WOW your wedding guests

The dawning of YouTube has created a new era for wedding dances.  From re-creating Thriller, through to performing a rendition of Baby and Johnny's dance sequence, expectations of your first dance will never be the same again.

Even if you're planning a simple sway to a more conventional ballad, professional dancer Rebecca Wallace has some wise words.  "For many of us, our wedding is the most important day of our lives. We plan it down to the most minute of detail - from outfits to food and location to entertainment - yet, until recently, couples would take their place on the dance floor in an embarrassed pose and count down the seconds until it was over."

To avoid this happening on your big day, the director of RAW Talent Dance School has the following top tips:

1. Choose a song that means something to you and your partner.

2. Approximately six months before the big day, book an appointment with a local dance instructor.  Choose someone with a proven track record for choreographing wedding dances. A reputable instructor will always ask for your song of choice before the lesson so they can be prepared.

3. Decide before your Dance Lesson what you want your first dance to be.  A showy affair featuring lots of lifts? A quirky dance with debuts from the best man and bridesmaids? Or a simple, yet intimate, waltz around the floor?

4. Practice, practice, practice.  If you're disciplined, three or four lessons with an instructor should be sufficient to get the basic choreography agreed. Rehearse in the garden, kitchen or lilt around the lounge - anywhere you can to make sure your dance has the wow factor. 

5. One week before the wedding, book one last lesson with your instructor. It will help get the routine straight in your head, iron out any disagreements you and your fiance may have been having over the steps and give you a final boost of confidence before the big unveil!

6. On the big day, lay off the champers until the dance is done and dusted!

To discuss your wedding dance, call Rebecca at the RAW Talent Dance School in Solihull on 07854 910505 or email hello@rawtalentdanceschool.co.uk