Some days, all you can look forward to is going home, propping your feet up, sitting back and watching anything entertaining on the idiot box. That, or enjoying a glass of wine or a pint of beer at the pub with friends. Understandably so, especially after a long, hard day at work.
Say what you will, but letting your hair down — literally and metaphorically — and shaking off some of that nerves by having a little bit of a boogie might be a better answer to unwinding after a busy day. It will certainly help to jazz up your mundane weekly routine.
Dance makes for great therapy as well as a great form of exercise and an excellent channel to hone some physical finesse. On top of that, it’s great fun too.
So, forget about being shy and do not surrender to your wallflower tendencies. Dismiss those nagging thoughts of “I have two left feet!” and get out onto the dance floor and just sway away to the beat of the music.
For those of you not in the know, there is a selection of dancing meet-ups for a variety of music genres and dancing styles around KL. From swing dancing to 1950s rock n’ roll, here are some spots you can check out during the week to just take the edge off and dance.
Swing
As an integral part of the American cultural landscape, swing dancing was cultivated concurrently with the development of jazz music in the early part of the last century. Reaching its peak of popularity in the 1950s, one of its most popular variations is known as the Lindy Hop, a popular partner dance originating from Harlem. Against the background of joyous beats and jazz hits, this dance is bound to get you on your feet and you’ll be jitterbugging to big band beats in no time. 
KL Swing meets every Tuesday at Sid’s Pub in Bangsar South. There is an absolute beginner’s class at 9pm, with beginner-friendly tunes, which means easy rhythms and simple footwork so you can join in straight away. If you’ve never done swing before, there’ll be seasoned dancers to take you through the basics of the six-count swing. Ladies, this is a dance with a lot of jumps and twirls, so remember to wear your flats.
Join in the fun now, and before you know it, you’ll be jiving along to the rhythm of ragtime and jazz tunes. Sid’s Pub is at M-5A, The Village Bangsar South, off Jalan Kerinchi, KL. For more information, call Ming at (016) 225 6082, email [email protected] or visit www.klswing.com.
It is completely free of charge.
Salsa
Synonymous with the passionate, energetic spirit of the Latin Americans, salsa dancing is a mix of Spanish European culture blended with African cultures. While the fundamental make-up of this dance has stretched all throughout the Latin American region, many variations of the dance have developed as it has been modernised over the decades. The rhythm of salsa music comprises three-beat changes in a four-beat measure.
La Bomba at the Starhill Gallery plays salsa and Latin music seven days a week with a variety of happy hour promotions daily and a variety of ongoing weekly events for salsa dancing. Thursday is Ladies Night with a free salsa beginner’s class at 8.30pm. For the mid-week Salsa and Latin Night, there is a free intermediate salsa class that starts at 9pm. This session teaches routines to those who are already familiar with the basic steps. La Bomba is at the Lower Ground Floor of Starhill Gallery, KL. For more information visit www.labombakl.com
Belly Dancing
A dance that is predominantly for women, this dance is also more of a solo performance than a partnered dance. There’s more to belly dancing than wearing midriff tops, harem pants and jingling bells around your hips. As a matter of fact, although the main feature of the dance is in the hips this dance works out the entire body. This traditional dance is derived from the Middle East and focuses mainly in strengthening core muscles of the body. While there are variations on the types of belly dancing, the few key important moves of the dance are the shimmy, the hip hits and the undulations. The shimmy is a shimmering vibration of the hips, the hip hits are a staccato movement of the hips projected away from the body and the undulations are fluid movements of the hips and/or chest in a rotating fashion.
While there aren’t any meet-ups for belly dancing, there are drop-in classes that you can take. Nanci Traynor teaches tribal style belly dancing at Lightworks, every Tuesday from 8.15pm for an hour. A drop-in class is RM40 per session. Lightworks is at 19 Jalan Mesui, off Jalan Nagasari KL. Call (03) 2143 2966 for more information.
For a wider array of belly dancing classes ranging from beginner to advanced levels, check out the Middle East Dance Academy which holds classes daily. The principal teacher is Nancy Bakh-shy, an Iranian-born Turkish woman who weaves cultural elements into her dance choreography. The Middle East Dance Academy is at A3-3-3A, Solaris Dutamas, Jalan Dutamas 1, KL. For more information call Bakhshy at (012) 627 0763 or email [email protected].
This article appeared on the Live it! page, The Edge Financial Daily, June 24, 2011.