Does your teacher make you dance your routines by yourself?

scullystwin42 said:
i have to be careful about not following when i have lessons.
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^^ THIS. (We've actually nicknamed my imaginary partner and joke about where he is stylistically different than pro... and better, because he's never in my way ;))

I do like that I know my routines cold so lessons can just be about connection, adapting to another person and how they interpret the music (vice how I do), etc. Thank goodness, because I get way more solo time that partnered time, and I need to free up the brain space to think about that! Because that is usually my lesson focus, I rarely dance alone in lessons... really only when there's a specific spot that isn't working and pro wants to see my feet, and that hasn't happened in months. (It used to happen much more.)

The way I look at it, solo practice is for getting my stuff down so I can use lessons to work on the partnering aspect. If I didn't do it, a good chunk of the lessons would be pro watching me work on my own stuff, which just seems like a ridiculous way to use my hard-earned lesson $.
 
Yeah, if I do anything by myself in a lesson, it's only for a minute while I work through some spot. My partner and I don't get a lot of time together, so I'm not going to waste any of it dancing by myself while she's waiting.
 
I've danced with some women who I call Routine Girls. They don't connect with their partner properly. In one egregious example that I videoed a routine girl was so blatantly obviously not connecting with her pro during her showcase routine that she declined to have my video posted. Having danced with her, I can say that many women with only a few lessons are easier to social dance with than she.

I think it's the leader's job to live partly in the future while the follow is supposed to take care of the present moment.

To the follows who practice their routine choreography solo, how do you avoid Routine Girl Syndrome?
 
Chachacha dance comes from the dances like Rumba, Mambo, Merengue and Disco, and dance is both joyful and lively. CHASSE Chachacha fundamental step. Techniques for Flat feet Ball and Ball Chachacha the foot. Do not take a lead in the heel (heel lead). Head must be kept high to keep good balance, keep your feet for a strong and positive movements in the legs. Avoid heels down when not set foot on the back for not puffy body down. There should not be too wide steps, ie the width of the hips wider, as that will lose your balance. As lead partner in the underarm jump holding hands, do so gently only, not linked hands, and keep your hands high enough so the woman does not have to bow to the shooting. Chachacha is dance moves using multiple legs.
 
Returning to the thread topic about routines, there are also Routine Guys. Asked one competitive dancer what he does when someone gets in the way of his choreography he replied that he has to stop and wait for them to move. Watching them compete on a regulation-sized floor, I could tell that they practiced on a smaller floor because 2/3 the way down the long wall he would cut across the middle of the floor because that was where his short wall was. Although I like him personally and enjoy an occasional dance with his wife, I hate to see him show up at socials.
 
I am expected to be able to dance my routines by myself ( and pretty much have had to do this since Bronze intermediate). He will often make me dance sections of the routines alone during my lesson so he really study what I am doing and critique. While I do practice my side by side and solo work alone (out of necessity; there is only so much money and time for lessons), I, like Fascination, have pretty much stopped practicing entire routines by myself because of the "autopilot" factor. I was losing the essence of the dance, to respond adequately to his lead and the music.

One very excellent coach told me to stand up and "take responsibility" for my dancing. It was advice that really hit home. So, I am very serious about being able to execute without my instructor.
 
snapdancer said:
I've danced with some women who I call Routine Girls. They don't connect with their partner properly. In one egregious example that I videoed a routine girl was so blatantly obviously not connecting with her pro during her showcase routine that she declined to have my video posted. Having danced with her, I can say that many women with only a few lessons are easier to social dance with than she.

I think it's the leader's job to live partly in the future while the follow is supposed to take care of the present moment.

To the follows who practice their routine choreography solo, how do you avoid Routine Girl Syndrome?
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Lots of factors can go into "routine girl syndrome". I have seen this syndrome in follows that don't even practice solo, so I don't think solo practice is the main or only culprit there.

It can be a result of teaching method (e.g. teacher says, do this step, then this step, then that step, then when we get to the corner do that step, etc, rather than teaching connection or following skills along with step sequences).

It can be a result of not knowing how to be a good follower, or not being able to be a good follower (yet).

Some people have trouble turning their brains off.

Some people have trouble with trusting another person to lead them (they tense up when they aren't in control, for instance).

Some people have to concentrate so hard on what they are doing that they don't have spare bandwidth for the subtleties of following.

Some people get excited when the music comes on and can't seem to prevent themselves from getting ahead of the music and their partner.

