When we tell people we are ballroom dancers, we get a very dreamy reaction from most. The eyes get starry and thoughts of big dancefloors and fancy evening wear flood into their heads. This is usually followed by the spoken regret that they had never learned to ballroom dance, and always wanted to sweep across some big glamorous floor to Strauss.
However, that’s just it…. WHEN are you EVER going to be in a big fancy ballroom in evening wear more than once or twice in a lifetime?!? So most people want to experience it, but most don’t because they have no where to really use it, or do they???
Webster defines ballroom dance as “any of various usually social dances (such as the tango, two-step, and waltz) in which couples perform set moves”. According to dear old webster, and we very much agree, ballroom dance simply means dancing with a partner, no one ever said it was just to waltz music 🙂
So when we think about dancing with a partner, the only thing that comes to mind (typically) is the ballroom waltzes and the fancy dress parties. In reality, ballroom dance also means hot spicy underground salsa clubs with masses of bodies all moving to the same rhythmic beat. Despite popular belief, country Two step is not just learned in honky-tonks and rodeo bars, it is also taught in most ballroom studios too (along with 5 or 6 other country dance styles!). One of the most popular styles of partner dance is SWING dance! Not only is swing part of ballroom dance, there are over 9 different styles of swing that people don’t even know about until they get in a ballroom studio and learn!
Should we change the name? Maybe “ballroom” is just outdated. Maybe we need something for the hip young kids to slang around. “Social dance” comes to mind, but these days that usually means a hyped up mob jumping up and down in unison to “don’t stop believin'”. “Partner dance” seems too boring, not much energy in the language there I admit. “Grab a person and find out what kinds of fun moves you can do together to every kind of music out there” is great…but a bit wordy. So for now, we keep the old standby “ballroom dance”, but now we know that there are infinite possibilities in a ballroom!
So from salsa to waltz, swing to country, ballroom studios are more than just places to learn how to waltz for weddings. It is where the real magic happens and you learn exactly how you dance with a partner to ANY type of music!