“Pro-am” dancing refers to a teacher (a PROfessional ballroom dance instructor) and a student (an AMateur ballroom dancer) who dance together, usually in the oddly unknown ballroom dance competition circuit and who patronize the boutique industry of ballroom dancing. The student pays for lessons with the professional to learn the ins and outs of partner dance, similar to taking instrument lessons as a kid (but usually your parents aren’t footing the bill for your ballroom habit).
There are several, well-attended ballroom dance competitions held around the country every weekend (and extending into the week for many comps) with award money for medalists, incredibly theatrical themes, and exciting professional events. The majority of the time span (often starting at 7am and ending around midnight) is spent on heat after heat after heat showcasing pro-am dancing, with dancers from age 4-99, at all levels of proficiency, and in many many different dances. Like a track meet, but with really fancy, couture gowns and suits, and hair and makeup that doesn’t move even when you sleep on it.
As I continue and in general, “pro-am” refers to the student, not the teacher.
In any case, if you didn’t know, I had some DELIGHTFUL years of pro-am dancing with an amazing teacher who taught me… well, EVERYTHING. My teacher was PERFECT, in hindsight and even upon inspection of old dance videos (and we know how hard those are to watch).
We danced pro-am in the Wild West days of NDCA/USADance’s [IT WAS CALLED USABDA AND I WILL ALWAYS CALL IT THAT] loosely restricted syllabus events, when even Bronzeies could kick sky high, do double turns until they puked, and syncopate with abandon.
The comps were in smaller ballrooms, with less technology (photographers had racks of PRINTED PHOTOS to buy, there were no big screens announcing heat numbers or showing highlights in the ballroom, and you couldn’t get your heat sheets online days before the event), but with no less skill or circumstance.
I had a great education during my pro-am years, and it gave me an excellent foundation to start my pro career and philosophy on ballrooming.
Pro-am dancing has lots of things going for it. Here, I will list them for you…
- You clearly have disposable income, and you choose to spend it on dancing, which is a TREAT!
- You are dancing with someone who is [much] more proficient than you, which is a TREAT.
- That professional is there, all the time, telling you what to correct and HOW to correct it…
- … and since they want you to continue to be a student, they’re probably not a total asshole about it
- That person is there to take care of you in a myriad of ways that you don’t even realize:
- fix your timing/foot mistakes to make your dance feel good
- be your dance psychologist
- be your regular psychologist
- protect you from floor craft disasters on the dance floor (comp or social)
- possibly even hold you up or move you around the floor depending on how obliging they are
- The pro’s reputation is based partly on how you dance, so they are going to do their best to make you look good, have a good experience, and BONUS POINTS if you actually learn something.
- Your progress is determined by YOU, with your pro helping you to make the best choices to conquer your goals.
This sounds like heaven, I know, but there’s some drawbacks…
- Mainly, you might get snooty.
- In other words, just because you’ve placed well in pro-am comps doesn’t mean you’re a good dancer. Confusing? YES. But answer these:
- Being spoiled by an instructor makes it difficult to “lower your standard” [HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA] to dance with someone less experienced, whether it’s for a social dance or two, or to try to find an amateur partner.
- Quality counts, of course, but quality = knowing your shit in your own head and body, not just dancing with someone who makes it easier for you to dance.
- But how much does your teach help you?
- Do you know what timing you’re doing?
- Hell, do you know how to count music and the basic rhythm for the dances you do?
- Do you know your own foot placements/rotations, or do you “just follow” your pro (whether you’re a lead or follow)?
- Would you be able to follow another person (who might be doing things correctly, or might not, or who isn’t fixing your consistent mistakes through their own skills)?
- Is your technique in your own muscles, or do you siphon it off of your partner and lose it when you’re dancing alone or with someone who is not your teacher?
- You might get complacent. There’s a professional telling you you did it correctly, duh. Why would you look for a different opinion or review the basics or take a class less challenging than your current proficiency?
- Anyone use Duolingo for language learning? It’s an app where you pass different subject matter of a language and then that subject turns into a GOLD circle and one feels very accomplished for completing each subject. Well, I “passed” out of the first level of my language course, but DAMMIT, the little gold subjects “crack” and I have to go back and repeat the things I SWEAR I ALREADY KNOW. But then those “mastered” subjects make more sense and oh my god I’m practicing the basic of the language and maybe even reinforcing the ideas that weren’t really that clear the first time I “passed” it.
- [clears throat] DO YOU GET HOW THAT STORY RELATES TO DANCING?
- it is the most expensive way to dance
- You are the only one paying for your lessons, costumes, travel, and competition fees, not to mention, any fees and expenses your instructor requires, because professionals get paid to dance with their students, no matter the location or circumstance.
- There are other ways to dance that you might ignore. Like, social dancing is STILL dancing and a great way to learn a different perspective on partnering and is the gateway to am-am dancing, which is a great way to dance more (but more on that later).
- What if you get a crappy teacher and don’t know it? What if you’re getting a bad education?
- Are you still having fun? Are you unhappy? It’s only a problem if you’re unhappy or want a change.
It is TOTALLY OKAY if you have no desire to do anything but dance pro-am until you’re one of those TOTALLY ASS-KICKING 90 YEAR OLDS on the comp floor, but I’m here to offer informed consent on your choices.
Ill give you the alternative procedures in my next post when we cover am-am dancing.
