Connecting Socially , Learning dance , performance dance , social dancing , sport dancing , teaching dance
I remember teaching a group of teenaged Lindy dancers who were sent to me from another dance teacher. They were advanced dancers who had outgrown their first teacher. When I asked for a follower with whom to demonstrate a new move, one of the boys volunteered. They had all learned to dance both parts and […]
Continue readingcompetitive dance , dance videos , leading and following , Lindy Hop , social dancing
I’ve never been much of a fan of competitive dance, but even I was intrigued by two categories I recently heard about in the Lindy Hop competition scene. Jill and Jack Dance Contest The first is a Jill and Jack, in which, like a Jack and Jill, partners are selected at random. The twist is […]
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Intimacy without dance I was at a conference a few weeks ago run by Bill Baron in which I participated in a very interesting process. We split into groups of 5. We each commented on whatever our intuitive hits were about each other. We learned a lot by what we heard each other say as […]
Continue readingConnecting Socially , Dance History , dance videos , inspirational dancing , Lindy Hop , performance dance , same sex dancing , social dancing
I’ve often heard it said that in their dance routines Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did except she did it backwards and in heels. It’s a popular comment, except of course she didn’t lead and she didn’t choreograph the dance. She did, however, dance in heels and had the bleeding feet to […]
Continue readingdancing in the streets , Lindy Hop , Outdoor Dancing , social dancing
Out Door Dancing Around the World For the past 16 years I’ve been spending my Sundays dancing Lindy Hop in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. Ours was the first regular outdoor Lindy event , and over the years many other versions have popped up in other parts of the county and around the world. […]
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Last week I wrote a post about dancing blind, but it really was about dancing temporarily blind. This one is about dancers who are always blind. I’ve written in the past about deaf dancers, dancers in wheel chairs, and dancers with other physical limitations. I’ve never written about blind dancers but they’re out there! […]
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I heard this statement and I realized that in my experience it’s true. For 8 years I spent 4 weeks every summer at an international dance camp in Sweden with dancers from over 50 different countries. All we had in common was our love of dance. Most of the other students spoke enough […]
Continue readingConnecting Socially , Dance History , dance videos , fusion , Lindy Hop , Miscellaneous , music for dance , social dancing
Of all the fusion dances, Bal/Lindy is probably the most natural. Almost everyone who knows both dances has done them together on occasion if not regularly. Pure balboa is done in a close hold that never breaks, but almost everyone does Bal-swing and calls it Balboa. This isn’t fusion, but rather a street dance that […]
Continue readingabout LaurieAnn , dance videos , dancing with physical challenges , inspirational dancing , leading and following , performance dance , social dancing , teaching dance , west coast swing
When my dance students are learning the skill of following, I often suggest they close their eyes. Closing your eyes takes away a lot of the urge to back lead, and it brings forward the senses you use to feel the lead. Even when social dancing, I often close my eyes because it’s relaxing and […]
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What’s the most romantic thing you can do on this day of romance? Well, yeah, go dancing of course! And if you don’t know how to dance? Well, if you’re a guy who’s with a woman who loves to dance, then take her out for a romantic dinner and give her a gift certificate for […]
Continue readingabout LaurieAnn , Connecting Socially , Dance History , dance videos , leading and following , Lindy Hop , same sex dancing , social dancing , teaching dance
Switching the Lead and Follow in Partner Dance When both partners know how to lead as well as follow, dancers can switch roles during a dance. This is truly the ideal solution for people who are worried about sexism in the roles of lead and follow, but not everyone wants to learn both parts. Yes, […]
Continue readingConnecting Socially , social dancing
In last week’s post about obnoxious dance partners I neglected to mention that lack of eye contact doesn’t always come from a swelled head. Sometimes it’s a sign of shyness and it’s hard to tell the difference. One year at a dance camp in Sweden I asked a man to dance. I was watching […]
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