Dancing

[jlineton]

I just wondered how good or bad auspies are at dance. I am completly hopless, I have never learnt of been taught, and I never understood how or why people dance at a disco. My dispraxia does not help of course, but, I just do not see the point or know what is an appropriate dance or not! I went with a friend to a night club the other night and people were giggeling about all over the place including making a simulated sex dance. What is all this for. Why would you want to do so. If you want to have sex go away and get of with it. Why pretnend and gesture on a dance floor. Almost certianly the dance floor is not a place for me. But I do wonder what others think. Again is this me or a common trait?

 

best

 

JRL

[Moby75]

Hi

I have asperges and dyspraxia and I absolutely love dancing. If I could I would dance all day. I have been told I am really good and would love to be a professional dancer.

Don't know if this helps answer your question. I suppose everyone is different even with asperges.

Moby.

[Aeolienne]

I didn't like dancing lessons at school (or what passed for dancing lessons at primary school - we're not talking Strictly here) because it involved holding hands and most other kids had icky sweaty palms. Later on in life I did a bit of Scottish country dancing at St Andrews uni which I found relatively easy to pick up, unlike my experiences with salsa and tango. In all fairness I've only dabbled sporadically in salsa. My former workplace had a lunchtime salsa class, but as it clashed with a German class I only went along during the equivalent to school holidays, so I didn't really cover the basics. I'm told once you feel the core moves (and move from yourself, don't just follow the person in front of you otherwise you'll always be one step behind) it all flows naturally. As for tango, I signed up for a full term's course in the Argentinian variety, my rationale being that I'd read a lot of Jorge Luis Borges' works recently and therefore felt I was in touch with the culture intellectually (Does that make me sound even more Aspie?). Unfortunately my body and mind just couldn't seem to remember the moves. It didn't help that whenever the teacher said "Find yourself a partner" I had flashbacks to school PE. The worst moment was when one old lady (who didn't dance with anyone apart from her husband, rather against the spirit of the classes) rebuked me: "You should have brought someone with you!"

 

I'm currently advised against partner dancing (both the Scottish and the Latin variety) because of my shoulder injury (see http://www.asd-forum.../26788-new-hand).

Edited April 9, 2012 by Aeolienne

[LancsLad]

I think I am not too bad at dancing but only in certain ways. I have pretty good motor control as I am good at some sports and can hear a beat as I can play the drums reasonably well. What I will say all of these things apply when there is a repetetive pattern which I can tune into very easily. In a sport such as football I am pretty poor as it is far too fluid and I can look clumsy at times. In contrast i was a good a rugby which is played very much in a sequence of patterns.

 

So am I any good at dancing yes and no. If it is a genre and tempo which i like I can go into a series of patterns which would be mistaken for competent dancing I do however think there is an underlying aspect to my AS which stops me from being better. I have always wanted to be good at playing the guitar, whilst I am sure I could make a reasonable bass player lead guitar would be beyond me for similar reasons.

[darkshine]

I think your post is brilliant - I would love to have someone film my face if I was ever somewhere where they did a "simulated sex dance" wtf? I'm with you 100% if they wanna go have sex go get on with it

 

I can't dance - technically I can dance but I can't coordinate myself at all and I keep forgetting to move my feet

 

As a result I only ever dance around when there is nobody to see - its fun sometimes - it lets me have my little buzz/rush thing in a way I can't when people observe me... although the neighbours probably think I have a dancing elephant those days because I thunder and generally crash about - needless to say this does not happen often

 

I can understand people who learn certain dances - but I don't really understand why people go to a nightclub or something and dance - especially when they are all drunk very quickly and look like god knows what.. At those times I always think of stupid scenarios like "what would an alien think if they saw this?"

[trekster]

Im a wheelchair user and find wheelchair dancing more fun than stand up dancing.

[darkshine]

Im a wheelchair user and find wheelchair dancing more fun than stand up dancing.

I watched some wheelchair dancing on TV last year - it looks fun - and just as hard as stand up dancing!! They were doing spins and tilts and brilliant moves, it was incredible to watch - I'd love a go but I'd probably end up splatting on my face in a spectacular fashion

[trekster]

Pleased you enjoyed it, was that the tv program 'got to dance'? by any chance?

[darkshine]

It might have been - I honestly can't remember - I just remember thinking wow, that is gonna be soo much harder than it looks

 

I watch some random programmes, there was one with that guy, ade something, he's a wheelchair basketball player and he did a little display to show his moves and it's just amazing what he can do with his chair. As I watch people do those things its cool cuz they sort of unite their chair with their body and I stop seeing them as a person in a wheelchair and just see people. Which is weird for me because I obviously am aware that they are in a wheelchair - and playing basketball or whatever - but it's different, its like respect.

 

You know what? Now that I think of it I watch a fair amount of stuff to do with wheelchairs... I think its because I was in a voluntary group maybe 5 years back now, and a major part of this group was designing access for people who were wheelchair users. I learnt about access issues, space issues, how areas are unsuitable when they use only right hand or left hand metal hand rails, how counters and desks are at inappropriate heights, pavements levels - oh my god the list goes on doesn't it?

 

It's partially why I like watching the sports and the dancing because they are moments where people just get to be people doing something they love.

 

Another little odd fact... I have a dog a little terrier, and whenever we come across anyone using a wheelchair or motorised scooter he just dives right in their way and he has to explore the whole ground level area of it. I quite like it because mostly the people are really kind about my nuts dog investigating their chair - but also because I've brightened a couple of people's days. There was this one lady who was really down because nobody ever said hello, they just looked away, and she loved that I didn't and the dog even said hello to her (which is also rare because he's an ignorant little so and so) I told her "I see you" and she went off smiling. There's 5 people who wave at me in town that all use motorised scooters too - its funny that I can't look at or talk to anyone else but these people recognise and greet me even though I barely go out when nobody else does!

 

 

Er... on a side note - sorry to the OP for my long ramble - I think I have a bit of a special interest that I didn't really think about til just now