Today I’d like to discuss improvisation skills for social dancing. I think as social dancers we tend to forget how special our dance is because it’s all improvised. Many non-dancers look at us dancing smoothly with our partners and think we are doing rehearsed choreography, but we are not! In this article I want to help you become more conscious of improvisation skills by pointing out where and how both leaders and followers improvise. This, in turn will give you ideas on how to train improvisation skills (and if not, then I will propose a unique way for you at the end of the article).
How Leaders Improvise
Let’s get the obvious one out first. Leaders improvise when they need to come up with dance moves for the dance. This is where the term “leader” comes from, because their job is to decide what moves to pick for the dance. They will pull moves from their knowledge base of the dance style but put them together differently each time, based on the music and who they are dancing with.
Leaders also need to improvise when their follower misinterprets their lead and does something not asked for. Leads will then have to come up with a way to continue so that the dance doesn’t stop awkwardly. It can also happen that the follower intentionally chooses to do something else (backleading) – leaders need to be ready for it either way.
Another way leaders improvise is when they discover that their follower has a lower level than them. Their usual dancing style will then need to be adjusted according to their partner. Similarly, when leads find out in the middle of the dance that their follower doesn’t have the skills to do a specific move, they would first need to improvise how to save the move and then how to get out of it without breaking the flow.
Whatever styling choices leaders make to add their personality to their dance are 100% improvised. They might add a turn or not, think about their hand placement etc.
Improvisation is also required on a crowded dance floor, where you might have to abort your original plan because there is not enough room or other dancers suddenly cut in. This is called floor craft – adjusting your dance so that everyone is safe and there is no stepping on each other’s feet or hitting someone accidentally.
How Followers Improvise
Followers improvise as well, although in different ways.
In some dance styles like salsa, the leader might let go of the follower at times. She is then completely on her own for a while to do some solo moves, which she improvises on the spot.
Styling is also completely improvised and up to the follower to choose what fits the situation and the music. She can use her arms, legs or even body movements.
Another way they improvise is when the lead’s signal is unclear or messy. Followers will have to act quickly and use their dance knowledge to do something that fits the situation and the music. This is how followers can “save” the dance and make it look seamless even if the lead makes a mistake.
Some advanced followers might sometimes want to contribute more to the dance and do something different from what the lead asked. This is also improvised on the spot based on the music and the mood.
Floor craft mentioned in the leader’s section is also followers’ responsibility. They will have to see if the styling move they want to do is possible at this moment depending on how close other dancers are. Similarly, how big of a step or movement they can do, and abort if necessary.
Improvisation Psychology
There is actually quite a lot going on psychologically which determines whether people are comfortable to improvise and be creative.
Firstly, effective improvisers have more courage to step out of their comfort zone. They are not afraid to try out different styling options and are creative at putting together new patterns. They are also ready to learn new techniques and incorporate them into their dance. Fear of feeling stupid might rob your dance of personality and keep your body movement minimal, which is the opposite of what the most successful dancers do.
Secondly, improvisation requires an open mind and a readiness for anything. Since it’s a partner dance, you can’t always follow through with the plan you had in mind. You have to respond to the environment, either your partner, music or other dancers on the dance floor. Skills on how to bounce back make your dance look smooth and nearly flawless to an untrained eye.
Thirdly, being a good improviser means you need to accept mistakes and not see them as the end of the world. If you are afraid of failure it kills your confidence and motivation. It’s healthier to think of “mistakes” in dance as unexpected moments that can be overcome with creativity and improvisation.
Learning Improvisation Skills
Now that you know what improvisation in dance looks like and what mindset shifts are needed, it will hopefully give you hints on how to train. If improvisation skills are needed in styling, you can practice styling. If recovering from “mistakes” in partnerwork requires improvisation, then hopefully you will welcome them and see them as learning opportunities, and so on.
I also want to offer you another very interesting and unique way of training improvisation and creativity.
I recently discovered improvisational theatre, or improv, where actors perform a show in front of a live audience but everything is improvised. They might even ask the audience for input in the form of keywords. I have been to a couple of improv comedy shows in my city and to my biggest surprise, found that social dance and improv have so much in common. Just like in dance, you need improvisation skills – to be ready for anything, think quickly on the spot, have the courage to look silly, respond to your partner, take inspiration from the environment, be ready to let go of your initial plan etc.
I have already been to a few improv classes and can say that in the beginning stages of training, they do not practice acting skills per se. Instead, they train creativity, improvisation, courage and all the psychological things I mentioned before. This makes beginners’ improv classes a fantastic practice for social dancers. It’s an opportunity to train creativity and improvisation under a skilled instructor and get over mental blocks holding you back in dance. Besides, it’s just as fun, if not more fun than social dance classes!
I myself recently signed up for a beginner’s group at Ruutu10 improv theatre in Tallinn, Estonia and I’m happy to announce that they are giving my readers a 10% discount code JETTE10 that you can use for their courses or shows. If you have never seen improv theatre before, I’d recommend attending one of their shows – they do improv comedy and it’s hilarious! For example they have a show called “Fantastiline nelik” every month which has lately been nearly sold out every time. They have shows and classes in both Tallinn and Tartu, so check them out!
Summary
In summary, social dance involves a lot of improvisation, not only from leaders but also followers. Skilled improvisers will be able to make the dance look like it was rehearsed and gracefully glide over any misunderstandings between partners. Improvisers are also good at styling and adding flavor to the dance.
If you would like to work on your improvisation skills, you can do this by changing your habits, being open to input from your dance partner, welcoming mistakes and getting over your fears of looking silly. If you need a more structured way of learning this under a trained instructor, then finding improv theatre beginners classes in your area is an excellent way to do this, since the fundamental skills are the exact same as in social dance!
In what other ways do you improvise during a dance? Have you tried improv before (I know some of my dance friends have!) and how has it improved your dance?
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