As the Summer Showcase is fast approaching we want to pay special attention to our expression in our dancing. The eyes are often referred to as the windows to the soul, and certainly while we are dancing, our facial expressions can bring a great deal to our performance.
When we talk about facial expression in our dancing most think we are just addressing performance dancing. While it is true that expression is an important element to develop for a successful performance, it is just as important for the social dancer. We want our face to reveal the joy and fun of dance, not necessarily the work or concentration. It is much more enjoyable to dance with someone who looks like they are having fun, it is that simple.
We are often thinking about the steps when we dance and can forget the need to relate to our partner, not only with our lead and follow skills, but also with our eyes. This can lead our partner to believe that we are not enjoying ourselves while we dance with them. Likewise if we have a fake smile plastered on our face, we may occur to our partner as not present or simply being polite.
When you are having a conversation, your expressions change quite naturally and surprisingly rapidly. Try watching yourself in the mirror while you talk or even read aloud and you might be surprised what you see. In our dancing we want to have the same naturalness and we want to make sure our expressions are not stuck in one place. Awareness of expression can really make a difference in the experience others have dancing with you.
In performance dancing, it is as important to spend time working on expression as it is the steps and techniques that improve your dancing. We want to have a naturalness to our expression just as we do in social dancing. We also need to be expressing the mood or character of the dance and having a fair amount of interaction with our partner or the audience.
We sometimes use exercises to develop better facial expressions just as we do to develop better body action. If you tend to have a frozen or panic look, we may tell you to smile when you face a particular direction or person. If you need more variation in your expression, a method is to mouth your vowels as you dance. Simply watching yourself occasionally in the mirror or on video can help bring our awareness to our expression.
Remember we tell a rich and varied story when we dance. We want to let our entire body be engaged in the story and reveal the feelings and character.
April Evans is a teacher at Dance Station. If you would like to take lessons with April or any of our teachers, call 505-989-9788 to schedule.
