Behind the Scenes
Behind the Scenes places will&jac into the varying Wedding Planning processes that our couples experience. We have placed ourselves in their shoes, with the wish of understanding their emotions and also the insider roles our experienced industry professionals provide towards their celebrations. In this feature we learn to feel the beat with Nat from You Can Dance Studio.
When we initially ask couples about their Bridal Dance we receive mixed reactions – it’s a look that blends “Oh, maybe..”, “Ahh no way..” and “Of course!” into one. Before we pose this query, a great majority of couples haven’t even thought about this part of their Day and more than often, ventured onto the dance floor together in terms of a formal dance. The thought of doing a dance like this for the first time on your Wedding Day is overwhelming – which is completely natural – as when it’s something that you’re not use to doing regularly, doing it on a significant occasion seems at odds with almost everything.

Regrettably this assumed pressure when it comes to the First Dance is mostly due to those over the top YouTube links and other spectacles representing “..Don’t put Baby in a corner..”! But this is so far from the truth. On the Day, your nearest and dearest just want to see you on the dance floor, together, unified, and marking your official joining as a married couple with a few moves. So to put you at ease and actually allow you to embrace the moment, cue the professionals!
Nat from You Can Dance Studio is a Performing Arts and Dance guru, with equal measures of pizzazz and industry professionalism to make you stand out for all the right reasons when it comes to your Bridal Dance.

Nat has played miracle worker for couples on the dance floor at You Can Dance Studio since 2009, and with this role, comes great responsibility to ensure both partners receive just the right amount of encouragement, skills to inspire interest and an ability to learn about how your individual roles form to make your dance a success. And we should know, as we’ve experienced her patience, guidance, infectious sense of humour and honesty first hand.
will&jac partook in two lessons with Nat, she made us feel at ease immediately, and from lesson one took genuine interest in all the important details that would help her form the dance that was right for ‘us’ – such as, our venue, what date, how many guests, what dance floor space do you have to work with – and for the ladies, your dress style, length and heels.
Nat’s had it all, and when we say all, we’re of course referring to Bridal Dance song requests – ranging from ‘Highway to Hell’ (potentially the most interesting), to all the Buble’s, classics such as Nat King Cole, John Legend and everything in-between. She would prefer you to leave Ed Sheeran at the door (insert eye roll) but all in all, she will make your vision become ‘practical’ reality.
Having some musical background is an added bonus for anyone commencing dance – you bring the beat! – but she managed to make our two left feet coordinate in time, so that speaks volumes! The lessons are ultimately about an hour together, as a couple, that doesn’t rely on anything else but the two of you being present. No phones, no TV, no children, no work – just two people in an intimate setting and learning as one.
While will&jac spend way too much time with each other every day and week, when it comes to looking at each other directly in the eye, maintaining our dancing pose and both of us having to ‘let go’ (just a little), it was an entirely new dynamic. We haven’t performed these tasks with our own partners therefore the uniqueness of doing this in-front of each other was uniquely liberating and allowed us both to embrace and support each other in an entirely new setting.
It was clear that we didn’t want to let each other down, but the process of learning with Nat made us feel individually confident in our roles, and also excited when new moves were achieved and together a picture of our dance started to take shape.
The leading dancers (typically the male) are predominately in charge of the routine. Yes, relish in this moment – just like Catherine from will&jac – as you get to call the shots with your deliberately strong, yet subtle, hand and upper body leading motions informing your partner when and what move is coming next. For the followers, it’s a harder role to fill as you don’t necessarily have a set routine, as mentioned, you are at the mercy of the lead dancer- poor Clare!
The moves are formed around a ‘box’ movement – a sequence of steps that creates a box/square outline on the floor – and from there a series of turns, rotations and other dance extensions are put together to shape your dance.
A fabulous incentive with You Can Dance Studio is that you don’t need to over-commit to a set schedule/amount of lessons – they will work with the timeline towards your date, your skillset and individual requirements to make your needs the priority. It’s all about the least amount of time and less stress – quite a welcomed detail during the Wedding planning process.
So what do you need to bring with you to your first dance lesson – just you and your partner! If you have the privilege to work with Nat at the You Can Dance Studio she will allow you to leave your inhabitations at the door and arm you with laughter, easily attainable goals and potentially a new hobby which will continue into married life.
