How I Can Get Better at Ballroom Dancing Ballroom dancing is a beautiful and elegant form of partnered dancing that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels. If you're looking to improve your ballroom dancing skills, there are several things you can do to achieve your goal. Here are a few tips to help you become a better ballroom dancer: Take lessons from a qualified instructor: The best way to improve your ballroom dancing skills is to take lessons from a qualified instructor. Look for a teacher who is experienced and has a good reputation. The instructor should be able to provide you with the proper technique, footwork, and styling that is specific to each dance. Practice regularly: Consistent practice is key to improving your ballroom dancing skills. Set aside time each week to practice the steps and movements you've learned in class. The more you practice, the more comfortable you will become with the dance and the easier it will be to execute the steps. Watch videos and attend dance events: Watching videos of professional dancers can help you pick up new moves and improve your technique. Attending dance events such as competitions or ballroom dance shows can also give you inspiration and a chance to see how professionals dance in real life. Work on your posture and footwork: Good posture and footwork are essential for ballroom dancing. Make sure you're standing up straight and using your feet correctly, as this will make your movements more graceful and controlled. Listen to the music: Ballroom dancing is all about moving to the music. Make sure you're listening to the music and dancing in time with the beat. This will help you to develop a sense of timing and rhythm, which is essential for ballroom dancing. [...]

10 Important Things To Do After Your First Ballroom Dance Class We get multiple questions about what to do after the first ballroom dance lesson. One of the most common questions is "what to do to prepare for the next few dance lessons". Here are ten things you can do that will help you prepare. Most of them are fairly simple and have a huge impact on how you dance. 1. Wait to Practice It may be a surprise to learn that it is better not to practice after your first private lesson. Why? It’s very simple. You don’t have the knowledge or the muscle memory of the proper dance technique yet. It’s very frustrating for you and your teacher after that to break all of these “bad habits”. Even the best Ballroom Dance Teacher can’t teach you in one lesson. When you start “practicing” by yourself you don’t have any feedback from the Pro. So you definitely will do something wrong and the more you practice the more bad muscle memory will be created. So Wait to Practice! 2. Book your next lesson close as possible It is very, very important to keep your first couple lessons close as possible. That way you will remember and retain more. Your teacher will teach you new material and you will  have a chance to learn more steps/technique and spend less time reviewing old material. It is that proven that when you start something new, after one week of not taking a lesson, you will probably remember only 50% of what you learned. After two weeks maybe only 10%. If your schedule allows, The best case is to try to have a private lesson, group class or practice party every [...]

Top 10 Wedding Songs That Haven’t Been Played To Death This post was last updated in March 2020! Are you tired of hearing the same old wedding songs at a wedding reception? Or maybe you want to have a wedding song to dance to that is as unique as your love is for your partner! Perhaps you have no idea what you want to dance to for your first dance and you are desperate for suggestions! Well, we have made a list of ten songs that we feel would be a good contribution to your list to consider for your first dance. We tried to include wedding songs from all different genres to try and find music as different as your story may be. There are even a few of the lyrics included in the description. that we felt really chime strongly in the songs. The other good thing about these songs is that there are a lot of different dance styles that you can do to them. That way you don’t have to worry about doing that awkward stiff-legged sway thing that some couples do during their wedding. You can wow and amaze your friends with a cool dance made to any of these not-so-normal wedding songs. 1. Conversations in the Dark - John Legend "Swear on everything I pray to That I won't break your heart I'll be there when you get lonely" 2. Infinity - Todd Carey "As long as 1+1=2 Thats how long I've been needing you" "And As sure as 5+5=10 Girl my love will never end" 3. Slow Dance in a Parking lot - Jordan Davis "Making the most of whatever we [...]

Passion in Pictures In each and every dancer there is defining moment when technique merges with Passion. You know. You've experienced this. Meet the man who has made capturing that moment his mission. Meet Joe Gaudet in an interview specially for Dance Passion. “I will have done something that matters if I can capture the singular defining moment – the expression and emotion of life – in a photo of their dance.” – Joe Gaudet Picture this. I’m in the audience of the Florida Superstars Dancesport Championships when I notice him. He is near the edge of the dance floor. His stillness exists in stark contrast to the feverish movement displayed on the floor. His eyes seem to be everywhere. His camera is in hand; the lens poised and ready. The photographer looks like a dancer himself with the tight physique of the U.S. Navy helicopter rescue crewman he once was. It is Joe Gaudet, an award-winning commercial and wedding photographer who on this night is indulging in his greatest passion - ballroom and Latin dance photography. Full disclosure. I have known Joe for many years as a Creative Director and Broadcast Producer. His wedding photography business is thriving and with good reason. The man is talented. But ballroom dancing? This is an area of interest that I was not aware we shared. Recently, I caught up with him and peppered him with questions. His candid responses appear below. Susan: Joe, you have stated that you have a “passion” for ballroom dance. How did that interest come about? Do you dance yourself, or is your interest strictly visual? Joe: I have to thank Sonja Ballin of “Designs by Sonja” in Pinellas Park, Florida, for introducing me to the world of ballroom and Latin dance. She had [...]

