Class etiquette

[Graham]

1. Yes. I find that this prevents confusion about where you're going, stops someone else grabbing you/her on the way, and allows you to go straight into the dance. Stuart - you must show me this move you've got which starts without holding hands. Is this something you can only do with "special" partners??
2. Not generally.
3. Yes, unless they look as if they have taken steps to avoid being interrupted (eg sitting behind a table), or the conversation appears intimate.
4. One. I will dance a second (or even a third) if asked, but rarely initiate this.
5. No. I will usually accept an offer, unless I know it is a hard track to dance to and I don't rate my chances of keeping a beat, in which case I would explain, and ask if we could wait for the next track. Occasionally I've had the problem of being asked to dance to a track which I know is too fast for my partner - should you offend her by pointing this out, or risk mutual embarrassment on the dancefloor?

[Stuart M]

Originally posted by Graham
Stuart - you must show me this move you've got which starts without holding hands. Is this something you can only do with "special" partners??

Nah, it's just about starting by leading the lady out with her hands on your shoulders, or in a sway position, or in a walk move etc. Actually to be honest I don't do it much, but it usually has a bit of an effect, so it'll be happening more now (and of course now I've given myself a reputation to live up/down to... )

[Amanda]

Originally posted by Stuart M
Nah, it's just about starting....

BORING!!! I was hoping for some lairiness on the Forum...

Amanda

[Stuart M]

Originally posted by Amanda
BORING!!! I was hoping for some lairiness on the Forum...

What does "lairiness" mean? If it means what I think it does I've been the subject of enough of it recently!

Anyway, as to the "something you can only do with "special" partners", you'll have to ask her about that - via Private messaging preferably...

Alternately you could ask one of the new Forum members, who appears to teach a somewhat fruitier form of Jive in Australia, going by her website!

[Jayne]

Originally posted by Stuart M

....you'll have to ask her about that - via Private messaging preferably...

The question, Stuart, is which "her" should be asked, going by your recent activities revealed on the "I saw you" thread.... Does it depend on the "her" and does it change depending on which other "hers" are in the room?



Jayne

[Stuart M]

Originally posted by Jayne
The question, Stuart, is which "her" should be asked, going by your recent activities revealed on the "I saw you" thread....

Well, Graham could ask the question of all those wonderful ladies I dance with, Jayne - but of course, only one of them knows the real answer...

[Amanda]

....is this a Glasgow thing?

Amanda

[Franck]

Originally posted by DavidB

1. When you ask a lady to dance, do you take her hand as you walk onto the floor?
2. Do you escort her off the floor after finishing?
3. Do you interrupt someone's conversation to ask them to dance?
4. Do you expect to dance with someone for only one song? Or two?
5. Would you ask someone to dance even if you hate the song?[/list=1]

Great thread and many interesting points have been raised. Here is my Tuppence to add to the debate.

1- As Stuart says, this will depend on the record played and my partner. There are so many different ways of starting a dance (and yes Graham, some where you do not hold hands or other parts of the body). In general though, if my partner is new or the record does not inspire me to do anything different, I will always take my partnerÕs hand and escort (lead?) here onto the floor. It is worth remembering that the dance start from the moment you ask your partner, and that you should therefore start leading / dancing while you are walking to your favourite spot on the floor.

2- Rarely, for the reasons mentionned above, though I sometimes wish I did, as it feels nicer

3- Of course, there is always time for talking after the night, in the pub ! Dance now, talk later.

4- Usually once, but if the record was too fast or too slow, I would offer to dance to the next track if it is suitable. If I am dancing with someone I have not danced with for ages, or that IÕm not likely to see again for a while, then I would take the opportunity to dance a few tracks with them while I can.

5- Yes, there are very hardly any songs I hate (or even dislike). I would try to match the song to the ability of my partner prior to asking though, and might suggest we wait for the next song if it is too fast for example...

Thinking of another question: Is it acceptable to chat while dancing? And if so, what are your favourite moves to talk to...
We have already established that most of us already sing to the track played !

Franck.

[Jayne]

Originally posted by Stuart M
Well, Graham could ask the question of all those wonderful ladies I dance with, Jayne - but of course, only one of them knows the real answer...

Good reply!

Jayne

[Tiggerbabe]

Originally posted by Franck
Great thread and many interesting points have been raised. Here is my Tuppence to add to the debate.

1- It is worth remembering that the dance starts from the moment you ask your partner, and that you should therefore start leading / dancing while you are walking to your favourite spot on the floor.

Couldn't agree more Franck - you can have such fun before you even reach your dancing spot. I always do !!!!!!!!!!!!

Originally posted by Franck
Thinking of another question: Is it acceptable to chat while dancing? And if so, what are your favourite moves to talk to...
We have already established that most of us already sing to the track played !

Now here's the problem - I have found that if a guy wants to talk to you while he is dancing he invariably falls back on the 2 or 3 favourite moves that he can do blindfold ( or extremely tired - see other thread) - and these get repeated until the talking stops. NOT THAT I'M GOING TO CRITICISE When I am trying to lead - I don't talk - I need to concentrate as I don't know too many intermediate moves yet from the guy's viewpoint. I NEVER lead when I' being a lady, of course.

