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Written by Buck Crowley
Wedding ceremonies and receptions consist of many traditions and customs. Hours of planning and thought go into the most minute details to make it a perfect day for you and your family and friends. Details such as managing the guest book, or when and how the bouquet will be thrown, are often thought out to great lengths. However, one of the most important ceremonies, "the first dance", is often left to chance.
The first dance is the first time that you and your husband appear together in a social dance, moving together to the sounds of a beautiful song. It's a tradition that you should be prepared for. There's no reason to dread it. Everything else is planned and the wedding dance can be also planned and prepared for.
The most common tradition in the United States is for the bride and groom to dance their first dance, by themselves, to a slow song, with meaningful words. After a few minutes, the maid of honor and the best man are asked to join them on the dance floor. After another short interval the rest of the bridal party is also asked to join in.
With a little bit of preparation you can dazzle your friends and look beautiful with your new husband as you move to the beat of the music. There's no reason for Uncle Phil and Aunt Ethel to look better than you on the dance floor.
The two most common approaches to prepare for the wedding dance are to take lessons or use an instructional video. The lessons are often called "Crash Courses" or "Wedding Survival Classes". They typically run 3 to 10 hours long over 3 to 4 sessions and cost between $50 to $150 per hour. One disadvantage of some wedding dance courses is they are taught by "ballroom trained" instructors. These instructors have difficulty separating their formal training and all of its jargon, with trying to show you how to dance for just a few minutes. Furthermore, the typical ballroom style may not be the look you want when matched up with your choice for your "First Dance" music selections.
The other approach is to use an instructional video. Since you'll typically be dancing from 1 to 3 minutes, you'll want a few nice turns, some pretty poses, and some styling tips. A simple routine set to your music is easy and fun to practice in your home from a video. Most routines run only about a minute and can be repeated more than once in a song. You can easily, inexpensively and painlessly, put together the turns and poses and style that will keep your guest's amazed.
With the right techniques the bride can make herself and her groom look good. If you have an unwilling or unable dance partner, there are many little tips and techniques that allow one of you to lead in a way that makes you both look good.
In preparation for the wedding, the video should also provide some moves for the fast dances. This is usually a swing routine, which can be an adaptation of the techniques you learned in the slow dance. You should also consider some free style, hip-hop, or jazz steps for looking great when dancing with your wedding party or in a circle with family and friends. These are moves you can do alone or with your husband to impress your friends that you have a partner for life who knows how to move in synchronization with you.
If you're planning on doing some of the traditional dances, such as the electric-slide or other popular line dances, videos are a great source for these also. Because you will be prepared, when the line dance starts you will be comfortable in taking the lead and being in the spotlight confidently.
Several good wedding dance and instructional videos are available. A good place to find them is to search the Internet for "Wedding Dance". Read the descriptions to see which ones fit your style best and decide if you want to learn ballroom school figures or just look beautiful and confident for the first dance of the rest of your life.
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