Incredible idea - love the way this talk makes us conscious of all the aspects of life that are absent in partner dancing. Thank you both Trevor & Jeff for sharing, and Alida for helping bring this to life!
I have been seeing this a lot in the Blue dancing (which I teach) and Argentine Tango here in Portland, OR for years. In fact, I participate in "liquid leading". This is the first time I have heard this exchange of partnership so named.
I went mad when I bumped into this video. I am a transman who dreams to compete in ballroom. Ballroom dancing changed my life and means, life, to me. I worried so much those judges with shallow minds would be unfair to me because I'm trans... (plus has tattoos and piercings) ; - ; This video is hope for me. I love you people. Could not stop smiling start to end. The introduction was smart and creative too
You might find the Blues and Fusion communities more accepting. You may have to ask people to dance more than a cis person, but after people know you as you the human instead of you the exterior image, that problem will fade away.
Great talk. I absolutely love dancing with partners who can comfortably take on either role - it adds a whole new dynamic of give and take to the dance which is bloody amazing with a good partner. I do have to point out that (while you may have invented a new term for it and brought the idea into ballroom) you certainly did not invent the concept of role switching in dance. I've been role switching for over a decade and it's been a relatively frequent sight in the contra dance scene since at least the 1970s. Since contra involves transitions from dancing with your partner to dancing with someone else and back to your partner (rinse and repeat), there are ample opportunities to switch roles mid-dance.
I've been thinking about this for quite a time. I am bio female and have always liked the idea of switching roles in dance; this hit the nail on the head. This talk resonated with me. I am very grateful for Trevor and Jeff for bringing this to us on such a high level, thank you guys so much!
Amazing dancers, I had the privilege of seeing them dance live today at a GSA conference. Their message was amazing and they touched the hearts of so many people, and had me beaming the whole time!
This is beautiful. I plan to use this in my work as a therapist with couples of all gender and non-binary combinations. There is so much loaded into this very simple concept in terms of connection and care within intimate relationships, but also in terms of gender roles, power dynamics, fairness, and love. Thank you. xoxoxo
love what you are doing. words from out of my soul :-) I have done both following and leading and it's great to do both. But when I started to learn to lead there were lots of people asking for my reasons to learn leading as a woman. This was not the case when I learned to follow.
Shall we, you guys in this chat, dance? // Sometimes I feel I want to give up leading. And sometimes I definetly want to lead all the moves! Your talk is more about the lead/follow dance we need to learn to live happier lives. Sometimes, we enjoy taking the leading role. Sometimes we need to be able to follow orders. Lets keep dancing! Great talk!
This is such an exciting example of progress and inspiration, thank you all!! I don't want to lead or follow all the time and yet being able to do both on the dance floor is very liberating. Can't wait to take some lessons! Applied improv is a great equalizer too b/c players share responsibility for co-creating a scene.
12:05 "c'est là où réside la vraie liberté : pas seulement celle d'échanger les rôles, mais la liberté de ne pas se laisser définir par le genre du rôle qu'on joue. La liberté de toujours rester soi-même." ❤
I see a lot of in Portland, Oregon too. I'm a cis-female social dancer who leads and follows, and its pretty acceptable. I do get the occasional comment that my lead styling is different or even wrong because its so femme -- but it doesn't matter. People get used to it very quickly. On the other hand, a trans woman friend who wants to start dancing just told me that she will avoid partner dancing because of awkwardness with gender norms. :-( We still have quite a ways to go.
This is very common in Swing Dancing and Blues Dancing communities, we have ambidancetrous contests. I'm grateful that the community is more open to switching up the roles and ignoring the sterotypes, but I'd argue our styles of dance are an easier slide into such dancing while ballroom and latin tends to be much harder to convince that this is an "okay" or "cool" thing.
