BALLROOM DANCING

 is a formal social dancing for couples, where one person lead and the others follows the steps.
 It is popular both as a recreational and a comparative activity.
 The word “ball” is from the Latin word “Ballare”, which means dance.

Two main types of ballroom dances

1. Standard Ballroom dances
2. Latin Ballroom dances.

STANDARD DANCES
 Standard dances are smooth, flowing ballroom dances that move around the entire dance floor in a counter- clockwise
movement.
Examples of Standard Ballroom

FOXTROT - It is an elegant dance whose objective is to travel smoothly around the dance floor.

WALTZ - It is a smooth progressive dance that travels around the line of dance, characterized by its “rise and fall” action. It includes
a step, a slide and a step in ¾ time. “mother of present- day dances” and the “backbone dance” of the ballroom.

TANGO - It is a sensual ballroom dance that originated in South America during the early 20th century. • “tango” may be an
African term for “close space” or “reserved ground,” or it may be from the Latin verb “Tanguere” which means “to touch.”

VIENNESE WALTZ - It is the first ballroom dance to be performed in the closed hold position. It is danced about twice as first as
the waltz and is a rotary dance where dancers are continually turning either in a clockwise or counter- clockwise direction.

QUICK STEP - It is an up-and-down, rise-and-fall swinging motion performed at a fast pace.

LATIN DANCES
 These dances stay in one place on the dance floor. They are energetic dances and reflect the shift in rhythm of the
music being danced to.

Examples of Latin Ballroom

CHA-CHA-CHA - It is a derivative of the mambo and a step- child of the swing. It is danced with a triple step and break and check.
Cha-cha-cha is passionate, energetic, lively and flirtatious.

JIVE - Originating in the US, this dance was influenced by the boogie, rock “n” roll, African/American swing and Lindy Hop.

SAMBA - It is one of the five international Latin dances developed in Brazil during the 19th century. • It is considered the dance
of celebration and joy. In Brazil, a samba dancer is called “Sambista”.

PASO DOBLE - It originated in southern France. The dance is lively and dramatic with long full steps and forceful movements. It is
like a preparation for battle and success in combat, just like the bull fights that inspired it.

RUMBA - Considered the sexiest of the ballroom dances, the rumba tells the story of love and passion between a strong man and
a teasing woman.