As in previous entry, I went to a Stage Tango show and a milonga in Dallas a few weeks ago. The performers of the show came to the milonga for "Good job well done" party. I enjoyed mingling them.
In such a setting, it was easy to notice the difference between Stage dancers and social dancers. Simply, stage dancers stood out, even in a social party.
Of course they are not on separate tracks (or are they?) and in some cases the boundary blurs. But the difference was there.
Watching that difference, I was thinking about it; how can I define the difference, and is there any way to "fix it" for the benefit of social dancers to look "better"?
[Note: Some may argue if such "fix" is necessary. I'd rather not to argue to convert someone here. You can follow your convictions. But I like "better" dances, and I'd rather write to someone who finds this kind of writing interesting or helpful.]
(1) Mindsets
First of all, I'll point out that most social dancers never even thought about "looking good" and "looking correct" like Stage dancers.
Stage dance is a show, an entertainment FOR OTHERS, and how they look is pretty much everything. In contrast, social dancers come to the party with a variety of expectations, mostly FOR SELF. Frequently used words by social dancers, such as "feeling","connection","personal connection" "fun""gentle""subtle",... many of them have introverted viewpoint. They don't think the dance's appearance as primary purpose for dancing.
I say nothing is wrong with the difference. But the difference in the mindsets will make a world of difference in the outcome, between Stage dance and social dance.
The difference is like the difference between a face with full make-up on, worked meticulously to look good in front of mirror, and a face just-right-out-of-the-bed and never even been checked.
This video might help you to "see" the difference.
Youtube "The Power of Makeup"
To me, this video was quite convincing about the power of "looks".
I'll write more about the differences some time later. But for this entry, in short, Stage dancers understand the importance of the looks, and if you want to look good, you got to pay attention to how you look.
For social dance, that much self-consciousness is not required. Probably you are busy gazing each other, anyway.
But it won't hurt to learn how to switch your mindset at your will, and pull up the dance you want.
[Disclaimer: The video is not mine. All rights belong to the producer(s).]
