Novice dancers melt in your arms as you gently but firmly lead
7th of 20 reasons why dancing is great for your well-being. Here's the full list.
It is a buzz and feel-good experience to dance for the first time with someone who says that they do not know how to dance. My favorite dance with a novice is the merengue, You can see a good demonstration of it here on Youtube. The basic 1,2 step is simple and with a good lead, a novice can dance and look elegant and confident. The puzzled looks, wondering what is coming next, are soon replaced by a smile as she is led through elegant moves without missing a beat.
Similarly with other dances such as cha cha cha and foxtrot, I enjoy starting with very basic steps with a novice and once it is clear that we are in sync, extending out into a couple of simple moves that extend my novice partner a little bit further than they thought they could go. One memorable experience was asking someone to cha cha cha. She had been sitting out dances all evening and she jumped at the opportunity to dance. She had NO idea of the cha cha steps. How could I turn this potential disaster into a pleasant experience for us both? We stopped and then danced at half pace, stepping on one: O n e, t w o, c h a c h a c h a -v e r y s l o w l y. We picked up the rhythm of the music, lost it when we tried to go back to normal speed and quickly reverted to what was possible. At the end, her smile was as genuine as if she had danced a stunning sequence. That dance, and overcoming the challenge of what could have been a disaster, is more memorable than many other more technically elegant cha cha chas I have danced since. As Forrest Gump (almost) said: 'Social dancing is a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get.'
Of course I love dancing with good dancers, but dancing with novices has its own reward. It adds to one's emotional well-being.
This quote is an extract from Aria's dance etiquette.
A great way to increase one's circle of dance acquaintances is to ask beginners to dance. I still fondly remember the advanced dancers who with some degree of regularity asked me to dance when I was a novice. Dancing with beginners is not only an excellent way to develop your lead/follow, but also is a great human investment that will pay off handsomely, because novice dancers don't remain that way for long. Don't think of dancing with a novice as charity, you are doing yourself a favor.
A quote from a compilation of Tom Parsons, used with permission http://www.dancer.com/tom-parsons/quotes.html
1. Beginning dancer. Knows nothing.
2. Intermediate dancer. Knows everything. Too good to dance with beginners.
3. Hotshot dancer. Too good to dance with anyone.
4. Advanced dancer. Dances everything. Especially with beginners.
--Attributed to Dick Crum(?), a folk dance teacher
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Chris Mitchell
www.dancetours.co.nz
