I need tips and rules for the woman's arms & hands in latin dancing. For competing and/or club dancing. I want my dancing to show some "attitude" but I'm not sure how to achieve it. Help

I'm no expert, but the one rule my instructor gave me was never let your hands/arms cross in front of your face. Latin dancing is sexy--use your hands and arms to convey that. Listen to the music and see how it makes you feel. Use your hands/arms to highlight accents in your music that convey drama (i.e, build up to clash in Paso). Or perhaps your hands and arms can interpret words in your music (i.e, "come to me" in a Rumba).

THANKS SO MUCH. I'M GOING TO KEEP THOSE THINGS IN MIND WHEN I'M DANCING. DO YOU HAVE ANY TIPS ON CUBAN MOTION (HIP ACTION)?

For club dancing, I would really try to keep your hands and arms relatively simple and calm. Space is usually tight in clubs, so avoid doing any arm styling that would put someone's eyeball at risk

For competitive Latin, though, your arms should be an extension of the dancing that is happening in your whole body. If you spend a lot of time thinking about "positions" in which to put your arms, they are going to look like just that -- positions! IMO, the most useful way to start bringing your arms into your dancing is to learn how to do the "natural" arm movements that go along with basic rumba walks. In simple form, these are the alternating arm movements that happen as you walk. One arm extends to the side (i.e., the right arm if you're on the right foot and vice versa) as the other comes across your body. Have your instructor go over this with you -- it will probably feel anything but natural when you start This will help you to feel and understand how the arms move with the body, how/where arm movement initiates, and how the arms can begin to fill space.

Arms do indeed add a lot to competitive Latin. They help to create impact, shapes, emotion, etc. Just remember that they don't do this in isolation -- only as a part of a body that is dancing from head to toe.

Good luck,
Vanessa

How interesting..!! I was just watching a tape of the 1999 Blackpool seminars in which Corky Ballas (in dorky ducky shoes might I add) lectured on the instruction of juniors and juveniles. However, his suggestions are mighty useful to adults as well. One of the things he said that is important for all dancers is attitude. Attitude for different dances are very diferent. But, you have to feel the music, emote to it, and the passion in your heart translates to your feet and body. Well, I paraphrase of course.

But his suggestion, which I found worthy of attention after I stopped sneering at his shoes , is to pick a song that literally and spiritually moves you, and try dancing to it. Hopefully, e-motion and hand-motion will follow. Better still is to take ballet lessons, or easiest of all, watch the top dancers and imitate what they do with their arms in front of a mirror. You are bound to get it. Getting the arms to move are easier than getting the feet to do the same, and since you already have the latter down pat, I trust, the former should follow in due course.

And if you can get your hands on this video, you must watch the kids that Corky trains. They are fascinating to watch and put me to shame most often with their floor presence, charsima, talent, and athleticism. Boy I wish I had started ten years earlier..

Ciao and enjoy.
Sri.

Well, Sri, they say it's never too late!
Spent a lot of time thinking about this, the youngsters and such. But if you really want to do something, fear not and do it (it's this faith thing all over again!) .

I was told by an instructor once that arms in the latin dances (for the lady) should never be straight but always bent at angles. I found that when I combined that with allowing my body to move my arms (as was previously suggested here) it worked pretty well. Put on a good song and practice just moving, like free dancing, in front of a mirror.

A while back they had a decent cuban motion lesson on ballroomdeancers.com, but I don't know if there's an archive of those. It was animated and had decent detail for the mechanics; I had already learned many of the same things from my own instructor, but I did think that it was easy to understand.