Latest Additions To the Site
The Whip, Cross Body, and Left Pass are three Latin figures in which the man gets to move the woman from one side of the partnership to the other. But they are by no means the same figure. The Whip is loose and appropriately "whippy." The Cross Body is a softer, more gentle turn. The Left Pass is used only in Bolero and is the most sophisticated and flirtatious of the three.
Where Should We Put the Slow In Foxtrot? Foxtrot timing is slow, quick, quick. We put the slow first. But we shouldn’t feel constrained. One of the freedoms that dancers have is the freedom to play with timing, to borrow from a slow, or even from a quick, in order to linger over another step.
Rumba Styling, an essay by Shirley Aymé.
To "check" in dance is to stop our progression in one direction and, more or less suddenly, to continue to dance in some other direction. If we don’t Anticipate the Check and communicate with each other, the sequence will be rough.
There are many techniques that a man can use to lead his partner. A type of lead that might deserve some extra consideration is the nudge — a gentle push with the foot, knee, thigh, and/or hip. Lead and follow is communication between partners, and a “little nudge” can be a surprisingly clear and comfortable signal.
The Alemana Turn is an emotion-laden figure. There is promise and rejection, pursuit and reconciliation. If we dance it like an Underarm Turn or a Twirl, we’re dancing a whole different story.
There is International or English Tango, with its disciplined, sharp, and rapid footwork; Argentine Tango, smooth and languorous, with sensual leg sweeps, leg crawls, swivels, hooks, and flicks; and American Tango, which is said to contain the best features of the other two.
One way to increase the variety in our figure repertoire is to take a standard figure that in some way goes in one direction, dance it with the other foot in the other direction, and so gain a new figure — Left Hinge, Right Hinge.
One of our most popular dance articles has been Be Gentle, a piece on how to dance gently and smoothly. We have now edited the original 1800 word article down to 750 words—the essence of the idea.
A few minutes of stretch and warm-up before a dance can loosen and lubricate joints and tendons and reduce the risk of pulls, twists, and strains.
In the Smooth rhythms, we find not only continuous but extended and interrupted figures as well.
Several new Lindy figures—a wild and crazy rhythm.
To shift from closed position to banjo position, you don't need lateral or sideways movement; you only need right-face body rotation and left-side lead.
Is a Rumba Hip Twist just a fancy Half Basic?
One of the interesting things that we do in Round Dancing is take a dance figure and make it “continuous” by adding additional steps or actions to the base figure but not in a way to change its fundamental shape or character.
A page that focuses on American Tango (as opposed to Argentine or International).
We've begun to write some short articles for Calls 'n' Cues, the newsletter of the Washington Area Square Dancers Cooperative Association (WASCA). There, we have considered the cha-cha-cha as a simple chasse, with the second step a closing step, and we have looked at other ways to cha that add variety to our dancing and that help us connect with our partner.
Muscle tone throughout the body can eliminate the jerks and bangs and give smooth flow to your dancing. Squeeze the Trigger!
The music and movement of dance feel good even if you're dancing by yourselves. Dancing with other couples feels better. Can it be still more fun to play somewhat to the audience—to Put On A Show?
I'm working on an alphabetical master index to all dance figures and features of styling described in these pages.
You can create a mini-picture out of almost any dance figure.
Partners of different height or size can dance smoothly together if you can adjust your frames to match your partner, tone your frames so that you can both communicate clearly, and finally adjust your movements to those of your partner.
Phase VI paso doble figures added.
Round dancing has quite a few figures with animal names—domesticated animals, pests, marine life, and of course terrestrial wildlife. How many of these have you danced?
Phase VI rumba and cha figures added.
We can reclaim some of the fun in well-known dance figures if we think beyond the steps and focus on lead, follow, and connection with partner—Lead That Hockey Stick.
The Ronde is a graceful example of "leg work." We have collected several examples of how we use this movement in picture figures within Slow Two-Step.
I've added the phase VI tango figures.
I think I have all the standard waltz figures listed, through phase VI. If you are interested in a figure that is not listed, let me know, and I'll add it if I can.
We've begun to write some short articles for Round Notes, the newsletter of the Colorado Round Dance Association (CRDA). We will emphasize "Comfortable Dancing" and will look for ways to make our dancing look and feel good. Our first effort urges the man to Dance Right Through Her.
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