Editing Direction of movement

[[File:World Open Standard 20121117 Garbuzov Menzinger 9942.jpg|thumb|Leader (man) backing diagonal wall and about to step diagonally back (i.e., towards the wall); follower (lady) facing diagonal wall. Explanation see below.]]

In [[ballroom dancing]] (and in some other types of [[partner dance]]), directions of progressive movement, in particular directions of steps, can be indicated either in relation to the room or in relation to the body position. Directions of turns, although there are only two of them, may also be indicated in several ways.

== Directions of progressive movement ==
===Basic directions of movement with respect to the room===
[[File:Movement directions in ballroom.svg|thumb|upright=2|Basic directions of movement with respect to the room]]
Dancers can align their bodies and move in any of these directions:
* [[Ballroom glossary#Line of dance|line of dance]] (LOD)
* against LOD
* center (C)
* wall (W)
* diagonal center (DC)
* diagonal wall (DW)
* diagonal center against LOD (DC against LOD)
* diagonal wall against LOD (DW against LOD)

These directions may be taken either ''facing'' if the dancer's feet are pointing in the direction of the movement, or ''backing'' if the dancer's feet are oriented in the opposite direction and the dancer is moving backwards with respect to their body. For example, "backing DC against LOD" means that a dancer is moving diagonally to the center against the line of dance, but as they are dancing backwards, the feet (and, roughly, the body) are pointing diagonally to the wall.<ref name="DanceCentral">{{cite web|url=http://www.dancecentral.info/ballroom/resources/glossary/alignment-diagram|title=Alignment diagram|publisher=DanceCentral.info|accessdate=2020-04-30|archive-date=2020-04-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200428234935/http://www.dancecentral.info/ballroom/resources/glossary/alignment-diagram|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="BallroomDancers">{{cite web|url=https://www.ballroomdancers.com/Learning_Center/Technique/Alignments|title=Alignments|publisher=BallroomDancers.com|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref>

The term ''pointing'' refers explicitly to the direction the feet are pointing, which is useful if they are not, or not yet, aligned with the orientation of the body. For example, a dancer can be pointing DW while facing the wall.<ref name="DanceCentral" /><ref name="BallroomDancers" />

===Basic directions of step with respect to body position===
[[File:Step directions.svg|upright=1.5|thumb|Basic directions of step with respect to body position. Here, the left foot is the moving foot and the right foot is the supporting foot.]]

These are described in one of the following ways.

* With respect to the [[Glossary of ballroom dance terms#Line of foot|line]] of the [[Glossary of ballroom dance terms#Supporting foot|supporting foot]], the next step may be placed<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ballroomdancers.com/Learning_Center/Technique/Directional_Movements/|title=Directional movements|publisher=BallroomDancers.com|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref>
** in one of the primary directions:
*** forward,
*** back,
*** side(ways),
** in a diagonal line:
*** diagonally forward,
*** diagonally back,
** in a hybrid diagonal:
*** forward and slightly leftward (for the left foot) or rightward (for the right foot)
*** side(ways) and slightly forward
*** side(ways) and slightly back
*** back and slightly leftward (for the left foot) or rightward (for the right foot)
** in [[contra body movement position]] (CBMP):
*** forward in CBMP (i.e., the  moving foot is placed directly in front of the supporting foot),
*** forward and across in CBMP (i.e., the moving foot crosses in front of the supporting foot),
*** back in CBMP,
*** back and across in CBMP.
* By [[clock]]: The leader (man) is said to face 12 o'clock immediately before a figure starts. Then directions can be described by saying, for example, that the direction of the second step is 3 o'clock, and the direction of the third step is between 4 and 5 o'clock.<ref>{{YouTube|VtdVqxPFe7A|How to Dance Waltz Natural Turn from WDSF PD Champions}}. Retrieved 2020-04-30.</ref>
* By [[compass]] points: Assuming that the dancer faces North at any moment, one may say, e.g., "take a step North-West".{{fact|date=April 2020}}

== Directions of turns ==

Ballroom dancing distinguishes
* ''natural'' (that is, right or clockwise) and ''reverse'' (left or counter-clockwise) turns,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dancecentral.info/ballroom/international-style/waltz/waltz-natural-turn|title=Natural turn|publisher=DanceCentral.info|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reverse%20turn|title=Reverse turn|publisher=Merriam-Webster|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref>
* ''inside'' and ''outside'' turns (not to be confused with a dancer being on the ''inside'' or on the ''outside'' of a turn).