This! I was amused when they said they "invented" lead-switching and messing with traditional gender roles, it's such a huge part of Lindy and Blues. It's true the Ballroom community is much more conservative, so I'm glad these guys are getting that conversation started. Also, I enjoyed seeing the physics of how it works with dance styles I have less practice with. Great video!
sure, it is a huge part of Lindy and Blues, but they are talking about the Social Dances (or Ballroom Dances). Those come from a different area and are a culture in their own. The roles of lead and follow are a huge part of that heritage and as that they should be treated as such, as part of our cultural heritage. For example take some time and look into the Tango argentino culture that developed over decades. There are so many "rules" (traditions is a better term) of how to ask for a dance and such). I am not against same sex couples in any way shape or form, i actually enjoy dancing both roles and I am quite used to see male-male or female-female couples both in a social and fun aspect, as well as in a competitive context. I have no problem with being led by a Guy or Gal, but it is much more comfortable when the lead is taller and much of the style and "flow" and all the shapes developed around and in that context. As much as i like the idea they brought up in their talk, i just cant help and feel that changing arm positions all the time disrupts the dance and would not work an a bigger floor than that stage. E.g. during this weekend their was a huge tournament, the ETDS (check it out if you´re from europe) and there was a special rule where couples had to do that and it just didnt work well.
@@ijustownyouall Lindy hop and blues _are_ social dances. In fact, they are more social than a lot of types of ballroom dance, because they tend to lay a much heavier focus on improvisation, and as such they rely more on social interaction in a leader-follower dynamic to communicate what moves the dancers want to do. As opposed to relying on memorized routines and move sequences, which is rarely done in lindy and blues, be it on the social dance floor or even in competitions. Each dance is a conversation - an exchange of ideas with each dancer reacting on the fly to their partner and to the music.
I've been dancing a lot of Cajun Two-Step since my husband started playing in a Cajun band, and ever since starting, I've been fantasizing about inventing a dance that would strip the gender from who is leading and when; such a better idea to retrofit all the classic dances like this.
Incredible idea - love the way this talk makes us conscious of all the aspects of life that are absent in partner dancing. Thank you both Trevor & Jeff for sharing, and Alida for helping bring this to life!
I have been seeing this a lot in the Blue dancing (which I teach) and Argentine Tango here in Portland, OR for years. In fact, I participate in "liquid leading". This is the first time I have heard this exchange of partnership so named.
I went mad when I bumped into this video. I am a transman who dreams to compete in ballroom. Ballroom dancing changed my life and means, life, to me. I worried so much those judges with shallow minds would be unfair to me because I'm trans... (plus has tattoos and piercings) ; - ;
This video is hope for me. I love you people. Could not stop smiling start to end. The introduction was smart and creative too
You might find the Blues and Fusion communities more accepting. You may have to ask people to dance more than a cis person, but after people know you as you the human instead of you the exterior image, that problem will fade away.
Great talk. I absolutely love dancing with partners who can comfortably take on either role - it adds a whole new dynamic of give and take to the dance which is bloody amazing with a good partner. I do have to point out that (while you may have invented a new term for it and brought the idea into ballroom) you certainly did not invent the concept of role switching in dance. I've been role switching for over a decade and it's been a relatively frequent sight in the contra dance scene since at least the 1970s. Since contra involves transitions from dancing with your partner to dancing with someone else and back to your partner (rinse and repeat), there are ample opportunities to switch roles mid-dance.
I've been thinking about this for quite a time. I am bio female and have always liked the idea of switching roles in dance; this hit the nail on the head. This talk resonated with me. I am very grateful for Trevor and Jeff for bringing this to us on such a high level, thank you guys so much!
+Aida Ismailova you are so welcome. Love to dance with you someday, Aida.
Amazing dancers, I had the privilege of seeing them dance live today at a GSA conference. Their message was amazing and they touched the hearts of so many people, and had me beaming the whole time!
I was just at an LGBTQ conference today and these guys performed for us. It was pretty amazing to watch liquid lead live on stage
This is beautiful. I plan to use this in my work as a therapist with couples of all gender and non-binary combinations. There is so much loaded into this very simple concept in terms of connection and care within intimate relationships, but also in terms of gender roles, power dynamics, fairness, and love. Thank you. xoxoxo
Excellent talk. So important in today's society. You have put into words many things I have been developing from my life experiences. Thank you.
love what you are doing. words from out of my soul :-) I have done both following and leading and it's great to do both. But when I started to learn to lead there were lots of people asking for my reasons to learn leading as a woman. This was not the case when I learned to follow.
Shall we, you guys in this chat, dance? // Sometimes I feel I want to give up leading. And sometimes I definetly want to lead all the moves! Your talk is more about the lead/follow dance we need to learn to live happier lives. Sometimes, we enjoy taking the leading role. Sometimes we need to be able to follow orders. Lets keep dancing! Great talk!
