The Lost Art of Social Dancing
I have to say that I am a tad disappointed to see that more competitors don’t come out to Robson Square. I know that everyone is super-busy and that there are a million other things to do, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say… I suspect (and you can all comment and correct me if I’m wrong) that many competitors don’t come, because they are not comfortable dancing outside their comfort zones!
DanceSport competitors who volunteered their time to demo at Robson Square.
Dancing is dancing! Partner dancing in particular is the ability to communicate to each other through our bodies. If you are not able to communicate with many different people, your skills on the dance floor (regardless of whether you’re in a social or competitive setting) are not sharp enough.
Robson Square is a chance for everyone to remind themselves why they started dancing in the first place. It wasn’t to join dance competitions! It wasn’t to memorize a sequence of choreographed steps and then go through it together, fingers crossed that there would be no obstacles or interruptions. Hopefully, it was to meet people and have fun doing what we all love to do… which is DANCE!
I know first-hand that being a DanceSport competitor is both physically and emotionally demanding. However, since the local competition schedule is blank during July/August, it’s a great time to renew and refresh your body and soul by dancing socially for just the pure enjoyment of it. There are no judges to judge you, no coaches scrutinizing your technique and no audiences to impress.
So come out in your runners and shorts (or pants and sweaters if summer doesn’t ever end up showing its face here in Vancouver) and join the party every Friday night! If you’re demo-ing, stay for the evening and dance with your fellow competitors, or try asking someone you’ve never danced with before!
Robson Square Summertime Dance Series runs until the end of August. Try to make it out for at least one of the evenings! You’ll be sure to have a good time!
