Getting Started with Ballroom Dance

You really don't need much to get started with Ballroom Dance. Whether you've decided to become a professional, been inspired by a movie, want to meet people or get in shape, are gearing up for a wedding, reunion or party, or just think it might be a fun thing to explore, here are the basics to get started. You need:

• A partner
• A place to dance
• Music
• Shoes
• Some sort of instruction

You can get into ballroom dancing for no money - literally! If you have a partner, have space to dance in your garage or basement, can use some old shoes, and get a video at the library or take a free class, you're dancing for free!

Most of us will decide to spend a little (or a lot) of money on one or more of these things.

A Partner

For me, this was obvious. I wanted to learn to dance with my finacee since we wanted to have dancing at our wedding. But if a partner doesn't come to mind, or if you want to learn to dance to meet people, you can join a class that accepts singles.

There are even classified ads for dance partners - On this site you can search by state or ZIP code - http://www.ballroomdancers.com/Classifieds/Partners/

A Place to Dance

We'd all love to have a great club that's open 24 hours a day, with food and drinks, great music, fabulous dancing couples to watch and scintillating table conversation between dances. If you find such a place (especially in my hometown of Tooele, Utah!) let me know.

In the meantime, anyplace with enough space to move around quite a bit is a good place to start. A concrete floor will do, a smooth floor (like epoxy or linoleum) is better, a wood floor is the best, and the easiest on knees, backs and ankles because it has some "give."

Music

Again, the library is a good place to start, or the Internet. Make sure you listen to music before you buy it. Share recordings with other couples in your class to get started inexpensively. Or start with a mixed CD that will let you explore a style before you move on.

Shoes

Shoes should be comfortable, but should definitely NOT be sneakers or trainers, which grip the floor. For most styles of dance, you will want to have a little bit of "slip" on the floor while still having good control. Choose shoes that are comfortable and have good arch support. It's good to practice in shoes you're going to "perform" in, or as close as you can get. I practiced for weeks in the shoes I was going to wear for the wedding, and was really happy that I did.

You might eventually want to look for costumes, since that's part of the fun, but I'll leave that to your instructor.

Some sort of Instruction

You may choose private lessons, a regular class, or just start with videos. I would recommend getting a video or two, or at least looking at some instructional materials on the Web. There are some really great visuals and definitions of concepts (Line of Dance, Foot Positions, Dance Positions, etc.) on the site below.

http://www.ballroomdancers.com/Learning_Center/Default.asp

Many studios offer an introductory lesson. This is a great opportunity to see if the course is a good fit for you - to see if the starting place, pace of instruction, style of dance, and personality of the people involved are a good "fit" for your goals and objectives.

There are even vacation "dance camps" for those who have the time and want to combine learning to dance with a vacation.

Once you've located a partner, a place to dance, music, shoes and some sort of instruction; you're on your way! Some of these things will change as you advance with dancing, others might stay the same. You might graduate to a different class or instructor, splurge on some great dance shoes, or take off on a professional career! In any case, you're on your way.

Best wishes to you, and let us know how it works out!