contra dance and leading and following

[galoshtjuv]

Hello everyone, I still exist.  I live in Massachusetts now, and that is very nice, but right now I am not going to talk about that.  Instead, I am going to talk about contra dancing, and leading and following.  This probably won't make much sense to those of you who aren't dancers, for which I apologize

Comments

[sonatanator]

Luxury Pond follows NOBODY.

I like mixing it up in all forms of dance, which I sometimes find intimidating or hard. I'll forego it if the crowd seems hostile or full of beginners, but hopefully you'll find it easier as you get to know the scene.

Maybe you can work on if not leading, being a more active follower, resisting when needed, carving out space for your own creativity. Plus you can directly communicate at least with your partner, if not every neighbor.

[galoshtjuv]

that makes a lot of sense for many situations, but dancing in Concord, MA is different. there are very few beginners.

I do resist, and I got pretty good at it in Philly as I went more often and got to know everyone better - knowing where to put my arm on certain people or when to move my head so it wouldn't end up in someone's armpit. I worry about coming across as cranky bitch, especially since many of the things that bother me I feel are pretty generally accepted as okay, but maybe as Dan suggests I can feel more proactive and less reactive if I think of it as exercising creativity by finding ways to make my space in socially acceptable ways.