Cha Cha Ballroom Dance

The Cha Cha ballroom dance often brings out the best in dancers because of its fun and kicky style that calls for fun and kicky music.

Cha Cha Ballroom Dancing

Cha Cha was developed after an English dancer went to Cuba in the early 1950s to see what Cubans were dancing at the time. He noticed a dance that had an unusual pattern of splitting the 4th beat and that required the dancer to start on the second beat, not the first. He brought the dance back to England and created what’s now known as the Cha Cha.

Many new dancers learn the Cha Cha inadvertently when they dance informally. They might hear, “two-three-chachacha”, which introduces them to the basic Cha Cha step.

These days, the Cha Cha is danced in international ballroom competitions as a Latin dance. The music that’s used for the Cha Cha is usually quite energetic and provides a steady, rather than syncopated, beat. Cha Cha can be slow in parts and may involve complicated rhythms depending on the music.

Another form of Cha Cha is basic country and western dances that are usually quick dances with simple rhythms and basic beats.

Cha Cha steps

The basic pattern of the Cha Cha goes something like this: The lead (usually the man) takes a checked forward step with the left while retaining some weight on the right foot. The knee of his right leg is flexed and close to the back of the left knee. The left leg will have straightened just prior to getting part of the weight. This first step is taken on the second beat of the bar.

On the second step, full weight is returned to the right leg (this is the third beat). The fourth beat is split into two, so the count of the following three steps is 4 and 1.

These three basic steps constitute the basic Cha Cha steps. The length of the steps in any part of the Cha Cha is determined by the music and the effect the dancer is trying to have with the dance.

While the male (or lead) dancer is performing these opening (or basic) steps, the woman takes a step back on her right foot and straightens her knee as it takes the full weight. The other leg is allowed to stay straight the entire time. On beat three, the weight is returned to the left leg.

At this point, then, the man and woman are each in the position that the other just danced.

Other aspects to Cha Cha

The general footwork in Cha Cha looks something like this – the steps in all directions should be taken with the ball of the foot in contact with the floor first, and then the heel is lowered until body weight is transferred. Some steps require that the heel remain off the floor.

Because this is a Latin dance, the hip movement is very important. Although it doesn’t require the hip movement and rolls that, say, the Samba or Mambo do, a gentle swinging of the hip and precise movements that require a subtle distribution of weight from one leg to another.