Ms. Poppy Chiffon – the doyenne of dance, the baroness of ballroom etiquette, the sultana of Southern hospitality — is pleased to answer your dance-related questions. Here are a few queries that Poppy deigned to extract from her mailbag this week. If you have a question that you would like Poppy Chiffon to address, please e-mail her at askpoppy@dancestationusa.com. Ms. Chiffon regrets that she cannot respond individually to questions.
Dear Poppy,
I can’t believe the way some young people dance on the ballroom floor these days! Their hip hop moves and body rolling gyrations are quite vulgar. How can we protect our children from this social menace?
Disturbed Dancing
Dear Disturbed,
The menace of ballroom dance is not new. As the Times of London noted on July 16, 1816, “we remarked with pain the indecent foreign dance called the Waltz … an obscene display of intertwining limbs and close compressure on the bodies …. [O]ur duty is to warn every parent against exposing his daughter ….”
Dear Poppy,
What do you do when your partner wants to chat while you are dancing? It is hard enough for me to listen to the music and to decide what I am going to lead, let alone to think about the correct posture, footwork, line of dance, etc.
Anti-Social Dancer
Dear Anti-Social Dancer,
Ballroom dancing began as social dancing. It depends on the venue and your purpose, but if you are at a party or out with friends you shouldn’t be so focused on performing your figures that you exclude conversation. You should be able to easily enjoy the dance with others and converse at least minimally in a relaxed manner. I’m not saying that you should carry on a conversation as if you were gossiping with your neighbors on a party line — but never mind, sweetie, as your Poppy is dating herself.
