Whether you are working with experienced dancers or enthusiastic first-timers, how you first present the choreography can make a big difference in how quickly it is learned and how well it is performed. After many years of working with both children and adults as a choreographer, I have learned this the hard way and now have several rules that I work by.
Rule #1: Be Prepared To Minimize Changes
Theatre is a creative process and all shows will have to make changes now and then to get the results we want. Often what looked great in our heads doesn't look so great onstage, and sometimes the dancers just can't get a handle on a particular step. While some changes are inevitable, making many unnecessary changes after the dance has been learned can confuse your dancers, especially if they are not very experienced. Taking sufficient time to confer with your director and to finalize your own artistic decisions can help you to avoid unnecessary changes. You can also have a dancer friend (or even a non-dancing friend with a good eye) to give you some feedback on your choreography before you present it to your dancers.
Rule #2: Teach Each Step In Detail
The more specific you can be about the way you want each step to look, the more uniform your dancers will look at performance time. Indicate the exact height of the kick, the inclination of the head, any shift in weight, exactly where the arms should be. Being specific about these details as the steps are taught will prevent you from having to "fix" them later.
Rule #3: Don't Keep Going If It's Not Right
If you have taught 16 counts of the dance and the dancers aren't solid on those 16 counts, why add on any more? Teach the dance in small pieces, and don't add on a new piece until the last is well in hand. This prevents dancers from getting overwhelmed and allows them to concentrate on one new piece at a time. If you teach them a routine all at once, the whole dance will be new to them and there will be no level of comfort.
Rule #4: Use Frames of Reference
Use what is happening in the music, lyrics, and counting to give your dancers something to link each step to. "When you hear ______, do _______ " is something most of us can relate to. Using counts is very important unless each movement happens on a new beat (in which case you probably need to read my Choreography 101). Counting the beats in the music communicates the speed of each step which is essential to performing it correctly.