Want to Boost Your Productivity? Get Up and Dance Sharper thinking If you’ve been experiencing a bit of brain fog at work, shaking your groove thing can help clear that cloud away.  Studies have found that dancing can improve cognition as well as fine motor skills. So, if you work at a job that requires focusing on a task for extended periods of time, dancing may be just what the doctor ordered. A report published in the New England Journal of Medicine also found dancing can reduce a person's chance of developing dementia. Reading, playing board games, and playing musical instruments were also found to help sharpen the mind. Increased energy Are you looking for some energy to get through the work day? If you’ve resorted to mixing energy drinks with your coffee, it may be time to make a change. Dancing before work can give you a much healthier energy boost. Once you bust a move, you’ll be alert and ready to take on the projects that await you throughout your day. Besides, it’s kind of hard to type when your hand is shaking uncontrollably from caffeine-induced jitters. Elevated mood Are you often in a grumpy mood before you even get to work? Dancing may help change that. Before you know it, you’ll be the happiest person in the office. In fact, you’ll be so chipper that it will start to get annoying. Even more so when you dance from your desk to the bathroom and back! “Dancing has been shown to reduce depression, anxiety, and stress and boost self-esteem, body image, coping ability, and overall sense of well-being, with the benefits lasting over time,” said Berkley Wellness researchers. Fewer sick days Being out of the office on a sick day can put projects behind schedule. It’s hard [...]

Social Dance Etiquette Asking to Dance: When you want to dance with someone, make eye contact, offer your hand, and ask clearly, “Would you like to dance?” Show your appreciation by escorting your partner onto the dance floor and helping them feel comfortable. Accepting a Dance: If someone asks you to dance, the polite response is “Yes, thank you, I’d love to.” In a social dance setting, it is important to be supportive and kind to your partners, regardless of their skill level. During the Dance: Be aware of your partner's needs, smile, make eye contact, and feel free to have a light conversation. At the end of the dance, express your gratitude by saying thank you and escorting your partner off the floor. Declining a Dance: It is acceptable to decline a dance if your partner has been physically or verbally abusive, if they are drunk or threatening, or if they pose a danger to other dancers. Unless someone is truly offensive, it is not appropriate to decline a dance just because of poor technique. Circulating: In a social dance setting, it is best to dance with a variety of partners rather than sticking with one person the entire night. If someone repeatedly asks you to dance, it is acceptable to decline and say, “Thank you, but I’d like to meet and dance with some other people.” Hygiene: Good hygiene is important in a social dance setting, as it requires close physical contact. Bathe, use deodorant, wear clean clothes, and keep your breath fresh. If you sweat excessively, bring a towel and a change of clothes. Use a light touch with perfumes or colognes, as some people may be sensitive to strong fragrances. Respecting Your Partner's Technique: Unless asked, don’t offer criticism of your partner’s technique. Recognize that [...]

Dancing Makes You Smarter For centuries, dance manuals and other writings have celebrated the health benefits of dancing, usually as physical exercise. More recently we’ve seen research on further health benefits of dancing, such as stress reduction and increased serotonin level, with its sense of well-being. Most recently we have heard of another benefit: Frequent dancing apparently makes us smarter. A major study added to the growing evidence that stimulating one’s mind by dancing can ward off Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia, much as physical exercise can keep the body fit. Dancing also increases cognitive acuity at all ages. You may have heard about the New England Journal of Medicine report on the effects of recreational activities on mental acuity in aging. Here it is in a nutshell. The 21-year study of senior citizens, 75 and older, was led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, funded by the National Institute on Aging, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Their method for objectively measuring mental acuity in aging was to monitor rates of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. The study wanted to see if any physical or cognitive recreational activities influenced mental acuity. They discovered that some activities had a significant beneficial effect. Other activities had none. They studied cognitive activities such as reading books, writing for pleasure, doing crossword puzzles, playing cards, and playing musical instruments. And they studied physical activities like playing tennis or golf, swimming, bicycling, dancing, walking for exercise, and doing housework. One of the surprises of the study was that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. There can be cardiovascular benefits of course, but the focus of this study was the mind. There was one important exception: the only physical activity [...]