Expressive Dance: Nonverbal Communication & Movement
1. Expression and Communication
The key to communicating without words is our body. We can rely on our look, face, gestures, posture, physical appearance, and dance.
The Look and Face: The look has a high expressive power. It is the most effective way to communicate without speaking, as the face reflects emotions and attitudes.
Gestures and Postures: These are the messages the body transmits, whether we are aware of them or not.
Physical Appearance: Appearance is the result of several factors. The image we reflect through our gestures and postures is important to accept ourselves.
Dance: Another means of bodily expression is dance. There are various types:
- Classical Dance: Favors aesthetic value, has strict rules and techniques, and its expression is not free.
- Folk Dances: Have great cultural value and also have rules.
- Modern Dance: Arises from classical dance, with more richness and expressiveness.
- Ballroom Dance: Includes rock, salsa, cha-cha-cha, waltz, paso doble, merengue, etc., with some standards but also freedom.
2. Physical Activities: Dancing
Dancing is a significant form of expression. Initially, ancient dance consisted of spontaneous movements, but over time, various dances emerged with more or less strict standards.
Key elements of dance include:
- Expression: Dance has evolved, adapting to societal needs and helping us expand our body’s repertoire.
- Rhythm: The element that marks the body’s movements, involving space, time, intensity, and sequencing.
- Way of Motion: The transmission of ideas, feelings, and thoughts through body movements.
- Spontaneity: Movements should be as creative as possible, emerging freely.
Ballroom Dance Benefits: Develops aerobic endurance, coordination, improves interpersonal relationships, is fun, and can be done by people of any age and condition.
3. Salsa
Steps: Basic (important to bend knees and move hips), cucaracha, basic alternative, money, money individual, crossover, vents, fans, combs, approaches, two basic dances.
Ballroom dances have a defined origin, often evolving from traditional and folkloric dances, now part of artistic competitions and popular festivals.
Dance halls are places where people dance in rooms or open sites for social events or parties. Dancing involves linking basic steps and figures to form a choreography.
Positions and Postures: Dancers should have a posture and position to facilitate changes and steps.
Couple Position: Head up, back straight, left hand of the man with the woman’s right, right arm around the woman. The distance between dancers depends on the dance mode.
Coordination of Partners:
- Most steps are opposite but simultaneous.
- The man leads, and the woman should follow and understand nonverbal messages.
- The look is very important; avoid shifting feet.
- Harmony of the body, balance, and position changes are crucial.
4. Merengue
Steps: Basic, basic forward-back, single lap, lambada, side step seventy, seventy passing man underneath, back, back with slip behind the head, rolled and placed parallel, self-cross in front, comb, etc.
This rhythm was born in Santo Domingo in the mid-sixteenth century when African slaves arrived to work on plantations. Merengue is a dance with moderate binary structure, typical of the Dominican Republic. The Merengue Festival is celebrated every July 15th.
Merengue is one of the oldest and most popular Latin dances, known for being fun, sensual, and based on improvisation.
Basic: Legs slightly apart, knees bent, alternative movement with knee flexion and slight hip movement, synchronized movements of shoulders and hips. Feet barely move, crawling on the ground without lifting the heels. The man’s right foot should be placed between the woman’s feet, starting with the left foot. Maintain eye contact during the dance.