Dance Etiquette 101 (Leads Take it easy!!)

Posted by katiesea on February 28, 2010

He just smacked me in the head!!  ~ Disgruntled Follow, names may be changed for protection of their identity!

You’ve been going to classes and club dancing consistently. Your moves are now crowd pleasers and people admire the arsenal and complexity of what you do. That’s all great, but leaders, TAKE IT EASY!!!! No one is impressed when you hit a lady in the head or you drop her on the floor.

The dance floor is not a level playing field. If your dance partner makes a mistake, it’s the lead who looks like a fool when there are accidents in the dance floor. Yes guys, even if she trips by herself you’re supposed to catch her!! I didn’t say it’s fair, it’s just the way it is.

But how? When you invite a lady to dance you’re asking her to allow you to share same space and purpose for a few short minutes. If you’ve never dance with her before, make sure to start VERY slowly and progress into more complex moves. I tend to start with a simple cross body lead and right turn. With just that, I can gage the speed and complexity of moves I can try with her.

One of my favorite dancers is Oliver Pineda (Latin Motion, Australia) because he is always shows me something new. He’s got great musicality, even on some of his signature fast moves. I had a chance to meet him last year at the Capitol City Salsa Festival; my admiration for him as a dancer grew more when I saw him social dancing. Instead of showing off his skills, speed, and complex patterns, he was so amazingly smooth, gentle and pleasant towards all the ladies that he danced with. That’s right, he smiled throughout the dance even if his dance partner wasn’t an expert like him. What a dancer!! What a gentleman!

Remember that the goal is to have fun and enjoy dancing to the music, rather than to display your latest and greatest accomplishments in the world of salsa moves. So please take it easy, enjoy, and give your follower the dance of her life! Believe me, ladies talk, and their unsolicited compliments are much more valuable than your complex move.

Keep Dancing,
Frederic & Katie

Categories: Uncategorized
28Feb

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