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USA Dance Chapter dances are open and accessible to everyone, unless the chapter is having a special members only function.
Do I need to register for the lesson?
For the group classes, no registration is required. Just show up! Please come about 10 minutes early so you can change your shoes and be ready to dance.
How long are the lessons?
These vary from chapter to chapter. Usually 30 minutes to an hour. You should arrive early, change your shoes, warm up, and be ready to dance when the lesson starts.
What should I wear?
For the dance parties, you may want to wear something dressy casual. For shoes, you consider dance shoes as they actually make dancing easier, but again they are not required. Try to stay away from rubber sole shoes, however, as these will impair your ability to do turns. In any event, please bring clean shoes with you. Shoes that are worn outside can track in grime, damage the floor, and make it dangerous for dancers by making the floor slippery.
Do I need a partner?
Although partner dancing is taught, it is not required that you bring your own partner to the group classes. Some people come by themselves, so between you and everyone else, everyone usually has a partner. Then during the classes we suggest changing partners frequently, so you will have the opportunity to dance with many partners.
Do I have to change partners?
The short answer is, no. It isn’t required that people change partners in group classes. The long answer, or maybe a better question is, "should I change partners?" The answer is, definitely yes. Learning to dance in a group class works better by dancing with different partners with different levels of ability. Dancing with different partners also enables you to lead or follow different kinds of dancers. If you attend a group class and only dance with one partner, your learning rate will be significantly reduced. If you intend to dance only with one partner, you should seriously consider private lessons where the instructor can focus on each individual's dancing, and help you overcome the challenges of only dancing with one partner.
What if I think I'm too clumsy to learn to dance?
Lessons are taught at different levels. The beginning classes are targeted toward individuals with little or no dance experience. Many of the people you will meet feel exactly the way you do. Remember, nobody learns to dance overnight, not even the very best dancers. As for being clumsy, you're probably not, but you feel that way from time to time. There is likely no better way to overcome that feeling than to learn ballroom dancing!
What exactly is "Ballroom Dancing"?
Many people equate partner dancing with Ballroom dancing. But there are many types of partner dancing that are not Ballroom. There are even many partner dances that are popular with Ballroom dancers which are not “Ballroom” dances, such as West Coast Swing, Hustle, Salsa, Merengue, Argentine Tango, Country Two-Step and even square dancing, etc. While music for some of these dances are played at the dances, they are not Ballroom dances. "Ballroom Dancing" has come to mean the combination of Ballroom dancers, Ballroom music, and a Ballroom dance floor where certain Ballroom dances (Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz, Foxtrot, Quickstep) and certain Latin dances (Cha Cha, Samba, Rumba, Paso Doble, Jive/Swing, Mambo, Bolero) are danced.
A Ballroom dancer is someone who has studied and learned the rhythms and some of the steps for the Ballroom dances and probably most of the Latin dances, too.
Ballroom music is music which corresponds to the rhythms and tempos of the Ballroom and Latin dances. Music for dances which are not Ballroom or Latin dances should not comprise a significant portion of the music if the function is called a "Ballroom Dance". In fact, I believe that a function should not be called a "Ballroom Dance" unless at least 50% of the music is for the Ballroom dances. Ballroom dance music is also normally between 2 and 4 minutes long with short breaks between songs for changing partners.
The recommended Ballroom dance floor is an unobstructed, rectangular, wooden floor, 40 feet by 60 feet. Generally, larger is better, however, much larger than 50 feet by 80 feet tends to disorient the dancer. Although Ballroom Dancing is possible on smaller dance floors, as the floor gets smaller than 40 feet by 60 feet, the dancing experience degrades. Obstructions such as poles, or non-rectangular shaped floors also degrade the dance experience. Quality Ballroom dancing starts becoming difficult as the dance floor gets smaller than about 30 feet by 50 feet and becomes almost impossible below about 20 feet by 30 feet.
