Hey Dancers! This week I broke a sweat dancing to street styles. Read on to find out why!

Basics

Class: Commercial Choreo | Street Styles – All Level

Studio: The Dance Complex

Teacher: Patrick Lloyd Opran (@pat_planet)

Time: 1.5 hours

Category: Teens 16+ and Adults

Cost (Single Class): $22

Background: Blending street styles like funk and hip-hop with sharp linework seen in jazz, street style is a type of dance usually seen in mainstream entertainment such as movies, music videos, and concerts. Pat is an experienced professional dancer who has performed on TV, in commercials, and on live stages; he was the first male to become an NBA Boston Celtics Dancer. His All Level class is designed for everyone, and helps dancers develop hip-hop technique and stage presence (Opran, The Dance Complex; Opran, patplanet).

OOTD

As with all the dance classes so far, comfortable clothes are essential l. In this case, so are comfortable shoes, and an updo for those with long hair who want it off their necks.

Atmosphere & Energy

As soon as I entered the studio, I knew that this was a class where dancers took themselves seriously. Not to say that they weren’t fun or inviting, but unlike other classes, where movement only began when the teacher announced the start of the lesson, here most of the 25 dancers in attendance were already warming up and stretching their limbs on the floor unprompted.

When the class started and Pat asked who was a first timer, I discovered I was the only one (okay, there was one other dancer who had been there only once before, but still), a fact which further cemented my understanding that the dancers who attend this class are experienced, serious, and committed. “So you don’t know what you’re in for? Good luck!” Pat said to me. “Thanks!” I responded, up for the challenge.

Dancers who knew one another greeted each other, and during the water break Pat encouraged us to speak to someone we didn’t know, because dance is a community (I spoke to the dancer who had only been there once before, and to the other dancer who shared the back row with us and informed us that Pat would go over the same choreography in another class later that week).

So, while the choreography was fast-paced and learning was intense, the atmosphere was also friendly and playful. For example, when we felt less confident going over the steps, Pat cheekily covered his eyes and agreed not to watch us during the first run, so we could gain confidence. Pat also kept the energy high through his own movements and motivating words, his background as an NBA Dancer really shining through. And really, how could the energy not be amazing when we were dancing to Christina Aguilera’s “Dirrty”?

Dance Difficulty

This was probably one of the more physically challenging classes I attended as part of Dance Diaries in terms of stamina, technique, and fast-paced learning.

Pat started us off with an intense warm up, which, beyond the usual stretching, consisted of sit-ups, push-ups, and other exercises that worked on different muscle groups and required stamina. Thankfully, we were awarded a water break after the warm up, before jumping into learning Pat’s ~30 second choreography to Christina Aguilera’s “Dirrty.”

Though Pat would consistently check in to see if we were catching on (“Yes or yes?”), answer any questions, ask if we wanted to review again before running with music, and provide detailed explanations of the movements he was looking for (raise your elbows, sharper, like cupid, etc.), learning was fast-paced, and so were the movements in the choreography itself.

So yes, the class is friendly to all levels in the sense that anyone can try it, but also, those who have existing dance experience with hip-hop or other classes with quick choreo sequences are more likely to catch on quickly (check out the class video I shared on the Dance Diaries Instagram @dancediaries0 to see what I mean).

Top Tip

Be kind to yourself. If, like me, you have less experience with fast-paced choreography, you’re unlikely to get everything right the first time. And that’s okay! The important thing is that you’re moving and enjoying yourself.

Luckily for me, I danced in the back row, so I was able to learn from those in front of me. Also, Pat would only give notes to dancers in the front rows which he knew well, so I wasn’t worried about being called out in front of everyone. Yes, it was challenging getting these sharp movements down within an hour of learning them, but it was also fun to move in new ways and rewarding to feel myself improve and become more comfortable with every additional time we ran the dance.

Awkward

There was a particular part of the dance where I kept messing up and going to the opposite direction, and I got frustrated with myself every time. Even though no one was calling me out or judging me, my reactions to the mistakes showed me that I was being hard on myself and reminded me to give myself grace. Frankly, I was too shy to ask for clarification on the step, but luckily another dancer did, and it made me dance more smoothly moving forward.

Awesome

I wasn’t entirely confident in my movements during the class, but I was confident I was getting a great workout! From the warmup and till the end of class I felt my body at work, and even though I wasn’t in the best mood when I arrived at class, I left satisfied that I had completed it. This was also one of the only classes where I noticed my muscles felt sore the next day – always a good sign that I pushed myself and made the most out of the physical activity!

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for a dance challenge, a good workout, or a high-energy fast-paced professional dance environment, this would be a great class for you! If you’re new to the dance world, don’t feel confident in your stamina, or prefer slower-paced learning, I suggest you keep moving.

That’s all for this week! Visit Dance Diaries next Tuesday at 8PM for another diary entry. See you then dancers 🙂