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In
ballroom dancing
Ballroom dance is a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.
...
(and in some other types of
partner dance), directions of progressive movement, in particular directions of steps, can be indicated either in relation to the room or in relation to the body position. Directions of turns, although there are only two of them, may also be indicated in several ways.
Directions of progressive movement
Basic directions of movement with respect to the room
![Movement directions in ballroom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Movement_directions_in_ballroom.svg)
Dancers can align their bodies and move in any of these directions:
*
line of dance (LOD)
* against LOD
* center (C)
* wall (W)
* diagonal center (DC)
* diagonal wall (DW)
* diagonal center against LOD (DC against LOD)
* diagonal wall against LOD (DW against LOD)
These directions may be taken either ''facing'' if the dancer's feet are pointing in the direction of the movement, or ''backing'' if the dancer's feet are oriented in the opposite direction and the dancer is moving backwards with respect to their body. For example, "backing DC against LOD" means that a dancer is moving diagonally to the center against the line of dance, but as they are dancing backwards, the feet (and, roughly, the body) are pointing diagonally to the wall.
The term ''pointing'' refers explicitly to the direction the feet are pointing, which is useful if they are not, or not yet, aligned with the orientation of the body. For example, a dancer can be pointing DW while facing the wall.
Basic directions of step with respect to body position
![Step directions](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Step_directions.svg)
These are described in one of the following ways.
* With respect to the
line of the
supporting foot, the next step may be placed
** in one of the primary directions:
*** forward,
*** back,
*** side(ways),
** in a diagonal line:
*** diagonally forward,
*** diagonally back,
** in a hybrid diagonal:
*** forward and slightly leftward (for the left foot) or rightward (for the right foot)
*** side(ways) and slightly forward
*** side(ways) and slightly back
*** back and slightly leftward (for the left foot) or rightward (for the right foot)
** in
contra body movement position
Contra body movement (CBM, sometimes called contrary body movement) is used in ballroom dances, such as waltz, foxtrot, tango, and quickstep. It comprises turning the body (hips and shoulders) against the movement of the legs: either moving forw ...
(CBMP):
*** forward in CBMP (i.e., the moving foot is placed directly in front of the supporting foot),
*** forward and across in CBMP (i.e., the moving foot crosses in front of the supporting foot),
*** back in CBMP,
*** back and across in CBMP.
* By
clock
A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and the ...
: The leader (man) is said to face 12 o'clock immediately before a figure starts. Then directions can be described by saying, for example, that the direction of the second step is 3 o'clock, and the direction of the third step is between 4 and 5 o'clock.
* By
compass
A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with ...
points: Assuming that the dancer faces North at any moment, one may say, e.g., "take a step North-West".
Directions of turns
Ballroom dancing distinguishes
* ''natural'' (that is, right or clockwise) and ''reverse'' (left or counter-clockwise) turns,
* ''inside'' and ''outside'' turns (not to be confused with a dancer being on the ''inside'' or on the ''outside'' of a turn).
Natural vs. reverse turns
The term "
natural turn A natural turn is a dance step in which the partners turn around each other clockwise. Its near-mirror counterpart is the reverse turn, which is turning to the counter-clockwise.
This terminology is used mainly in the "International Standard" grou ...
" describes a right or clockwise turn of the dance couple. This usage originated from the names of
waltz
The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position.
History
There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...
moves and was transferred to other, similar dances.
A commonly stated theory of the origin of the term is that considering the right-shifted position in a couple (even more pronounced in older times) and the counter-clockwise direction of travel along the
line of dance, the right turns are easier to perform, they are more "natural". This is especially true at the corners of the dance floor: the amount of the right turn is effectively only of a full turn, and the amount of the left turn is effectively as much as , because the LOD changes its direction by 90 degrees to the left (CCW).
The partner dancing forward is said to be on the ''outside'' of the turn, having the longer way to move, and the partner dancing backward is on the ''inside'' of the turn.
Inside vs. outside turns
The terms "inside turn" and "outside turn" apply only to an individual turn of a partner, not to a turn of a couple. They occur in
Latin dance
Latin dance is a general label, and a term in partner dance competition jargon. It refers to types of ballroom dance and folk dance that mainly originated in Latin America.
The category of Latin dances in the international dancesport competi ...
s and in
American style
This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those.
This glossary lists terms used in various types of ballroom partner dances, leaving out terms of high ...
. An "inside turn" is a turn that begins with the held hands (often the leader's left and the follower's right) moving toward the "inside" of the couple (along the imaginary line between the centers of the partners); an "outside turn" is the opposite. The turns may be performed in numerous ways and using different handholds. In dances such as swing and salsa, ''inside'' and ''outside'' turns typically refer to underarm turns performed by the follower. In these dances the follower's right arm is normally used to lead a turn (most commonly by the leader's left arm, but sometimes by the leader's right arm when a cross-hand or "handshake" position is used), an inside turn is normally a left (counter-clockwise) turn, while an outside turn is a right (clockwise) turn. However, if the follower's left arm is used to initiate the turn, the intended direction of turning may be opposite.
"Inside turn" is most intuitively clear if initially the couple is in an open single-handhold position facing each other, and the name corresponds to the direction of the lead. To lead the inside turn, the leader moves the follower's arm inside, and conversely for the outside turn. In other positions the term is not so clear, therefore in some dances, some prefer to use this term according to its usage in
ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
, based on
footwork rather than arm style. In ballet, when describing
pirouette
In dance and gymnastics, a turn is a rotation of the body about the vertical axis. It is usually a complete rotation of the body, although quarter (90°) and half (180°) turns are possible for some types of turns. Multiple, consecutive turns are ...
s, an ''outward'' (
en dehors
Because ballet became formalized in France, a significant part of ballet terminology is in the French language.
A
À la seconde
() (Literally "to second") If a step is done "à la seconde," it is done to the side. 'Second position'. It can als ...
) turn is the turn in the direction towards the working leg. Accordingly, an ''inward'' (
en dedans
Because ballet became formalized in France, a significant part of ballet terminology is in the French language.
A
À la seconde
() (Literally "to second") If a step is done "à la seconde," it is done to the side. 'Second position'. It can als ...
) turn is the turn in the direction towards the support leg. See also
rond de jambe.
The latter definition is unambiguous, but in other contexts it is only applicable to a single footstep. For example, according to this definition,
chaînés turns are alternating inside and outside turns, although the direction of the rotation is the same. Therefore, it is common to name the turning figure according to the direction of the first turning step.
See also
*
Glossary of ballroom dance terms
This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those.
This glossary lists terms used in various types of ballroom partner dances, leaving out terms of highly ...
*
Outline of dance
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Direction Of Movement
Ballroom dance technique