Log In

Username:

Password:

   Stay logged in?

Forgot Password?

User Status

 

Attention

 

Recover Password

Username or Email:

Loading...
Change Image
Enter the code in the photo at left:

Before We Continue...

Are you absolutely sure you want
to delete this message?

Premium Membership

Upgrade to
Premium Membership!

Renew Your
Premium Membership

$99
PER YEAR
$79
PER YEAR
$79
PER YEAR

Premium Membership includes the following benefits:

Don't let your Premium Membership expire, or you'll miss out on:

  • Exclusive access to over 1,620 video demonstrations of patterns in the full bronze, silver and gold levels.
  • Access to all previous variations of the week, including full video instruction of man's and lady's parts.
  • Over twice as many videos as basic membership.
  • A completely ad-free experience!

 

Sponsored Ad

+ View Older Messages

re: Head Looks Right - When? (Smooth Categories)
Posted by atyg
10/30/1999  6:44:00 AM
Thank you for your fabulous reply! However, what I meant was what other few occasions would a man or lady look rightwards(since most of the time they look leftwards)? I've noticed in competitions that rarely, both dancers would switch their heads to look right on either side briefly.
Those I listed down were some examples I could think of. Another is step 4 & 5 only for the lady in the Hover Cross.
So would it be a generalized rule of thumb that if a dancer turns BACKWARDS to the RIGHT (clockwise), he or she should look right?
re: Head Looks Right - When? (Smooth Categories)
Posted by Jonathan Atkinson
10/29/1999  2:42:00 AM
I hope I understand your question correctly... I assume you're asking for the ideal position of the head when executing these figures. Here's my take:

Lady - 1st step Open Left Turn
Definitely left. There really shouldn't be any inclination for her to look any other way, any more than there is in a closed left turn.

Promenade Position
I would almost always have man look to the left and lady to right in promenade posistion under normal circumstances. Not that there aren't exceptions, but in general, this is normal and natural.

Fallaway Position
With fallaway, it depends on the context, and on the ability level of the dancer. Sometimes I'll have my lady students open their heads, other times I'll keep them closed. Lady students tend to use their head weight in a much stronger way when they keep that head closed.

Man - 2nd step Open Impetus Turn
It depends on what part of the step you're looking at. The head is actually making a transition, so it's in a different place at the beginning of the step than it is at the end. Usually looking slightly rightward toward the lady's head, as a consequence of the strong rightward shape as the right foot begins to draw closed. By the time you reach the peak of your rise onto your right toe, the head weight should be stretched very prominently leftward.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,
Jonathan Atkinson

Copyright  ©  1997-2026 BallroomDancers.com