2223  Teaching the Tango of Tight Spaces (Part I)

Date: Sat, 7 Feb 2004 17:38:46 -0800
From: Evan Wallace <evanw@INGENIUX.COM>
Subject: Teaching the Tango of Tight Spaces (Part I)

[This posting has been broken into two parts to stay within length limits]

Several times in the last year there have been lengthy threads on this list about chaotic dance floors in the U.S. and what to do about them. =
It strikes me that I have never seen in print a comprehensive exposition on what skills are required of Tango dancers to enjoy crowded and/or =
small dance floors.

I would like to make an attempt at creating such an exposition by starting a conversation on the subject, and soliciting your comments and =
additions. I have made a start on this below. I make no claim that what I have written is comprehensive, correct, or universally agreed =
upon--indeed, there are a couple items below that I am not even sure I agree with--but I hope it can serve as a beginning for debate and =
discussion. My goal is to assemble your feedback into a guide to dancing in tight spaces and resubmit it to the list. I have numbered the =
paragraphs below for reference.

I propose, for the sake of the discussion, that there are four basic areas of skill that contribute to a dancer's ability to be comfortable =
on crowded floors: 1) Dance floor etiquette; 2) Navigational skills; 3) Partnering skills; and 4) Vocabulary.

1. Dance Floor Etiquette

As with driving a car, there are agreed upon rules of the road that must be followed on the dance floor or chaos will ensue. A knowledge of the =
rules of etiquette is necessary (but not sufficient) to create an orderly floor. Here are some of the rules we have all heard:

A. Always enter the floor in a way that doesn't interrupt the flow of the dancers already on the floor. Be careful not to step in front of =
other dancers when you begin.

B. When beginning a dance, wait for your nearest neighbors to begin dancing before taking your first step. This behavior is especially =
evident in Argentina, where dancers seem to begin dancing all at the same time as if on signal. (Incidentally, dancers in Argentina tend to =
spend more time chatting with their partners before beginning to dance, often letting a goodly portion of the song pass before beginning.)

C. Always move counterclockwise around the floor. Never move against the line of dance. (This rule is likely to cause the most disagreement. Is =
it ever allowable to move against the line of dance? Most dancers would agree that it is allowable to do a check step and move backwards into =
the space that you had just vacated, assuming you are sure no one is there. But what about other exceptions? If there is a large space behind =
you, is it acceptable to take a few steps against the line of dance, assuming you can see where you are stepping? Or does this violate the =
"aesthetic" of the dance floor, even when there is room?)

D. Do not hold up the flow of the dance floor. You may do a step that doesn't move down the line of dance only when you are sure that it does =
not impede other dancers; in other words, when there is a sizable space behind you and/or the couple behind you is also not advancing.

E. Dancers should move in lanes and hold to those lanes for the entire dance, with more experienced dancers on the outside, less experienced =
dancers in the middle. (I have heard this rule many times, but it is hard to observe this actually happening even in Argentina.)

F. Never pass the couple in front of you. There are a few exceptions. If the couple ahead of you is unaware of the rules and is "camping", =
leaving a large space ahead of them, an experienced couple might pass to fill in the gap ahead of the stationary couple.


2. Navigational Skills

Obeying etiquette and rules of the road is first in order of importance. After that comes come the navigational skills that allow you to =
consistently and safely execute these rules. This is like learning to drive defensively in a car (e.g., not following too close) after you =
have learned the basic laws governing traffic.

A. First and foremost: NEVER step into any space that you have not visually verified is empty before you step. NEVER.

B. In fact, the rule above is not even sufficient: the space must be empty when you arrive, not just when you start. In other words: You must =
NEVER step into a space that could conceivably be reached by any another couple at the same moment you arrive there. This means you need to know, =
with certainty, where all of your nearest neighbors are, and whether or not, based on their current position, velocity, orientation, skill, and =
whim, they could reach the same spot simultaneously with your arrival. If you cannot make this determination before stepping, do not take the =
step.

C. As with driving, dance defensively. Do not follow other couples so closely that they may cause a collision. Always assume that the couples =
around you will violate the rules.

D. Use the outside edge of the floor to eliminate the chance of other couples appearing in your blind spot, since the leaders view to the =
right is often blocked by the follower's head in close embrace.

E. The only space you can be reasonably sure is unoccupied without visual verification is the space that you are in the process of =
vacating. For example, if you check forward with your left and leave your right foot on the floor, you can move backwards and transfer weight =
back to the right foot confidently without fear of collision, because you never completely "ceded" this portion of the floor to the couple =
behind you

F. Fill in the space ahead of you immediately, and use the space you just vacated to dance in. This is better than the opposite, waiting for =
enough space to open so you can do something interesting, thus holding up others behind you.

Experienced dancers make great use of the last two rules to create interesting and musical dances on a crowded floor. Good dancers wait for =
opportunities to step forward down the line of dance, and then check backwards into the space that they have not yet entirely vacated

[End of Part I]

Evan Wallace
Seattle, WA
www.Tango42.biz
evan@tango42.biz

Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2004 13:12:19 -0700
From: Paul Akmajian & Karen Reck <paulnkaren@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Re: Teaching the Tango of Tight Spaces

This post is from Karen:

About three years ago I became a co-organizer of classes where we emphasized
tango as a social dance -- stressing LOD/keeping lanes/no passing,
care/attention to one's partner & the other dancers sharing the floor, use
of improvisation creatively in small spaces, etc. from the very beginning.
The initial response to the "rules" in our classes included complaints of
free will being blocked, &/or the attitude that "rules" apply to someone
else. But over time the wider community began to discuss/incorporate these
ideas via e-group discussion, newsletter articles, emphasis by visiting
teachers, and regularly scheduled milongas in smaller cafe venues.

Within three years our community has moved from a 90 percent free-for-all
atmosphere to 90 percent respecting the LOD and other dancers. At least this
holds true for cafe milongas -- in larger, less crowded spaces the ratio can
drop to 50/50. Still it's a LOT nicer over all.

I suspect that one reason our small cafe milongas are so popular, and that
the respect between dancers seems to be enhanced in those venues, is that
dancers begin to get an inkling of that amazing sense of everyone on the
floor dancing with each other which Robert Hauk described. In a larger,
uncrowded space the connection between all of us sharing the floor is
difficult to find or maintain.

Karen Reck
Albuquerque, NM