I finally found an…attitude? lifestyle? alternative behavior? that I really don’t understand. In reading a recent thread here and a revived thread there, dancing (esp. club dancing) seems to be the equivalent of forcing feeding someone beets, or even worse, that it’s stupid. (Which made me wonder, do these people think those who do dance are stupid? or just engaging in occasional stupid behavior?)
I like dancing. By myself or in a packed crowd, I like the way it makes me feel. It’s the only time I look forward to discarding my personal space and having absolute strangers (male or female) touching me in a completely socially acceptable way. It feels like the good part of a first intimate encounter, a la Erica Jong. I willingly dance with guys I despise at work, and I like them a little better because I danced with them. Being willing to dance with me and enjoying it has always been something of a dealmaker (but not breaker) for relationships. I sort of assumed that was the human condition. Obviously, I was wrong.
So, what do you specifically like about dancing? It’s been made pretty clear what people don’t like about it, and that’s made me wonder why I’m willing to suspend my normal touching rules for dancing.
I love to dance, and I do competitive ballroom. You’re right, the ability to touch people in a structured, mostly non-threatening environment is great. I also really enjoy the sort of zen state of following, where you are sensitively reacting to tiny cues at a reflexive level. On the occasions when I lead, I also enjoy the more intellectual challenges of floorcraft (navigation) and figuring out how to “show off” my follower to best advantage. And competition is a lot of fun whether you win or lose, especially when you can also cheer on your friends.
** X~Slayer(ALE)**, are they really laughing at you? What sort of situations are you dancing in? I admit, I’m too busy thinking (or not thinking) about my partner and myself.
I love dancing! Unfortunately, I can’t do too much jumping up and down due to my surgically installed internal ankle hardware, so it’s Latin all the way, baby. All in the hips.
“I can dance, I can jive, having the time of my life . . . I love the nightlife, I got to boogie, on the disco ra-hooouuuunnnd . . .”
I’m probably the only girl who went to Limelight and Palladium in the '80s to dance, not have sex and buy drugs. But all my dancing partners have moved, and I’m left waltzing and jitterbugging and two-stepping around my apartment, scaring the cats.
Latin es mucho, mucho bueno! I’m even thinking about taking real lessons (I need a partner, tho), but the tolerance of the really good for a willing amateur is great.
Actually, I have been thinking about taking dance classes–I hate going to the gym, but I need regular exercise. I’d love to find a teacher who could teach me the Castle Walk, the Grizzley Bear, the Turkey Trot . . . Any New Yorkers wanna sign up for regular after-work dance classes?
Eve, you’re in the ballroom mecca of the US! What are you doing dancing in your apartment? Try http://www.nycdc.com/ or http://www.nyusabda.org/ - you’ll find all the waltz, jitterbug, and two-step partners you can desire!
I adore dancing. Born and raised in Montana, y’all, so I even like line-dancing. (Okay, I like long-neck beers and cowboys more, but line-dancing ain’t bad. Sometimes.)
I wish I knew more “real” dancing, though, like the foxtrot and the samba and the dances EVE refers to. I’d love to have a dance partner I could just go out and cut a rug with. As it is, basically all I can do is the jitterbug and the waltz. And the two-step.
Heaven, I’m in heaven,
And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak,
And I seem to find the happiness I seek,
When we’re out together dancing cheek to cheek.
Jodi, if I remember right, you’re in Washington state. There’s a list here of USABDA (US Amateur Ballroom Dancers Association) chapters in Washington - this would probably be a good place to start to find a good place to social dance. The Seattle area chapter has monthly dances that include a beginner lesson (no partner required).
I’m appallingly bad at club dancing, but I think it’s fun, especially after a few drinks. Who cares if you make a fool of yourself, as long as everyone else is too?
However, I do not do well at dances that actually have steps.
When I was little, I had on my bedroom wall a pathetic poster and poem describing what it felt like to dance… and I still remember all the words, though I won’t quote them, and it’s still true (so apparently, as the poem was designed to appeal to the pre-teen dance crowd, I’m not deep).
I love the connection with the music. And the feeling of the movement. I like the variety. I love how you can do approximately the same steps to different music and have it look like a completely different thing. I like the artiness of it. I like knowing that people have always danced - so it’s mundane at the same time. I love watching people dance, people who are just getting it, people who know what they’re doing and are magic on the floor. I like it when it’s lighthearted and fun and when it’s serious - for whatever reasons. I like feeling the music through your feet and needing to move to it.
The only kind of dancing I’ve tried and not liked (that I can think of) is square dancing. Does nothing for me. I even like club dancing (which is mostly jumping around on the floor…but it’s jumping around on the floor in rhythm which makes all the difference.) I do wish I had a dance partner to try more of the social dances (I must admit, doing social dance classes without a pre-arranged partner is less fun, no matter what the brochures say).
Tonight I’m going swing dancing (at the Century Ballroom, which is a great venue for swing and salsa for the Seattle area dopers - and I know there’s tango in the same building).
Also love dancing – mostly partner dancing (swing, country, ballroom). What ENugent said on floorcraft and showing off your partner. I’ve been complimented on my “driving” on a crowded dance floor by more than one dance partner…
And Jodi, while line-dancing is fine, there’s also plenty of what you called “real” dancing in the country realm, too – many of them derive from ballroom. Two-step is probably the most purely “country” partner dance, but it’s impressive when done right. (I teach the line dance lessons at the local club here, but I prefer the partner dances).
My favorites are West Coast Swing and Two Step. Anybody who likes swing dancing ought to try out West Coast – it can be done to a variety of music styles, and it’s a sexy dance to do and watch once you know it.
I also do Waltz, Cha-cha, Nightclub Two-Step (a newer dance, to slower music), Hustle, East Coast Swing, Single Swing (more big band style music), and various others.
The dance I’d really like to learn more of is Shag – I’ve done the basics, but not enough to really get the feel of it, and the nuances.
Since there seems to be a number of serious dancers responding, how awkward is it for a single female to join a dance class? Do we all end up dancing with each other or what?
