Simply Ballroom Tickets

Simply Ballroom
Dance as if no one were watching, Sing as if no one were listening, and live every day as if it were your last and it's a true perception that music and dance can never be set apart from each other. Traditionally Ballroom dance refers to a set of partner dances having its origin in the Western world and is now enjoyed both socially and competitively around the globe. Its performance and entertainment are widely relished by both young and old on stage, in film, and on television.

Historically ballroom dance can be about any form of formal social dancing as recreation, with the eminence of dance sport in modern times where the term has now become much narrower in scope, usually referring specifically to the International Standard and International Latin style dances. With two additional variations in the United States, American Smooth and American Rhythm it has also been popularized and is commonly recognized as styles of ballroom dance.In 1914, the term ballroom dancing is derived from the word ball, from the Latin word ballare which means to dance. Ballroom dancing was social dancing for the privileged in the past, leaving folk dancing for the lower classes. These boundaries have since become blurred, and it should be noted even in times long gone, many ballroom dances were really elevated folk dances.

Latin or Rhythm dances are commonly danced to contemporary Latin American music with the exception of a few traveling dances (e.g. Samba and Paso Doble) couples do not follow the line of dance and perform their routines more or less in one spot. In competitions, the women are often dressed in short-skirted Latin outfits while the men outfitted in tight-fitting shirts and pants; the goal being to bring emphasis to the dancers' leg action and body movements.

The ten dances of International Standard and International Latin, the term is also often used interchangeably with the five International Standard dances. In the United States, the American styles (American Smooth and American Rhythm) are also included. Others dances sometimes placed under the umbrella ballroom dance include Nightclub Dances such as Lindy Hop, West Coast Swing, Nightclub Two Step, Hustle, Salsa, and Merengue. The categorization of dances as ballroom dances has always been fluid, with new dances or folk dances being added to/removed from to the ballroom repertoire from time to time, so no list of subcategories or dances is any more than a description of current practices. There are other dances historically accepted as ballroom dances, and are revived via the Vintage Dance movement.

Balls have featured Minuet, Quadrille, Polonaise, Pas de Gras, Mazurka, and other popular dances of the day, which are considered to be historical dances. Today, the term applies to any one of the several dances in which two individuals, a leader and a follower, dance with physical contact through their upper or lower bodies, or simply their arms depending on the particular variety of dance. Since most social dancing is not choreographed, this contact is necessary for the leader to communicate the next dance move to the follower, and for the follower to respond to this insinuation. This stands in stark contrast with the styles of dance seen in clubs and other social gatherings where physical contact tends to be optional and the individuals in question can move freely without any restraints imposed by firm physical contact or by the necessity to follow the rhythmic pattern present in the music. Some knowledge of known step patterns is essential for both the leader as well as the follower for ballroom dancing. As most ballroom style dances require some knowledge and practice, they have lessened in popularity among the public in the recent decades. Dance historians usually mark the appearance of the twist in the mid 1960s as the end of social partner dancing.

2005 U.S. National Professional Standard Championships, hosted by BYU allowed the participation by less advanced dancers at various proficiency levels. In the United States, amateur dance proficiency levels are defined by USA Dance (formerly United States Amateur Ballroom Dance Association, USABDA) as Bronze->Silver->Gold for syllabus dancers, and Novice->Pre championship->Championship for open competitors.These levels roughly correspond to the E to S levels in Europe and Australia. Among professionals, levels classify into Rising Star and Open Professional.