My poor man (Chef) is feeling very despondant but I know a number of people's posts of respect and encouragement have heartened him.
Going back to being a beginner when you have reached a reasonable level in some other dance form is frustrating and it feels very intimidating to dance with those who are more advanced.
As I did when learning to jive, as a follower I measure myself against the level of lead I can follow and try to test myself by going slightly (but not completely- unless by mistake) out of my depth with a more advanced leader. However it takes a huge amount of courage to ask for a dance when your confidence is low .
If that advanced leader is more interested in doing every complicated move they know, I feel embarrassed, unhappy, lost and ready to give up completely.
In WCS more advanced followers may also intimidate the lead by too much 'clever' footwork or by high jacking the lead. -(I think Tat tended to disapprove of highjacking).
So although Caro says:
I think there is a point where a lead or a follower should try to taylor the level of the dance to approproximately the level of the person they are dancing with.
One teacher described to me how he measured the feel of the follower throughout the dance and increased the level of complexity as the dance went on according to how each move was responded to. Followers can also assess how far to take their improvisations so as not to confuse a leader.
To encourage beginners to progress a patient and encouraging approach will win every time.
Bookmarks