The Social Colgada is in many ways very similar to the Single Axis Turn. That’s because they’re from the same family of vocabulary. So theoretically, if you know one, ha ha ha, you should be able to execute the other. Not true actually, there are stark differences between the two. One primary difference from the Single Axis Turn is that the Social Colgada is done with the partnership in a perpendicular position to each other rotating around a singular axis vs. the Single Axis turn where the partnership is facing each other. Still another is the Single Axis Turn rotates the couple 180 degrees without invoking a second step around, typically. Whereas the Social Colgada is typically a 270 to 360 degree turn!
The Colgada Rap! Before we go any further, truthfully Colgadas are typically manhandling events that most Follower’s want to avoid like the plague. The reason is a.) that they’re poorly executed. b.) they’re usually arm pushing and pulling experiences, and c.) someone (read that as the Follower) invariably gets hurt because their back has been wrenched this way or that. Most of this occurs because the Lead in question has not learned how to properly generate a Colgada. Where Colgadas get a bad rap is because of these 3 aspects which turns off a lot of people, obviously. However a Social Colgada on the other hand, while it has all the potential for these things to happen, is much smaller, and exists within solely within Close Embrace. When executed properly it can be one of Tango’s more elegant specialty pieces of spice or accent vocabulary.
What is a Social Colgada ? A ‘Social’ Colgada means that the Colgada itself takes up very little space, that it fits within the line & lane of dance, while the couple is in Close Embrace, and instead of executing the Follower’s Molinete to turn the couple, we invoke a Social Colgada. As to a Colgada aspect ? The word “Colgada” comes from the root Spanish verb “Colgar” which translates to English as “Hang”. The word ‘Colgada’ is the past participle version of the verb which adds an ‘ed’ ending to the word. Which when translated to English is ‘Hanged’ or rightfully ‘Hung’. So ? A ‘Social’ Colgada is a move where the Follower (specifically) is in a hanging state off their Lead, deliberately. More specifically, they’re being placed in a position where they’re going to hang. And that’s where we talk about a shared axis, and more importantly balance.
Ideally the Colgada itself is not about taking the Follower off axis, as you may have been told, but rather about creating a state of shared balance & equilibrium along the shared axis between the partnership. As there is always a shared axis between the dancing couple. Truthfully there are actually 6, not one. There’s the lead’s central longitudinal axis, the follower’s central longitudinal axis, and the shared central one between the two dancers which is created by their relationship to each other. It’s the last one that we’re interested in because it generates the space for a Colgada to exist.
The Free Tip. From the Follower’s position, and point is not shown in the video at all, the follower’s knees want to be “soft” or pliant. You don’t want them locked out or bent, but rather a micro-bend to allow for maximum flexibility!
About The Video. This video is 29m:09s in length in 12 sections. Both lead and follower technique are combined and integrated into the video.
Introduction – 00:01:04
The Mordida – 00:02:28
Balance & Planking – 00:03:06
The Kickstand – 00:01:41
The 3 Linear Cologadas – 00:03:08
The Circular Colgada – 00:01:40
The Colgada Embrace – 00:02:15
The Step Over Colgada – 00:02:56
The ‘Social’ Colgada – 00:03:03
In The Line Of Dance – 00:03:44
The ‘Whoosh’ Factor – 00:01:39
A Primary Lead Error/End – 00:01:39