I wanted to share with you this article by Veronica Good about why every dancer should learn to tap. I am a tapper at heart and truly do believe every dancer should tap. She offers 3 great points and I would just like to add that dancers who tap tend to have better musicality and rhythm. It helps them in all other forms of dance. There’s still time to register your child for a tap class before recital. Come try a tap class on us free the week of Jan. 29th! Enjoy the article.
Even though it is not everyone’s favorite genre of dance, tap dancing is a gorgeous, fun, and valuable member of the dance family. The skills learned in tap dancing can be applied to many other genres of dance, and the small habits developed through tap dancing can make other genres of dance easier to perform.
Improve Ankle Shape
Tap dancing is, of course, requires a lot of focus on foot movement and strength, and because of this, a developing tap dancer will begin to develop highly coordinated and strong ankle muscles early in their tap career. This is useful to all dancers because increased strength alongside the careful attention to small movements and rhythms also required of tap dancing allows dancers to make more precise movements. Regardless of a dancer’s focus, tap dancing will give them increased agility and a keener ear for moving their feet in time with the music.
Poise and Symmetry
Because a tap dancer primarily dances with their feet, they have to learn to pay more careful attention to their arm movements than other dancers whos arms are incorporated in their movements might. This focus will allow dancers with focuses in other genres to incorporate graceful movements more easily and with less effort.
Balance and Coordination
In order to move quickly and efficiently when performing highly rhythmic tap moves, tap dancers have to have impeccable coordination and balance. One misstep will not only ruin tap dancer’s form, but it will also disrupt the rhythm they have put in place with their steps. A dancer with a focus in other genres but knowledge of tap dancing will be more coordinated and balanced because of this and less likely to misstep even when performing complicated maneuvers.