Dance
Definitions
Ballroom. . .Latin. . .Swing.
. . Social . . .what does it all mean? What style of dance should you start with? Which
is the most useful? All
partner-style dances have certain elements in common. They all
require leading and following skills, floor management knowledge,
and the practice of dance floor etiquette. They also have
common steps and patterns that are easier to learn in some dances
rather than others. We'll discuss these issues below.
A brief
overview. . . Ballroom dances such as
Foxtrot, Waltz, & Tango all have a graceful flare that will
eventually make you feel like Fred or Ginger. The music for
each is very different, but all can move you
around a large dance floor very quickly. Foxtrot and Waltz may
also be danced on smaller floors commonly found in social settings.
Latin dances are quick and fiery, exuding a lot of pent up
energy. They all involve "Latin motion," a technique that
creates powerful, controlled body movements with a lot of hip and
rib action. Swing is a Rhythm dance, full of energy and
fun. This is the most common dance type you'll see out in
social settings, at least in this geographical area.
If you've never
danced partner-style before we suggest starting with "Swing I,"
"Nightclub I," "Romance I," or "Ballroom I,"
or with a "Wedding Preparation" Workshop. These are the
easiest classes in which to learn the essential elements of leading
& following, dance frame, floor management, common footwork, and
terminology. Dancing is a little like learning a strange
dialect. The terms are English, but they may not make any
sense to you in the very beginning. Common terms include "rock
step," "side break," "outside turn," "inside turn," "5th position
break," and "outside partner." I promise these will all fall
into context, but they do so more quickly if you start with one of
the easier classes.
In my opinion,
East Coast Swing is the most useful of the partner-style dances, followed
closely by Nightclub Two-Step and Foxtrot. You'll hear the
music for these dances at weddings, holiday parties, bars, and on
the radio. They can be done in restricted space, are
relatively easy to learn, and are a lot of fun without draining all
of your energy on the first dance.
Below you'll
find a description of each of the dances we teach and the class name
it falls under. There's also a difficulty rating, with one
star being a good class for anyone to start with, two stars being
for quick learners only, and three stars requiring background in
other partner-style dances before you tackle that class.
|
Class Name |
Dance Description |
Difficulty Rating |
The Class where
you'll
find this dance. |
Rhythm
Dances |
|
"Swing "
&
"Wedding Preparation"
workshop |
Single Rhythm East Coast
Swing - This is what people usually mean when they say they want
to learn "swing" or "Jitterbug." Great for big band,
neo-swing, 50s-60s rock & roll, & country music, this is the
most social of all the partner-style dances. You can use
this at weddings, holiday parties, nightclubs, bars, and in your
kitchen. It takes up very little floor space and is one of
the easiest dances to learn. We recommend this class to
everyone, especially those who have never danced before.
Uses a 6-count rhythm with 8-count variations (Swing II.) |
* |
|
"Swing" |
Double Rhythm East Coast
Swing - a fun way to add style to certain songs, we usually
approach this rhythm in our Swing II classes. Uses a
6-count rhythm with 8-count variations. |
** |
|
"Swing" |
Triple Rhythm East Coast
Swing - for slower songs or high energy people, "Triple" gives
your feet lots of extra steps to occupy them when the music
lags. Uses a 6-count rhythm with 8-count variations. |
** |
|
"West Coast" |
West Coast Swing -
This distinctive dance is very popular among the dance crowd.
It requires more effort than East Coast Swing, but is thoroughly
worth it. It is the only common partner style dance where
the man and woman's footwork has no relationship to each other.
It's great for slower blues and country music, as well as funk
and hip hop. Some artists would include Stevie Ray Vaughn,
Prince, Backstreet Boys, Sammy Kershaw, & Too Slim and the Taildraggers.
This dance is not
recommended for beginners. We require background experience
in East Coast
Swing, Lindy Hop, or Cha Cha in order to start this class, (unless you have previous West Coast experience, of course.) |
**** |
The Class where
you'll
find this dance. |
Latin
Dances |
|
|
"Latin" or "Salsa" |
Salsa - This is what most people think of when they talk about Latin
dancing. Salsa is fast, flirty, and lots of fun, but more
challenging to learn than swing. You
can dance to
Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, Tito Puente and much more! |
** |
|
"Latin" or
"Cha
Cha" |
Cha Cha - when your Latin song is too slow for Salsa you
usually use Cha Cha. It's a really fun dance with a LOT of
possibilities. Songs like "Smooth" from Santana are one
recognizable option. The music is often very catchy and
powerful, as is the dance. |
*** |
|
"Latin" |
Merengue -
This is the most basic Latin dance. It's very useful when the music is
decidedly Latin but none of the other dances quite work. Great for
cruise ships and other umbrella drink occasions! |
* |
|
"Latin" |
Samba -
This is a great
dance for those steel drum bands! If you're up for a
challenge, be sure to experience this one. It's a very
high energy, high motion dance, and is not recommended for
beginners. |
**** |
|
"Romance" |
Rumba is
the Latin "dance of love." This is a great slow dance that can
be used to much more than traditional Latin music. It's a
good choice if you're looking for something to balance your
quicker dances such as Swing, Cha Cha, and Salsa. Dance
to The Drifters, Norah Jones, Enrique Iglesias, and many more. |
* |
The Class where
you'll
find this dance. |
Smooth
Dances |
|
|
"Romance" (box-style)
"Ballroom" (progressive)
"Foxtrot" - (box & progressive)
"Wedding Preparation" workshop |
Foxtrot -
the granddaddy of
ballroom dancing. A great general purpose dance that can
be done to a wide variety of tempos (speeds) of music.
Great for Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and the Big Band Leaders.
It is very adaptable to different floor sizes as well, allowing
you to cover an entire dance studio floor, or to dance in the
confined spaces of a hotel lounge. All well-rounded
dancers should know how to Foxtrot. |
* |
|
"Romance" (box-style)
"Ballroom" (progressive)
"Waltz" (box & progressive) |
Waltz -
the most elegant
of the ballroom dances. Learn to glide around the floor to
3/4 time, moving as one with your partner. This is Slow
Waltz, not Viennese, which is very fast and done to "Oom-pah" music.
An example of a good Slow Waltz song is "Could I Have This
Dance?" by Anne Murray. Silver, or advanced level, Waltz and
Foxtrot are done in "continuity" style. This requires
knowledge of the basic forms of Waltz and/or Foxtrot, and is appropriate
for even slower music. |
* |
|
"Ballroom"
& "Tango" |
Tango -
the most dramatic
of the smooth dances. The music makes most people
think this is a Latin dance, but its character actually makes it
one of the smooth dances. A very powerful, passionate
dance. |
*** |
|
"Continuity" |
Continuity Level
- Silver level Foxtrot and Waltz for those who are ready to
expand their dance horizons. Not quickly or easily
achieved, but nothing feels quite like floating around the floor
at this level. |
**** |
The Class where
you'll
find this dance. |
Social
Dances |
|
|
"Nightclub" |
Nightclub Two-Step -
one of the
easiest partner-style dances and also one of the most enjoyable.
Relatively new, this dance is designed for music too slow for
any thing else but the "wobble." This is one of the most
popular dances for wedding couples. Music: Slow
blues, country, pop, etc. |
* |
|
"Country 2-Step" |
Country Two-Step - from Foxtrot, this is the country
companion to Swing. It moves around the floor and is
suited to a majority of country songs. |
** |
|
"Polka" |
Polka
- Can be done well or dangerously. Obviously we will teach
you the former. Great for Octoberfest parties! |
** |
|