About Same Sex Partner Dancing

"I recall my well-meaning sisters scoffing when I said I was too embarrassed to take conventional dance classes. They didn't understand how it feels to be the only gay/ transgendered person in a room, especially in the traditionally gendered atmosphere of dance class. You were Fred or Ginger according to your birth certificate--period. OUT To Dance classes changed all of that for many people for the first time."

Kathleen A. Carbone from Somerville, MA

Same-sex, queer, gay or lesbian partner dancing has a rich history in Boston dating back about 25 years. However, although LGBT couples can legally marry in Massachusetts, many lesbian, gay or queer folks in the greater Boston area feel extremely self-conscious when learning to dance in a class consisting solely of heterosexual dance students.

Whether a would-be dancer identifies as lesbian, gay, queer, bisexual, transgender or transsexual, gender and sexual orientation should be a non-issue on the dance floor. Unfortunately, that's not usually the case, even in progressive Massachusetts. OUT to Dance carries on the tradition established in Boston in the early 1980s of providing a safe, welcoming, fun and fabulous atmosphere for all people who want to learn to dance. We offer Dance Classes for Everyone, which are open to all, and GLBT Dance Classes which are geared specifically for dancers who identify as LGBTQ, lesbian, gay, queer, bisexual, trans, or otherwise. At OUT to Dance, leading or following is a choice, not a restriction.

OUT to Dance warmly welcomes folks of any age (teens to 100!), race, sexual orientation, body size, or level of dance experience.

Lead or Follow?

One of the joys of same-sex or queer partner dancing is the choice of whether to lead or follow. (Although heterosexual dancers also have this choice, a majority who bring their significant other to dance class are currently choosing to dance in the traditional roles of men leading and women following. Someday this will probably shift. We salute the straight renegades who exercise their freedom of choice at our studio!) Your choice can vary in each dance you learn; you're not relegated forever to any one role.

Leading is a bit more intellectual than following. Although all new dancers will need to engage their brains while learning, leaders do a little more of that than followers. Followers have no less interesting tasks; they do more spinning, less anticipating, and when the dance calls for it, more traveling backwards (though not necessarily in high heels!) The leader is the choreographer, and the follower dances the choreography, although all this choreography in social dance is spontaneous, never memorized. In a nutshell, I simply suggest that the leader is the Control Queen (or King) and the follower isn't. ;)

Can You Have It All?

Learning the lead and the follow of a single dance in a single lesson is often confusing, and progress is slow. If you are interested in learning both roles in one dance, we strongly suggest you learn the lead in one class or lesson and the follow in another lesson. Or learn to follow in salsa and lead in swing, for example, then eventually learn the opposite role another time. However, no one is obligated to learn both roles if you prefer one over the other. Do what feels right for you. We want you to experience maximum joy in your dance class!

Dance Classes For The Gay and Lesbian Community

What style of dance lessons do we offer the lesbian and gay community? Look for classes in Queer Swing, Queer Ballroom, Queer Latin Dance, Queer Tango, Queer Cha Cha, Queer Salsa, Queer Rumba, Queer Two Step (isn't all two-steppin' queer in Boston?), Queer Waltz and Foxtrot, and much more! What makes these dances queer? Your freedom to dance with the gender of your choice, in the dance role of your choice. Of course, we also offer classes for everybody, not exclusively gay or lesbian dancers: Belly Dance, Hip Hop, Swing Dance, Salsa and Merengue, Ballroom Dance, Wedding Dance, and all of the above dances for everyone.

A note on our use of the word "Queer"

Wikipedia explains it well: "The word queer in reference to LGBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, etc.) communities as well as those perceived to be members of those communities has replaced the traditional definition. Its usage is considered controversial and underwent substantial changes over the course of the 20th Century with some LGBT re-claiming the term as a means of self-empowerment. The term is still considered by some to be offensive and derisive, and by others as a re-appropriated term used to describe a sexual orientation and/or gender identity or gender expression that does not conform to heteronormative society."

Our two OUT to Dance studio locations, West Roxbury and Roslindale, MA, are within twenty minutes of downtown Boston, Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Hyde Park, Brighton, Allston, Brookline, Newton, Chestnut Hill, Dedham, Norwood, Needham, Westwood, Milton and Quincy; and within 25 to 35 minutes of Cambridge, Somerville, Arlington, Wellesley, Natick, Waltham, Braintree, Brockton, Stoughton, Canton, Foxboro, Weymouth and surrounding towns.