During a semi-impromptu ballroom dance lesson with a friend and his classmates we had a brief discussion of the roles in dance and whether they are necessarily dedicated to gender. Honestly, I believe that as long as height isn't a factor (which it shouldn't be among well-matched couples) the roles can be labeled as "lead" and "follow," not necessarily "man" and "woman."
I was surprised to find that everyone in the group agreed with me. Apparently this is something of a general consensus among students of ballroom, but isn't really recognized in the competition scene. One of the ladies at the lesson commented that it was most helpful for both dancers to know each others' parts anyway, and my friend noted a stunning routine performed by two men, one leader and one follower.
But, much like the gay rights movement and transgendered culture, it seems that this is another change that spreads quickly among youth and slowly among elders.
I spent a disproportionate amount of time researching non gender-specific ballroom and the result is that I now know more than I ever imagined about same-sex ballroom competitions, the majority of which are on either coast of the United States.
Dance as a storytelling format is one that I think has a broad appeal, being that it is one of the oldest and most primal forms. I don't mean to say that it is any less intellectual than any other media or genre; I simply mean that it has natural appeal in a form that has existed among humanity for as long as recorded history, and still continues today. There's a reason shows like Dancing with the Stars, Step Up, and So You Think You Can Dance have remained popular season after season and sequel after sequel.
But I would very much like to see how the various genres of dance would be affected if gender were not a factor in how we danced. What new things could we come up with? What new stylistic norms would arise? What kinds of new moves could be added to the repertoire if females regularly led their partners through the tango?
And think about the storytelling aspect, as well. How different of a story would the Black Swan have been if it had been a male dancing as the swan queen (king?)? And don't tell me you wouldn't want to know what a female Nutcracker would look like. Sure, it might be a complete trainwreck. But humanity is attracted to watching those too; at least, that has to account for some of the popularity of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. So how bad could it be?
Yes, it's kind of crazy and totally unrealistic. But at the very least, it's a fun thought experiment.
I think the reason same-sex dancing isn't recognized in the competition scene is because it's expressly forbidden. The rules say that a couple is a male and a female and exceptions are not allowed. Given what I know of the professional ballroom community, I don't think that's likely to change any time soon.
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned though, same-sex couples are holding their own competitions and I think that even if the current ballroom dance governing bodies ignore it, same-sex ballroom dance will continue to grow. The waltz was considered scandalous when it was first introduced because (gasp!) men and women were *touching* each other. Times have changed, and I think it won't be long before nobody gets upset that (gasp!) a man and a man are dancing together.
Well, that is kind of what I meant by "not recognized," insofar as the judges won't score a couple that is same sex or reverse role. But I should have been more clear on that.
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