Dancing has always been a passion of mine. So to fulfil that fervour; over the summer I signed up for City Academy’s Diva dance course. My particular course (as the dance courses differ) ran for 7 weeks. And over that period, I learned a routine to the whole of ‘End of Time’ by Beyoncé. To be honest, at the beginning I was apprehensive. I wondered; how was I going to remember a 3 to 4-minute dance routine without stopping? However, as we progressed to the final weeks the idea of dancing for that long became more believable. And in the end, I finally did it!
The Pros
Boosted My Self Esteem
In terms of pros of this experience; the first reason why I liked the Diva Dance course is because it helped with my self-esteem in two ways: 1) The boost in confidence encouraged me to continue dancing and improving on my technique. 2) It made me better understand that dance as an art form requires a lot of time and dedication. And so comparing myself to professional dancers on Youtube, who probably spend hours perfecting their craft is redundant.
My Classmates Were Fabulous!
A second reason why this course banged is because I was in such a strong class. Everyone remembered the routine each week which meant we were able to progress smoothly and quickly. Moreover, everyone was friendly, which was a relief because I hate unnecessary bitchiness; it always ruins an experience.
Accommodated to My Awful Bedtime
Another reason why I enjoyed the Diva Dance Course was because the classes started in the evening. Not gonna lie, your girl was going to bed at 2 am so any earlier than 7 pm (which was around the time the classes were held) would’ve been hell!
The Dance Routine Was Great for Beginners
A fourth reason why I enjoyed the Diva Dance course is because it was suitable for beginners. I say this because I’m not a professional dancer and the dance routine lasted for 3 to 4 minutes. If the routine was difficult, I probably would’ve not enjoyed the course. (And don’t get me wrong I am a good dancer but they’re levels to what I can do)
A Perfect Source of Exercise
The last thing I liked about the Diva Dance course is, it was a great source of exercise. Especially towards the final weeks of the course. It was getting to a point where we had learnt most of the routine so, we were going over it again and again and again. I felt like each part of my body was pushed to the limit (which felt wonderful). This course inspired me to use dance classes as a form of regular exercise in the future.
The Cons
Wasn’t Value for Money
Although City Academy’s Diva Dance course had many favourable attributes. There was one aspect of it that I didn’t like, and that was the price. The course was £90 yes ninety pounds! Which wasn’t worth the experience I got. And I say this because certain aspects of the course could’ve been improved to match the expensive price. For example, the dance room. I hated the dance room due to the lack of space. I wasn’t able to move as freely as I wanted to. And I kept on bumping into people. Also, since the dance room wasn’t as spacious, you were kind of forced to come early just to get a favourable spot to dance in. This was a pain for me as I didn’t live that close to the location of the dance course. So that meant I would’ve had to leave extra early just to secure a good spot.
Apart from the size of the dance hall. The duration of the classes is another aspect that could’ve been improved, to match the £90 I paid. I feel like there wasn’t enough time to perfect the routine. If we had more time such as 2 hours per class or even more weeks, my execution of the routine and technique would’ve been better. (But alas that wasn’t the case)
Final Thoughts
Although City Academy’s Diva Dance Course cost me a lot of coins, and therefore I probably won’t be going back there anytime soon. Overall, I really enjoyed this particular experience; it was really fun; it boosted my confidence and was a great source of exercise. Furthermore, I finally got to dance! This experience has encouraged to me keep going to dance classes, however more affordable ones.
Chizoba Itabor 