Hi everyone, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. Last week, we introduced the idea that there are certain problems in dancing social Tango, which are specific to one of the two partners, but not necessarily the other. In the case of followers, a typical problem of this type is anticipation.

Anticipation can be defined as initiating, or attempting to initiate, a movement, which hasn’t been led. Most followers experience this difficulty in their dancing from time to time. Usually, it goes like this: A follower experiences the overwhelming intuition/expectation that her leader is about to invite a specific movement in the dance. It might be a traveling step, a weight change in place, a pivot — it could be anything at all. The situation often involves something, which flows logically out of what has come immediately before. If the follower is a relative beginner — or even if she’s a seasoned dancer, but anxious or distracted — she may succumb to anticipating a movement, which the leader had no intention of inviting. This might involve a momentary extension (and then apologetic retraction) of her leg. It might even involve a complete, un-led step.

Let’s assume for the moment that the leader is not in some unconscious (or thoughtless) way provoking the follower’s anticipated movement. The way for her to overcome the problem of anticipation in her dance begins with becoming fully aware of the complimentary roles played in social dance lead/follow:

The leader knows in advance what’s coming next; the follower literally has no idea what’s about to happen.

One might conclude that this puts the follower at a distinct disadvantage in the social Tango relationship. Yes, I think this would certainly be true, if the leader has no clue about his role in creating the conditions of movement from moment to moment. However, for now at least, we’re making the assumption that he does indeed know how to lead, and has complete respect for his follower’s skill in responding appropriately.

If we take the above as a given, I believe that there are several complimentary qualities/skills, which the follower needs to develop in order to minimize any inclination to move on her own.

Confidence

The first of these elements is confidence. By building a strong sense of confidence within herself over time that she does indeed possess the necessary proficiency to dance Tango, she opens the door to minimizing anxiety and actually being able to consistently execute at a high level.

In my opinion, developing such confidence comes directly from study, practice, plus the right kind of encouragement.

Balance at rest — stasis

The next element of importance involves the follower’s ability to recognize the crucial moment of balanced, unimpeded “stasis” in her dance. “Am I standing in a comfortable place (almost certainly on one foot) with the potential to easily execute any possible single movement, which the leader might choose to invite?”

I think of this as “the moment of truth” in social Tango —the moment in which the follower is ready for whatever may be invited in the next instant, because she is not being pressured by her leader to do anything at all.

Concentration

With these qualities/skills at her disposal, the follower is now in an ideal position to respond appropriately to a legitimate invitation — while ignoring, or at least fighting hard against, any sudden urges she might have to move on her own. Because her confidence is high, and her starting point is a powerful sense of balance at rest, she is now fully prepared to apply the indispensable element of concentration to the lead/follow situation.

Social Tango — you must realize this by now — is a very intense lead/follow experience. There is simply no way to half-consciously wander through the motions. As a follower, you cannot hang on passively to your partner, and expect to be carried along as if in a dream. You might wish for such a thing to occur in a romanticized misinterpretation of the actual Tango relationship, but things just don’t work that way.

In theory, the experienced, highly skilled leader (your partner) is working very, very hard to provide you with everything you need during any given moment to respond to his invitations, to achieve balance, and to set up the appropriate conditions for his next invitation. Should you be blessed with having such a leader as your partner, it now becomes your job to fully commit to the intense, ongoing concentration necessary to complete the conditions of this complimentary relationship moment by moment.

If you can do this, I’m certain that anticipating movement will soon become a thing of the past in your dancing.

Next week, we’ll turn to some of the difficulties leaders encounter on a regular basis.

Please join us for our Saturday Practica at Dardo Galletto Studios, 151 West 46^th Street (between 6^th and 7^th Avenues), 11^th floor; 2-4pm, $10 per person. (Bringing a partner isn't necessary.) Pat and I will both be on hand to answer any questions you may have about your dancing, and to help you with material you're working on. Plus you get a new “must-have” tango move each week! If you’d like a private lesson, you can visit our website at www.franchesleigh.com, call Fran directly at 212-662-7692, or email him at franchesleigh@mac.com Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/franchesleighllc

Announcing a New Class in American Social Dance

with Fran Chesleigh and Pat Altman

Pat and I invite you to our all new initiative, the American Social Dance Project,
an ongoing series of weekly classes, beginning with

CLASS ONE

Concentrating on authentic
American Foxtrot, Triple Swing and Salsa

Monday, October 2, 2017

8:00 p.m

Studios 353

353 West 48^th Street

(between 8^th and 9^th Avenues)

2^nd floor, Studio 3

In America, we have a very long and rich social dance tradition, which includes progressive dances like Foxtrot and Waltz as well as various forms of Swing and Hustle, and a full range of “Latin” styles like Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Merengue, Rumba and Samba. Over the past several decades, our unique American social dance tradition has been all but completely replaced by a hybrid of International competitive dance, often called “American Standard.”

We think that now is the time to rediscover the world of authentic American social dance!

Ø Class One of our American Social Dance Project concentrates on authentic
American Foxtrot, Triple Swing, and Salsa.

Ø Now, you have the opportunity to learn these dances the way they’re supposed
to be done on the social dance floor!

Ø In the near future, we’ll be offering a variety of additional classes in other
dances in the authentic American tradition.

Don’t miss it!

Register online: $25 per person at www.franchesleigh.com
Checks and cash accepted at the door.
All levels welcome. No refunds. No exchanges.

The following folks helped set up, break down and clean up before and after the milonga. Without them, there would be no Firehouse Tango.

• Steve Turi
• Lynn Gross
• Tsipoyra Sartan
•