Watching a dance team in action is a sight to behold. The choreography, music, costumes, and, most strikingly, the mesmerizing smooth moves produce a beautiful result. Caught in the magic of the moment, only a few think of the magnitude of work that goes on behind the scenes to prepare the team.
If you want to start a dance team, you need to realize that the performances are just the tip of the iceberg. The real deal is in the details and the process that it takes to put such a team together. Establishing a dance team is no mean feat, but not too hard that you can’t do it. Most importantly, as we’ll elaborate in this article, you can do it with no money.
If a lack of finances has been standing in the way of your dream of starting a dance team, you have come to the right place. Let us show you how you can utilize non-monetary resources to build a thriving troupe.
Why Start a Dance Team?
If you love dancing, starting a dance team will give you an opportunity to take your hobby to a whole new level. Dance teams mostly attract young people, and by offering them something productive to do, you’ll help them be socially active. Other benefits of starting a dance team include the following:
- Meeting other dance enthusiasts
- Staying productively engaged
- Improving your skills
- Having lots of fun
- Promoting physical fitness
- Building a brand
- Attracting sponsors
- Taking part in competitions
- Earning money from performances
If you’ve been thinking of starting a dance team, this article is your affirmation that anyone can do it. A talented dancer is a goldmine, even more so when a few come together and work as a team.
Can You Really Start a Dance Team With No Money?
Money is important in putting together a dance team, as there are many resources that you’ll need. If you don’t have the funds, concentrate on what you have. Here are some tips to help you along:
- Utilize Your Skills
Do you have social media skills? You can use those to reach out to interested dancers to join your team. Can you design a poster? By using free design websites like Canva, you can create one to invite dancers for auditions. As more dancers join the team, they will bring more skills and spread the word.
- Share the Duties
Think of all the work that needs to be done to kick-start the team. You may have to set up social media pages, send out invites, select songs, set dance routines, design costumes, scout for performance opportunities, and so on. You can simply divide these duties amongst the team members available.
- Encourage Contributions
We’re assuming that by this point, even before carrying out the official recruitment, you’ve convinced a bunch of friends who simply love dancing to join you. Each of them can offer something to the team. It could be a space in their backyard for rehearsals, a sound system, or some outfits that can function as costumes. Someone can even bring homemade cookies so that the team has something to bite as they rehearse. Encourage every member to bring something to the table, and soon enough, most of your needs will be met.
- Keep Things Simple
Finally, remember that in the early stages, the focus should be on progress over perfection. Use what is available. If you don’t have fancy costumes, pick an outfit that everyone is likely to have in their wardrobes, like sweatpants and t-shirts. Don’t have a car to get to the venue? Take a bus. Can’t afford to buy lunch for the team? The members can carry packed meals from home.
The good news is that these are just temporary measures. As you perfect your skills, you’ll catch the eye of the right people, and money will begin to flow. In the meantime, the lack of funds should not stop you from making the first step. To pay your bills during this period, you can carry out simple tasks such as filling in surveys and sharing your internet connection on Pawns.app.
What Are the Key Steps in Building a Successful Dance Team?
A dance troupe involves a group of dancers performing together under a common name. You’ve probably been dancing with your friends just for fun. Starting a dance team involves putting together a formal structure to guide the group’s activities. Below, we look at the critical steps of this process.
#1) List Down Your Goals
Why do you need to write your goals before anything else? So you can define what you seek to achieve as a group. As you bring others on board, you need to establish if they share your values. In this case, where you’re starting a dance team without money, members need to understand that they’ll be volunteering their time and resources to make the group a success.
#2) Create Adverts
Use social media to reach out to those interested. Create striking posters and post them on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok, and other platforms popular with young people. Spread the word to as many as you can reach.
#3) Recruit Your Dancers
Make sure you come up with a standard recruiting procedure to give everyone an equal playing ground. The audition process normally costs a substantial amount of money for hiring the venue, among others. How can you achieve this without spending any money? We discuss more on recruitment a bit later.
#4) Fill in the Roles
A dance team has various positions, such as a director, choreographer, social media manager, marketer, and so on. To begin with, you can share out these duties amongst yourselves. In the future, when you have a steady income, you can hire professionals.
#5) Practice Often
No matter how talented you are, it is the frequency and intensity of your practice sessions that make or break the group. Set aside time to practice and demand consistency from the team members. Record your practice sessions so you can watch them later and critique your routine. Those who may have missed the session can also catch up by watching the recordings.
#6) Do Other Activities Together
Dance teams thrive on friendships. Foster your bond by participating in other fun activities other than dancing. You can go camping, hiking, or take a road trip. Get to know each other beyond your working relationship. As you progress from acquaintances to friends, you’ll have an easier time working as a team.
Building a dance team is tasking at first, but the rewards will be well worth the effort. From dancing for fun, volunteering for worthy causes, and performing for events to participating in (and winning) competitions, there’s no limit to what the team can achieve.
How Can You Recruit Dancers for Your Team?
Recruiting is one of the most crucial steps of setting up a dance team. You want to be sure that you bring on board nothing more than the most talented, versatile, and hardworking dancers. Remember to mention the team goals to the interested dancers even before they audition, so they can determine if the team will meet their expectations. If a dancer is expecting to start earning right away, for instance, then you should be clear that you cannot offer that.
Once you start a dance group, you automatically become the director and will be in charge of recruiting. Ideally, you should hire a team of judges consisting of professional dancers and choreographers. In this case, however, where you’re starting a dance team with no money, you’ll take up the role of the judge. You may also involve a few of your dancer friends. Here are a few questions that you need to answer:
- Will you be testing for a particular style (hip hop, tap dance, ballet, salsa, etc.), or are you looking for all-rounded dancers?
- Will you create a routine for the dancers to match, or will you allow them to freestyle?
- Will you test them only once or hold a series of auditions as you narrow down your choices?
- Will you allow online applications or require the dancers to show up in person?
To avoid bias, have all the judges assign every participant a mark, say out of ten, then find the average mark. Recruit only a limited number of dancers to begin with, as a big team will be more challenging to manage. You can increase members as the structures fall into place.
How Can You Find Sponsors for Your Dance Team?
You may have succeeded in putting together a dance team with no money, but you’ll definitely require finances to run the team.
On matters of sponsorship, remember that corporates hardly sponsor any teams for free. Remember, they’re in business as well. What can you offer them? Publicity is a good one. You can advertise companies on your social media pages or wear branded merchandise. Basically, having a strong social media presence increases your chances of landing sponsorship deals.
Research potential sponsors, reach out to them, and remember to mention what you’ll be offering in return. If you have a sizable social media following, companies will be willing to pay you to market their brand.
Final Words
As a dance enthusiast, starting a dance team is one of the best decisions that you can make. Professional dance troupes are much sought after for events, music videos, adverts, and so on. In addition to fostering strong bonds with fellow dancers, you should have fun, participate in events, and ultimately earn from what you love to do.
FAQs
What are the key steps in forming a dance team?
First, talk to your friends about your intention of forming a dance team. Spread the word on social media as well. After that, test those interested. Lastly, come up with a fixed routine or allow a freestyle. Pick the most promising option and agree on a practice schedule.
Is it possible to start a dance team with no money?
Yes, it is. You can utilize your skills and invite other team members to do the same. Keep things simple and use available resources.
How can I attract talented dancers to my team?
Polish your moves, come up with unique routines, and have a strong social media presence. Talented dancers will be yearning to be part of the team and will reach out to you themselves.
