three-turn (RFI3-RBO) by both partners. The man turns under the lady’s right arm on count 2 and then continuously both partners should change hands behind the lady’s back to Kilian hold. They both should hold RBO for three beats. On Step 2 they both execute LBO cross-roll followed by Step 3 RBI cross in front. At the same time they change Kilian hold to Foxtrot hold while entering parallel RBI double threes on count 2. Each half a turn of those double threes should be held for one beat.

“Toe-Pick-Hop” Section

Still maintaining Foxtrot hold (or variation of Foxtrot and Kilian hold), both partners execute double “toe-pick-hops” (Step 4) on count 1 and 2, finishing with a RFI two-beat Ina Bauer (Step 5) on count 3 and 4. During the frst beat of the Ina Bauer, the man holds the lady with his left hand and puts his right hand on her right shoulder. The lady then puts her left hand on her partner’s left hip. On the very end of their smooth inside Ina Bauer, the forward leg executes a “three-turn-like” motion, between beats 4 and 1 on count “and”, which means that only the right foot turns from forward to backward while the left foot is still skating backward. During this movement, the man holds the lady’s left hand with his left hand, so that she turns under his left arm. At the same time, partners switch their positions so that the lady appears in front of the man, while both of them are skating backward to Steps 6 and 7 (XF LBI and XF RBI (crossovers)) in open hold with the man’s right hand on the lady’s right shoulder (variation of Kilian hold).

Choctaw / Twizzle Section

Step 9 (XF (crossover) RBIO) finishes with the change of edge as the entry edge to the RBO-Wd Cho. The couple still maintains open hold (variation of Kilian hold). The RBO edge of the wide choctaw must be executed on count 1 and is held for three beats. Step 10 (LFI), exit from choctaw, must be held for one beat only. On count 1 of the next measure the lady changes hold to Foxtrot hold and then executes a double twizzle under his left arm (or they may choose a different hold/contact/touch), while the man holds RFI for two beats on count 1 and 2 (Step 11). The pattern in Tea-Time Foxtrot is optional and lady’s twizzle on Step 11 may be performed parallel to the long board, around the corner, or parallel to the short board. It may result in crossing the long axis and the retrogression of the next steps is permitted within this section.

Slide to the Three-Turn (skidded) Section

On count 3,4,1,2, they both execute double progressive steps in combination of Kilian and Foxtrot or basic Foxtrot hold, skating into the long Step 15. On count 2, they change hold to Kilian hold with the man’s right hand under the lady’s right shoulder. Such hold is maintained during a RFIO change of edge until count 3. During the change of edge they perform a crossed slide, which is optional for the man. The crossed slide will then continuously come into the RFO three-turn (skidded) in the variation of the reverse Kilian hold, followed by a single RBI twizzle which they finish with a one-beat RBI by the man (followed by his backward crossover, Step 16/17) while the lady executes a three-beat RBI. They execute their single, simultaneous twizzles in a way that the man rotates under both lady’s arms (or they may use a different hold/contact/touch). After the twizzles the partners should change hold to the variation of Kilian hold. Steps 16 and 17 are in open Kilian hold with man’s right hand on lady’s left shoulder.

Mirror-Switching Joyful Hops Section

This section starts on count 1 of a new measure with Step 17 (XF (crossover) RBI). On count 2, both partners need to switch their placements by executing crossed in front followed by little hops to the opposite side. The man travels from the lady’s left hip side to her right hip side and back, holding her with his left hand on her left hip.

At the completion of Step 19, both partners finish on two feet to prepare and start Step 20. Step 20 is divided into two parts: starting with one foot on count 4. On count 1, the man executes a two-footed push to the LBI three-turn while holding the lady’s hips. At the same time, the lady transfers her body weight on her left leg and executes a two-footed push to her LBI three-turn, which finishes in Kilian hold.

The couple starts their Step 21 in Kilian hold, with the lady a bit behind the man’s right hip while performing their RFI three-turn. The man executes his RFI three-turn under the lady’s left arm. After the three-turn, the lady holds the man in Kilian hold. Both free legs are in a front coupé position.

