I am a 24 year old ex-ballet dancer currently living in the Flint, Michigan area. I really want to start studying ballroom dancing, but I'm not sure where to look for good instruction. I figured I'd need to go as far as Ann Arbor, or maybe even the Detroit Area. Does anyone know of a reputable studio? Also, any advice at all for a new-comer to ballroom dancing would be very appreciated! Are there any books or videos I should look at? I'm anxious to get started. Thank you very much
Joy Kelley

You are so lucky to have the ballet training. That gives you a great leg up, because you already have the posture, poise, and handwork. Very important parts of the competition package. Now you just need someone to show you the steps, footwork, and how to maintain connection.

American Rhythm vs International Latin.
I really can't say much about. I know that there are differences in timing and styling. All I can say is if you want to dance on a social dance floor, at least make the effort to learn the basic Rhythm steps. This what a majority of the social dancers are taught.

American Smooth vs. International Standard.
Here I can say a lot on. I started in American Smooth myself, and I've found that a lot of ladies , when they get to the higher levels had wished they had started with Standard. Technically, it's a lot more demanding. But it doesn't have the chance to express yourself as in American, but it's a lot easier to switch from International to American, then vice-versa.

Finding a teacher or teachers.
Are there any local competitions? If so, who puts them on. Is it a local studio? That is where you might find higher caliber instructors. Also most independent studios will allow you to come in and observe. Don't be shy, but don't be pressured either. You will find some teachers, who only do Smooth or Standard. Sometimes you are lucky enough to find a teacher who does all 4 types. So you might be shopping for 2 teachers. Some questions you might ask - Do they have any Silver-level or even Gold-level students? Do the teacher's themselves compete with another teacher? Do they get coaching themselves? It's important to find a teacher who is consistently improving themselves. But most of all find someone you feel comfortable and can communicate with.

Goo

Hi Joy,

I'm a social dancer, not interested in, and unknowledgable about, competitions. With that caveat, I'd say you'd want to find a teacher who can show you a little of all the dances -- and once you get a feel for them, THEN you can make a choice of which one(s) to concentrate on. I, at least, have found certain dances are much more natural for me than others.

While it sounds like you have a lot of dance experience, its not clear from your post how familiar you are with the specialized skills I'd say you need for ballroom -- such as, say, the ability to follow a lead. Since it sounds like you're starting at pretty close to ground zero in ballroom, here a couple of ideas that others (especially those more familar w/ studios and competition) may wish to agree or disagree with:

* When you say you want someone to "show you" the dances, are you being literal? If you initially just want to see what the dances look like, perhaps a studio would be willing to let a potential customer observe a 'practice" group dance session. That might help you eliminate choices right away.

* I live in a rural area, with no ballroom studios available locally. There is, however, a university in town. They have dance department, including ballroom. At least here, the instructors structure the course to expose students to a large number of dances in a single semester (for the beginning students). The theory is that in general college kids are not as focused on dance, per se, and need variety to keep them interested. You mention Ann Arbor; have you checked out U of M for classes? There's also the possibility of Continuing Education courses. The draw back to this approach is that in many ways, you'll probably have superior skills to your classmates, and if you pick up the other skills quickly, you might become bored or restless. But the courses are probably *way* less expensive than studio time, and again might narrow your field of choices rather quickly.

* Friends who have been studio-trained told me their experience was the instructors taught them one dance, until they had become more-or-less competitent at it -- and then branched out to other dances/styles. I don't know how typical this was, but I also get the sense the teacher more-or-less chose the initial dance.

* Regarding definitions of terms, there are various places on the web where you can find "text" explanations, including various commercial dance studios/retailers, and of course, ballroomdancers.com. Several sites have free video clips of various types available, which may agian help you define your interests. Of course, quality varies, and no video by itself is going to give you what you want to know all by itself. If you review some of the other discussions on this forum, I know things like American style vs. International style have been discussed.

Just some thoughts; hope they are of some help.

With your extensive dance background, you'd probably benefit more than the average ballroom beginner by spending some of your dance lessons with a female instructor. Most people start with a teacher who partners them, explaining as they go. But true expertise comes from high level dance experience as a follower. Take full advantage! A number of excellent dancers either live in the bay area or schedule coaching there, so you'll have your choice of teachers.