[Graham]

Originally posted by Graham
You should try leading to someone who is doing that (perhaps you have). As they ignore what you're doing and drift off in the other direction so they can keep their eyes on the teacher it can be really difficult not to say something like "Actually, you might find it a bit easier if you JUST FOLLOWED MY LEAD!!!!!" :reallymad :reallymad :reallymad

Sorry [he lied] to bore you with my ranting, but this happened to me again at a class this week, and I had a VERY hard time not commenting :reallymad. I can understand that people (including me!) want/need to look when the teacher is demonstrating the moves, as it can be very difficult to understand which way to turn, move etc, but this was right at the end of the beginner class when we were doing the full routine to music. My partner was apparently trying to dance by exactly copying someone else, rather than paying any heed to my lead (I'm not even sure it was the teacher, as she tried to do a completely different move at one point, but as I wasn't watching, I wouldn't know).

I know I should be more relaxed about it, but this really does put me off doing the beginner's class, and as has been discussed on another thread, it would be a shame to deny the other girls the chance to dance with me (okay, it wasn't those exact words ).

[Graham]

Originally posted by Sheena
Now here's the problem - I have found that if a guy wants to talk to you while he is dancing he invariably falls back on the 2 or 3 favourite moves that he can do blindfold ( or extremely tired - see other thread) - and these get repeated until the talking stops. NOT THAT I'M GOING TO CRITICISE When I am trying to lead - I don't talk - I need to concentrate as I don't know too many intermediate moves yet from the guy's viewpoint. I NEVER lead when I' being a lady, of course.

Excellent point. My tendency to revert to repeated arm-jives/first moves is precisely why I never start a conversation while dancing. However, I've found that my partners quite often try to talk to me, and if I try to reply (assuming I manage to understand what they're saying, which is often tricky with the background noise and frequent instances of their head facing the opposite way) I can end up doing the same move over and over . Especially if I have to think about my reply . So potential followers be warned: talk to me at your own risk!

[flashy]

I must say there is nothing worse than a partner initiating a conversation during a dance.... It's hard enough to concentrate on why the **** I'm gonna try next, without responding to idle small-talk. I find I have to actually stop my smooth and flashy flow of moves to enable me to hear her, and then it just goes on and on. For me, this really spoils the dance. Sorry to be harsh and I know it may appear rude, but I am just being honest.

What d'ya'll reckon?

[John S]

Actually I quite like it if the lady wants to talk to me during the dance (or before/after it). To me it means there's a bit of a connection there between the two of us, and I prefer that than just to think she's only dancing with me to be polite because I asked her.

Obviously it's difficult when doing a Double-handed Reverse Wurlitzer with Swizzle to discuss the intricacies of quantum physics or the impact of existentialist thought on postwar French literature, but surely there's nothing wrong with a few sentences about how hot the room is tonight etc????

[Tiggerbabe]

John, sweetheart, the room is always HOT when you are in it

[filthycute]

I quite like a little bit of chit chat when i'm dancing...but normally i'll only do it with people i know well, and who you know doesn't mind talking and dancing
I did draw the line at being asked "what do you think of the Aberdeen constituancy?" ...don't know if it's even spelt correctly, but what the hell do i care!!!! Not exactly the kind thing you ask someone when your dancing But apart from that i don't mind some light conversation. It's nice to get a chance to catch up with people you haven't seen for a while or don't see very often Yeah ok, you might end up doing the arm jive for 40 counts but i guess thats the price you pay for a blether :p

filthycute x x

[John S]

Originally posted by Sheena
John, sweetheart, the room is always HOT when you are in it

Only when you're near me, sweetie.

[Sandy]

Originally posted by filthycute
I quite like a little bit of chit chat when i'm dancing...but normally i'll only do it with people i know well, and who you know doesn't mind talking and dancing
filthycute x x

I agree, I think some light chat while dancing helps create a nice friendly relaxed atmosphere and that helps me personally dance better. If it's straight onto the dance floor, no words spoken, no eye contact it can be a bit unnerving whereas a few friendly words can help put you in the mood if you know what I mean but as already mentioned, not a serious conversation!

When dancing with beginners I would always engage in at least a few words at the very beginning to put them at their ease but as concentration is so intense at that stage I would probably only utter a few words of encouragement and lots of smiles during the dance. Some people are naturally very shy and some are very gregarious, I guess you have to judge your audience as to the level of your conversation.

During classes i think conversation should be kept to a minimum, a few friendly words, as it is quite distracting having lots of chat going on while you are straining to listen to the teacher.

Cheers

Sandy

[Stuart M]

Originally posted by John S
Obviously it's difficult when doing a Double-handed Reverse Wurlitzer with Swizzle to discuss the intricacies of quantum physics or the impact of existentialist thought on postwar French literature, but surely there's nothing wrong with a few sentences about how hot the room is tonight etc????

Since my current reading is a Georges Perec novel, I guess that means I'm restricted to discussing electron spin or complaining about why they never open the windows...

Seriously though, the problem I find with holding a conversation is that you're not always facing your partner - the catapult is not a maneuver designed for a discussion. And for a softly-spoken gent such as me it makes the chat doubly awkward, what with the music to compete with. If I start having a chat with someone, almost inevitably I start restricting yourself to moves like armjives and first moves.:sorry

Plus there's that old chestnut about men only being able to concentrate on one thing at a time. In Ceroc there's already at least three things to think about , without having to work on conversation topics as well...my apologies for my monosyllabic replies, ladies

[John McAulay]

Originally posted by Sandy


I agree, I think some light chat while dancing helps create a nice friendly relaxed atmosphere and that helps me personally dance better. a few friendly words can help put you in the mood if you know what I mean
Sandy

Not a problem sandy, you know I always tell you when you start to lead

Regards