ROUND DANCING — CHOREOGRAPHED BALLROOM

DANCE POSITION

The fundamental dance position is CLOSED position.  In the smooth rhythms, such as foxtrot, waltz, and quickstep, partners face each other, offset, each to the partner's right and each looking to the left, over the partner's right shoulder.  That space between your partner's head and right shoulder is your "window," and you must look out of your window.  You will be tempted to gaze into your partner's eyes.  After all, you are in each other's arms, the light is low, and the music is romantic, but don't do it.  Keep your eyes left.  If you look right, you will drift right and invade your partner's space.  Then you will start to bump, and toes will be at risk.  Stay in your own space, and look out of your own window.  A forward step with your right foot should slide neatly between your partner's feet.  Eventually, you will even learn slightly to stretch the right side of your body and so move your upper body (not your hips) even more firmly into its own space.

The man's right arm is around his lady with his wrist high under her shoulder and his right hand on her left shoulder blade, the fingers together and pointed somewhat down.  Don't spread the fingers; that display is "spider hand," and it appears "gropey."  Don't let the arm droop; she won't be able to feel your lead.

The lady's left arm lies gently on top of his right with her left hand resting softly on his shoulder, like a little bird.  The hand is arched.  It is really the fingertips that perch there.  Her left thumb can find the little depression between the deltoid and biceps brachii muscles.  Don't let the hand climb up toward his neck, and don't hang on him.  Each of you must support your own weight.

The man's left arm should be similarly raised and extended out to the side.  The upper arm slopes slightly down, and the forearm slopes upward.  The lady will place the palm of her right hand into the palm of his left, resting her fingers in the cradle between his thumb and forefinger.  Both of you fold your fingers softly over the hand of your partner.  Don't bend the wrist back.  Don't grip tightly.  Again, each of you must support your own arms.  If the man releases his hold and steps back, the lady should be able to maintain her position comfortably. She should not feel suddenly unsupported. Her arms should not flop to her sides.

You may think that we are accumulating way more detail here than we need, but the hold is crucial for lead and follow, grace and smoothness, and indeed we are not finished.

In closed position, the arms are decidedly up.  The man's elbows are a bit lower than his shoulders, and adjustments must certainly be made if you are of significantly different heights or girths, but the ideal that you strive for is a horizontal oval perhaps beginning at the man's left shoulder, running around his left arm and her right arm, across her shoulders, around her left arm and back to his left shoulder.  His left hand is above this plane, and his right hand is below it, but this somewhat vague oval is your "frame."  Maintain tone in all the muscles of your upper bodies so that this shape is maintained.

When the man steps back, his right arm maintains its position with this muscle tone, and the lady feels the movement throughout her left arm and through the pressure on her back.  Don't pull her toward you, men.  Simply move, and she will follow.  When the man steps forward, the pressure of his right hand on her back releases.  The lady is maintaining tone in her upper body and is maintaining gentle pressure into his hand, so she feels this release, and she automatically moves to recover or reclaim the pressure.  If he moves right or left, his frame moves and conveys this movement at many points of contact.  If his elbows are drooping and her arms are sloppy-loose, she won't feel the movement, and he will sail off across the floor, leaving her behind.

Your upper bodies are apart.  You have stretched your right sides so that you are clearly in your own space.  The lady has arched slightly back, pressing into the man's right hand, and the man arches slightly away from his lady.  Never lean over your partner.  But experienced dance couples maintain firm contact at the hip.  Remember, we are dancing offset to the left, so we are not dancing "belly-to-belly."  Instead, the slight rise of your right hip bone should fit just inside that of your partner.  Can you hold it there as you dance?  Curt Worlock insists that one of the most important responsibilities of the lady is to keep her hips "Velcroed" to her man's. Tammy puts her right hip bone into Curt's watch pocket and keeps it there. (Actually, Curt is not old enough to ever have had a watch pocket, but you may get the idea.)

"Lead with your hips," he urges.  If you want to turn right, turn your hips first, and the rest of you will follow.

Another useful image is that of two bananas dancing with their convex surfaces toward each other.  Your hips are in contact, but your feet and your torsos are apart.