Here's a link. http://www.usabda-norcal.org/
If you attend functions on the event calender and meet the local dancers, they'll steer you towards the kind of coaching you want

All have expressed good dancing skills needed in the instructor but none have epressed the need for teaching ability, From your own ballet traingin you will have experienced great, mediocre and terrible trainers. To compete is the highest level to attain in any style of dance. best to go in and tell the person on the phone before your first visit to the studio that is wht you want and they will give you a lesson with the most appropriate teacher available. Get on the floor.
The easy way is to slip into dances you do more "naturally" but you will also need challenge to go outside yourself. you will need to find a trainer who
a) is certified in studio or by association
b) speaks well in a way you have fun with
c) does pro/am (unless you have your own partner who has the same goals, background, time, desire...)
d) and can challenge you to great heights ie. dances with his other students at high levels

Competitions are where you will discover a lot of teachers, But you may need to be more location oriented talk to your friends who you saw dance and start there. Unfortunately not all teachers have taken the time to learn it all because all take a lot of time to learn. Like ballet, we watch the kids take class then 3 months after they begin and want them already to be equal to great dancers like Karen Kain.
This is a different disscipline & you are starting at hte beggining welcome. j.

jo

There's competition in most types of dancing. Good thing; different types of dance appeal for different reasons. Some people are salsa fanatics; that's all they do and there's competitions for them. Hustle and swing variants too. The international style of ballroom dancing in Latin and Standard is done all over the world; the corresponding American styles are Rhythm and Smooth and there are competitions in the U.S. for both styles. Usually at the same time and place. There may even be Argentine Tango competitions somewhere; haven't heard but I haven't looked either.

So there's no reason to confine yourself to one style of dance if your goal is competition. Sample them all. I'd suggest watching competitions and showcases within driving distance. (You can search on line or call local studios and ask.) Buy the program. There's usually advertisements for local studios and instructors inside. Mark any dancers who catch your eye. Ask who they train with; ask who they'd recommend starting with.

You can sample the different types of music right on this site; just to the dance music section and browse the clips by style. Only things I didn't see were Hustle and Argentine Tango. Here's a resource link, too.
http://scarecrow.caps.ou.edu/~hneeman/dance_hotlist.html

If you decide to do ballroom, be it American or International, I'd suggest starting with Rumba and Waltz. The basic technique for American Smooth and International Standard in waltz are virtually identical, so choosing either or doing both later is easy. Plus you can always use it at weddings even if you don't continue either. :^] Technique for Rumba in the 2 styles is so different, even down to the timing, that I'd suggest picking one and sticking with it for at least a year before trying to do both.

If you spend at least 3 months concentrating on just those 2 dances you'll reap major benefits later on. Technique of frame, posture, footwork, lead, Cuban motion, 'dancing your body'; implanting these in muscle memory will build a foundation you can transfer to the rest of the dances. By doing one dance from each type, you'll learn to differentiate between the 2 styles from the beginning and decide if you want to choose, or splurge and have it all. :^

Thanks for the reply. Now I confess I need a little help narrowing the field.

What I really want is to learn all the competition styles of dance. Is that usual? I confess, I don't know a great deal about the system of competition in ballroom dance. I am someone who, up until a couple of years ago, spent at least five days per week in the dance studio. I have the time to dedicate to practice. Is the idea, rather, to pick a couple of styles of dance only? Or do most people do them all?

How do I select a teacher? I see their names and phone numbers, and a few words beneath such as: American Smooth, International Latin... or something like this. And I don't really know what this means. Or they say only: Swing, west coast and Lindy. Do I take that to mean that they don't teach the others?

I see syllabus break-downs that encompass these dances: Viennese waltz, tango, foxtrot, cha cha, samba, rumba, bolero, swing, mambo. Where do I find a teacher who can show me a bit of each? Or is this not the idea? Do people who are studying seriously only pick a couple of dances, to which they are suited, and do them?

If you're still reading, thank you! As you can see I need lots of information about the way things work in the world of ballroom dancing. Any comments would be appreciated. I need lots of help as I am really in the dark about this.

Thanks,
Joy

Joy,

I have never been in Michigan so I am not familiar with what's there, but here is a website that may be of help:

http://dancemichigan.com/dancefloors.html

You asked about videos. I have a couple put out by Kultur on ballroom dancing by a lady named Teresa Mason. It is entitled "Ballroom Dancing" There is a series of three; beginning, intermediate and advanced. These are very good.

"Wherever you go, you represent the team. You will talk like, you will look like and you will act like the most dignified professional in your hometown" - Vince Lombardi to his players.

Well I want to thank everyone for answering all my questions and offering their advice. I ended up finding an instructor who's giving lessons at a local swing dance studio. We don't do swing, though. I've been studying International Standard and Latin. I'm really enjoying the Latin... I'm so glad for the opportunity to learn the International styles, since no other studios anywhere near me offered it.

It looks like my husband is going to be choosing Berkeley for law school, and I want to start out on the right foot with my dancing as soon as we move. I want to continue private lessons with an instructor. So, anyone in the Bay Area know of a really good International Standard and Latin instructor? I'm sure there are many! I'd like to find one on a recommendation. One more note: I'm 5'6" w/o heels, and I'm a little taller than my current instructor when I'm in my shoes. (I like to wear 3" heels.) If anyone knows of a *tall* instructor who fits the bill, let me know!

Thanks so much for the advice. I absolutely will spend some time coaching with a female dancer... I can see how important it is. I wonder if there are many dance couples who teach together...? It seems that would be ideal, if you really liked the couple and their style.

Thanks for the link.