Exciting New Initiative - Articles for NASSPDA Website and Newsletter
Over the next few months we will be rejuvenating the NASSPDA website with new and old articles written by our community. Over the past few years our newsletter readership has grown significant so in the vein of helping educate our readership (particularly those new to our community) and revitalizing our NASSPDA website, we will be sharing articles with you on NASSPDA and same-sex dancing, social dancing and dancesport.
Here's a spoiler of some of the articles that will be released in the next few months:
The Development of Same-Sex Partner Dancing
Who is NASSPDA
Equality Dancing
Syllabi versus Grading in Dancesport
Judging Criteria for Non-Traditional Couples
Judging & Judges
Defining Amateur and Professional
Why Compete?
Attending a Competition
Which is Easier to Learn - To Lead or To Follow
Putting on a Competition
Social versus Competitive Dancing
Benefits of Increasing Your Dancing Skills
Social Dancing: How Do We Make Our Social Dances More Inclusive?
If you have any ideas for articles or would like to contribute an article, please feel free to reach out to Horace (hluong@nasspda.org).
For this month, we'd like to share with you three articles that relate to same-sex partner dancing, equality dancing, and NASSPDA.
Development of Same-Sex Partner Dancing
Originally published in March 2016 NASSPDA Newsletter
By: Benjamin Soencksen
Partner dancing had some of its origins hundreds of years ago, but most of the dances as practiced today developed in the late 19th and early 20th century. The first recorded competitions took place in Mid-Europe in the very early years of the 20th century, highlighted initially by summer and winter championships and eventually by annual championships. Though same-sex coupling had also been, even if marginally, part of the development of these partner dances, competitions solely for same-sex partner dancing had their first incarnations in the mid-1990s, in Europe as well as in the USA (IAGLCWDC formed already in 1993, but had its first recorded competition in 1998; the 1994 Gay Games included a side event held at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City). This development in our communities prompted a call for continent-wide standardization, which subsequently led to the formation of ESSDA as well as NASSPDA in 2007 and ultimately, to have worldwide representation, to the formation of IFSSDA in 2010.
What offsets these, "our" organizations from mainstream organizations has primarily been the definition of a couple, with a focus on same-sex versus opposite-sex composition. But also that the definition of a leader or follower isn't tied to gender, which led to the possibility of switching lead within a dance multiple times (referred to as "equality dancing" since the 1998 Gay Games, when the term was coined by the organizers of the Dancesport event). A discussion ensued and is still continuing whether changing the lead within a dance helps to enhance partner dancing or hinders the development of "good" dancing. But it is undisputed that with this possibility partner dancing has gotten a new dimension, redefines what characterizes a dance (a main criteria for judging) and constitutes a higher degree of difficulty, if executed successfully.
Additionally, the traditional "look" of a couple was challenged and to this day is a hot topic. What is one to wear so as to not become a copy of a mainstream couple? Or is that desired? To what extend are we defined in our gender or role within the couple by what we wear? What could be considered politically correct within the context of our community or mainstream? This is obviously a very complex issue on so many levels.
Along with all these questions and new possibilities, it has also become increasingly clear that defining a couple as either same-sex or opposite-sex is way too limiting. Even with the introduction of a reverse-role definition of a couple (by NASSPDA rules that defines a couple as a female leading a male at a minimum 75% of the dance), it became soon evident that the limitation wasn't fully addressed with this addition. BASSDA (Bay Area Same-Sex Dance Association), which organizes "April Follies" each year, had established a new category for that exact reason, which allows basically any configuration of a couple, and added transgender to its definition of male or female categories. Subsequently, along with the increasing openness of mainstream organizations to changing its definition of a couple, allowing for any configuration, NASSPDA added an ‘Open’ category as choice to its rules.
