Dance and Communication

"Dance and Communication","

The engaged couple were not going to dance the traditional bridal waltz, but instead were dancing a slow romantic dance that had been skilfully choreographed to their favourite love song.



This slow romantic dance was immediately followed by a very lively Mambo.


I have taught tertiary courses on communication, and have used the following scenarios to demonstrate to students that communication is not just about verbalisations and the written word.


We would then discuss this scenario as a class and generally the consensus would be that the eyes are very important in the communication process.


A second scenario I sometimes used was to get one of the students to walk outside the classroom and to then come in and be very careful not to even fleetingly give eye contact to anyone in the room.


Of course, it can not be done.


But, some forms of communication are more powerful than others.


My friend and Flamenco Dance expert Tomás Dietz sent me an article he had written last week on Flamenco.


His introduction reads:Flamenco is a complex art form firmly woven into the fabric of Spain's Andalucian culture, expressed through passionate singing, driving guitar accompaniment and intensely emotional percussive dancing that involves arching bitter sweet body movements and shotgun footwork.


Modern Jive, Swing, Rock 'N' Roll, and several other dances have their roots in the dances danced by Afro-Americans back in the 1920's and 1930's.
  To these dancers at the time, DANCE, was probably more important as a communication tool than language itself.
 But if I was to give more exemplification here, this would become an epic and not just an article on dance and communication.
 And, the more the dancers of the dance feel those emotions, generally the more convincing the dance performance will be.
 As a professional working in the area of communication, education and training, and also someone who is passionate about dance, I have published a suite of fifteen web sites covering all styles and all aspects of dance.





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Kerala Dance Forms

"Kerala Dance Forms"," Some Kerala dance forms like Kathakali is world renowned, and a dance form Koodiyattom is recognized by UNESCO as human heritage art.
 He described 'navarasangal' or the nine emotions viz.
 Kerala dance forms seem to draw a narrow line between male and female performers.
 Kathakali is considered the art of Gods, and epical episodes are performed as a play.
 Expression of emotions and narration is based on 'Mudras' or hand signals, and facial expression of navarasa, the nine emotions.


The costumes are heavy and it almost takes a full day to complete the make-up process.


Mohiniyattom: This Kerala dance form literally means the dance of an enchantress.
 Attired with white or ivory dress with golden borders, the dancer takes a majestic look.
 The origin of Mohiniyattom is attributed to Lord Vishnu, who impersonated as Mohini (an enchanting woman) to seduce Asuras and take back Amrit, the medicine that gives immortality from them.


Koothu (Chakyar Koothu): This Kerala dance form is performed only in selected place called Koothambalam associated with Kerala temples.
 Only members of the 'Chakyar' caste perform this.
 It is an offering to deity.


Theyyam: There are more than 300 variations for this Kerala dance form, which is characterized by the praising of Goddess for her victory over evil forces.
 The headgear and attire are both colorful and attractive.
  This is a dance performed by women on Thiruvathira day of the Malayalam month, Dhanu.
 It is believed to bring blessings to their family life.
 Rathi Devi successfully made a case with Lord Shiva to give Kamadeva his life.


Oppana: This dance form is the peculiarity of Malabar Muslim weddings in Kerala.
 The songs are usually called as Mappilappattu.
 Oppana is a performed as a stage item also.
 Kolkali literally means playing with stick.
 The dancers harmoniously move around in circles, form different combinations, dance and rhythmically strike two short sticks.


Krishnanattom : Krishnanattom is almost an extinct dance form of Kerala.
 Krishanattom as the name suggests is the play on the life of Lord Sri Krishna.


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Exhibiting Emotional Intelligence While Under Pressure

"Exhibiting Emotional Intelligence While Under Pressure"," A dance teacher demonstrated extremely high skills, managing her emotions during a difficult situation.
 My wife took lessons there, as did my daughter.
 So this is a third-generation dance family.
 My wife and I have been ""helpers"" for many years.
 I'm up front, selling tickets and then I go backstage to watch the performance and make sure the area is clear of those who are not supposed to be there.
 The teacher whose group is performing stands behind the main curtain so the children can see her but the audience cannot.


The 3-year old dancers are my favorite.
 This year one of the dance teacher's three-year old daughter was performing for the first time.
 Nothing was going to get her to go on stage.
 But the little girl was firm.


The teacher's actions for the remainder of the program where inspiring.
 She patiently, calmly and lovingly managed her daughter and the other dancers.


On our trip home, my wife and I discussed what could have happened if the teacher had not managed her emotions so well.
 A negative experience such as this might have caused the little girl to refuse to dance in future recitals or avoid other stage experiences.
 The impact of that choice can be both immediate and long-term.


