Types of Ballroom Dancing Lessons | World Champion Productions

With social media’s viral and trending dance videos, as well as popular shows like ABC’s Dancing with the Stars and the United Kingdom’s Strictly Come Dancing, the demand for dance lessons continues to grow. The coolest thing about ballroom dancing? It transcends language barriers and is enjoyed around the world.

Beginners and aspiring dancers alike have joined dance studios that offer ballroom dance lessons. What you may not know is how they fall into two distinctive competitive styles: International Style and American Styles. Depending on your purpose for taking dance lessons, you might want to explore a particular style! You’ll even notice that some of the dances are found in both styles, but they are expressed differently.

To help you choose dance lessons based on your personal history or interests, here is a quick rundown of the most popular ballroom dances within each style.

World Champion Productions teaches ALL ballroom dance styles right here in Nashville!

International Style

International Style dances fall into two categories: ballroom and Latin.

International Ballroom Dances

International Standard – also known as International Ballroom – is the oldest ballroom style due to the fact that its dances date back hundreds of years. Developed largely in Europe, standard dances require that partners stay in contact with each other at all times, which is known as closed position.

Foxtrot: The Foxtrot has smooth, controlled movements and gliding steps. It is a versatile style and can be danced to many genres of music.
Tango: Tango is a passionate dance style in which the dancers are close to one another and move in-sync. Its movements are dramatic and follow a combination of both slow and quick steps.
Viennese Waltz: The Viennese Waltz is known for its speed; it is twice as fast as the Waltz. It is also characterized by its elegant rise-and-fall and sway motions.

Other popular international ballroom dances include the Quickstep and Waltz.

Latin Ballroom Dances

Like International Ballroom, Latin also developed in Europe before becoming popular worldwide. As the name suggests, all of the ballroom dances have Latin American origins, except for the Paso Doble, which has European roots.

Cha Cha: Cha Cha evolved from a version of Cuban Mambo, with chassé meaning “to chase.” Rather than being smooth, the Cha Cha is lively, fun, and emphasizes motion and rhythm.
Rumba: Called “the dance of love,” ballroom Rumba comes from Son, a slower, less eroticized dance. It has a romantic feel and includes some sensual hip movements.
The Jive and Samba are other popular Latin ballroom dances.

American Style

American Style ballroom dances fall into two categories, as well: smooth and rhythm.

Smooth Ballroom Dances

The American Smooth category includes the same four ballroom dances as the International Standard Style – the Foxtrot, Tango, Viennese Waltz, and Waltz – which is why the two styles are often confused.

However, what sets the American Smooth Style apart is how it allows closed and open positions, as well as solo dance movements, giving the dances more creative freedoms in the choreography.

Peabody: The Peabody, on the other hand, is a uniquely American Smooth ballroom dance. It evolved from the Foxtrot in the ragtime era of the 1910s and 1920s and is known for its fast one-step, with long, gliding strides.

Rhythm Ballroom Dances

Like the Latin ballroom dances, American Rhythm dances include the Cha Cha, Rumba, and Samba. While similar hip motion is also found in the Latin category, American Rhythm dancers bend their knees differently.

At the same time, the American Rhythm has a few of its own ballroom dances:

Bolero: Bolero is graceful, slow, and uses the contra body movement from Tango, the rise-and-fall from Waltz, and a modified version of Cuban motion from Rumba.
East Coast Swing: East Coast Swing traces its roots to the original swing dance, Lindy Hop, which was created in the late 1920s by African American youth at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem. A dynamic and athletic dance, it is distinguished by its bounce, back break, and swing action.
West Coast Swing: West Coast Swing also originated from Lindy Hop but is thought to have evolved to fit the smaller spaces and slower music of blues clubs. WCS is smooth, with no bounce, and danced in a slot to a variety of music genres, including country western, funk, disco, rock, pop, and rhythm & blues.
Other well-known American Rhythm ballroom dances include the Mambo and Merengue.

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Find a ballroom dance style you are interested in? World Champion Production instructors are trained in internationally recognized ballroom dances! They have the most up-to-date knowledge of patterns, techniques, and competitive requirements as well as the ability to make learning fun, easy, and fast.