Skip to main content

Philosophia Rioja:Three Pieces on Competition - Connection

I've been to half a dozen dance competitions this year and I've seen some amazing dances and few more thrilling than Gary Stubbs and Jen Hoy who have - it seems to me all the technique one could want to see, the good taste to realise that dancing isn't all about flash moves and the spooky sense of a telepathic link which ensures spontaneity and congruity.

But - much as I love them both - they are not the norm

So I think it's time I wrote about three things...Connection, Musicality and for want of a better word Reputation.  Not because I know much about dancing or competition but I am happy to write about things talk to me about as issues - this seems to be worse this year than any other.

So first, Connection



The Ceroc champs website has a lot on it - though it's not called connection - it covers all of those things that we'd pretty much agree we'd want to see, I think, but some which seem to me to be outside of what we mean by connection - here's a link to the full detail:

http://www.cerocchamps.com/faq.php

Whilst I think there will be arguments about whether grooming, musical expression, innovation and quality of dancing are components of connection, this probably covers the key elements of bones of what I consider to be connection.
  • Timing
  • Musical Interpretation & Expression (which I'll leave to another rant, I mean day)
  • Grooming & Presentation
  • Showmanship
  • Floor craft
  • Quality of Dancing & Choreography
  • Synchronisation of Dancers / Togetherness
  • Style
  • Innovation
These fundamentals happen so naturally to some couples we would hardly notice these components as separate things.  It is the least "forced" dancing that has these qualities in my view and it ought to be separating out the sheep from the goats - but it isn't.  I think we see too many dancers with limited connection getting too far in competition.  That's not right in my view.

And one wonders as judges talk a lot about connection what they are looking for and what they see that is so different from what we see.  Some of this is technical manifested, but much of it is obvious to the viewer.  In my book many of the deficiencies in connection don't take much observation to work out.

For example, I'm pretty sure most of the judges know a Duchenne Smile when they see one - why are they rewarding dancers who scowl at their partners, seek to dominate with dour expressions, the icy expressionists and the panting athletes? Or worst of all, the painted-on smile which wouldn't get them a job in the local burger van, let alone should be impressing the judges.

The posture, synchronisation and showmanship (sic) are pretty obviously out of line when two dancers are dancing for themselves.  The togetherness should be obvious and obviously enjoyed by the couple.

The rapport with the audiences and the judges cannot come from neither or from just one half of the couple.  The sheer enjoyment must show through - and if nerves are a problem they must be conquered or hidden - but that's for both dancers to facilitate.

The team work required in dancing is often overlooked as a visible facet of dance in anything other than the technical control and achievement.  Couples working hard to impress I think should be showing that they are working for each other.  The one couple two dance styles option here only works if one is seeking, visibly (for that's the only sen by which we can judge) to combine with and make the most of the others style.

So smiles (real ones), togetherness, a chosen and demonstrable style shared between the couple, rapport, sharing, assisting, something bigger than than two halves when it is put together: you'll have your own views on how it's best to express the connection necessary for a competitive partnered dance.  And some of you might disagree with my analysis of course.  But I hear it's a big problem - I hear from competitors, those watching and sometimes I hear it from judges.

For me - along with musicality - connection should be the given in any semi or final - and it's not, from what I've seen.  Grabbing someone and flinging them through gymnastics routine is not what it is about, nor is it about two people occupying the same space and doing their individual thing and not their collective thing. And judges say this is important - but that's not coming through in the competitions I see nor - incidentally - in the feedback they give people.

And one last thought: there is a very big problem with the way judges think about connection if they are not taking into account unconscious bias, and some of them are not.

But I'd value your thoughts on this and where a renewed valuing of connection might takes us.



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Dance Season No 12: Routes to madness

Ceroc Jamfest at Camber Sands and Ceroc Scorch at Southport. This is a blog post which mostly is grumpy about music and enthusing about music.  If you think I'm wrong that's fine: I'm often wrong. Please use the comments block below to say why. I will delete anything that is offensive to named individuals. There's a lot of good in weekenders - there are many good jive weekenders, there are some good WCS weekenders - they all far far away, if there was enough decent music there would undoubtedly be some good Tango weekenders and who knows what line dancers and swing dancers and Morris dancers get up to at the weekend meets. This blog is about music - it's not about DJs per se - it's what they play and why they play it when they play it.  For me the music at Southport was mostly terrific (but not everyone I've spoken to thinks that), whereas at Camber it was mostly horrific.  I offer no solutions, I'm no expert - there may be good reasons for the set...

Welsh Champs 2015

I rarely post on this blog nowadays - nothing much changes in dancing, but I'm moved to write on this topic because something very important happened this weekend. Welsh Champs has expanded since it's early days and is now as much a test of endurance and ingenuity as it is pure dancing.  Virtually everyone to whom I spoke was thrilled but exhausted by the end of a day which finished at 1am.  The stakes were high though as competition goes there was a great deal of camaraderie.  These factors heightened the drama of last Saturday night and as a result dancing competitions just became a bit more grown up. They do say you find out what people are really like under pressure and in adversity. And so it was at this Championship where the judges started tentatively but finished vigorously arguing for more discipline from the competitors.  Video's were reviewed and some competitors were ruled out for transgressions.  The results came and one team was relegated...

From Russia with Love

First posted 2006 A quick plug for a marvellous jiving track - Count Basie and his Orchestra playing "From Russia with Love" - big bold brass and nice solos in-between but a lovely tempo to dance to. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Basie-Meets-Bond-Count/dp/B0000647M1/ref=sr_1_1/026-1937011-5198054?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1182429592&sr=8-1