What does lady styling mean for our dance goals? This week we wanted to share our thoughts on these popular classes and how we feel about them We hope you enjoy this week’s post.
Maybe you’ve been in a class before that said “ladies” should always raise their arm with the fingers pointed on a Dile Que No. Or, maybe you’ve gone to a class that told you to always pop your arm out on an enchufla. The most important thing we have to say about these ways is that they aren’t right, but they aren’t wrong either. Your way of dance, is something for you to determine, not something set in stone by your role in dance (leader or follower).
Although a harsh generalization, ladies styling tends to feel like something for the linear Salsa community. It always seems to be because of the arms.With more people who mix styles and come from different backgrounds worlds seem to be colliding. It feels like more ladies styling classes are being taught at festivals and dance schools for the Cuban dancer.
But…is it for Casineros? or even for ladies?
A lot of traveling and displacement happens in Casino by walking moreso than spins, as opposed to staying on a linear axis for On1 or On2 Salsa. Arm styling can be easier to anticipate when you know where you’re going to be which can be trickier to figure out in casino. It doesn’t always feel as obvious in casino where you’ll travel to, and you want to be ready for any connections. A common stylized move we see in Casino is exibe/sacala where followers exaggerate their arm outward. If you choose not to do this styling, to be clear you’re still doing an exibe. The arm though feels connected with the direction and intention of the move of being shown off.
Notice how we only talked about arms styling there. That’s what it feels like sometimes, that these classes are only interested in giving us arm movements. Okay, this is isn’t bad though. However we feel, arm movements need to be in connection to how your body is moving, particularly your legs. The most effective lady styling classes we have taken are the ones that realize this. Ones that offer options on how to use your lower body to create and connect your upper body based on where your weight is, often stand out. But also, classes that offer styling tips beyond arms are also engaging because there are subtle things to do with your hips and feet but also something as simple in shifting around your body weight. Approaching styling this way, for us, is the most appealing because it forces you to consider your whole body as creating movement which is an easy thing to lose in a lot of dance classes. And in reality, something we want ALL dance classes to include.
Ladies styling tends to be portrayed as a way to appear sexier with exaggerated hips, arms, poses, etc.. Both of us really struggle with this portrayal though since sexy is extremely subjective. And since we like to try and dance with music, sometimes the music isn’t sexy. It’s hard to imagine being sexy to a song like “Llego la Musica Cubana” or “Pastilla de Menta” which are fun party song. Plus, we add the layer of some of these styling recommendations don’t feel right for our bodies. But, even more importantly that specific movements may not match how we like to dance.
So what to do with these classes? As a learner, they can be great tools to figure out what works for you because they give you options. Experience is often the best way to decide if it’s for you. For instructors, we hope you are sharing with your students that these are options not facts of dance. Hopefully, you are empowering your students to see themselves more confidently and authentically.
Neither of us can touch on men styling, since we haven’t experience it. We would love to hear any experienced you’ve had with men styling classes in the comments below, and if anything relates. Tell us what you like about lady styling classes, or something you hope to see incorporated into more of these classes.
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Ya tu sabes chicos!
Ya Tu Sabes 