Issues on Balance and Lightness in Dance

The sense induced by the change of the body’s location and position is called the sense of equilibrium. The semicircular canal and vestibule in the inner ear are organs related to this sense. Those whose equilibrium organs are dysfunctional due to disease, drug or alcoholism cannot keep balance well. Balance can be improved through training. Woman gymnasts, for example, can do difficult movements on a balance beam. Acrobats rely on their trained sense of equilibrium to do high wire walk. Experienced dancers also have a good sense of equilibrium so they can stay balanced in complex movements.

In bicycling one uses wheels to keep balance. In dancing one uses legs and steps to keep balance. All tango dancers need a good sense of equilibrium, but that is particularly true for the woman partner because she is the one being driven by the man. The man leads her by tilting her in the direction he wants her to move. How far she moves, however, is decided by her own sense of equilibrium. If she steps not exactly where she could keep her balance, she will fall. A falling woman relies on the man for her stability, thus becomes heavy. The man may not mind if the woman occasionally holds on to him for balance, but if she hangs on him all the time and grabs him tightly in every move and turn, that could be burdensome for him. A woman must know that maintaining her own balance is the key for her to be light in dance. Some women habitually rely on the man for balance, as a result their sense of equilibrium fails to improve.

Tango has a unique balance problem because the two partners lean against each other to form an A-shaped frame. The A-shaped frame is a stable frame in which the partners support each other. A novice woman may not realize that her support for the man is equally important as his for her. If she leans back, that could pull him off his balance. This often happens when dancing with a woman who is shy about intimacy.

On the other hand, some women lean too much on the man and become heavy. Dancing in a leaning position requires strength on the back. A woman with a weak back cannot sustain a reclining posture for long, especially when the man holds her tightly. An experienced woman maintains certain resistance in symmetry to the force that the man applies on her in both directions - his chest pushes her out and his arm pulls her in. Some women counteract the man with too much force, thus become heavy. Maintaining balance is maintaining a state of stillness, uniform-speed rectilinear motion, or uniform-speed winding motion, not doing wrestling. The woman must be careful about how much resistance she applies to counteract the man to avoid being heavy.

Novice women tend to rely on men to drive them when dancing, and due to their inadequate dance skills they often move in hesitance, or hold on to the man tightly with their arms and hands to help themselves with the movements, thus become heavy. For a woman to be light in dance, she should activate herself instead of relying on the man to move her. An experienced woman does so by pushing with her standing leg. She dances like a self-propelled mower, thus feels light. However, it is important to strike a balance between being proactive and following lead. Women who drive themselves too much can make men feel like they are dancing on their own.

The man, on the other hand, should not put pressure on the woman's waist, as that would restricte her movements. A tall man should use his stomach rather than chest to lead a short woman and not bend his torso to add pressure on her since that could cause her to bend backwards if she does not have a strong back. As her strength and balance improve, she may sustain more pressure, lean more on the man to expand her movement possibility, or even want him to hold her on her waist. Men often see experienced dancers dance this way or that way, and some may try to imitate before their partner is ready. Keep in mind that tango can be danced in various ways. One should choose a way that suits the ability of one's partner.