This reminds me of the old joke (and I'll try to paraphrase it and put it into this context): How many ladies does it take to dance Championship Level at the competiton? Eight - one to actually do it, and seven other folks sitting at a table saying "I'd do it, but I can't find a partner'...
I have heard the terms and phrases like, "this is my am partner" or "this is my pro partner". I think that the seriousness of dancing by student to compete deserves a particular title.
So, we'll be the ones fighting around the table next year at Ohio over the one available am guy who just split up with his partner. Did I mention I once took karate?
I disagree. Not all partners are equal in am relationships either. And I think sometimes people put too much meaning into the word "partner". If someone asks me who my partner is, I say "I compete with my teacher." I think it's a little bit of splitting hairs sometimes...
out of curiosity. But if it's a secret then by all means keep it to yourself. i've espilled the beans on this forum before
I hear excuses and rationalizations and you have totally disregarded the fact that an am's dancing is personal, especially to the am. But, if I hear something else you are saying, because the student chooses to compete, they are in effect a public figure and subject to public scruitiny. Is that a correct assumption? Maybe I think the unavoidable is avoidable, with a little effort.
Bingo! Dancing is personal if it's in your house, IMO. If you're in public, and people are paying to see you...fair game. Good, bad or indifferent. In any event, we could all sit here chatting about how wonderful every dancer is....but to what point? It would be a little shortsighted to think every comment about your dancing or mine was going to be positive. And like Alemana said, I don't really think anything here was insulting or mean-spirited. Edit: I'll qualify this by saying that someone's personal life should be off-limits, but their dancing life (either by way of performance or competition) is fair game.
Public is public - the fact that someone dances for the public makes them critque-able. Remember, people AWANT to be seen... otherwise, they'd never get into the rhinestoned dress... Dancefever, also, the very fact that someone chooses to post on this public internet forum means that they accept the fact that their opinions and persona will be challenged and discussed - that's why they are here. If they wanted privacy, they simply would have not posted. Public figures pay publicists thousands of dollars to get their clien'ts names out before the public in good and bad contexts - have you never heard the saying 'there is no such thing as bad publicity'? Hey, this is their 15 minutes of fame...
Hehehe, we probably will be! Did I mention that I can bench press more than double my weight and leg press triple?
NEXT UP ON THE WORLD WRESTLING FEDERATION Two ballroom followers, desperate to snag the only available lead within 500 miles, will THROW IT DOWN IN THE RING tonight on WWF! SEE how ladies with latin hips can throw roundhouse kicks! THRILL to the high-energy aggression that comes out on the "four and one!" WATCH as their respective coaches battle it out ringside IN RUSSIAN! THIS IS ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS FOLKS!
