What is your (in person) dance community like?

[GreenEyes26]

I'm on a ballroom dance team, and our practice times always have people there. Like I wrote in another post on study groups, we also talk to each other pretty often or offer suggestions on our dancing. When my partner and I travel to a studio, we often see some of the same people there, too (because we schedule ourselves at the same times). We talk about dancing, but we don't talk about our technique.

So my question is this: I'm used to dancing in a community of people where I have dance feedback and conversation several days a week, and I may not have that anymore within a few months. I'm curious as to how life is as a single couple - is it mainly two people + coaches? Do you have a dance community that I'm just not seeing right now?

Thanks!

[QPO]

I suppose it depends on who advice you value....I don't know how in depth your community gives on advice, could be quite harmful to your dancing if they have no formal coaching experience. so if what they tell you sounds plausible I would certainly run it past my coach or mentor and see what they would say.

I find dancing a bit like raising children....you talk about what they do how they do it but you cant give the other parent advice because they don't take it that well. If they ask you that is another thing but you still have to be careful how you say it.

We all learn differently and understand things differently so what may work for others wont necessarily work for you. I am sure you will still find ways of having the dancing social banter outside of your community.....

[GreenEyes26]

I find dancing a bit like raising children....you talk about what they do how they do it but you cant give the other parent advice because they don't take it that well. If they ask you that is another thing but you still have to be careful how you say it.

I like that analogy. Thanks QPO!

[elisedance]

So my question is this: I'm used to dancing in a community of people where I have dance feedback and conversation several days a week, and I may not have that anymore within a few months. I'm curious as to how life is as a single couple - is it mainly two people + coaches? Do you have a dance community that I'm just not seeing right now?

Thanks!

For us that just about describes dancing - at least the coaching/practising part.  We have a dance community that we catch up wiht at each competition - which can be as frequent as once a month but that is more social and certainly not about learning together.  I'd like that a lot.

There are group lessons you can attend at which I suppose some commuinty develops but its equally likely to become competetive as supportive I suspect.

[Rugby]

It would be nice to have a group of people to hang with.  As ee has said, we usually only see other at comps or maybe if we cross paths at a lesson but that is it.  Many moons ago when we started we had a group that we would go out dancing and hang out with but they are all long gone, fallen by the wayside on the path to higher learning.

[elisedance]

perhaps they are still dancing somewhere?  I wonder if you found them and (obviously they did not get so serious) whether you could still hang out?  I would guess no because of the difference in comittment...

[Some guy]

People are there in dancing for the same reason that they're there in life.  To offer support and be there for you when you need to them to be.  That's the same reason you're there in their lives.  If you aren't meeting people as often, it's only because for whatever reason you don't need them at this stage.  When you start to need them again, they'll be there.  It might be detrimental to actively seek out people because then you'll be interfering with the natural flow of things and introducing unnecessary friction into the equation.  Just focus on yourself and everybody and everything else will fall into place.  Otherwise you'll lose yourself and trust me when I say it takes WAY too long to discover yourself again, especially with the dancing. 

People want to see you dance, not an attempted demonstration of what somebody told you how to dance.  The solitude you're currently experiencing and your recent posts indicate that you're interested in bringing out yourself more in your dancing.  What a better way to do it than to allow you the freedom and solitude to discover what you're capable of.    

[Rugby]

perhaps they are still dancing somewhere?  I wonder if you found them and (obviously they did not get so serious) whether you could still hang out?  I would guess no because of the difference in comittment...

 One moved out into the country and doesn't dance, one moved up north, a few others stopped dancing and the two that carried on in dancing are in China and Switzerland.

[elisedance]

perhaps they are still dancing somewhere?  I wonder if you found them and (obviously they did not get so serious) whether you could still hang out?  I would guess no because of the difference in comittment...

 One moved out into the country and doesn't dance, one moved up north, a few others stopped dancing and the two that carried on in dancing are in China and Switzerland.

Hey, you should drop over for a chacah...

[ttd]

We don't have much of peer-to-peer feedback going on here. Most people are in it for some social dancing fun, so they don't do feedback. Those who compete (we mainly have pro-am competitors around here), tend to keep their opinions about others' dancing to themselves. And since unsolicited advice (not just in dancing, but in life in general) is usually frowned upon, I don't think anyone would ever offer it. For example, while my gym allowed dancers to practice in their aerobics room when it was not in use (they stopped, to my great dismay, because they decided dancing was ruining their floor), I used to share the floor with another pro-am lady. She did her thing, I did mine. We both do smooth, so she was working on some of the same things that I do. And sometimes, I would catch myself wanting to tell her something like "I had a coaching on this with so-and-so and they suggested..." but I would always check myself, because, afterall, we don't even have same teacher, so what works for me and mine, may not work for her and hers. She never made any comments to me about my practices either, so I guess she felt same way.

[elisedance]

perhaps thats also a facet of pro-am?  I mean each person is dancing with their coach so it seems a bit odd to give advice, even presumptious.  Perhaps when you are practicing alone it would work but I remember the same thing.  pro-ams never discussed technique.

[ttd]

Maybe. But I also won't be giving unsolicited advice to couples either (even when I see some glaring issues and I am their superior in dance skills). The closest we came to talking technique in our little corner of the world was when myself, my teacher's other student and her husband were sorting out running right turn in quickstep.

[elisedance]

Maybe. But I also won't be giving unsolicited advice to couples either (even when I see some glaring issues and I am their superior in dance skills). The closest we came to talking technique in our little corner of the world was when myself, my teacher's other student and her husband were sorting out running right turn in quickstep.

It might be seen as rude to try to teach another couple - unless you are good friends with them and they asked for help.  According to the rules here you could loose your amateur status if you teach - even if you don't get paid.  Which seems to be a violation of free speach.  A long time ago I used to practise with another three couples and we would routinely help each other sort steps out.  Twas fantastic....

[Rugby]

Maybe. But I also won't be giving unsolicited advice to couples either (even when I see some glaring issues and I am their superior in dance skills). The closest we came to talking technique in our little corner of the world was when myself, my teacher's other student and her husband were sorting out running right turn in quickstep.

According to the rules here you could loose your amateur status if you teach - even if you don't get paid.  Which seems to be a violation of free speach. 
 

In my opinion largely due to the tremendous greed and ego issues that are creating a dark shadow over dancing and competing in our corner of the world.