Bad Dancing

from Gerry's forthcoming book, Presentation Training with Comedy

 

This is an enjoyable collective activity to use early in a training session. You might also want to use it later on, when you need something physically liberating between other activities that are more quiet, thoughtful or focused on the individual.
It’s a good starting point for comedy based activities, for it encourages creative silliness, self-parody and light risk-taking. Much laughter is generated in the process.
The great thing about this exercise is that it can be appreciated equally by people who are confident about dancing and those who are terrible at it.
And it can work just as well for serious business delegates in suits, as it can for teenagers with attitude.

Size of group
This can work with any size of group from 6 up, even a very large one.

Resources required
- enough space for everyone to dance at once, free of chairs or other obstructions
- a good sound system helps, but as this is about “bad” dancing you could also make a virtue of a “bad” sound. Loudness helps.
- a remote control for sound levels is advantageous.
- with a very large group, a microphone and p.a. is helpful.
- you’ll need a CD, MP3 track or other sound recording with dance tracks appropriate for the group. Ideally these will be well-known but perhaps dated or clichéd numbers – possibly even wince-making. Tracks that work well for adults are I see you baby shakin’ that ass or anything by Abba. For younger groups, you'll need something considerably funkier and contemporary.

How to do it
1 Introduce the exercise by saying that it’s about each person dancing as badly as they possibly can – but they think you’re really good. If you think it won’t offend, mention that for some this may mean same as usual.

2 Start the music and join in yourself, with exemplary badness.

Tips
· The idea is to go past embarrassment into abandoned fun. This can be highly therapeutic, since we spend much of our time trying to look good (and worrying that we’re not succeeding)
· From time to time you can turn the music down to make suggestions - people could dance in pairs, or everyone imitate an individual who’s dancing with particularly unrestrained awfulness.

Variations
· You can set it up as a competition with prizes for the best ie worst dancer, chosen either by yourself or by applause
· Dancers can add self-parody through other dance-floor cliché, such as cringe-making small-talk, chatting-up or dancing round hand-bags