North American Same-Sex Partner Dance Association (NASSPDA)
Originally published in Topline Magazine (American International Dance Association, USISTD.org)
By: Lee Fox
In 1998, the Gay Games were held in Amsterdam (the first time it was held outside of the North American continent) and the first time that Dancesport was included as an official event (it had been a medaled side event at the previous Gay Games in 1994 in New York City). Over 200 couples from Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia were in attendance competing in the International Standard and Latin styles of dancing as well as Wheelchair Dancing. I’m proud to say that my ballroom partner and I competed in the Standard and made it to the top 6. Four years later, the Games were held in Sydney and again we made the top 6. It was a year after the games in 2008, a quadrennial event, that a group of competitors participating at the annually held same-sex event called the April Follies in California met and decided that it was time to form an organization for the sole purpose of creating a standard by setting up rules and regulations to help with the organization of same-sex competitions in North America, pretty much at the same time that the European Same-Sex Dance Association (ESSDA) was formed. Thus NASSPDA was founded.
The North American Same-Sex Partner Dance Association is a membership organization committed to the promotion and expansion of social and competitive same-sex partner dancing, which includes Ballroom, Latin, Argentine Tango, Country Western, and other partner dances, as well as different styles within those terms, such as International and American styles. Even though NASSPDA acknowledges and celebrates its origins in the LGBTQ+ community, it is open to all and we have a wonderful mixture of gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people as well as straight allies and non-binary people participating in our events.
NASSPDA’s goals are to establish and continue to improve consistent definitions, guidelines and standards for same-sex partner dance competitions in North America. We support functions and venues for social as well as competitive same-sex dancing and encourage making them accessible and affordable. Our board of directors and officers meet on a monthly basis to conduct businesses such as rule changes, sanctioning of dance competitions and adjudicators, funding opportunities for the promotion of dancing to the LGBTQ+ community, and communicating with same-sex dance organizations world-wide.
To date we have sanctioned up to five different North American competitions a year in California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Quebec, and British Columbia. We have established rules and regulations for these competitions and created categories in all styles of dancing for all male couples and female couples as well as opposite sex couples (including reverse role where the female leads and the male follows) divided into adult and senior categories as well as Student/Teacher categories, where only the student gets judged, and non-Student/Teacher categories, where any two people can get together to compete without declaring themselves pros or amateurs), and additionally, Showdance and Formation Teams divisions.
You can learn more about the North American Same-Sex Partner Dance Association by visiting the web site at http://www.NASSPDA.org. Membership is open to all. Join us if you like to learn more about our events, want to support our goals and have a voice.
‘Equality Dancing’ (July 2016)
Originally published in July 2016
By: Benjamin Soencksen
Aside from the definition of a couple, what truly sets our dance community apart from the mainstream is that we allow switching lead and follow at any time, either from dance to dance or within one dance (restricted and clearly defined in a reverse-role couple). This is referred to since the 1998 Gay Games in Amsterdam as "equality dancing." This has enticed some "straight" identifying competitors from the mainstream circuit to join our community and has continuously initiated discussions about whether this practice fosters "good" dancing. NASSPDA's rules don't require equality dancing at its sanctioned competitions, nor does its counterpart ESSDA in Europe, but NASSPDA and subsequently IFSSDA, founded by ESSDA, IAGLCWDC and NASSPDA, recognize it as more challenging and instruct its judges to judge it favorably, if executed well.
In my opinion, equality dancing is the true expression of what our community desires in so many aspects of life. Circumstances might often hinder embracing this style of expression, such as being a beginner couple or having an extreme height or experience level difference, but I believe that experiencing both roles, leading and following, makes us ultimately much better dancers. Although it might in the short term inhibit growth in a couple, due to the strain of learning to know both sides and adjusting instantaneously when asked for, in the long run it's worth it. And, if accomplished, it is so beautiful to behold. It truly expands the range of expression and characterization of each dance.
Others feel that the risk doesn't warrant spending the time and effort--that it is more important to build strong leadership or following skills, which can only be brought to such a level of achievement when concentrated on solely. That might be true, just as it was believed decades ago when it was argued that to be a better dancer in the various styles (Latin vs. Standard or Rhythm vs. Smooth) one needs to specialize. However, having experienced that transition, I'm still not convinced. In my mind, a dancer that can embrace and adapt all styles of dancing is ultimately a better dancer.
