Alignment/Direction (Were you should be facing)

Each step you take should face a certain alignment/direction. There Are 8 Alignments just like there is 8 points on a compass.

1: North:           
Facing Line of Dance (FLOD)
2: North East: 
Facing Diagonal To Wall (FDW)
3: East:             
Facing Wall (FW)
4: South East: 
Backing Diagonal To Centre Line (BDCL)
5: South:           
Backing Line of Dance (BLOD)
6: South West: 
Backing Diagonal To Wall (BDW)
7: East:               
Facing Centre Line (FCL)
8: North West: 
Facing Diagonal To Centre Line (FDCL)

There is 3 major points of reference in the room...

THE EAST WALL
Most room have four walls. We travel around a room in an anticlockwise direction. If the man or lady starts a dance FLOD then the wall would be to their right hand side.

THE CENTRE LINE
This alignment is directly opposite the East Wall and goes straight though the centre of the room. If the man or lady starts a dance FLOD then the Centre Line would be to their left hand side.

FACING / BACKING
If the man or lady starts a dance FLOD then their looking north. If the man or lady starts a dance BLOD then their looking south.

If a man was to dance with a woman and he was FLOD then she must be BLOD.
If a man was to dance with a woman and he was FW then she must be FCL.


There are some occasions when some basic principle rules are broken.


What’s With Pointing?
Some times one foot may be at one alignment and the other can face another. Other times the feet & body all turn at once.

Movement Around The Room - Ballroom

Q: Is there a certain direction a Ballroom dance should move in a room?

A: Yes, all ballroom dances move around the room in an anti clockwise direction.

Q: Does it matter were I start in the room

A: Yes & no. You can start any were in the room as long as you allow your dance to travel in an anti clockwise direction. Just like on our public roads, traffic must flow in two different directions so chop the room in half and start always to the right side of the room.

Q: Why does it matter which way you dance around a room?

A: Public roads have the Highway Code & dance floors have Line of Dance. If everyone moves in the same direction around the floor, then the flow of traffic around the room will help to minimize collisions.

Q: Why does the picture show a rectangle rather than a circle?

A: Most rooms are rectangular or square. There are two distinct areas, sides & corners. When dancing along the side of the room, you will travel along the line of dance toward the corner. When the corner is reached, turn at the corner & begin moving along the new line of dance to the next corner.

Writen By Steven Ford, http://www.thanetballroomlatin.co.uk/