Line Dance 101 is not only the one I recommend for new line dancers, it's also a great resource for having fun and truly understanding what all goes into line dancing. Students AND teachers around the world use this DVD as their reference. Why? Click the sections below and get all the details...
Line Dance 101 was made for you if:
I developed Line Dance 101 after years of testing different material, auditing 100's of classes, and surveying my students. As soon as it all came together, it all seemed so simple. When I do live Line Dance 101 classes now, the material is presented in pretty much the same order and the only differences relate to the music (as there are many options you can choose when doing it live) and to reacting to the class progress. Line Dance 101 was designed and developed to be a stand-alone introduction to line dancing and that's exactly what it is. If you've never line danced, order and go through Line Dance 101 first! It will save you SO much time, money and frustration.
In Line Dance 101, I start everyone out with some easy movements that you'll be able to do and I tell you what "line dance term" they're called so you'll be prepared as we add on or come back to them. I teach one step at a time by showing it from different angles and allowing you time to practice. Once we have a few steps down individually, I put them together in a sequence to practice. This way, you start understanding how sequences are built and how to mix and match your own. Once you have several sequences, I start putting them together to form the dances. It's an extremely effective way of teaching and is used now by instructors in hundreds of schools, universities, rec centers, and country night clubs around the world.
NOTE: If you know how to line dance already or have been taking lessons for years, please don't start with Line Dance 101! It assumes you know nothing about line dancing and you'll be wasting your time and money. We'd much rather you find the right product so you won't be disappointed - if you're not sure where to start based on your experience level, please call me!
NOTE #2: If you want to get a line dance video for exercise purposes, this may not be the best choice. Yes, you'll get a good workout doing it, but it's not set up as an exercise video. It's instruction and focuses on teaching the individual steps, then puts them with music.
This DVD covers more than 30 individual steps and ties them together to form 5 different dances. The focus is really on getting you comfortable with the terms and getting your body accustomed to reacting to proper cueing (meaning when I call something out, you'll be ready to do it by time the next step starts). Most of the steps are going to make complete sense to you and others will challenge you as you may not have ever tried them (monterey turns and applejacks are great examples).
Each of the 5 dances were chosen specifically for the steps that are contained within. Each dance also has its own chapter so it's easy to navigate to the steps you're working on. For example, the Electric Slide contains the following types of steps: Step Slides, Step Touches, Grapevines, Walking Steps, and Brush Steps. I strongly recommend starting at the beginning of the DVD and working your way through each chapter in the order they're presented. You should continue going through the DVD in this order until you're able to go through it without pressing pause or rewinding it at any point. If you're able to do that on the first go 'round, great! If not, hang in there until you do. It'll make your next live class experience so much easier and your confidence will be set and ready for the challenge.
If you're serious about getting into line dancing, Line Dance 101 is the DVD you can't afford to miss. I'm very straightforward, casual, and easy to follow along with. There's no frilly costumes, overdone stereotypes, obnoxious music, cheerleader style teaching (you know what I'm talking about) or fast 'show 'em once' instruction that you'll find on other DVDs (believe me, they're out there).
This DVD is rated #1 for beginner line dancers for a reason. Start with Line Dance 101 and you'll be set up for success.
The absolute starting point for anyone wanting to get into line dancing. You'll be feeling looking good and feeling confident on the dance floor quickly as you learn how to line dance from Shawn Trautman, world-class dance instructor and author, with Line Dance 101: A Quick Start Guide to Line Dancing. This "must have" DVD kicks off the first of six different line dance DVDs in Shawn Trautman's Dance Collection. Dances included in this DVD are:
Line Dance 101 is packed with almost 90 minutes of easy to follow instruction in a what you see is what you dance format. Designed for beginners who've never danced, this DVD puts a strong focus on learning the fundamentals. To further enhance the instruction, a full breakdown of footwork is given.
Filmed and produced with Picture-In-Picture technology from multiple camera angles, you'll be impressed at how simple this DVD makes the line dancing for you.
Shawn Trautman has been a coach and mentor to numerous World Champions as well as countless social dancers since the early 1990's. Shawn welcomes people from all walks of life regardless of shape, size, or ability to his classes. His broad experience in both dance and Advanced Learning Techniques makes his methods of instruction innovative, easy, and fun. If you're ready to learn and have fun, Shawn Trautman's Dance Collection is the way to go. Order your copy today, and be line dancing by next weekend!