So, are we done, now?  I think we are.  Gentlemen, how do you lead?  Use your hips to steer your lady.  Don't push or pull with the left hand.  Don't pull her to you with the right.  Maintain that frame so that the entire frame moves as one, and she will feel each movement at the hips and throughout her frame. Remember, a conductor can't direct an orchestra with a piece of cooked spaghetti.  Ladies,  stand up.  Arch a bit back.  Look left.  Maintain muscle tone, and you hold your frame, too.  Feel his movements and be poised to respond.  If you are a sack of warm oatmeal, his movements won't be conveyed to you.  They will be absorbed in the sloppy mush of your dragging arms and drooping body. Oh dear.

essay on frame

more on leading

Now, you will ask, but what if I am not dancing with my usual partner?  Many people will feel uncomfortable with hip contact at a social dance or mixer.  Indeed, when the waltz was first introduced into England in the early 19th century, with its closed position that was almost an embrace, it absolutely scandalized society, and it is still entirely acceptable to dance without body contact and even with six or eight inches between you.  You won't be able to attempt the more complicated figures, but with an unfamiliar partner, you wouldn't want to do that anyway.  Of course, without body contact, maintaining your frame becomes just that much more important.

Okay, above, we have been considering the closed dance position in the smooth dance rhythms.  In the Latin rhythms, such as cha-cha, rumba, bolero, mambo and samba, you have to loosen up.  In jive and swing,  you'll be even more casual.  The man's right hand might move to the lady's upper arm.  The man's left hand might come down to waist level. In hustle, an L-shaped closed position is used. The man faces wall as usual, but the woman faces line. No matter what adjustments are made in different rhythms, muscle tone and frame remain important.

You will do most of your dancing in closed position, but many figures and routines call for other positions.    In closed position, you are facing each other, and each of you are facing in opposite directions.  When the man steps forward, the lady steps back.  In OPEN position, you are side by side, lady to his right, man's right hand and lady's left joined, both looking in the same direction.  When the man steps forward, the lady will probably step forward, too.

OPEN FACING position is facing each other but apart, man's right hand and lady's left joined. Man's left and lady's right arms are extended to the side.

LEFT OPEN position is side by side, lady to his left, man's left hand and lady's right joined, both looking in the same direction.

LEFT OPEN FACING position is facing each other but apart, man's left hand and lady's right joined.  Man's right and lady's left arms are extended to the side.

SEMI-CLOSED or PROMENADE position lies between open and closed.  In closed position, if the man turns his hips to the right and gives a little more right side stretch, the lady will look to her right.  This is called opening the lady's head.  Her body will open a little, too.  It will turn a bit to the right.  Now, your two bodies form a slight "V."  Your arm positions have not changed, and the man's right and the lady's left hips are still in contact.  The lady is still a bit to the man's right, but the man's left and the lady's right sides are separated, and both are looking down line of dance.  Again, when the man steps forward, the lady will step forward, too.

BANJO position is a closed position (heads left) with the lower body turned just a bit more to the left.  In this position, when the man steps forward with his right foot, he steps outside his partner's feet, not between.  That is, he steps to the left (his left) of her right foot.  When the lady steps forward with her right foot, she similarly steps to the outside. Note that the diagram does not show a good banjo position, but an exagerated, "hip-to-hip" position—they are not properly closed.

SIDECAR position is a closed position with the lower body turned just a bit to the right.  In this position, when the man steps forward with his left foot, he steps outside his partner's feet.  That is, he steps to the right (his right) of her left foot.  She too will step outside his feet.  Sidecar is a little more difficult than banjo, because it is still a closed position.  That means you both are still looking left out of your own windows.  You will step outside of your partner to your right, but your upper body is oriented to your left.  This is accomplished by turning the hips only, from closed to sidecar.  The upper body does not turn (ideally). Note that, as with the banjo diagram above, this sidecar diagram is overdone. Their bodies should not be offset but should be angled and in closed position.

