Rock n Roll and Rockabilly Jive
Is a partnered dance made up of a number of turns and spins collectively called 'moves'. It requires a Leader and Follower and usually follows a 6 beat pattern.
Traditionally, the man Leads and the woman Follows but there's more to it than just tradition since the tallest or strongest person is more suited to the roll of the Lead.
The Leader and Follower learn the moves as a mirror of each other allowing the pair to face each other when dancing. This means that two Leaders or two Followers cannot dance together, however if you ask someone of the opposite sex to dance, you'll almost certainly be partnered as a Leader and Follower with a matching set of moves.
Once you're on the dancefloor, the Leader selects which moves you're going to perform as you go along, sometimes repeating a set of moves and sometimes changing them continuously. Each move is led in a certain way which allows it to be followed. With practice, it all becomes 'muscle memory' and flows seamlessly.
"The Leader picks the moves and the Follower makes them look good" - Dave DJ Maverick
At some events, you may see Leaders dance with more than one Follower at the same time as well as women switching roles between Leader and Follower so they can dance with other women. This takes a lot of practice!
Asking someone to dance is common in Social dancing and can be found in most types of partnered dance. You can choose to dance with lots of people during an event, or just stay with your own partner. You don't have to accept an invitation to dance and no-one should be upset if their request is refused.
Rock n Roll and Rockabilly dancing also includes Bopping, where everyone dances individually to certain songs and Strolling, where women dance in a formation similar to line dancing. Tradition and Culture at some events may deem it unnacceptable for men to Stroll.
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