How To Get Involved In Your Dance Community

Dancing is a unique art in that it is inherently social. You dance at weddings, parties, at the club, for cultural rituals...

The social aspect of dance is one of the things that makes it so powerful; it has connected people within cultures, as well as across the world.

Your dance "community" can mean so many different things – whether you're from the West Coast's Urban Dance Community, or a part of a collegiate team at your university, you're in our Facebook group of STEEZY Studio members, or you're just getting to know the names of the people who take the same 8 pm class at your local studio...

We all have our little pockets of family that share are love of dance.

This last section of this Beginner Dance Guide will explore how you can become more involved in these dance families.

Try some of these things and you'll start to form an even stronger, deeper, and more fulfilling relationship with dance.

Because, in the end, it's about what you do and who you do it with.

1. Join a dance team

There are a lot of dance teams and projects in Southern California, which means there are a lot of opportunities to join one.

But most areas of the world aren't teeming with teams (hehe).

If you're lucky enough to live somewhere where there are local dance teams to join, read: How To Make Your Dream Dance Team

‍And once you make it on, use these tips for being on a dance team: How To Cultivate Positive Relationships In The Dance Community

2. Support your studio

But if there aren't 10 different teams and 20 projects to join in your area, then getting involved at your studio is a great way to start building that dance community for yourself.

Don't just drop in, take class, and bounce. Instead, say hello to the staff, chat with the other students, ask them to hang out.

Once you start getting to know each other and exchanging ideas, you'll discover so many new things that you can do together as dancers!

You can even start working there are staff, offering outside skills (customer service? social media management?).

Some studios I've been to have work-study or internship programs – ask about starting one at yours!

3. Start your own dance project

Your own dance project can be anything. Get like, 4 of your dance friends together and make a video for YouTube. Have a freestyle session together in your garage.

Enter a competition. Host your own competition.

We get tons of messages from dancers all over the world who don't have many dance resources in their area, which makes it difficult to start forming a community.

But that's okay – this is how everything starts. From nothing.

Each of us has the power and right to take initiative, to create these resources and communities ourselves.

You can start by doing something super simple, like posting a Facebook status that says "Anyone in ___ area interested in dance? Comment below or tag someone you know" and see who's down to grow with you.

I mean, Keone Madrid literally started dancing by getting his homies together in high school to do a bunch of N'Sync choreography at school performances.

They started dancing when/where "dancing wasn't even cool." You never know what you can make – until you try.

4. Know that whomever you are, wherever you live, we're in this thing together

I'm writing this from STEEZY HQ (our office) in Downtown Los Angeles.

You could be reading it from down the street...

Or from Russia. Or the Philippines. Or from Canada, Japan, Ukraine, Indonesia, Germany, Oklahoma...

It's amazing how all of us, no matter where we live or come from, landed in the same space by clicking on this article.

In the same vein, dance unites people from all over the world through this love that we share together. So don't be jaded. Don't you dare feel alone.

Because you, my friend, are a part of this community.

‍We're almost there! Click for Section 10, where you'll set some dance goals of your own!