Another approach to banjo and sidecar emphasizes contra-body movement, movement where the left side leads as the right foot steps forward and the right side leads as the left foot steps forward. Imagine yourselves in closed position, line of dance. The man steps forward on his right but with left side lead, so he is facing perhaps diagonal wall but is moving down line. Your bodies are "slicing" forward on a diagonal. He steps forward with his left and then forward again with the right. The left side lead causes that last step to be a strong crossing of the thighs and a step outside the woman. This is "contra banjo." Next, step forward on the left and swing the right side forward. A small right side lead will turn you to closed position. A stronger right side lead will slice your bodies into sidecar position, and the left foot forward will cross the thighs, bodies aligned toward diagonal line and center, but steps moving down line.

The thing to avoid is simply stepping to the side, placing right hip to right hip ("banjo") or left hip to left hip ("sidecar"). Such a shift in position certainly allows you to step outside of partner, but your dancing will be much less smooth. Again, note that the two diagrams above show these less sophisticated forms of the two positions. We should try to progress beyond them to the more closed and conta-body forms.

BUTTERFLY position is more common in the Latin rhythms than in the smooth.  It is a facing position, but you are apart from each other, and the lady's left hand is in the man's right hand.  Both hands are joined at shoulder height.  The elbows are up and out. A couple can be in "butterfly banjo" (turned a bit to the left) or "butterfly sidecar" (turned a bit to the right). In each of these two cases, the next step would be outside partner.

FAN position is a left open position; that is, the man's left hand joins the lady's right, and the lady is to the man's left, but they are not side by side but at an angle.  He faces one way, and she faces ninety degrees to that.  The two bodies make a kind of "L."  Her right foot is extended forward without weight; his left foot is extended to the side without weight.

