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Let us talk handholds in social partner dancing, let us take a closer look at the basic handholds for the start position of Open Position in Cuban Salsa and for Salsa in general and for several other social dances like Bachata: “Claim the Wall” (The Cup) , The Pistol (Gun), the Spiderman, and he Classic Cuban Macho handholds. What are the arguments, pro et con, for and against?

The following text is the talking points for the much richer video below. It is not a transcription.

Climb the Wall

I like the descriptive name “Claim the Wall” because that is what it looks like when the Follow’s hand is added. Some dancers refer to the same handhold as the “Cup” because it looks like the Lead is holding a cup.

What are the arguments for using Climb the Wall?

1. “Climb the Wall” is a mutual handhold. The Lead has the overall responsibility but the Follow must contribute half the tension and both are responsible for the success of the handhold, making the Lead and Follow equal partners in the dance.
2. The Follow is invited, she is offered the Lead’s hand in a respectful manner, she is free to accept and to connect as she pleases, and she can disconnect and walk away at any time.
3. The handhold is soft on the Follow’s fingers, wrist and hand. No grabbing, no locking, no thumbs, no squeezing.
4. “Claim the Wall” is the only handhold that works the same for Open and Closed position, only the angle of the hand and arm is different.
5. “Claim the Wall” is the easiest handhold to transform into other handholds necessary for turn action and more dynamic dancing: Palm against palm, magnetic touch, fingertips against fingertips, hooked fingers, etc.
6. Claim the Wall, like the other mutual handholds, is also easy to transform into handholds of turn action because the Follow already contributes half the tension.
7. “Claim the Wall” has by far the biggest surface for the Follow to climb and hook up to and to play up against: The full back of the Lead’s hand.
8. “Climb the Wall” has two build-in Plan B Options, using the index finger or the thumb.

Pistol or Gun

The Pistol or Gun looks like “Climb the Wall” except that the Index Finger is not part of the wall but points forward resembling the barrel of a gun, but he Follow “climbs” the rest of the wall.

I have still not heard one argument for using the Pistol, it looks weird with a finger pointing at the Follow, it could easily end up in an eye, or get stuck in the hair and the clothes of the Follow.

By not letting the Index finger participate in the wall, the wall is not only made less solid, the width of the wall is the Follow can “hook up to” or “play up against” is reduced to half of it’s former glory. https://youtu.be/23ksbvy9kbU

Spiderman

The “Spiderman” handgrip is a variation of the “Pistol” where the pinky, the baby finger also points forward. it is even more dangerous and prone to cause problems during the dance than the Pistol handhold. If you want the Follows to focus on your hands and to remember you for the weirdness of your handhold, go use the “Spiderman”!

Cuban Macho

In Cuban Salsa most Leads, most places, still use the classic Cuban one-sided Macho handhold: Grabbing, squeezing and locking onto the Follow’s fingers, hand, wrist or forearm, and they use the thumb for locking. Some Leads do use “Climb the Wall” or switch between “Climb the Wall” and “Macho” even in the same dance without thinking about it.

The Cuban one-sided Macho handholds of domination are the signature handhold of the Cuban Macho dancer and the foundation of Cuban Macho dancing so common in Cuban social dances like Son and Casino. The Lead doubles down, his social dance choreography is all or mostly about himself with very little room in it for the Follow.

Let us take a closer look at the Cuba Macho Handholds:

1. Some Leads manage to use the Macho handholds in a gentle manner. But they have a tendency to be too hard on the Follower’s hand and wrist. This is a serious issue in each and every Cuban Salsa class all over the world. I have experienced it myself when I dance as a Follower. Cuban Macho handholds are the only handholds having these physical problems.
2. Even if used in a gentle way, the Cuban Macho handholds have a tendency be an unpleasant experience for many Followers. They don’t feel free but grabbed, locked-in and even manhandled like a child or an animal. Cuban Macho handholds are the only handholds having these psychological problems.
3. The Cuban Macho Handholds using a lot of squeezing, locking and firm gripping, including the use of the thumb, set a bad example for the Follow. As soon as turn action or more dynamic dancing begins, it is very common that even experienced Followers start to grab back, to squeeze and lock on to the Lead’s hands using the thumb. This behaviour can completely ruin a dance experience. But have can I tell the Follow not to do so, if that is exactly what I do myself as a Lead?
4. The one-sided Macho handholds are less good at transforming themselves into handholds of turn action and more dynamic dancing, palm against palm, magnetic touch or slightly bend or hooked fingers where the Follow needs to participate with half the tension. It is simply not that easy for the Follow smoothly and fast to switch between just being a manhandled doll and next an equal partner and then back again just being manhandled.
5. Even if you have the best intensions of creating a Follow-Centric dance, Macho handholds are the worst possible point of departure. Some Leads manage to be Follow-centric anyway, but it is an uphill battle to avoid a Lead-heavy dance style.

Let me end this rant with a personal note. In Copenhagen, when I started to learn Cuban Salsa, I was lucky that two of the local instructors from Cuba used Climb the Wall, one of them even promoted this handhold with a lot of arguments. But many of my other instructors used Cuban Macho.

For a long time I didn’t know what to use myself and switched back and forth between Climb the Wall and Macho. But then one day I danced with a super Follow. She had recently won a Marilyn Monroe look-a-like competition. I was using the Cuban Macho handhold, and she said to me: “Please don’t use that handhold squeezing my hands, you are hurting my wrist!” From that moment, I have only used Climb the Wall!