July 6.2001
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Ballroom dancers waltz out of the closet
Out Dancing plays host to its first queer ball
by
P eter Z uckerman
n life, straight people often have more
options, and ballroom dance is no exception.
I
Grab someone of the opposite sex, and
you may choose from dozens of classes and
clubs. But grab your queer partner, and where
can you go?
Brave lesbians sometimes glide around the
Crystal Ballroom—a practice that began during
the Vietnam War era.
But if you’re a gay or trans couple who
want to fox-trot, you’d do better in Europe,
where such things are more
accepted. The queer com
munity in the United
States has embraced
country and square
dancing, but our
only taste of salsa is
the organic kind
eaten with tortilla
chips. Ballroom
dancers have limited
options.
So dance
instructor Daniel
Hutchinson decid
ed to do some
thing about it. “I
got tired of lead
ing a split life,”
he explains. “I
atmosphere
needed
where I an
could be
me”
Six years
ago, Hutchinson founded
Out Dancing, a weekly class that teaches
everything from swing to waltz to cha-cha to
hustle and most other ballroom dances in a
queer-friendly environment. This year he
and his partner, David Wilson, also tried
something new.
The first-ever Solstice Ball attracted about
80 people to the PPAA ballroom June 23.
Some showed up solo, but most were coupled.
A group of women even came all the way from
British Columbia just for the event.
The evening kicked off with a lesson in the
nightclub two-step. Hutchinson teaches in a
memorable and amusing way. “Pretend there’s a
big wad of gum under your shoe, so when you
lift your foot up it only comes up a little bit,”
he remarks during part of
the lesson.
When showing me
how to align myself with
my partner he advises,
“Nose to nipple.” Then he
grins. “Not nose on nip
ple. That’s for after the
dance.”
Hutchinson also
serves as the disc
jockey, spinning
tunes for all the
different types
of dance. Most
people only
let loose freestyle.
“Ballroom dance
brings couples back
together,” Hutchinson
remarks. “It’s an
activity where people
have to get personal
.
and comfortable
wll together. It’s a place
where single people
can meet each other.
A dance is intimate, but it’s
not a meat market.”
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For Out Dancing, Hutchinson teaches a
new dance on the first Friday of the month and
builds on the basics the following weeks. To
start each lesson, he teaches the parts separate
ly until both partners master the basic steps.
Then he couples them together.
Hutchinson has a trick for teaching. "You
cast away doubts and ignore that voice that
says, *1 can’t do this,’ ” he remarks. “That really
changes your confidence. You start to relax and
open up, and you start to dance.”
He adds that students often fail to realize
they actually are doing it correctly. “By the end
of the month, the partners have really
changed their perspective.”
I can attest that
Hutchinson knows
how to teach. I have
two left feet, two
left hands and a
partner who has at
least that many, yet
we somehow learned
the nightclub two-step.
“Dancing is another
kind of language,”
Hutchinson says.
“When you dance
with your partner,
your communica
tion becomes
easier. It soft
ens peo
ple—it
opens
people up
to new experiences
that positively affect other
areas of their life.”
Out Dancing plans
to play host to queer
ballroom dances seasonally,
one about every three months. “Now that we
know what to expect,” Hutchinson says, “it
will run even more smoothly.” |H
O ut D ancing meets 7 to 8 p.m. Fridays at Sally
Mack’s School of Dance, 532 S.E. Ankeny St.,
for $5 at the door. This month Daniel Hutchinson
teaches the waltz. Call 503-236-5 129 or e-mail
out_dancing@yahoo.com for more information.
P eter Z uckerman is a student at Reed College
and an intern at Just Out.
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