
Our focus is partner dancing
Learning to lead and respond well is the cornerstone of all the dances we teach.
Our studio has a mainly social dance focus, gearing for spontaneity and adaptability.
We can show you how easy it is not to sit on the sidelines anymore – whether you bring your dance partner with you or not.
Which Dances to learn?
Choose your dances based on music you enjoy and what you might encounter at events you attend.
Still can’t choose? We can show you a dance for each tempo of music, fast, medium and slow, to get you started.
Schedule a free consultation lesson to try some dances out and we can tailor your lessons accordingly.
Rhythm and Latin Dances
Many of these dances have their roots in Latin America and are all danced socially, depending on the venue. Knowing at least a few of these different rhythms can give you incredible adaptability to be able to dance wherever you have the opportunity to get out on the social dance floor.
For competitive ballroom dancing, there are two main styles: American Rhythm and International Latin. The American Rhythm style consists of five dances: Cha-Cha, Rumba, East Coast Swing, Bolero, and Mambo. The International Latin style also consists of five dances: Cha-Cha, Rumba, Jive, Paso Doble, and Samba. These styles differ slightly in their technique to create different looks.
In addition there are many separate one-dance competitions in other dance styles such as Salsa and Swing.
Jive (North American social dance)
Paso Doble
Jitterbug
Bachata
Salsa
Samba
West Coast Swing
Lindy Hop
Hustle
Jive (International Style Jive)
Merengue
Bolero
Mambo
Swing (American Style Swing or East Coast Swing)
Cha Cha
Rumba
Smooth and International ballroom Dances
These dances have their roots in the European dance tradition. They are danced socially and although their natural habitat is the larger ballroom floor they can be adapted to smaller floors to make them more practical for other venues as well.
For competition purposes there are two main categories of these classic ballroom dances – American Smooth and International Ballroom (sometimes still known as International Standard). All these dances are characterized by their precise elements of technique: footwork, rise and fall, etc. From this technique emerges a unique elegance and beauty.
The International Ballroom style includes five dances: Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz, Foxtrot, and Quickstep. This style is danced widely in competitions throughout the world. The most obvious trait of the International Ballroom style is the dancers’ constant closed dance position, where the two partners never lose contact from the closed dance hold.
Four of the International Ballroom dances have American Smooth counterparts: Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot and Viennese Waltz. In the American Smooth style, partners often separate from closed dance position utilizing underarm turns and changes in position. American Smooth can also be popular at social dances due to its tremendous adaptability, and is danced at all major competition events across North America and, increasingly, worldwide. This is an expressive style that is fun to dance and to watch.
Quickstep
Viennese Waltz
Tango
Waltz
Fox Trot
County Western Dances
These dances are danced socially wherever country music is played. For those who have aspirations of competition, these dances can be found at nearly every competition event that we attend.
Country Triple
Country Shuffle
Texas Two-Step
Country Swing
Country Western Waltz
Progressive Two-Step
Specialty Dances
The following are miscellaneous dances that are taught at Arthur Murray Coquitlam. These are often danced socially and there are some one-dance competition options for many of these, for example Argentine Tango. If you are interested in learning a specific dance and are not sure whether we teach it or not, please call us.