Forró Atrás e Ao Lado
Core travelling variation of the forró universitário curriculum — back and then to the side
ForroLevel: Beginner2 min read1 citations
Forró atrás e ao lado — rendered in its fuller form as para trás e para o lado ('back and to the side') — is among the essential travelling variations of forró universitário, the structured academy style developed in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Beginning from the side-to-side basic in close embrace, the figure steers the couple along a two-segment L-shaped path: the leader steps directly back and transfers weight, then steps laterally and closes; the follower mirrors with the opposite foot, advancing into the vacated space before completing the same lateral close. Throughout, the movement tracks the even 2/4 forró pulse — one full weight change per beat, with no held break — so the couple's momentum carries continuously from one segment into the next.
The practical logic of the figure lies partly in floor navigation: a backward-then-lateral trajectory lets a pair open space behind them and reorient their line of travel without releasing the embrace or crowding neighbouring couples. Both redirections absorb quietly into the compact, upright posture of the close embrace, keeping the shared axis intact across the direction change.
Forró is inseparable from the festas juninas of Brazil's Northeast — the late-June popular celebrations that fall at the southern-hemisphere winter solstice of 21 June,[1] the date on which the Southern Hemisphere officially enters winter. The forró universitário curriculum that standardised terms such as atrás e ao lado emerged from this tradition and subsequently carried the vocabulary — and its Portuguese nomenclature — onto international social-dance floors.
How it's danced
Lead and follow cues
CountBinary 2/4 (the forró pulse): even quick-quick, one weight change per beat. The variation spans two bars — back and transfer on the first, side and close on the second — with no held break or tap. Forró timing is not counted in salsa's On1/On2 frame.
Lead
From the quiet close-embrace frame, settle your weight and step straight back (for example, back on the left), letting your chest carry the follower with you; transfer, then step to the side (to your right) and close. Keep the frame level and the travel low and grounded — no bounce — and mark the change of direction with the chest, not the arms.
Follow
Stay connected through the embrace and let the lead's chest draw you; as he steps back on the left, step forward on the right into the opened space, transfer, then match the lateral step to your left and close. Mirror his feet (opposite foot, shared travel direction) and wait for the lead — do not anticipate the move to the side.
Song timingComfortable across mid-tempo forró and xote, roughly 100–140 bpm counted on the 2/4 quarter-note pulse; faster baião and arrasta-pé above ~150 bpm reward shorter, tighter steps and a more compact back-and-side. The even quick-quick suits the steady forró groove rather than syncopated breaks.
Learn first
Prerequisites
- Forró close embrace and a quiet, level frame (quadro)
- The side-to-side basic ('dois pra lá, dois pra cá')
- Even weight transfer on the 2/4 pulse
- Floorcraft to travel backward safely in a crowd
Watch out
Common mistakes
- Pumping or breaking the close-embrace frame on the back step, so the lead is lost.
- Bouncing vertically instead of travelling low and grounded.
- Follower anticipating the side step before the lead's chest signals the change of direction.
- Stepping too far back, leaving no room to recover the floor space on the side step and crowding neighbours.
- Rushing ahead of the even 2/4 pulse and turning the quick-quick into uneven timing.
- Leader marking the direction change with the arms rather than the chest, so the couple wanders.
Don't confuse with
Easily confused moves
- 'Dois pra lá, dois pra cá' — the pure side-to-side basic, with no backward component.
- 'Frente e trás' (forward-and-back basic) — travels only on the front–back axis, never laterally.
- Salsa or bolero 'back basic' — a different rhythm and break, not the forró 2/4 travel.
- Reading 'ao lado' on its own as the side basic, dropping the defining back step.
Around the world
Other names
Brazil — forró universitário (academy style, São Paulo / Rio de Janeiro)
atrás e ao lado
also stated in full as 'para trás e para o lado'
References
- 1.2025 Junho 21 — Hoje na Historia, 2025, entry for 21 June 2025
How to cite this article
Choose a style and copy the citation.
Bailar Editorial Team. (2026). Forró Atrás e Ao Lado. Bailar Biblioteca. Retrieved June 29, 2026, from https://bailar.site/biblioteca/move/forro-atras-e-ao-lado
Bailar Editorial Team. “Forró Atrás e Ao Lado.” Bailar Biblioteca, 2026, bailar.site/biblioteca/move/forro-atras-e-ao-lado. Accessed 29 June 2026.
Bailar Editorial Team. “Forró Atrás e Ao Lado.” Bailar Biblioteca. Accessed June 29, 2026. https://bailar.site/biblioteca/move/forro-atras-e-ao-lado.
@misc{bailar-move-forro-atras-e-ao-lado, author = {{Bailar Editorial Team}}, title = {{Forró Atrás e Ao Lado}}, year = {2026}, howpublished = {Bailar Biblioteca}, url = {https://bailar.site/biblioteca/move/forro-atras-e-ao-lado}, note = {Accessed: 2026-06-29} }
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