We run classes in Alnmouth; Longframlington; Morpeth; Ponteland; Stannington and Tynemouth. Get in touch if you want to join in the fun!
Our couples tell us less equals more, so our aim is not to teach too many dances in a term. We focus on one dance per lesson, revising past dances as we go, to ensure we progressively build our couples confidence and skills throughout the term.
We run most of our classes over 4 terms throughout the year.
Winter / Spring Term: Jan to April
Spring / Summer Term: April to July
Summer School Classes: August
Autumn / Winter Term: September to December
At the following venues on the days shown below:
Not sure if you and your partner will enjoy dancing? Why not give it a go with our Pop-Up dance
Our next practice nights are on Saturday October 28th and November 18th at Stannington Village Hall
Malcolm & Sandra, have both danced since childhood and qualified as dance teachers in their late teens. Malcolm’s parents were dance teachers and Sandra’s grandmother was a British dancing champion, as a result they both learned to dance from a very early age.
Take a look at some of our couples explaining why they joined and what they get from attending our classes.
Strictly Starters is primarily for adult couples to learn to dance Ballroom, Latin and Sequence dances, all of which require a partner. We do have couples attending our classes made up of friends and family pairings, so if you do not have a partner why not ask someone you know who wants to give learning to dance a go and ask them to dance with you? We can accommodate singletons too, but you must be prepared to dance by yourself and your dance experience will be greatly enhanced if you can find a friend to dance with.
No previous dance experience is needed to join Strictly Starters. We offer four overlapping levels of class and it is up to each couple to decide which class is the best to join for themselves, based on their abilities and confidence levels. Our classes are:
We are happy to talk to you about which class is best for you, so if you need any further guidance please do not hesitate to get in touch.
No, so long as you can slide your foot comfortably across the floor then most outdoor shoes will suffice. Trainers, boots and most rubber soled shoes have a tendency to stick to the floor when dancing, so are not the best shoe to wear and for women a short heel is preferred to flats.
Our classes cover the 4 basic Ballroom dances: Waltz; Quickstep; Foxtrot and Tango as well as the basic Latin American dances; Cha-cha-cha; Rumba; Salsa; Jive (Rock & Roll). In addition we also tackle the Argentine Tango and several of the more popular Sequence Dances such as the Mayfair Quickstep; Rumba 1; Sally Ann CCC; Balmoral Blues; to name but a few. We teach at the pace of the class, deploying adult learning techniques designed to make the learning process fun and enjoyable for all.
Most of our couples will tell you that it is harder than they first thought and, like learning all new skills, it takes an open, learning mind-set; some courage to give it a go; and a good sense of humour. Equipped with these attributes anyone who can move, can learn to dance. In addition, it is great fun so give it a try!
Dancing together is one of the few things available to couples who want to spend some time learning a new skill together. As well as learning to dance our classes teach a lot of life skills such as patience, perseverance, caring for each other, musical appreciation and tolerance. Not many other activities open to couples can promise as much!
Our current charges, payment methods and terms are all shown on our Book Our Classes Here page. We use local Village Hall’s for all our classes and our policy is to keep our charges competitive as we know dancing is a hobby, and as such needs to be affordable. Compared to what it costs for couples to go out for a meal, go to the cinema together or simply go to the Pub with friends we are confident we offer much better value for money plus all the health benefits for free!
Check out our blog 10 Health Benefits of Dancing
Missing a class or two in a term due to holidays, family commitments or illness is something we are used to coping with in our classes. We do have our ‘Digital Dance Class’ available to all our registered couples and this gives access to all of the dances we teach so you can see what you have missed. Plus we do help you catch-up with anything you may have missed when you return in class and your fellow pupils are encouraged to offer support as well!
We currently run classes in 5 venues across the North East:
Click on the links to find directions to each venue. In addition we occasionally run ‘pop-up’ classes at various venues around the North East so please keep an eye out for these on our Facebook page
Here are some of the most common questions we get asked by our new members.
Join our waiting list for the next classes.
