The greatest difference taught in American Smooth dance classes versus International Standard is the couple’s freedom to break frame and open up into big sweeping lines. American Smooth, often abbreviated as “Smooth”, combines aspects of Standard, Latin, and Ballet. When people watch “Dancing With the Stars” on TV or old Fred Astaire movies, they are watching Smooth, not Standard.
Smooth danced at a high level makes beautiful use of counter-balance, ballet lines, and dynamic movement. It is an excellent choice for solo performances, as the ability to break frame and separate gives a couple more opportunity to fully express the subtleties of a particular piece of music.
Many consider American Smooth dance classes to be the “social” style of dance, because at the beginning level, Smooth is often easier to learn. Both American Smooth and American Rhythm originated with Arthur Murray, and were reworked many decades later into a new system called DVIDA. The Arthur Murray system is still in use by the Arthur Murray franchise, but most dancers devoted to the American Style discipline use the DVIDA system. Smooth is unarguably the most theatrical style.