Step 22a and 22b is a LFO/RBO half-rotation jump for the man on count 1 and 2, while the lady stays on Step 22 RBO for two beats. After the man’s jump, the couple is in the Foxtrot hold (or variation of Foxtrot and Kilian hold).

Steps 23 to 26 are a smooth and continuous chassé -progressive section in a very elegant Foxtrot hold, traveling to Step 27 which is a four beat cross-roll RFO swing-rocker for both partners and immediately followed by four crossed steps (Steps 28-31). The couple maintains in Foxtrot hold (or variation of Foxtrot and Kilian hold), using typical Foxtrot timing: “slow-quick-quick, slowquick-quick”. This section finishes with a two-beat swing to the side on Step 31.

The next lobe starts with Step 32 (LFO) followed by Step 33 (XB RFI), which is the entry to RFI Ina Bauer. The couple still maintains Foxtrot hold (or variation of Foxtrot and Kilian hold), with the lady a little bit in front the man’s right hip, so that she will be able to start her Ina Bauer inside the circle. The movement continues with the “rocker-like-motion”. During simultaneous Ina Bauer, a leading right foot executes a rocker, while the second foot stays on the ice until it brings back to the right foot and, at the very end of this movement, executes a crossed in front. Step 35 is a ‘toe-pick-hop” on count 1 directly to the side, with the landing on the “and”.

Three-Turn-Bracket Section

The corner section starts with Steps 37-39 in Kilian hold with a very rhythmic chassé and progressive three-turn-RBO close mohawk (Steps 40-41) sequence (holds change to Foxtrot hold or variation of Foxtrot and Kilian hold).

The section continues with the funny little hop used to change the lobe to the next one into a five beats RFO bracket (Step 44). On the frst beat of the entry to the bracket, the couple should change hold to reverse Kilian hold with the lady’s left hand on the man’s right shoulder. Such hold is maintained during the long outside bracket section. On a very short Step 45, the couple changes the hold to Kilian held by the lady.

The next corner section starts with Step 46 (XF (crossover)-RBIO-Tw2). A change of edge is a one-beat entry to a double twizzle for the man, while the lady executes a brief touch-down with the left foot to perform a two-beat RBO attitude. The double twizzle by the man should be executed in a way that the first rotation is executed under the lady’s left arm (or they may choose a different hold/contact/touch), followed by the second rotation with the lady’s right hand around her partner’s waist. The twizzle section finishes with the progressive steps in an open Kilian hold with the lady’s right hand on the man’s right shoulder, followed by a little hop and a three-turn by the man.

“Walk-Around-Three-Turn” Section

The section starts with Step 51 in Waltz hold, slightly offset to the left. Maintaining consistent posture and frame throughout is very important. The lady starts her first turn from a RFO cross-roll (Step 52) while the man executes his wide two-footed push on count 3 to change lobe and direction. The next series of walk-around-three-turns occurs alternately. The man begins by traveling backward on Step 54 (LBO) and starting on his RFO (Step 54a) for the walk-around threes with the feet of the partners offset. The man executes his last three-turn on Step 54a traveling around the lady while she maintains on a RBI for five beats, after her three-turn on Step 54.

The Dance finishes with both partners skating RBI in Kilian Hold.

MUSIC RHYTHM: Slow-Fox 4/4
TEMPO: 26 four-beat measures per minute; 108 beats per minute
ISU MUSIC INTRODUCTION: 32 beats, 17.8 seconds
PATTERN-TIMING: 1 = :58;
DURATION: Test 1 = :58 Competition 1 = :58 Adult Competition 1 = :58
SKATER’S CHOICE TIMING: See Skater’s Choice Pattern Dance Timing Chart on usfgureskating.org under the “Technical Info” link
PATTERN: Optional
TEST: International
INVENTORS: Sylwia Nowak-Trębacka, Natalia Kaliszek and Maksym Spodyriev
FIRST PERFORMANCE: Oberstdorf, Germany, September 2016