Live Music or Recorded Music?
Listening to live music is completely different than dancing to live music. Although most people prefer listening to live music, Ballroom dancers prefer to dance to recorded music. There are many reasons for this. The two most important attributes for dance music are rhythm and tempo. Many live bands do not maintain a consistent tempo throughout the entire song, most increasing the tempo as the song progresses. Most recorded music maintains a consistent tempo throughout the whole song. In addition, most live bands do not know what the correct tempos for dancing are. For this reason most USA Dances have recorded music and on special occasions or functions have a live band.
What's the difference between American Style and International Style, and which should I learn?
International style can be thought of as the "gold standard" which is taught and danced the same way everywhere in the world. In most cases, American style can be thought of as Social Dancing in a modified style of the International style with the addition of figures where the man and lady dance apart from each other. American style is danced primarily in the
So, which should you learn, or which should you learn first? That depends on your goals. For most people, International style is the better choice to learn first, especially if you want to dance socially. It is the "gold standard" for ballroom dancing and provides you an excellent foundation for whatever you want to do in the future.
I don't want to compete. I just want to be a social dancer. Shouldn't I just learn American style?
Not necessarily. Unless you want to be a beginning dancer all your life, American style is not well suited for social dancing. American style is better suited for competitions and shows. Many people try to lump all of the poor characteristics of dancers into a category and call it "social dancing". Being a social dancer is not an excuse to dance badly, just as dancing in a competition is not an excuse to become a snob. Both things can happen. Dancing American style is not an excuse to dance badly. This is why you might want to learn International style first, even if you want to learn American style later. People who only know American style, or learn American style first, put themselves at a disadvantage in the social dance world.
Being a social dancer means that you are able to dance with multiple partners and has nothing at all to do with how well you dance, whether you compete or not, or even what style you dance.
How many steps do I need to learn to be a good dancer?
Learning steps or figures does not make you a good dancer. You become a good dancer by learning the technique, character, timing, rhythm, and how to lead or follow each dance. It is possible (and quite common) to know a lot of figures and dance them all very badly. So, learning a lot of steps without learning how to dance them properly actually makes you a bad dancer. It is much, much better to know a few figures and dance them very well. When you dance all the steps that you know with good technique, character, and timing, then you are a good dancer.
How long does it take to learn to dance?
It varies from person to person depending on prior experience with body movement related activities such as sports, other types of dance, martial arts, etc. However, on average, the following is close for most people.
· To become a decent beginning level dancer, most people will study dancing for about a year taking a combination of group lessons and private lessons.
· To progress to an intermediate level dancer, most people will take a private lesson once a week, and practice about 2-5 hours per week for one to two years. It is not usually possible to progress past the beginning level without the individualized attention that you get in private lessons. The amount of time it takes you to learn can be accelerated by taking more than one private lesson per week and more practice.
· To progress to an advanced level dancer, most people will take 1-3 private lessons per week, and practice 6-10 hours per week for 3-5 years. The time to learn can be accelerated with more lessons and more practice.
The lessons you take must be quality lessons from a good teacher in order to progress to the intermediate and advanced levels. You must also spend time actually practicing and not just dancing.
Is solicitation allowed at
No. Solicitation is not allowed at chapter dances. Members and guests can expect to be comfortable dancing without being approached for lessons. Solicitation is defined as volunteering information about lessons or events without being asked. The following are some examples of solicitation:
· A teacher saying "Are you taking lessons?" or something similar.
· A teacher saying "Where do you take lessons?" or something similar.
· Saying "I'm a dance teacher" or something similar. (unless specifically asked)
· Distributing business cards or flyers. Flyers may be placed in an official place (as chosen and approved by the Chapter) so that guests may take one if they choose, but must not be distributed or left out so they are visible anywhere else. Business cards may be given to someone if they ask for it, but not offered without them asking.
· Inviting someone to an event where solicitation occurs, such as a studio party.