The other day, I was thinking about dancing... as I often do. This time, my thoughts were more around how musicians are always so happy to see people dancing to their music.
And I realized something.
We have all been guilty at one time or another, as dancers, to be territorial about stuff... like music, musicians, moves, venues, etc. Certainly, you sometimes have to be territorial, especially regarding venues if it's a paid gig. That's business.
But when it comes to just a performance for the fun of it, are we really justified to be that bitchy about stuff? I don't think so. I think that Dance (with a capital D) wouldn't want you to. I think that, for Dance, the only thing that matters is that you move your body and have fun doing it. If you can entertain, that's a plus. If you can tell a story, that's cool. But, the only thing that matters is that you make Dance live through what you're doing. The rest is just sheer pettiness.
(Deep thoughts from the peanut gallery; lol)
Comments I had received
From Jon:
We like it when any of you all dance with us! It makes the evening worthwhile. I know Dale refuses to do a drum solo if no one is going to dance, and I can understand that. However, I am sometimes disturbed when Robert starts to dance around with his mandolin--especially when he's in a kilt--and not just because it throws off his already very bad rhythm! :P
From me:
Especially since you are sitting and could have a prime view of the kilt... or the bottom of the kilt... or the... you get the point... ;op That's one of my points exactly: it doesn't matter to you guys who dances, really, as long as someone (or multiple people) is dancing and having a good time. As for Dale, well, doing a drum solo requires quite a bit of energy, I'm sure (I can tell by how much energy it takes when I'm dancing) so I totally understand that he wouldn't do it for just the wind (or an audience). ;op And, speaking of that, he gave me a ride for my money (although it was free...) when I danced for, oh, I don't know how long... (no wait! there was a price! the pain I felt the next day) It was definitely a lot of fun and it showed me how much of a tough beyotch I can be! This girl has stamina! ;op It was almost a duel as to who was going to get tired first! ;op Anyway, the point also is that, whether I or someone else dances to the same song doesn't matter as long as someone is dancing. And whether I or someone else dances a certain move doesn't matter either. You gotta do the best with whatcha got and Terpsichore will be happy.
From Elisabeth:
Well put :) Everyone once in a while I like to watch someone else perform to a song that I have performed to. Just because it's interesting to see how someone else interprets the same piece of music.
From Ann:
Nicely said! In all the hustle and practice and teaching, it's easy to forget why we do this in the first place.
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