Can autistics learn to dance?

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Of course autistics can learn to dance!

They can learn anything they want!

i took ballet when i was really young and i was really clumsy and i ended up getting yelled at for being on my toes too much but i wasn't terrible for a 4 year old. i tried to take it again when i was 13 but that went miserably as i was so clumsy compared to all the other kids and i couldn't time anything whatsoever so i stopped after like 2 months

a mix between ballet and karate? makes me think of pearl from steven universe (bc her fighting style and all)

Actually, that's a myth. Unstructured/freestyle dancing is actually rife with subtle social rules on what's hot and what's not. Do a step with you foot a few inches off away the "correct" distance, position your arms an angle a few degrees off, or move your hips in the wrong motion, and suddenly, you're a clumsy oaf at best, and an awkward loser at worst. All according to NT "judges". I know all this from personal experience.

You're far better off doing structured dances with a wide margin of error. That is, the ones you where you can recover from a blunder quickly. These include merengue and swing. In merengue, it's by doing a full spin (by women) and by spinning the lady (by men). In swing, it's by doing a few measures of the basic step, by both partners together. A few other dances have their own "recovery" moves. Also, if you know structured dances, you'll generally be forgiven for minor mistakes, simply because most people won't expect you to be a pro. You'll get some brownie points just for doing them in the first place, as long as you respect your partner's boundaries. (That means don't dance too close.) While in unstructured/freestyle dancing, being great at it and looking good doing it is 100% mandatory at all times.

Through nearly a decade of dedicated lessons and practicing "in the field", I was able to learn to dance well enough to get compliments from all but the most judgmental NT dancers. But only in structured dances. For freestyle dancing, I stay away from it as far as I can, with very few exceptions.

Well, Michael Jackson was a fabulous dancer imo.

...I'd say " yes "...........

Who says dancing has to be with or around other people?

I've been told I'm an excellent dancer (and in my own opinion I think I'm alright). Although I can't just start dancing randomly to whatever, it turns out horribly. But I can dance very well if I practice in front of a mirror. I used to spend a lot of time learning k-pop dances that way. I naturally have sort of fast/jerky movements so I think that's why I like hip hop (male k-pop groups) the best. Highly doubt I'd ever be able to do ballet.

i did well in disco and ballroom classes. my freestyle is kind of boring.

I dunno, I feel like for some things that I really want to do physically well, like basic speed tapping tests/games, I do poorly on them but not because I am not focussed on it. Obviously focus is necessary to do one's best though.

No I look like a spazzy moron when I try to dance.

You are describing a structured unstructured dance, I was not. And you were actually just reaffirming my point that an unstructured dance is more likely to feel awkward. Secondly, the vast majority of actual structured dances involve a partner(s)...this makes it faaaar more important to be good. I disagree with what you say about unstructured dancing requiring being great at it and looking good at it 100% of the time; you are just perpetuating the sh***y idea that there is a right and wrong way to dance. (Well there is to a degree, don't use more space than you have.) If you stop being embarrassed by how you unstructured dance I still think it is way easier than structured dancing.

In a perfect, all-aspie world, you'd be right. But this is not our world. NTs decide what's good and what's awkward, as far as dancing is concerned, and they won't tell you how you look until after the fact. Maybe their hearts are in the right place, but I still suffered for it. The only advice I've been able to get on freestyle dancing is "just follow the beat" . Many times I've tried doing it and "following the beat" , I've gotten reactions ranging from a polite "cut it out!" hand motion, to a cruel pointing and laughing by a group who is good at it. So there is a right way and a wrong way to do it.

Since nothing short of holding the entire planet Earth hostage will convince NTs to tell you how to freestyle dance correctly, I solve the problem by not doing it at all.

Pics or it didn't happen.

I can't learn to dance.
I took ballroom dancing lessons and I was the dunce of the class. I kept making mistakes.
Then I tried going to senior dances where they had big band music and ballroom dancing.
The guys I danced with tried to help me but I still couldn't do it, so they told me I should take dancing lessons but I already did.

I did dancing classes from age 4-17 and was particularly obsessed with ballet. It's how I got away with walking on my toes not being noticed (not that I tried to hide it)- I danced everywhere. I really think ballet could be of HUGE benefit to most autistic people. There must be some autistic roots to it- it came so naturally to be on my tiptoes, "feel" the music and relay that in a mature way. I taught myself to dance 'en-pointe' when the pace of the other kids was too slow lol. It is definitely therapy and the best fitness routine ever. I wasn't too good at tap but repetition and determination made me able to get a few complex dances in the end. I still have to do one of them whenever I stand on a hard floor with boots on :/ haha.

I make a few clumsy or spastic-type movements with my hands but when I was younger I flounced around like a ballet dancer all day and I believe it's the reason I had so much control over my body- muscle tone is important. When I haven't danced for ages I get much more clumsy. I've been looking into dance therapy and hope I can develop some therapeutic techniques for autism.

My boyfriend has dyspraxia and has a very *ahem* unusual dance, but it's sexy and funny and I absolutely love it. It makes my night out to see him dance. Dr Peter Lovatt aka "doctor dance" says EVERYONE can dance, and his entire career has been studying the science of dance. He can tell what "time of the month" it is when women dance and the level of testosterone a man has. He's amazing Doctor Dance

Proof we have natural dance-ability...
This guy didn't start ballet til 15yo
This kid starts the party
Autistic toddler dancing

Oh and I don't know if this guys diagnosed but this looks like "autistic dancing" to me... and it's unbelievable!

Love these https://youtu.be/u0pS0N_Vy4A