Performing in front of a live audience and sharing everything you’ve learned with friends, family, and your community is part of the joy and rewards of world dance. However, it’s also the part that makes most people nervous. Even the greatest dancers in the world get nervous before a performance. It’s natural. The biggest worry is forgetting the choreography and getting lost. We’ve got a few tips for dancers on how to remember the choreography and have a great performance.
Tips on How to Remember the Choreography
Besides practice, practice, practice there are some tricks and tips that a dancer can incorporate to help remember the choreography for a live dance performance or showcase.
Chunking
One way to remember the choreography for your dance performance is to use a method called chunking. That is where you break up the routine into smaller chunks. Then you work on learning and memorizing each chunk. Once you have each part down, string them all together.
We do this naturally as we learn a dance. We break it up into sections and practice a little at a time. When you practice at home, keep practicing little chunks at a time. It’s a good way to solidify each section into your muscle memory.
Feel the Music
Dancing is done to music. So use the music to remember your parts. You can use parts of the song as cues to remind you which part comes next. That can work by connecting the parts of the song to parts of the choreography, like a slow part, fast part, chorus, verse, etc.
Naming Each Move
Naming the moves can also help. Instead of counting through the steps or beats in a 1-2-3-4 pattern, give each beat a name, such as slide, push, dip, and so on. In a sense, this is how to remember the choreography by talking your way through it as you go through the moves.
Often, there is no shortcut to learning. It takes lots of practice. Practicing for hours and developing muscle memory of the choreography is one of the best ways to really learn the dance moves. Remember, everyone gets nervous before a performance. For group dances, like our world dance performances and showcases, we can also lean on each other to calm nerves and help us through a performance.
Should you get lost in the choreography, forget a step, or make a wrong move, just look to your fellow world dancers who will get you back on track. The trick is to not get flustered but to keep breathing, keep moving, and just keep enjoying your time on stage. If you’ve practiced and prepared enough, the dance will come back to you and a couple of wrong steps will soon be forgotten to the sound of thunderous applause.
Want to learn world dance and start to perform around town with the rest of our company? Register for one of our world dance classes.