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Learn to Dance - Learn to Dance Salsa With Passion

"Learn to Dance - Learn to Dance Salsa With Passion "," Chances are that they did not only dance well, but that they also danced with passion.
 Learn to dance salsa with passion and you will have the secret to moving people as well.

 Be In Touch With Your Emotions

This seems self-explanatory, but if you think about it how many times do you see a dancer and you can't really connect with what they truly feel inside? Often you cannot connect with them because they are not really fully aware of all of their own emotions inside.
 Many artists and actors have learned to wear different masks and have become masters at faking any emotion at will.
 Become more aware of your authentic emotions and you will learn to dance with passion.
 As you become more in touch with your feelings allow yourself to fully feel your emotions.
 As you allow yourself to feel become more aware of how the music you are listening makes you feel.


If the mood of the song is sad and slow, let your dancing reflect.
 It means that you truly become more keenly aware of how the music makes you feel inside and you let your dancing reflect that.
 The key for us men is to learn to respect and honor our feminine side without losing our masculinity.
 By staying in tune with how your female partner feels as she dances with you, you will honor your own femininity while staying grounded on your masculinity by being there for her.
 Allow yourself to feel and to let go.


 Don't Let Others Negative Judgments Hold You Down

Sometimes as artists we become more sensitive.
 However, the down side of that is that we also absorb and are affected by other peoples negativity more.
 To release it realize that the more successful you become the more others may often judge and criticize you.


 Surround Yourself With Other Passionate Salsa Dancers

By surrounding yourself with other passionate salsa dancers who have learned to dance with passion and not let anyone else's negative hold them down you will begin to also feel more safe and free to express yourself.
 It is like you are guarding a small little butterfly which is trying to come out of its cocoon.
 So will you.
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                                                    DANCE WITH THE STARS

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Lyrical Dance - an Expression Driven Style of Dance

"Lyrical Dance - an Expression Driven Style of Dance"," From ballet to jazz to tap, there is just so much there  to learn about dancing.
 While some element of technique is essential in lyrical dancing, what is more important is whether or not you are able to express what needs to be portrayed on stage.
 However, it really is not that concerned with the physique of the dancer.
 In some cases, lyrical dance can be performed to an instrumental piece of music, which also has some amount of emotion that needs to be interpreted and expressed by the dancer.
 In a real sense, they are required to tell the story without including any spoken word and just focus on movement and facial interpretation.


What is great about this type of dance is that you really do not need to start out at a young age.


It is still unclear where or when lyrical dance originated.
 Although there are elements of different dance techniques involved in lyrical dance, many of the movements do not resemble any type of traditional dance technique.


Generally, the choreography for lyrical dance involves partners who interpret ballads or love songs about how a relationship makes them feel.


If you have always wanted to become involved in dancing but never thought you would get the chance, you can consider lyrical dance because it caters to a wider age range and also relies on your ability to express yourself through facial emotions as well as body language.


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Releasing Emotion Through Dance

"Releasing Emotion Through Dance"," If thought about, all things dance.
 For anything to exist it has to have motion or as the great philosopher Alan Watts said; resonance.
 Even what we would ordinarily consider to be static stationary objects, at a deeper level have movement.
 All dance requires space - that is for anything to move it requires somewhere to move.
 This is well documented in Vedic literature where the entire universe is perceived as a symphony of sounds produced by vibrations of energy.


Dance as one would more commonly think is expressive movement - and it is interesting to observe the similarity of the words motion and emotion - or one could say; Motion = emotion! Perhaps this is why dance is creative in nature and can have such a powerful impact on how one feels and expresses themselves.
 Interestingly enough our body language says far more than our words - according to Ray L Birdwhistell who carried out research in the 1970's named kinesis and context.
 This makes me think of the proverb:-

Actions speak louder than words!

Perhaps this is why dance is able to convey such strong emotion and can tell a story.
 Music is also what makes dance fun exciting and invigorating or slow relaxed and introspective.
 As with music, dance can also involve solo to group performances with some styles of dance only being suitable for you and your partner, such as swing or ballroom! Dance is a wonderful form of expression and can be fluid, rhythmic or gesticulatory.
 With our bodies so perfectly created to express such movement we can release powerful emotions and in turn heal our bodies of stress, psychological burden and repressed memories.
 Motion or dance allows us to explore emotion because when we move in specific ways we invariably experience specific states.


With an art form such as dance using words to describe it is like a student of Zen trying to explain Zen.
 Dance could very well be a Zen experience.
 So whenever you're feeling low or stuck in negativity get into the rhythm and swing it!