OTHER POSITIONS

Attitude Line	A stationary position (from ballet) in which one leg is raised and bent approximately ninety degrees at the knee. Classically, the arm on the same side as the raised leg is also raised to a high, fifth position, but the opposite arm might be raised instead. The leg may also be rotated behind or to the side.
Back Cross	Side by side, man to woman's left, right hands joined behind woman's back, and left hands joined behind man's back.
Back to Back	Partners facing away from each other.
Ballerina	Woman rises onto toes of left foot and lifts right foot to the left knee, toes pointing down.
Bolero	An offset, facing position in which both wrap the same arm around the other's waist. The free arm is up.
Chair	A semi-closed position in which the dancers have lunged forward onto the trail feet with the trail knees bent. The body shape is that of a straight-backed chair, with the bent trail legs representing the front legs and seat of the chair, the trailing lead legs the back legs of the chair, and the dancers' torsos representing the back of the chair.
Contrary Body Movement Position	A position in which the body lead is opposite to the stepping foot. If the right foot is forward, it is across the left, and there is a left side lead. article on side lead or contra body
Cuddle	A closed embrace, man's arms around her waist and woman's arms perhaps around man's neck.
Escort	An open position in which the woman's left arm is passed through the crook of the man's right arm. Her forearm rests on his forearm.
Facing	Any position in which the man and woman are directly facing each other.
Fallaway	A step backward in semi-closed position.
Fan	A left open position; that is, the man's left hand joins the lady's right, and the lady is to the man's left, but they are not side by side but at an angle.  He faces one way (e.g. wall), and she faces ninety degrees to that (e.g. reverse).  The two bodies make a kind of "L."  Her right foot is extended forward without weight; his left foot is extended to the side without weight.
Figurehead	A stationary position in which the woman turns away from the man and takes a high, forward poise, like the figurehead of a ship.
Half Open	Both facing the same direction; man's right arm around woman's waist and woman's left hand on man's right shoulder. Free arms extended to side.
Hand Shake	A facing position, right hands joined at waist level.
Hammerlock	A facing position in which all hands are low and one hand of one partner is behind his or her back.
High Line	A stationary position in which both have a high, extended poise.
L-Shaped	Woman is to the man's right and is turned ninety degrees relative to his body position in a loose semi-closed position. He may be facing the wall, while she is facing line.
Layback	Usually a woman's position in which she arches her back and inclines into one or both of the man's arms. The woman's arms may be raised and arched to follow and extend the line of her body.
Layover	Usually a woman's position in which she leans forward against her man, draping her body along his.
Left ________	Any figure name preceeded by the term "left" indicates the mirror image of that figure. For instance, where open position has both facing line of dance with man's right and woman's left hands joined, left open position has the man's left and the woman's right hands joined and the man on the outside of the circle.
Loose Closed	Closed position (see above), but partners are slightly farther apart. His hand will be on her shoulder blade, rather than about the middle of her back. There are 6 - 8 inches between the hips. Loose closed is the typical closed position in Latin rhythms.
Low Butterfly	Butterfly postion, but the hands are closer together and about waist high.
Nothing Touching	Any position in which there is no body contact, and no hands are joined.
Picture Figure	Any stationary figure that is held or displayed for a time, such as a hinge, samefoot lunge, promenade sway, throwaway oversway, or the like; also high line and attitude line above. "Extending" a picture figure involves the man releasing the woman to move gradually farther into the figure, while both perhaps slowly and smoothly stretch their bodies and extend the free arms. This "developing of the picture" can continue for a full measure, two, or even longer at the end of a dance.
Reverse Fallaway or Counter Fallaway	A step backward in Reverse Semi-closed Position (see immediately below). The term Reverse Fallaway is also used to designate a three-step figure in the smooth rhythms that turns left-face to Semi-closed position. In essence, it is used as a shorthand for "Reverse Turn to Fallaway Position."
Reverse Semi-Closed or Counter Promenade	From closed position, the man turns 1/8 right face, and the woman turns 1/8 left face so that his left hip is in contact with her right hip. Compare to Semi-Closed position (see above), where his right hip and her left are together.
Reverse Varsouvienne	This is a varsouvienne (see below) in which the man and woman occupy each other's spot. The partners face the same direction, the woman behind the man and to his left.  She holds his left hand in her left slightly in front of her left shoulder.  Her right arm passes behind his shoulders, and her right hand holds his right, again to the side and above his shoulder, or if he is too tall for this to be comfortable, at his waist.
Shadow	Also called Right Shadow, partners facing the same direction and the woman to the man's right and a little in front. Left hands are usually joined. His right hand could be extended behind her or at her back. Man's Shadow has the woman to the man's right but a little behind him. Left Shadow has the woman to the man's left and a little in front. I suppose Left Man's Shadow would have the woman to the man's left but a little behind him.
Side-by-Side	An open position or left open with no hands touching.
Skaters	Partners facing the same direction, the man to the left and a little behind the woman, left hands joined and held in front of her and a little higher than her shoulder, right hands joined at woman's right hip.
Skirt Skaters	Skaters position, but the woman holds her skirt flared out with her right hand. The man's right hand is on her right hip.
Sombrero	Bolero position (see above), but left arms are curved up and left hands are above the head (like a hat).
Star	Partners face opposite directions, right hips together, right hands joined at shoulder level, right elbows touching. In a left-hand star, each would turn 1/2 and join left hands. The woman would be on the man's left side.
Stork Line	A stationary position in which the woman stands on one foot with the free foot raised to the knee, toe pointing toward the floor.
Tamara	A facing position with the woman to the man's right. Her left hand is behind her back. The man reaches his right around her right side to take her left hand at her right hip. His left and her right hand are joined high, arms curved to frame a window. Look at your partner through that window.
Tandem	One partner directly behind the other, facing the same direction.
Varsouvienne	The partners face the same direction, the man behind the lady and to her left.  He holds her left hand in his left slightly in front and above her shoulder.  His right arm passes behind her shoulders, and his right hand holds her right, again to the side and above her shoulder. In a man's varsouvienne, the man is in front but still to the left. She reaches behind him to join left-left hands held high. Left Varsouvienne puts the woman in front but to the man's left.
Wrapped	Man stands behind and slightly to the left of the woman. She crosses her right arm over her left in front of her body. He holds her right hand in his left. His right arm passes behind her, and he holds her left in his right at her right hip.
X-Line	A stationary position in which opposite legs are extended and top lines are held away from each other. Opposite arms might be extended up and apart. The two bodies form an "X."

Drawings from Dance A While, Jane A Harris et al, Macmillan Publ, NY, 1988.