Some of us, who do competitions or exhibitions, can't help but to try to get some practice in during the regularly scheduled Ballroom Club events on Friday and Saturday evenings because the Palladium offers a large floor, not available in studios. But, because the regular dances are just that - social dances where people come to enjoy their dancing - we need to be mindful of other dancers, observe a certain etiquette, and not interfere with the enjoyment of other dancers. I'm sure that during crowded dance nights, if some of us blast through the floor in a quickstep run or quick sequential chasses, some will find it annoying. We often see couples off on the side, usually near the stage, practicing their groupings without interfering with the dancers on the floor.

Well, USA Dance is providing an opportunity for all of you who just want to practice on a large floor and not worry about annoying others. The format is very simple. USA Dance provides the music - a mix of Standard and Latin tunes. The music is played like background music - clearly audible, but not blaring. You are not compelled to dance the music that is playing. You can practice whatever dance you want during the entire evening, regardless of the music that is playing. So, if you really need to practice a Foxtrot amalgamation, to get it right, you can keep practicing it even through the Latin songs. Likewise, if you have a Latin grouping you want to perfect, it's ok to keep practicing your technique in the middle of the floor, disregarding whatever music might be playing.
Then, when your music comes around, you can check your timing and musicality. You can even bring your own music and listen through earbuds or bluetooth headsets. I think you get the idea.

Of course, there are no "rules". If you find a disagreement with your partner and you end up "discussing" it in the shaded area, hey that happens. Or, if you're doing a Samba and it starts in the middle of the floor and it travels, and you hit a line in the shaded area - no problem. Standard dancers need to practice their floorcraft too. Likewise, standard dancers have groupings and line figures that they take to the center of the floor, so you might see a throwaway oversway next to chicken walks. But, if we get more and more people come to practice, if we could try to keep this general concept in mind, everyone should be able to get maximum use of their practice time.

Tuesday evening practice time is from around 6:30 to 9:30. It's free for all USA Dance members, including those from the mainland. And, it's only $3 for non-members. You can't go wrong with that. (No refreshments are provided - this is just practice time. Of course, you can bring your own snacks to eat outside.)

Hope to see more of you next Tuesday night.

With Aloha,