Photo: Getty Images
You should know that while I’m a self-confessed fitness addict, I abhor dance classes. Hate them. Despise them. I have no rhythm and generally lack the basic coordination required to follow a level-one dance class for beginners. However, I also worship at the altar of Beyoncé, which is how I found myself in the unlikely scenario of warming up for a “Formation” workout at New York’s Banana Skirt Productions dance studio at 6pm on a recent Monday.
I heard about the dance studio from a more coordinated friend, who tried—and failed—to drag me along to its “Dirrty” Christina Aguilera film clip class (you remember how that one goes.) After visiting the studio’s website, however, I found the class schedule was packed with dozens of buzzy pop-song fitness sessions, with classes inspired by famed ass-shaking music videos of Rihanna, Ciara, Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, and yes, Bey. Because I’ve yet to get over Beyoncé’s brilliant Super Bowl performance of “Formation,” I decided to forgo my dignity and schedule myself in for a dance lesson to the very track.
When I reached out to Banana Skirt’s founder, Akinah Rahmaan, she assured me that all of the classes are suitable for the rookies—i.e., me: “That’s the great thing about our classes; all of them are designed for beginners,” she said. “Our classes are about just having a damn good time, all within a judgment-free zone.”
The studio’s schedule changes all the time, with new workouts added depending on what songs or musicians happen to be trending: “The most popular classes are generally led by what’s hot in the clubs, radio, and the newest music videos,” Rahmaan told me, adding that the “Formation” class and Rihanna’s “Work” are both crowd favorites at the moment. Interestingly, she also said that “Sorry” by Justin Bieber has been one of the most popular classes since it was released last year.
Here’s how the class itself went down: The studio was basically your classic gym space with mirrored walls and a room full of fit people, and I was greeted by an energetic instructor who first led us through a high-intensity warm-up phase, focusing on the abs, legs, and butt (this is Beyoncé, after all). Then, we jumped straight into the choreography, and while I definitely struggled, I wasn’t the worst in the class. Most of the hour is part tutorial, part workout, and at the end of the class you do a final performance, basically pretending you’re Bey’s backup dancers. Who, in case you have forgotten, look like this:
Two things surprised me about the experience: A) The choreography wasn’t straightforward, but I still managed to follow along relatively well; and B) this was a legitimate workout. After spending so much time stressing about humiliating myself in public, I didn’t consider that the class would also be an epic cardio exercise, and I was exhausted afterward. In fact, Rahmaan told me participants can easily burn between 400 and 500 calories in one session, which is impressive.
So, while I’m hardly going to be a backup dancer when I grow up—unless you’re reading this, Bey?—I definitely got over my fear of dance workouts; I might even pencil in a Rihanna class next. In the meantime though, let’s relive a little snippet from Banana Studio’s “Formation” tutorial.
