How to make the follower look good?

[Steven666]

Someone asked me this recently and the instant answer I thought of was the lame "pick a good one to start with".

*hangs head in shame*

What should the reply be to that question? How do you make the follower look good?

[martingold]

1-Dance as smoothly as possible
2-Do not put in complicated moves spins ect that you think will make you look good unless dancing with a follower that you know well
3-Make sure the follower is smiling (normally happens with me cos my dancing is so bad that they are laughing at me)

I find if i work to make the follower look good i look good as a by product most leaders who dance for themselves look daft

[Caro]

- adapt what you lead to what she is able to follow
- accept that you may need to change what you planned to lead next at short notice ()
- don't rush her
- don't stop her and watch expecting her to do something interesting, right here, right now
- don't 'overdance' her (i.e. start doing multiple spins for ever when she can only do one and is finished, waiting for you)
- look good yourself, i.e. good posture, good lines

easy, right

[Dazzler]

I would say that a good start is to try and judge the level of said partners dancing and capability and use moves that they are comfortable with.. also a strong body lead into walks can make 2 dancers look as though there is a strong connection

but thats just my intial thought

[martingold]

Originally Posted by Caro

- accept that you may need to change what you planned to lead next at short notice ()

you mean leaders plan what move to do next?

[Caro]

Originally Posted by martingold

you mean leaders plan what move to do next?

some are very determined about what they want to lead, yes



I forgot one, important if she's not 100% passive:

- build on (use) what she is doing / suggesting to you

[firefly]

-dance with her, not at her ie doing lots of cool stuff yourself and expecting her to stand and admire (some followers may be able to pick up on it and mirror etc, but some won't be confident or comfortable doing that)

-dance with her, ie connect with who you're dancing with at the time. Don't look around the room searching for your next partner or looking to see who might be watching

-look as if you're having a good time dancing with her, smile, make her feel good about dancing with you

Annoyingly I can think of some caveats even to what I've just said, but those are my initial thoughts, And please, whatever you do, don't lead her to a stop the first time you ever dance together then announce "now, do sexy for me", as happened to me recently

[Caro]

Originally Posted by firefly

whatever you do, don't lead her to a stop the first time you ever dance together then announce "now, do sexy for me", as happened to me recently

you're kidding ????

[gebandemuishond]

Originally Posted by Steven666

Someone asked me this recently and the instant answer I thought of was the lame "pick a good one to start with".

*hangs head in shame*

What should the reply be to that question? How do you make the follower look good?

Don't worry, your answer wasn't the worst I got! I think that honour has to go to: "Send them to a ladies' style workshop".

Are there any particular moves which show off the follower well? I think the First Move tends to make the lady look elegant, and i guess dips are supposed to do something similar. It seems to me that if you can get the lines right, your follower will look good, but acheiving that is something else.

Someone told me that being led through a Pretzel makes her feel 'clever', although I personally don't think Pretzels look good for either partner.

Dan

[firefly]

Originally Posted by Caro

you're kidding ????

No, I'm really not! I asked someone to dance recently who I'd never seen at our venue before. I can't say I particularly enjoyed our dance, for various reasons, but it was only at the end when he made his "now, do sexy for me" announcement that I became truly dumbstruck. Fortunately it was at the very end of the track so I didn't have to actually respond. But it's astonishing what some people think of as being acceptable

Apologies, didn't mean to hijack the thread. Carry on...

[martingold]

Originally Posted by firefly

don't lead her to a stop the first time you ever dance together then announce "now, do sexy for me", as happened to me recently

my word what did he want a strip tease or something

[Gadget]

Originally Posted by firefly

... but it was only at the end when he made his "now, do sexy for me"

Maybe he had been watching "True Lies" ?

To make them look good... practice with them infront of a big mirror in a dance studio and see what looks good or does not (I suppose videoing would work). I only really advocate trying to making them look good if you are going into a competition.

Much better is making the follower feel good.
If this is your aim, then the simplest thing is to listen and respond to them. Match the tension/connection in the hold, move with them, don't control the dance: Give them have the freedom and confidence that they can just dance and not worry about 'following' - it will just happen. And smile.

Try to make every dance the bast dance of the night for your partner - musical but not over-flamboyant, well lead but not domineering, challenging but acheivable, exciting but not scary, fun but not comedic...

This is how I try to dance every dance - some work, some don't. But those that don't I will try harder with next time.