Dance Lessons....

[TTB]

Hi all! :)

I'm from the UK & am certainly not a trained dancer, but have been heavily involved in musical theatre since I was 10 (I am now 22), so I have taken a lot of choreography in my time. :)

I don't currently intend to go into the industry (I'm actually just embarking on a maths PhD! Though who know's what might happen...) but I always wish to push what I do to the highest possible level, whether it be acting, singing, playing musical instruments [my main one's are guitar, bass, piano & organ], languages, etc. :-) But the one thing that I have always left out is dancing - I would therefore like to change this!

I am really interested in contemporary dance & am absolutely in LOVE with Michael Jackson! [I know that must be a cliche in a dance forum, but he was spectacular! Plus, speaking as a singer, he was absolutely top notch in that department too! ]

I realise I am starting late, but my aim is to dance like him! It's good to set your goals high! haha :D Plus I am totally willing to put in as much effort as is needed & am totally committed.

So, my question is what sort of dance classes, etc, should I be taking to learn his particular style? Where should I start? Is there some specific sort of class which teaches this area? Do I need prerequisite classes before this?

Basically, could you please outline the path I need to follow to achieve my goal? :)

Many thanks in advance x

[latingal]

Welcome to DF TTB!

If you mean contemporary dance as in modern dance kind of dance, I can help you there. But Michael Jackson? My guess is you're going to have to wait until somebody in jazz/hip-hop (?) genres to get you pointed in the right direction.

We have a sister forum that is devoted to solo (rather than partnered) dances that you may wish to check out. It's danceforums.net.

As for contemporary/modern dance, no prerequisites but ballet is helpful!

[etp777]

If you're just interested in MJ as a musical inspiration, head on over to ballroom forumand start on chacha and hustle. :)

And welcome to DF! though I'm sure LG is happy she beat me to that. ;)

[TTB]

Thank you very much latingal & etp777 for welcoming me to the forum! :D

One thing I forgot to add which I thought might be useful for everyone to know - as well as musical theatre I've also done a lot of martial arts since I was 11, in particular Judo, Iaido & Ju Jitsu. :)

latingal - please excuse my ignorance, but I am unsure what "modern dance" is. :confused: :( By "contemporary" I meant dancing like that of Michael Jackson, which has a very "modern" flavour.

Thanks x

[latingal]

latingal - please excuse my ignorance, but I am unsure what "modern dance" is. :confused: :( By "contemporary" I meant dancing like that of Michael Jackson, which has a very "modern" flavour.

Ahh. No worries TTB. In the dance world I come from, contemporary or modern dance is used as a term to denote a free-er form type of dance that was originally an offshoot of ballet. Here is a bit of information from Wikipedia:

"Modern dance is a more relaxed, free style of dance in which choreographers use emotions and moods to design their own steps, in contrast to ballet's structured code of steps. It has a deliberate use of gravity, whereas ballet strives to be light and airy." - Wikipedia

Most modern/contemporary is done bare foot and looks very "free form". You might recognize the style if you've ever seen So You Think You Can Dance or have ever heard of Merce Cunningham, Isadora Duncan, etc.

I believe the Michael Jackson style has more to do with the hip hop genre than contemporary or modern.

[opendoor]

Hi TTB, don´t commit yourself that much to MJ-style. That may be your aim, but not your next step. More important is to find an outstanding teacher. Don´t truckle though dancing courses, go to the overtaking lane.

My suggestions: NAMES first - than PRIVATES

-Find trainers that choreographed famous video clips, or
-Find students of those choreographers near by, or
-Find recording studios that are near by and ask who works with the dancers.

For instance, is someone near to your that learned with Doncer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQc_ZFR6iJU
or Errol Cenita http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEbDCNBQ5eQ

And this is very true:

… no prerequisites but ballet is helpful ! And if you don´t like to hop around with little girls, ask for privates, too, if you can afford.

best wishes
OD

[TTB]

Thank you SO much everyone for your feedback! :D

latingal - I shall certainly heed your advice and register to danceforums.net :) I have also investigated the "modern dance" that you yourself do, and it is AWESOME! :D

Thanks also to opendoor for your really interesting & informative response (& the videos are great & exactly what I meant! :) )

And thank you etp777 - although should I reeeeeeeeeeally be learning to the hustle to dance like MJ? ;)

All the best & thanks again x

[latingal]

You're welcome to TTB, and by the way if you have any interest in partnered dancing at all, or just want to hang out with some obsessed dancer types please do feel free to join in on our conversations around the forum!

[opendoor]

PS ... just found that Doncer is on mySpace (http://www.myspace.com/thedoncer): Write an email, and ask him for names..

cheers and good luck