A Snippet of History

A monthly history lesson!

Where did Balboa come from? Like so many dances of the swing era, nobody is really entirely sure, even those who danced back in the day. We do know that the name "Balboa" came from the Balboa peninsula at Newport Beach near Los Angeles, where the Balboa was danced. People of course called it "the dance being done in Balboa" and then just "the balboa." We also know that people were dancing Balboa in the 20s and it gained popularity throughout the 30s.

It seems there is a general concensus among the experts with whom I've talked that Balboa developed out of a need to dance on very crowded dance floors. As you might know, partners are very close to one another in Balboa, so you can see how this would be advantageous in crowded areas.

Some dance halls of the era forbade "breakaways," or partners separating from each other. They also banned the wild kicks associated with the Charleston, another popular "fad" dance from the era. These measures have been explained by some as being "conservative," and by others as being merely practical measures to ensure that the dance floors were as packed as possible.

"Pure Balboa," as it is called today, is Balboa danced without any breakaways. There are no turns, no whips, nothing except basic Balboa footwork with its gazillion intricate variations. Some people find pure balboa to be boring and limiting, but it is actually really intricate and challenging.

"Bal-swing," as it is called today, seems to have developed out of Balboa. It was danced on less crowded floors and in other areas of the west coast. In Bal-swing, the dancers can do just about any move they want - turns, flips, spins, etc. The dancers at the time generally called this just "swing," without bothering to differentiate it from the other types of swing being danced at the time. (Apparently, they were not as hung up on labels as we are today!)

Who is the guy in the picture? Willie Desatoff, one of the original Balboa dancers, who passed away in 2005. You can read more about him here.

Want to learn more about Balboa? Visit Balboa Nation. Want to learn to dance Balboa? Take a class!