How do two people understand each other when they dance?

One of the hardest things for me while we were developing this dance language was understanding that we had to leave room for different interpretations, abandoning the “good” and the “bad” in favor of the “different”. The deeper we delved into the concept, the more obvious it became that if we were excluding people or methods, we had to change our system, not cast out those who didn't meet our requirements. As we see it, you have to be free to be yourself while respecting people's differences. Nevertheless, there was still the issue of how to go about it—how to bring these ideas into practice and not blur the lines between our style (which we have just like everyone else) and the basic grammar of this language which enables us to understand each other regardless of our respective styles. For us, the answer was treating partner dancing as a language, which made the answers obvious when asking the right questions.

How do two people understand each other when they speak or dance?

First, we have to look at the technical factors. We are speaking the same language even though sometimes we have different accents. Do we both know the rules, or rather the grammar of this language? This gives us the tools we need to communicate, and if we break the rules, we’re aware of the risk that we won't be understood. Do we communicate well in this language or not as well as we think?

Next, there are ethical and philosophical factors. Does this basic grammar or language that we are using give both individuals an equal voice in the conversation? If not, can we find a way to establish this equality? Is our motivation truly to share and communicate? Are we contributing the energy and presence of mind required to establish a real conversation in our dancing? Or are we only interested in saying what we want to say? Are we both equally free to speak and/or listen from the get-go? And are we both equally free to determine our role in the conversation? Are we certain we aren't just expecting the other person to respond the way we want them to all throughout the conversation? Are we repeating the same old story or are we open to letting the conversation take us where it may, all while participating and staying positive? Where does the music come into play in this conversation?

Am I interested in communicating with the person I’m talking to even if it means I have to use simpler vocabulary?

Is language a living thing that evolves over time? Or rather something rigid and unchanging? If it's a living thing, are we disrespecting its roots when we make changes?

Does this dance language promote equality for everyone or did the social perspective of the era create restrictions at its inception that are hindering us today? Could there be another way?

We believe the dance language we use should be a universal language in which everyone is welcome and can contribute in their own way. 

The whole point of this website is to build something together—not to judge or exclude. Here we invite both similar and different opinions to our own and will openly accept criticism. Our only motivation is for everyone, ourselves included, to understand each other better without losing the freedom to be ourselves or the respect for our differences. This isn't just a website dedicated to the dance we love the most—it's an ode to the infinite possibilities we share as a society and as individuals. Since our desire is to keep growing, we encourage you to ask questions in order to create a forum for reflection and discussion in hopes that these questions help us move forward and better understand the things that remain beyond our grasp.

Because we think that what makes two people understand each other when they dance isn't just sharing the same language—it's also a mutual desire to share that moment as if nothing else mattered.