Thread: Learning to dance with someone who's style is very different?

My best friend and I have been dancing about the same amount of time. We started with the same teacher and have danced in two successive troupes together and also as a duet which we had someone else choreograph for us as neither of us had the experience yet.

Several years later we are trying to choreograph our very first duet together and we're running in to growing pains. Though we both started with the same teacher and same troupes, we've both evolved as dancers (of course) and developed very different personal styles and it's causing us some "marital discord" when trying to get this dance choreographed.

We hear the music different, interpret it differently, and move at different speeds with particular movements. As neither of us has come out "on top" as the main choreographer we're having some difficulty.

What can we do to compromise and come up with something mutually satisfactory? We're running out of time for the show we're supposed to perform in and we're just spinning our wheels. Help!

Hehe, I know something about this. My dance partner Tedi and I have very different personal dance styles as soloists, she coming from an American Cabaret background and me modern Egyptian. I think we are testament that two dancers with different styles can dance together. What it takes is respect, compromise, and the ability for both partners to disagree without feelings getting hurt.

One general approach we have taken is to take turns being the lead choreographer on pieces. The lead choreographer gets input and suggestions from others in the group, but final artistic vision is hers.

Choreography aside, another difficulty we have had (it gets better as time goes by) is simply making our movements look more alike. We often have to really break down and really analyze how we are generating a particular movement or step, so we can figure out why it looks different on us, and how we can make it more the same. We have both learned how to mesh pretty well with the other.

Originally Posted by ssipes

One general approach we have taken is to take turns being the lead choreographer on pieces. The lead choreographer gets input and suggestions from others in the group, but final artistic vision is hers.

Choreography aside, another difficulty we have had (it gets better as time goes by) is simply making our movements look more alike. We often have to really break down and really analyze how we are generating a particular movement or step, so we can figure out why it looks different on us, and how we can make it more the same. We have both learned how to mesh pretty well with the other.

That's enormously helpful! We hear the accents in the music differently and function at different speeds. As a general rule I go slower and draw things out and she goes faster and makes them pop. What we're trying now is for her to choreo part of the song and me to choreo another part. I just hope we can manage to make it look organic rather than two completely separate parts!

As an observer/audience member, I can attest to the fact that Sedonia and Tedi have crafted some exciting work together — probably better than what either of them could have accomplished alone. They are polar opposites, not only in dance style but in approach (choreo vs. improv, for instance) I think they've each grown as dancers from working with the other.

I like the idea of taking turns being the 'lead' choreographer a lot.

I've also seen some interesting work created when the dancers divided the music and worked from their strengths. For instance, one dancer might come forward and interpret the melody for a bit while her partner keeps the rhythm in the background or supportive stance, then they switch. Or one dancer might choreograph one section of the song and the other work on a different section, alternating (works best when the music itself has well-delineated changes in feeling & tempo).

Your differences are a HUGE positive, not a problem.

You're lucky that you each have different strengths and can complement each other so fully! One of the most exciting elements of any choreography is the use of contrasts, and the two of you have contrast practically built in! Allow yourselves each to be influenced by the other, and revel in your differences. I'm sure you can make it work for you.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Or one dancer might choreograph one section of the song and the other work on a different section, alternating (works best when the music itself has well-delineated changes in feeling & tempo).

That's kind of what we're trying to do but unfortunately the tempo and feeling stays the same through most of the song we chose. I'm thinking we might have to splice some of her movements and technique into my sections and vice versa.