He’s off time!!! Few things can ruin a dance for a follow like the lead being off time. So, what do you do when this happens to you, ladies? Here are a few tips to help you out when you find yourself in this situation. I really feel for the guy when his timing gets off. When I’m following, I almost always can find the one right away and don’t have a problem keeping the rhythm. However, when I’m leading, there’s SO MUCH to think about, so it seems like the one just disappears! So, ladies be nice! Nobody’s perfect! My reaction really depends on the guy and the situation. Situation 1: The guy can’t find the time, and you can see all over his face that he is mortified by it. In this case, I just smile and ask him if he wants me to count for him. He’s usually hugely relieved. I will count for him until he seems to be comfortable, then taper off to just counting the 1 and the 5, then just the 1 until I finally stop and let him try on his own. Situation 2: The guy is just slightly off and doesn’t seem to realize it. In this case, I’ll back lead just a touch. I’ll either wait to do my right turn until the five even if he tries to turn me a little before that or I’ll speed up or slow down my turn so that when I come back, I’m stepping back on the one, and I may even give a gentle tug on his hand so he can really feel that one. 9 times out of 10, he gets it, and you can have an enjoyable rest of the dance. Situation 3: He’s dancing on the 5 instead of the 1. I usually just roll with it until he puts me into a shine. A lot of times he’ll naturally come back on the 1, but if he tries to take me back on five again, I’ll keep shining until the one, and then I’ll step back. He usually gets it. Situation 4: He’s dancing on the ??? and doesn’t have a clue that he’s off. This happened to me just the other night. I was dancing with a man who was off time, so I tried to subtly help him out, but he just thought I didn’t know how to follow, so he actually stopped me and tried to give me a “lesson” on how to turn. A lot of girls will walk off the dance floor when this happens, and I can understand why because I was tempted to cop an attitude when he did this. But, I took a deep breath and reminded myself that we are dancing to have FUN, and this man was actually just trying to be nice. He probably will always be deaf to the rhythm, but that doesn’t mean that he should be robbed of the joy of dancing. So, in cases like this, I just forget about the rhythm and do my best to follow. This is actually a great exercise in developing sensitivity as a follow because his movements are so unpredictable that you have to be REALLY in tune to him to be able to do anything. Ultimately, the goal is to let your man know that you are there for him, and it’s okay if he makes mistakes. That being said, whether you’re leading or following, being able to hear and keep the rhythm is essential for making an enjoyable dance. Check out this series by Unlikely Salsero - Don Baarns on musicality to help you out with this. https://youtube/watch?v=m205GdmL6pE
Posted on: Wed, 26 Nov 2014 20:31:06 +0000
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