Height is it an issue in standard/smooth ?

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dancingirldancing

Member
Do you think that a shorter couple is disadvantaged in standard comps ?

Some of my taller friends think that they won the comps because they can move further down the floor.


What do you think ?
 
dancingirldancing said:
Do you think that a shorter couple is disadvantaged in standard comps ?

Some of my taller friends think that they won the comps because they can move further down the floor.


What do you think ?
Click to expand...


Yes, tall couples do have a big advantage in dancing in general. It's about presence. A tall couple looks more elegant, grandoise and "fills" the floor more. They draw more attention, and have to work less hard to move around the floor. Shorter couples have to work harder to move as much, and can get lost amongst the crowd on the floor.

It's why my teachers are always working with me to take advantage of my height... and why they tell my partner to dance up to me, not me dance down to her - our height difference is significant, but we'll always be more successful if she learns to dance tall.


The downside for a tall couple is that mistakes and inaccuracies show up more - it's harder for them to be a "neat" package - so small couples tend to have an advantage at the lower levels.
 
hold it - IMO the tall couples look better in the dances with broad movement - waltz, foxtrot, VW, but the short ones do better in the 'quick' ones - tango, QS... its hard for the tall one's to get the snappy look - so its just about a tie...
 
Given the recent trend is toward lots of short people in the world and British finals, I think the empirical evidence is that there's no benefit to being taller. Shorter people benefit from the square/cube relationship: the same muscle area only has to support a shorter column of body.

Looking tall did used to be important, but short people can still look tall from across the dance floor.
 
dancingirldancing said:
Do you think that a shorter couple is disadvantaged in standard comps ?

Some of my taller friends think that they won the comps because they can move further down the floor.


What do you think ?
Click to expand...


Height is seldom a factor--it might get you noticed (but not necessarily chosen) in the early rounds, but that's all it is.

Beauty, on the other hand, is a different story.

In the end, however, it's about the quality of the dancing and the proportions of the movement that matter.






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elisedance said:
hold it - IMO the tall couples look better in the dances with broad movement - waltz, foxtrot, VW, but the short ones do better in the 'quick' ones - tango, QS... its hard for the tall one's to get the snappy look - so its just about a tie...
Click to expand...


But a tall couple can learn to be "snappy and quick" with plenty of practice (look at the number of tall couples doing very good jives, for instance), but there's only so much "swing" that's available to a short couple, given their frames.
 
I think it is but one factor of many that may or may not carry weight in any given circumstance...I used to dance with a pretty short guy and it was very hard to get seen at large comps when there were alot of people on the floor... we did our best to create the biggest lines that we could and I never wore a gown that wasn't extremely bright......and he was with one of his other very short ladies I often felt they were bypassed for dancers who may not have been better but who simply managed to be seen...however, instead of focusing on what might be a liability, we tried to play to our strengths...and yes, we always marked best in tango and quickstep...which incidentally is now no longer the case as I am dancing with a significantly taller man...but again, I try to never fret over that for which I have no control...there are so many other things that I can control to have a spasm about ;)
 
fascination said:
I think it is but one factor of many that may or may not carry weight in any given circumstance...I used to dance with a pretty short guy and it was very hard to get seen at large comps when there were alot of people on the floor... we did our best to create the biggest lines that we could and I never wore a gown that wasn't extremely bright......and he was with one of his other very short ladies I often felt they were bypassed for dancers who may not have been better but who simply managed to be seen...however, instead of focusing on what might be a liability, we tried to play to our strengths...and yes, we always marked best in tango and quickstep...which incidentally is now no longer the case as I am dancing with a significantly taller man...but again, I try to never fret over that for which I have no control...there are so many other things that I can control to have a spasm about ;)
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Oh absolutely. Ultimately dancing is about taking advantage of your strengths and limiting the impact of your weaknesses. It's not Basketball where height is a requirement.

I think of it as not unlike tennis. There are advantages to being tall (tall people in tennis typically have better serves), but then there are plenty of good short people around in the tennis world.
 
WaltzElf said:
and why they tell my partner to dance up to me, not me dance down to her - our height difference is significant, but we'll always be more successful if she learns to dance tall.
Click to expand...

Not because the couple should be tall and not short, but her dancing "up" to you gives her more stretch through her body, where you dancing "down" to her would just be scrunching and silly to do.

Supposedly tall lanky people do better in smooth/standard and short compact people do better in latin/rhythm. But there's always exceptions to the "rule" if you even consider it a rule. So just make the most of whatever you've got whatever you do. You won't get taller or shorter, so just focus on your dancing that you can change instead of your height that you can't change.
 
wooh said:
Not because the couple should be tall and not short, but her dancing "up" to you gives her more stretch through her body, where you dancing "down" to her would just be scrunching and silly to do.
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There is that as well - but the main point is to make us look like a tall couple, as opposed to looking for ways to shorten outselves.
 
wooh said:
Supposedly tall lanky people do better in smooth/standard and short compact people do better in latin/rhythm. But there's always exceptions to the "rule" if you even consider it a rule.
Click to expand...

ABSOLUTELY agree with this 110%. There's a very tall couple in our area (not one we ever dance against) which is why I get to see them. They always seem to get further/place higher than their dancing (IMO) deserves - and repeatedly so. Only thing I can figure is their height.
 
maybe you are missing something? I know several tall couples who seem to do worse. Body shape is always a double edges sword - as said above it all depends on how you use yours. A short person that really extends 'looks' taller than a tall person who is being lazy.
 
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