Country Line Dance Steps

Line dance is a popular style of dancing in which people dance across the floor in a line. The dance is supported by country music.

Country line is a style of dance that has gathered fans all around the world. This style of dancing became popular among the common masses, with the release of 'Achy Breaky Heart', a massive hit country music song by Billy Ray Cyrus. The dance in the song was choreographed by Melanie Greenwood. The dance created a rage among the masses; bringing country music and dancing to pubs and discos.

According to accomplished line dancers, the style of dancing began around 10 BC, where men & women used to dance in separate lines to celebrate a good hunt. The dance has evolved from the very vintage contra dance which was popular in England in 1800s. The contra dance consisted of 2 lines, with the men in 1 line and the women in the other.

Couples would enter between two lines and do their dance in the middle. When they reached the end of the lines, they parted and joined back in their respective lines, and the next couple would begin the dance. Contra style dances are still popular with tribal groups, Red Indians, and aborigines all around the world.

Country line dancing is a fun activity. It has also been introduced in grade school as an attempt to enhance the creativity of young children. It is a fun exercise and a great way to socialize and meet new people.

Instructions:

• The first thing is to feel that you are actually dancing in the countryside. So dress up in appropriate clothes and boots. It's always fun to dress according to the theme.
• This is a form of dance where the steps are repeated. So, get used to repetitive steps.

• Move to the right, cross your one foot over the next, and continue the crossing as you move towards the right. Your thumbs should be in your pockets or along your belt. This dance style is called the grapevine.
• Try doing heel taps with both the legs and repeat. Tap to the front, the right, the back, and the left. This is popularly known as a cross move.

Learning this dance is not hard. You just require some coordination and a little bit of confidence to get on the dance floor and do your thing. Here are some more steps.

The brush kick is a simple forward kick in which your foot touches the ground before it moves forward. You perform this step in a single motion.

Chasse is used in many dance styles. It is a common ballet term which means 'to chase'. Here, one foot of the dancer moves to the side and the other follows it. Then, the first foot moves again and the entire step repeats.

This a three-step dance, which is performed in two beats of music in any direction. The dance line can move forward, backward, right, left, or on the same spot.

It's a sliding triple step in any of the four directions starting on either foot. It is counted as 1&2, 3&4. The shuffle is extensively used in the popular "Two-step Dance".

The lock step involves locking the foot in motion. The foot in motion approaches the standing foot, crosses in the front or behind it, and stops close to the standing foot. The weight is fully transferred to the previously moving foot.

Other steps include applejack, butterfly, coaster, hitch, jazz, box, kick ball change, lunge, mambo, paddle, pivot turn, rock, sugarfoot, vaudeville, and many more.

The line dance is gathering fans rapidly. If this genre of dance interests you, you should enroll yourself in a class to learn all the steps.