The final roller dance tutorial this month is a roller dance combination created by our instructor Ronke, who was inspired by skaters and teachers she's met on her skate journey. Do you recognise any signature moves by different skaters? To give you some clues, Richard Humhprey, Skate Fantacee and our very own Mel have moves in Step Wit It.
Like The Flower, this combination is designed to be danced to any music, although if you are practising, we suggest a slower pace!
What to do with your arms?
Keep your arms free and flowing, though do try to keep your hands at waist height or above, as you will find controlling your upper body will very much support movement in the lower body, particularly changes in direction.
Ronke also wanted to start almost everything on the left, as most dances have their first move on the right. Most moves are repeated - left first, then right
Breakdown of Moves:
First 8
Double tap left (1and 2)
Double tap right (3 and 4)
Tap forward, back and forward with a body roll. (body roll is 2 counts)
Second 8
Disco turn to the left (4 counts)
Swap left (2 counts) and right (2 counts)
Third 8
Quick weight shift left (to allow right foot to change position). Push left foot across to the right and step out. Sway left (2 counts) and right (2 counts).
Fourth 8
Quick weight shift right (to allow left foot to change position). Push right foot across to the left and step out. Sway right (2 counts) and left (2 counts).
Fifth 8
Left steps behind
Right tap out and back
Left tap out and back
Right tap out and together
Sixth 8
Left kick forward, step and right taps out (1 and 2)
Right kick forward, step and left taps out (3 and 4)
repeat again both sides
Seventh 8
Dance break!
4 counts left, 4 counts right - you can do whatever you like, we usually bounce and move arms.
Eighth 8
STARTS TO THE RIGHT!
Step right, and cross travel to the left. (4 counts)
Push right foot, and pull back toe to turn (5, 6)
Repeat to fully turn the other way (7,8)
End with a double clap
The moves will make more sense once you also watch the video as there are many moves that could match some of the descriptions!
A reminder to be kind to yourself
Please be patient with learning this - there are plenty of times we still mess up one of the 8 counts or forget a move entirely - it's totally normal! (It has been over a year since this combination was created and practised.)
Roller dance requires a lot of control and understanding of where to place your weight to facilitate movement in your chosen direction.
We recommend that you have some fundamental skills for roller skating before specialising with any particular discipline. These include: good push and glide technique, at least one way of stopping, falling safely, balancing on one foot while rolling and then stationary. Turning around and skating backwards are a bonus - you don't need these skills for roller dance, but understanding these movements and being able to confidently perform them will allow you to join in with many more dances. In the meantime, why not create your own routine?.
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