26 Apr Couple of the month: Christine and Stephen
In this article cycle, we will post interviews with some of our wedding couples to help you better understand the preparation process as well as what to expect from the dance on the big day. You can see the dance video at the end of the article!
Dance style: Mix Styles
Song: Tenerife Sea
Amount of Lessons: 17
1. How did you pick a song for your first dance?
We picked a song that I introduced to Christine so it had some connection with the both of us. It was also nice that it wasn’t a song played on the radio or something we’ve heard at 100 other weddings before.
2. What was the most important requirement for your wedding dance?
Our major goal was to not make fools of ourselves in front of everyone.
3. How many months in advance did you start? Did you have a dance experience before?
I originally purchased a package as a Valentine’s/Birthday present for Christine in February of 2020 for our wedding that July. I had no dance experience and she said she didn’t want our first dance “to be a middle school sway.” Due to the pandemic, we changed our plans to a backyard wedding and did a few Zoom classes starting in May until the studio reopened closer to the wedding. We learned some basic steps and a little choreography so we could have a small first dance for our family. As things started to get a bit more open in the pandemic, we planned to have a bigger party as a 1 year anniversary celebration. We decided to do a more elaborate routine now that we knew some basic steps which we began practicing for in December.
4. What was the biggest challenge for you preparing the dance and how did you overcome it?
For the small ceremony, the biggest challenge was preparing during a pandemic. Luckily, we were able to do a few sessions via Zoom and had the opportunity to do one or two sessions in-person right before the day. For the second wedding, it was finding space big enough to practice in our small Brooklyn apartment with our overly curious puppy trying to join in the fun.
5. Did you feel comfortable on the dance floor on the day of the wedding?
Yes. We had practiced so many times by that point that we mostly had the routine down. Looking back we definitely made a few mistakes during, but neither of us noticed in the moment and nobody in the crowd noticed or cared.
6. Tell our future couples what to expect from the wedding dance on the day of!
Just relax and have fun. You’re going to be more critical of yourself than the crowd. Most of them will be so impressed that you did more than just a back and forth sway. Throw in a turn and they’ll be cheering for you.
7. How did you feel after the performance on the day of?
It was a great sense of relief to have gotten through it without any major mess up. Then it was fun hearing all the reactions from our friends and family who didn’t know we knew how to dance.
8. What advice can you give to the couples?
Practice, practice, practice and then just relax and let whatever happens happen on the day. Also if you can do a run through on the dance floor. We did ours when we had finished pictures and everyone was in the cocktail hour.
9. Are you going to dance after the wedding? 🙂
Steve says no, but Christine says yes.
You can see an extract from the dance below:
See more wedding dances by Brooklyn Dance Lessons on our youtube channel.
Book your dance lesson here.