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Keeping yourself busy and entertained throughout quarantine can honestly be a mission. There is only so much Netflix and YouTube you can binge before you get bored. And if you are like me, you probably have re-discovered everything in your house, organized that messy closet, and probably baked your way through quarantine (cookies over banana bread any day). But one great form of passing time is dancing. Dance has become a great form of entertainment, keeping yourself healthy, and keeping your spirits up through these unfortunate times. Over the past couple of months, technology has become our *literal saviour throughout this whole pandemic. And if you are like me you probably spent the majority of your time on your phone or on your laptop, so why not learn to groove in the comfort of your bedroom, kitchen, living room or even backyard. If you want to learn the best tips to kick start your dancing journey Quarantine style, here are 6 ways to dance it out at home.
1. Find a good spot to dance
Probably one of the most important ones in this list, having a good place to dance is kind of key to all of this going smoothly. Having a corner in your bed room or living room is perfect, hey if you even have room in your bathroom go for it! If you need to make some space, push some furniture out of the way just enough to give you the perfect amount of space to shimmy (and to make sure you don’t hit your ankle on your desk, trust me it hurts).
Pro-tip: make sure you have a spot to prop up your laptop or phone so you can see what you are doing when practicing.
2. Focus on each move right when learning the choreography
When dancing it out, you want to be able to perfect each move. So go over everything multiple times until you feel most comfortable with it. The best thing about dancing at home is no one is watching you, you can practice as much as you want/can and no one will look at you funny (if a family member or friend is, just ask them to join along and this way you both get to have fun). Perfecting a move can take time so don’t feel rushed when you are practicing, just go at your own pace and you will get there! Remember practice makes perfect.
3. Take your time
Like the point listed above, learning new choreography can be challenging so take your time doing so, once you perfected that one move and you are comfortable with it, add the next section onto it. Sometimes you may want to go back and forth with choreography so you get the hang of all the moves together. Don’t feel rushed into learning everything right away, you have all the time in the world to do so (literally). If you need to take breaks do so, learning something new can be challenging and sometimes taking a little breather can help in the long run.
Pro tip: take each section slowly, once you have mastered the one, add onto it and go over it from the top so you remember it all together.
4. Don’t be afraid to ask questions
Ask questions, ask questions, ask questions! If there is one thing that can help you when learning to dance at home is (you guessed it) ask questions. Your dance teachers are here to help, if you are confused about a part or don’t quite understand what they mean, the best way to learn and understand is simply by asking. Teachers and choreographers want you to understand the piece they are teaching you, whether it is telling a story or just simply grooving to the beat and having fun. Trust me when I say you will have more fun when you understand what you are doing and not feel awkward when doing it.
5. Find your own rhythm/ use methods or numbers to get it
One thing that can easily go unnoticed and can greatly impact your learning of a dance is your rhythm or counting. If I am being completely honest there is no cookie-cutter answer on how each person interprets music through choreography. Each person has their own understanding of rhythm or counting that might not work for everyone. However, where you can start off with is a basic 8-count. Once you get the hang of counting, you can work within that to help you interpret the music and practice on your own. If counting doesn’t work for you then you can always use scatting, beating or literally any noise to help you achieve learning or practicing at home.
Side note: literally every dancer, choreographer or teacher has their own method and if you are asking yourself do they look crazy while doing it—the answer will always be yes. But, if it gets us to the finish line we will always scatt, beat or make weird noises to help get us there!
6. Just do it, don’t think too much about it
Have fun with it, at the end of the day that’s what dancing is for. We are all cooped up trying our best to cope with these uncertain times and the best way to help relieve stress and worry is through dance. So get up, blast that song, join your zoom dance class and just have fun. Don’t think about it too much, you are here to enjoy your time and your online dancing journey!
In the heart of it, dance is for everyone at any time or place. While practicing social distancing, dance can help you kick start your day in the comfort of your own home. So push that furniture aside, put on your favourite workout outfit and have fun! If you are interested in learning more about online dance classes, be sure to check out STUArts Dance here.We may be in quarantine but we always have dance!