Ok now that I'm finished and assuming that you've got to the end here comes the bit where I urge to take a look at my blog.


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Dating Relationship Analogies In Ballroom And Latin Dancing

"Dating Relationship Analogies In Ballroom And Latin Dancing"," Have you ever watched a couple dancing on the floor moving through complex movements so gracefully and effortlessly that it seems that some magical spell has been cast that has caused the two beings to share one seamless consciousness? I was mystified by this phenomenon and was compelled to take classes myself. Enlightenment came largely as a result of having a patient instructor at the local YMCA who was also an engineer by trade. In both the Ballroom and Latin style of couple's dance, one person has to lead and the other person has to follow. Initially, I wasn't sure why this was but eventually it became apparent. The instructor came over and asked me if, whatever it was I was trying to do, could I please stop it. He placed his hands, palms up, in front of her and asked her to place her hands over his. After she positioned her hands over his he simply said, ""Now, follow me,"" and began to maneuver her around the room making her look like she was a gifted princess. Magic, right? Maybe magnets? As I recall he explained it to me this way: ""The key is to always keep in your mind exactly where you want to be three moves from now and exactly where you want her body to be three moves from now. "" This is a lot like dating in that the woman not only likes to have a man with confidence but she needs to be able to feel it in order to give her perspective in the relationship. In many turns and spins he may initiate her turn with one hand but he will often run the other along her waist to provide her with support and stability as she turns. It is the same thing in a relationship. If he is ambivalent or unsure of where he is in the relationship, she (if she is emotionally healthy) will become frustrated or impatient and will soon loose interest. This will cause her to naturally loose trust in him, making it more difficult for her to follow whatever lead he is giving. It won't take too many miscues from him for her to again loose interest and move on. If the guy has any spine at all this will create much conflict and confusion as she will be pushing him around to tell him what she wants to do at the same time that he is supposed to be communicating to her what is coming up next. Just as in a relationship, she really wants to dance or be together with someone and so, will often put up with this dysfunctional, uncommitted substitute if only to avoid being alone. The man's job as leader is many times more complex than the woman's job as follower. Given a choice of being unloved and unwanted or of feeling inadequate and disrespected, most women will see being unloved and unwanted as the worse option while most men would see feeling inadequate and disrespected as the more painful (ref: For Women Only, Feldhan, 2004). Understanding this in the analogy should help two people dating see that both people have different but complimentary needs. Likewise, she will feel much more cared for and desired if he spends the time and money to help her have an enjoyable evening. In terms of men's and women's natural wiring, the woman is naturally better able to follow than the man due to her heightened sense of intuition. Another interesting dynamic in dance surfaces when studying the best way for each person to hold the other in the classic ballroom position (her right hand outstretched to her side and resting in his outstretched left hand, his right hand behind her on the lower part of her shoulder blade, and her left hand on his right shoulder or upper arm). Quite to the contrary, if done properly there is always a slight but definite tension among the three points of contact. Women have a natural need for this tension because it is the means of communication. In dance, assurance is provided through communication via the tension in the hold (nobody likes to dance with a dishrag). Notice I say frequently and not constantly. Spend time doing other routine things or independent activities (chores, family things, hobbies, work, etc) and wait for that insecurity to come around again (times vary depending on the woman but it WILL come around). Then, know her love language, and clearly and creatively communicate to her again that she is special and that you, this day, choose her. It does require planning, strategy, cleverness, and keeping track of both the clock and the score but it is very definitely not a game; it is a relationship between two uniquely wired and wonderfully created people with hearts both capable of love so great so as to bridge continents (cliché but true) and at the same time capable of such levels of depravity so as to render another incapable of loving or even to loose the desire to continue living. Every woman I danced with was different and at first I could only think of them as better dancers or worse dancers. For example, one woman was tall (about six inches taller than I) and very beautiful but was insecure about her height. It was difficult to lead her because I could not get any resistance to be able to feel where she was. She would often put her body unusually close to mine and had a habit of touching her breasts with any part of my body she could get a hold of or manipulate into the right position. Yet another woman I had to remind several times to let me lead as she would compulsively attempt to back-lead me. She was very used to being independent and not being able to trust men. She would get frustrated and impatient with my mistakes as I was learning and would try to ""help"" me by taking matters into her own hands. To be fair, I had my own myriad of issues that showed up in how I attempted to lead and dance but this just further illustrates the point that not only is dance a fitting analogy for relationships, but that the issues in the one have a directly related corollary in the other. I've illustrated mostly from the perspective from a man to a woman but similar principles apply in the other direction too. They may not have seen a lot of detail but they could certainly pick out the major landmarks. click and learn