how come everyone else thinks that guys who do dancing are gay? dont they know what goes on at comps? (especially afterparties :> ) they shuold compare it to, say, rugby, which involves a bunch of fat men running around like bulls, pretending to be all macho and ****, and hugging eachother's arses in those scrum thingoes. me, personally, id rather be hugging the arse of any babe at the comps than the arse of some fat smelly rugby player. tell me your opinions on this, and how we can stop everyone thinking we are all gay.
Well, I don't know how men's latin costumes are perceived in Australia, but my non-dancing friends in the US are sometimes a little alarmed by what the guys in the Latin section wear...very tight pants, velvet or satin shirts open down to the waist, neck chains and waxed chests...it is preceived as a weird kind of machismo that signals 'gay' to some people.
I think the real issue certain people have is that they are uncomfortable seeing men do anything to music except play it or have heterosexual sex to it in a movie, hence ballet dancers, ballroom dancers, and ice skaters all being subjected to the same anti-heterosexual stereotype.
I don't know how this is going to change. Men say they want to social dance so they can meet women...ergo you'd think that people wouldn't have a 'gay' sterotype of ballroom dancers. Perhaps the differences between social dance and competitive dance are such that it feeds into people's predjuidices and misconceptions.
Also, ask yourself what's wrong with people thinking you are gay. Is that really a problem? If so, then aren't you just another aspect of the same bad sterotype? There's nothing to convince people with strongly held misconceptions that they are right than the targets of their criticsism going around loudly proclaiming "but I'm NOT _______" (where _______ is "gay", "short", or any other ajective that people pick on other people for).
This is an interesting topic and i must say that you are right that men who dance seem to be stereotyped. From listening to others comments and just being in the dance 'business' it is my opiunion that most people stereotype the Latin American dancers as being 'gay'. However the Ballroom/Standard dancers normally escape this stereotype. I can understand this from a costuming point of view as Laura said, but is it fair? - i don't think so!
I don't know what it's like in Australia, but in the dance clubs in US and also in Europe where I have visited, it's really not a big deal if someone is gay or not. If you go clubbing, it's pretty relaxed atmosphere, at least those ones that I've been. Yes -- guys come on to girls, girls come on to guys, guys come on to other guys, girls come on to other girls -- if it's not your scene, you just say no, that's all. If you're young, chances are, we're all into experimentation anyway.
My friends think it's cool that I take some social lessons -- salsa, cha cha, etc. It doesn't enter into our conversations at all about being straight, gay, or bi, etc. -- just that we like to dance, and it's cool to be able to do other things than just standing there and flapping our arms or shaking our heads to techno sounds.
"and it's cool to be able to do other things than just standing there and flapping our arms or shaking our heads to techno sounds."
Dont disrespect "techno" sounds, obviously they are pretty darn popular if the whole world's teens are dancing to it. Have you ever been to a rave? Have you noticed that there is a lot of inspiration for the way people dance there?
Thanks for recognizing the fact that dancing to trance and techno is fun and healthy ...
A few years ago I was in Brazil when the world cup of soccer was in the US. What struck me as cool was the way dancing was precieved in South America. I was talking to this girl I meet in a night club in the middle of the Amazon, and I commented how neat it was that the men enjoy dancing in her country. You know what she said; she said that when a boy learns to walk he is taught two things that are of equal importance football (soccer) and samba. And from the ladies point of view, how well a man dances is an indication of how good they are in bed. So if you suck as a dancer, the presumption is-you suck in the sack.
Funny what happens when you cross the equator!
<Dabbler>
Posted
I never would have thought "Samba" and "Soccer" was treated equally important in South America. That is so COOL! It goes to show you how sport and dance is really integrated and that "dancesport" combines the best of both worlds.
I saw a TV program recently on the Discovery Channel I think that talked about music -- how music and tempo is tied into the heart beat. I wish I remembered what the program was called -- it went through different music such as the Samba, Disco, etc. and interviewed many popular musicians such as Stuart Copeland. It talked about how music and dance is so tied into the heart rate and heart beat, and makes an argument why we, as humans, have this innate sense of appreciating music and music through dance.
I then thought about how true it was -- for example, whether it's the cha cha, or the samba, how when you hear the very good pieces of music, you can't help but tap your fingers, move your body to the rhythm and get onto the floor and dance.
If anything, Dance complements sexuality. It really is a "vertical expression of a horizontal desire", and the pulsating rhythm of the heart.
quote:Originally posted by j: Interesting inquiry!
A few years ago I was in Brazil when the world cup of soccer was in the US. What struck me as cool was the way dancing was precieved in South America. I was talking to this girl I meet in a night club in the middle of the Amazon, and I commented how neat it was that the men enjoy dancing in her country. You know what she said; she said that when a boy learns to walk he is taught two things that are of equal importance football (soccer) and samba. And from the ladies point of view, how well a man dances is an indication of how good they are in bed. So if you suck as a dancer, the presumption is-you suck in the sack.
Funny what happens when you cross the equator!
<Trent>
Posted
What does one do to prove he is not gay? Nothing. That's the answer. If one has stable gender identity there is nothing to worry about. Those who are not entirely sure of their gender resort to gender specific activities to prove that they belong to a gender class, i.e., male, female, or alternate. They are also scared to indulge in activities outside their gender because they might find out the truth.
Trent is right. A guy should not have to do sterotypically masculine things to prove to a girl or the world that he is not gay. Most girls can just tell if a man is straight or gay by how the man interacts with her; it doesn't have to do with whether he likes to cha cha or not. To me, nothing is sexier than a straight, male ballroom dancer.
