Dancing out of our comfort zones

Imagine being told by your boss to participate in a dance class when you have no prior experience in dancing, and have always been known to be “the stiff one” among your friends.

Initially, we were apprehensive. We were not sure if we could pull off any dance moves, let alone a K-pop female dance, which usually involves provocative dance moves like body waves and chest pumps.

Casting our doubts aside, Camillia and I participated in a K-pop Female MV Dance class organised by The Esplanade, on one lazy Sunday afternoon.

The dance class was part of Footwork, a series of introductory workshops that caters to adults and youths, covering different styles of dance such as lyrical hip-hop and contemporary.

We did not know what to expect when we stepped into the rehearsal studio, clad in our tights – in our attempt to look more professional and ready for class.

We were on time, but already there were about 20 ladies waiting in the studio, chatting and stretching away. We began to feel nervous as there were more participants than we expected. It seems like the power of K-pop is still going strong.

We were expecting to meet a stern dance instructor who will be pushing our stiff bodies to our limits, but instead, we met Jojo, who is friendly and encouraging. She would often make small jokes to make us feel more at ease.

Just when we started to feel more confident about ourselves after a simple introduction to some of the basic dance moves, Jojo announced that she had chosen for us a song, named ‘Hot Pink’ by EXID.

The song would require us to let loose and be as sexy (what?!) as possible. We silently groaned as she demonstrated the dance moves we will be required to learn. There is no way we will be able to pull that off.

‘Hot Pink’ is an upbeat track that involves plenty of sensual pelvic movements and body waves which we struggled very much with, even till the end of class. We just didn’t know how to make our bodies look more relaxed! Instead, we looked like robots trying to be seductive.

Can you imagine that?

The only moves we managed to execute successfully were spinning on the spot, and sucking our thumbs – which Jojo explained was one of EXID’s signature moves, and one in which we couldn’t comprehend. How does that make us look sexier?!

Click on the video below to watch how we embarrassed ourselves during class – you have our permission to laugh at us!

Despite having trouble letting loose and pulling off a sexy concept, it was an eye-opening experience to see how enthusiastic and energetic everyone is. Perhaps stepping out of our comfort zones wasn’t so bad after all. We might even take up a similar dance class in future, just not the K-pop ones.

If you are a beginner dancer like us, don’t be afraid to give these introductory classes a try. Bring along a few friends and you may even find yourself enjoying it or having a good laugh over how awkward you are – just like how we did!

Footwork is a series of introductory dance workshops running from Jun 11 to Oct 2, leading up to Esplanade’s da:ns festival, an annual performance showcase of various dance genres. Head here for more information.