Some people have or have had teachers that drilled the wrong things into them.

Some have put many more hours into showcases or similar things than social dancing.

Some are doing choreography that is too advanced for them to execute with good technique (connection, etc).

Some don't place a high value on following, and are more interested in showy tricks.

Or any combination of the above.

Sure, memorizing routines can contribute. But I hardly think it's the only factor. I've seen plenty of showcase routines that had good connection (lead/follow quality visible to the audience), and plenty that didn't. I'm sure the vast majority of those routines were pre-choreographed, and practiced repeatedly, and most were memorized by showcase day, whether they were practiced solo or not.
 
FancyFeet said:
^^ THIS. (We've actually nicknamed my imaginary partner and joke about where he is stylistically different than pro... and better, because he's never in my way ;))

I do like that I know my routines cold so lessons can just be about connection, adapting to another person and how they interpret the music (vice how I do), etc.
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Pretty sure you're actually me! :D:rofl: I can sink into routines as soon as i know the timing and steps - that way my brain can focus on the moment and the following and using my body right. But we do still spend a lot of time on me releasing and following the lead, it's improving the dancing.
 
snapdancer said:
To the follows who practice their routine choreography solo, how do you avoid Routine Girl Syndrome?
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Short version - I have different dancing modes.

Learning new choreography mode (with partner and solo, reviewing written or video choreo as needed).

Practicing existing choreography solo - working on different things at different run throughs - posture, timing, footwork, etc.

Practicing drills solo - these are great since you can work technique in as much detail as you want without worrying about it affecting following skills.

Practicing existing choreo with a partner - working on technique, working on following, working on musicality/performance, etc in various run throughs. (Sometimes working on new technique may mean less emphasis on following in the short run, depends on what the technique is and other factors.)

Practicing with partner where existing choreo is the framework, but we may or may not stick to the routine precisesly - definitely more in following mode here.

Performance mode - for competition, it's following and performance focused. The routines are still there in the background, and may or may not get executed as planned (depending on traffic and other factors).

Performance mode for showcase is a bit more focused on the sequence (since you want to end with the music, hit the highlights, etc, and are hoping to perform the planned sequence without really altering it), but still trying to follow/be responsive to the lead in terms of step size, expression, etc.

Social dance mode - try to be ready to follow whatever.

I've been dancing a number of years. My ability to dance differently in different circumstance and switch among the different modes has grown over time. In general, time spent in solo practice was helpful in my growth as a dancer. When I was a new dancer, I was pretty much in "trying to waltz" or "trying to cha cha" mode whether solo or with a partner or whatever.


You've mentioned newbies sometimes follow better than ladies that have had lessons. I think this is because the newbies are a clean slate. They are mostly just reacting to what is happening, they don't have the background to accidentally overthink it or be thinking about the thing their teacher was trying to fix in their last lesson, or whatever.

If you find some of the ladies that have had lessons that difficult to dance with, don't ask them to dance. But realize they are somewhere in their dance journey, and are working on things. I doubt they are trying to be bad followers, though it certainly is possible they (and/or their teachers) don't put a high priority on connection and following skills. Following well is hard, as is leading. Cut those having difficulty with it some slack.
 
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raindance said:
Short version - I have different dancing modes.

{snip}

If you find some of the ladies that have had lessons that difficult to dance with, don't ask them to dance. But realize they are somewhere in their dance journey, and are working on things. I doubt they are trying to be bad followers, though it certainly is possible they (and/or their teachers) don't put a high priority on connection and following skills. Following well is hard, as is leading. Cut those having difficulty with it some slack.
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It usually isn't a problem, as those with more intense afflictions of Routine Girl Syndrome tend to avoid social dancing. As far as cutting them some slack, I do but my private instructor thinks I do too much of that.

I think we could generalize your approach to avoiding this syndrome as not letting the routine crowd out all the other aspects of your dancing.
 
I am expected to do all my routines on my own with all shaping and styling. Both in practice rounds and in lessons. I also do self-practice drills in the studio, which allows my instructor to keep an eye on how things are progressing and make adjustments in my lesson as needed. I have been doing this since pre-bronze. We do spend some time working on connection and following as well to keep a balance.

Interestingly, I know a few amateur ladies who don't ever practice on their own and cannot do their routines without their partners. They are always amazed that I can do things on my own.

Agree with the different levels of working--I completely do this depending on the situation.
 
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