When you first start dancing, it feels like you’ve entered an entirely new universe with its own set of rituals, inside jokes, and procedures.
It’s as if you’re on your first day at a new school and have no idea who the cool teachers are or what not to order from the cafeteria.
But don’t be concerned! You’ll naturally take up a lot of knowledge as you progress through your dance adventure.
Aside from all of this technical, factual information, there are some topics that you simply must discuss with someone who has been there and done that.
Things that choreographers do not teach in class and that your other dance pals may not understand.
So we considered all of the things we wish we had known about dancing when we first started and decided to share them with you.
Here are five things that every novice dancer should know-:
1. Dancing doesn’t feel natural
Many dancers advise that after you have the hang of it, you should “simply do it naturally” or “it should feel natural.”
However, this is deceptive and disappointing because most beginning dancers will not feel at ease.
Walking comes naturally to me. Brushing your teeth comes naturally to you. They only feel normal since they are movements we make daily.
Dance steps, movements, and grooves, on the other hand, are novel patterns of movement that we do not practise every day.
Telling someone that it should “feel natural” makes sense only if they’ve practised the movement enough for it to feel natural to them.
Don’t worry if you still feel stiff, awkward, or uncomfortable; nothing is wrong with you. All you need is practise.
2. Its Never too late to start
To begin with, you are not alone in your emotions.
Thinking it’s “too late” is foolish not just for a teenager, but for everyone, at any age.
Because there is no single “timeline” that you must adhere to.
You can begin doing whatever you want whenever you want.
We all understand this cognitively, but we still have a hard time breaking out of that mindset.
3. Give credit for everything
If you create music or choreograph pieces, your “product” is circulated all over the internet with no way to trace its origin.
It is vital to highlight that the “product” of a CD is the music on it, not the CD itself.
The “product” of a concept video is the choreography in it, not the video itself.
The “product” of books is the words on their pages, not the physical book itself.
DO credit the choreographer if you perform a dance cover of their work.
NEVER claim an item as your own if it is not yours.
DO SHARE VIDEOS OF YOUR SPLIT SOUL DANCE ACADEMY CLASSES and MENTION US AND THE CREATIVE!
4. Everyone you look up to starts where you are now.
On that topic, all of the great and successful people in the dance world… (you guessed it) practised a lot. It’s not magic or natural selection.
They were all beginners at one point.
They’d all spent years in front of mirrors, trying to find out how to do that one thing with their feet or loosen up their wrists so they didn’t look like robots.
Unless they were attempting the robot.
But it isn’t; it is simply an issue of time and how much discipline and motivation you have during that period.
So many people worked hard till they could dance with their first idea.
Even if you don’t want to pursue dancing professionally, remember that everyone who has reached what you want to achieve was once a brand new dancer.
5. Your “style” will develop. For the time being, just do anything you want.
One question is frequently asked by novice dancers about how to achieve their distinct look or movement style.
Wish there was a one-size-fits-all, fail-safe method for everyone to become their own Franklin Yu, but there isn’t.
There is just one piece of cliched advice that is the BEST way to dance (and live life). Do the activities you enjoy.
You’ll get better at them and like them even more as time goes on. You’ll discover more stuff you like as a result.
Your favourite ways of moving will eventually combine to form your style.
We hope this made you feel more welcome and prepared to go on this journey, new dancers!