Great talented people! I had the privilege to know both
+Qas N (Dr. Q) FUCK YOU YOU FUCKING SHIT LORD STOP OPRESSING ME YOUR PRIVLIGED WHITE MALE
This is such an exciting example of progress and inspiration, thank you all!! I don't want to lead or follow all the time and yet being able to do both on the dance floor is very liberating. Can't wait to take some lessons! Applied improv is a great equalizer too b/c players share responsibility for co-creating a scene.
12:05 "c'est là où réside la vraie liberté : pas seulement celle d'échanger les rôles, mais la liberté de ne pas se laisser définir par le genre du rôle qu'on joue. La liberté de toujours rester soi-même." ❤
This video has been posted on the TED channel and the like to dislike ratio is ridiculous.
Lovely.
so interesting.
I see a lot of in Portland, Oregon too. I'm a cis-female social dancer who leads and follows, and its pretty acceptable. I do get the occasional comment that my lead styling is different or even wrong because its so femme -- but it doesn't matter. People get used to it very quickly. On the other hand, a trans woman friend who wants to start dancing just told me that she will avoid partner dancing because of awkwardness with gender norms. :-( We still have quite a ways to go.
Amazing!!!
+Zoe Copp thanks Zoe :))
beautiful
the blonde guy looks like a buff buzzfeed keith
*cant be unseen* xD id say more like a fusion of #buzzfeed #Keith and Robert Gant :3 /sexy af
Very very beautiful!!😍😍😍
In some circles this is known as "ambidancing" and encompasses all of the things mentioned here.
+kmoser Wonderful; I'd never heard the term before. Love it, it really captures what I think is our instinct on how to dance with a partner.
This is very common in Swing Dancing and Blues Dancing communities, we have ambidancetrous contests. I'm grateful that the community is more open to switching up the roles and ignoring the sterotypes, but I'd argue our styles of dance are an easier slide into such dancing while ballroom and latin tends to be much harder to convince that this is an "okay" or "cool" thing.
This! I was amused when they said they "invented" lead-switching and messing with traditional gender roles, it's such a huge part of Lindy and Blues. It's true the Ballroom community is much more conservative, so I'm glad these guys are getting that conversation started. Also, I enjoyed seeing the physics of how it works with dance styles I have less practice with. Great video!
sure, it is a huge part of Lindy and Blues, but they are talking about the Social Dances (or Ballroom Dances). Those come from a different area and are a culture in their own. The roles of lead and follow are a huge part of that heritage and as that they should be treated as such, as part of our cultural heritage. For example take some time and look into the Tango argentino culture that developed over decades. There are so many "rules" (traditions is a better term) of how to ask for a dance and such).
I am not against same sex couples in any way shape or form, i actually enjoy dancing both roles and I am quite used to see male-male or female-female couples both in a social and fun aspect, as well as in a competitive context. I have no problem with being led by a Guy or Gal, but it is much more comfortable when the lead is taller and much of the style and "flow" and all the shapes developed around and in that context.
As much as i like the idea they brought up in their talk, i just cant help and feel that changing arm positions all the time disrupts the dance and would not work an a bigger floor than that stage. E.g. during this weekend their was a huge tournament, the ETDS (check it out if you´re from europe) and there was a special rule where couples had to do that and it just didnt work well.
@@ijustownyouall Lindy hop and blues _are_ social dances. In fact, they are more social than a lot of types of ballroom dance, because they tend to lay a much heavier focus on improvisation, and as such they rely more on social interaction in a leader-follower dynamic to communicate what moves the dancers want to do. As opposed to relying on memorized routines and move sequences, which is rarely done in lindy and blues, be it on the social dance floor or even in competitions. Each dance is a conversation - an exchange of ideas with each dancer reacting on the fly to their partner and to the music.
I LOVE it!!
I've been dancing a lot of Cajun Two-Step since my husband started playing in a Cajun band, and ever since starting, I've been fantasizing about inventing a dance that would strip the gender from who is leading and when; such a better idea to retrofit all the classic dances like this.
Great owsome,,talent
It also takes two to follow.
💖
Jeff looks like Mr. Incredible
Alida can get it
Two leads just LEADS to a disaster...and very noticable
Not a moron, I'm a lead, 99.99 % of women dance better than men, but two dancing together trying to lead is not rythmic at all.
I AM GONNA DDOS YOU ALL
+vault claw IM GETTING FUCKING DDOSED HERE
FUCK YOU
Beautiful.