===Natural vs. reverse turns ===

The term "[[natural turn]]" describes a right or clockwise turn of the dance couple.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ballroomdancers.com/dances/info.asp?sid=128|title=Natural turn|publisher=BallroomDancers.com|accessdate=2021-05-19}}</ref> This usage originated from the names of [[waltz]] moves and was transferred to other, similar dances.{{fact|date=April 2020}}

A commonly stated theory of the origin of the term is that considering the right-shifted position in a couple (even more pronounced in older times) and the counter-clockwise direction of travel along the [[Ballroom glossary#Line of dance|line of dance]], the right turns are easier to perform, they are more "natural".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rounddancing.net/dance/articles/whatisnatural.html|title=What Is Natural About A Natural Turn?|publisher=Round Dancing|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://socialballroom.dance/how-to-do-a-dance-turn-reverse-and-natural-turns|title=How to do a Dance Turn: Reverse and Natural Turns|publisher=SocialBallroom.dance|accessdate=2020-04-30}}</ref> This is especially true at the corners of the dance floor: the amount of the right turn is effectively only {{frac|3|4}} of a full turn, and the amount of the left turn is effectively as much as {{frac|5|4}}, because the LOD changes its direction by 90 degrees to the left (CCW).

The partner dancing forward is said to be on the ''outside'' of the turn, having the longer way to move, and the partner dancing backward is on the ''inside'' of the turn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ballroomguide.com/resources/blog/2017_01_04_inside_outside_of_turns.html|title=Inside and Outside of Turns|publisher=Ballroom Guide|accessdate=2020-04-30|archive-date=2020-05-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200514191218/http://www.ballroomguide.com/resources/blog/2017_01_04_inside_outside_of_turns.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Inside vs. outside turns===
{{Improveref|section|date=April 2012}}

The terms "inside turn" and "outside turn" apply only to an individual turn of a partner, not to a turn of a couple. They occur in [[Latin dance]]s and in [[American style]]. An "inside turn" is a turn that begins with the held hands (often the leader's left and the follower's right) moving toward the "inside" of the couple (along the imaginary line between the centers of the partners); an "outside turn" is the opposite. The turns may be performed in numerous ways and using different handholds. In dances such as swing and salsa, ''inside'' and ''outside'' turns typically refer to underarm turns performed by the follower. In these dances the follower's right arm is normally used to lead a turn (most commonly by the leader's left arm, but sometimes by the leader's right arm when a cross-hand or "handshake" position is used), an inside turn is normally a left (counter-clockwise) turn, while an outside turn is a right (clockwise) turn. However, if the follower's left arm is used to initiate the turn, the intended direction of turning may be opposite.

"Inside turn" is most intuitively clear if initially the couple is in an open single-handhold position facing each other, and the name corresponds to the direction of the lead. To lead the inside turn, the leader moves the follower's arm inside, and conversely for the outside turn. In other positions the term is not so clear, therefore in some dances,{{which|date=April 2014}} some{{who|date=April 2014}} prefer to use this term according to its usage in [[ballet]], based on [[Ballroom glossary#Footwork|footwork]] rather than arm style. In ballet, when describing [[pirouette]]s, an ''outward'' ([[Ballet glossary#En dehors|en dehors]]) turn is the turn in the direction towards the working leg. Accordingly, an ''inward'' ([[Ballet glossary#En dedans|en dedans]]) turn is the turn in the direction towards the support leg. See also [[Ballet glossary#Rond de jambe|rond de jambe]].

The latter definition is unambiguous, but in other contexts it is only applicable to a single footstep. For example, according to this definition, [[Glossary of ballet terms#Chaînés|chaînés turns]] are alternating inside and outside turns, although the direction of the rotation is the same. Therefore, it is common to name the turning figure according to the direction of the first turning step.

==See also==

* [[Glossary of ballroom dance terms]]
* [[Outline of dance]]

==References==
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[[Category:Ballroom dance technique]]