Dance
Find out eight different approaches you can take to learning one or more of the different street-dance styles.
With many of the different street-dance styles (breaking, popping, locking, hip-hop, house, krump etc) being massively popular worldwide, those who want to become competitive dancers, or those who simply want to learn a few moves and steps, have a wide variety of resources and options available to them to learn from.
If you're someone who wants to learn one of the styles of street dance, or up the dance skills you already have, check out this list of eight of the most commonly available ways for someone to learn:
1. Find a mentor
One of the biggest traditions within the culture of street dance is for a dancer to be taken under the tutelage of an older dancer in their chosen style, who teaches them the dance, its history and what it means to practise it. Dancers can seek out a mentor, or might be seen by an older dancer who sees a raw talent in them and takes them under their wing. To have a mentor, though, a student must usually show a level of commitment to learning not just the dance, but also the culture and history of the style.
2. Learn from a crew
It's also a tradition in street dance for crews to take on and teach young dancers. Usually youngsters are introduced to a crew by a mutual acquaintance, or a crew might put on classes or open sessions in which they find younger dancers with potential, and then invite them to train more with the actual crew. This is another method of learning that requires a certain level of commitment to turn up to crew sessions and show that you're serious.
3. Join a class in your local dance studio
Most dance studios will now offer classes in the different street dance styles. These classes are usually places to learn in a casual, less-committed environment, where students don't have to aspire to be a competitive dancer or even become a part of the street-dance scene. Classes are a place where people can be super-serious about the dance, or just learn a few moves and steps at their own pace.
4. Visit an actual hip-hop or street-dance school
Many crews and dancers, such as The Floorriorz crew from Japan, Prodigy crew from Austria, and B-Boy Moy from America, have established actual hip-hop dance schools. These schools are places to specifically learn a street-dance style, like someone might send their child to a school for ballet. The schools have structured curriculums specifically designed to build a student's skill and knowledge in their dance style. They also put a focus on how street dance can build a student's character.
5. Online tutorials
Sites and apps like YouTube and Instagram are now full of online tutorials given by high-level, knowledgeable street dancers, teaching the fundamentals of their style. These tutorials are a great resource for many people who want to learn a particular style of street dance, but have no regular classes, or even a big scene, where they live. They're also great for people who don't feel confident enough to maybe go to a class. And there are now even tutorials being provided by organisations within the street-dance scene, who invite well-known dancers to film tutorials with them.
Check out the tutorials at Red Bull Dance Connect.
6. Go to open practice sessions
Many beginners in a street-dance style find a regular, open, training sessions and learn by watching other dancers, and asking them during the session to show them how to do certain steps and moves.
7. Attend some workshops
Workshops are not a regular way to learn a style, but they are a great way to learn from some of your favourite dancers, who might come to your city or town to teach. They're also a great way to get specific training on a particular aspect of a style if someone well-known for that element teaches a workshop on that aspect. Also, most events now run a workshop with their judges giving people the chance to learn from them, often for free. Workshops are also a great way to get an introduction to a dance style for anyone just wanting to try it for the first time.
8. Look for a university society
If you're a student who wants to learn a street-dance style, your university might have a street-dance society, which is a group of students who enjoy street dance and get together to form an official street-dance society within the university. Students can learn around other students, go to society practice sessions, and participate in society-run dance competitions to feel what it feels like to compete without having to commit to the intense, full-time, training schedule of a dancer who battles internationally at the bigger, competitive major events.
