{"id":7698,"date":"2024-09-18T13:43:13","date_gmt":"2024-09-18T17:43:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/creekside\/?page_id=7698"},"modified":"2025-11-10T11:08:58","modified_gmt":"2025-11-10T16:08:58","slug":"types-of-dance","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.fredastaire.com\/creekside\/types-of-dance\/","title":{"rendered":"Types of Ballroom Dance"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Types of Dance<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Types of Ballroom Dance Lessons\n<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Ballroom dance can be enjoyed socially and in dance competitions, and is sometimes referred to as \u201cpartnership dancing\u201d, because it is a type of dance that requires a dance partner. Ballroom dancing originated in the 16th century from dances held in the royal courts. There\u2019s also evidence of influence from folk dances of the era \u2013 for example, the Waltz began as an 18th century Austrian folk dance.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Two Styles of Ballroom Dance\n<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The International Style of ballroom dance was introduced in England in the early 1800s and became popular throughout the rest of the world by the 19th century, through the music of Josef and Johann Strauss. International Style is categorized into two very distinct sub-styles: Standard (or \u201cBallroom\u201d), and Latin, and is typically used more in the competitive dance circuit.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Here in the United States, ballroom dance adapted into the American Style between 1910 \u2013 1930 mainly due to the influence of American jazz music, a more social approach to dancing and the iconic dance and choreography talents of Mr. Fred Astaire. Over the years, American Style has expanded to include dances such as Mambo, Salsa and West Coast Swing, and has always been driven by the constant development of music around the world. The American Style of ballroom dance is categorized into two distinct sub-styles: Rhythm and Smooth, and is used in both social and competitive ballroom dance arenas.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The Differences Between International & American Styles\n<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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International Style is without a doubt the classic \u201cold school\u201d style of Ballroom. In International Standard, dance partners must remain in a closed dance position continually (meaning they stand in front of each other, in body contact throughout the dance). American Smooth is similar to its counterpart from overseas, but does allow the dancers to separate (called \u201copen position\u201d) in their dance frame. In the beginning stages of training, International Style is more disciplined than American Style (which typically starts first as a social Hobby, then progresses to Sport).\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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American Style can also include \u201cExhibition\u201d solo work which allows the couple more freedom in their choreography. Both styles can be very technical with a high level of proficiency requirements, but there is more freedom in the American Style when it comes to closed figures, where the International Style is more strict with fewer figures offered. In the world of ballroom dance competition, there are also differences between the dresses or gowns worn for American versus International Styles. Because dance partners stay in closed position when dancing International, these dresses often have floats coming from the tops which would not be conducive for American Style, which features both open & closed positions.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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