Guide
How to prepare for an industry master class.
Ninety minutes goes fast. A little preparation is the difference between spending it dancing and spending it catching up.
What to wear
Wear something you can move in and something you can see yourselfmove in. Those are different requirements, and the second one matters more than people expect — you will be watching yourself in a mirror for ninety minutes, and baggy layers hide the lines you’re trying to correct.
A fitted top or a tucked tee, leggings or joggers, and layers you can shed after the warm-up. Bring a jacket you don’t mind losing to a pile in the corner.
Shoes, by style
If a drop’s style is listed but you’re unsure what that means for footwear, bring options. Nobody has ever regretted having an extra pair in the bag.
What to bring
- Water. More than you think. These rooms get hot.
- A small towel. Especially for contemporary and floor-heavy classes.
- Your phone, charged. You’ll want to film the combo at the end.
- Hair tied back properly. Not a quick bun. A bun that survives a head roll.
- Snack for after. Ninety full-out minutes will find you later.
Arrive early — genuinely early
Fifteen minutes before start is the right number, and it is not about paperwork. It buys you three things: a spot in the room you actually want, time to warm your own body up before the teacher’s warm-up, and a few minutes to stop being a person who just parked and start being a person who is about to dance.
Walking in at the start time and going straight into a professional’s warm-up cold is how people pull things.
Where to stand
Not the back. The back feels safe and it is the worst place to learn — you can’t see, you’re copying the person in front of you instead of the teacher, and you get half the corrections.
Middle of the room, second or third row, slightly off-centre is the sweet spot for a first class. You can see the teacher, the teacher can see you, and you’re not the person they demonstrate on.
How to actually get value out of it
Film the combo, not the teaching.Filming while you’re learning splits your attention and you’ll pick up slower. Learn with your body, then film the run-throughs at the end.
Take the correction, even if it isn’t aimed at you. If a teacher fixes something for the room, apply it. Most corrections in a master class are general notes disguised as individual ones.
Commit to full-out at least once.Marking is fine while you learn, but you cannot find out what a combination feels like at 60%. Pick one run and go all in, even if you don’t know all of it.
Say thank you afterwards. Not for networking reasons — just because these are working choreographers who chose to spend a Sunday teaching in Murrieta instead of Los Angeles. A ten-second conversation is also how a lot of dancers end up remembered.
The night before
Nothing exotic. Sleep, water, and don’t try to learn the teacher’s past combos off Instagram — you’ll arrive with someone else’s timing in your body. Watching a little of their work to get a feel for their style is useful; drilling it is not.
On the day at The ARC
Book ahead — drops cap at 24 dancers and the popular ones fill. Check in when you arrive, leave your bag at the edge of the room, and get your own body moving. Then it’s just ninety minutes and good music.
If this is your first one, read what to expect at your first master class for how the time actually runs, or check who’s teaching next.