Classic Wedding Line Dances

Wedding line dances are all the rage. They may be predictable and a bit corny, but that's not making people grow tired of them. In fact, any time you put wedding guests on a dance floor, you can bet there will be several line dances. The Chicken Dance and The Hustle continue to lead the pack in popularity, so it's a good idea to brush up on them before you head to that wedding reception.

Classic Wedding Line Dances
If the bride and groom pick their own music, you can bet on The Hustle as a wedding reception dances, but things won't get much cornier than that. If the guests are calling the shots, expect a lot of weird line dances, including The Love Shack, YMCA and The Macarena. Leave the music up to the DJ, and The Chicken Dance will be front and center. DJs love to see grown men and women make fools of themselves. Usually by that time of the night, everyone is enjoying themselves to a point where they don't mind looking foolish doing silly wedding dances. 

How to Do The Chicken Dance
When you get ready to do The Chicken Dance, everyone stands in a circle on the dance floor facing inward. When the music starts, begin with the following dance steps and continue repeating the steps in order until the music ends. Remember that each move repeats four times on the beats.

• Hold your hands out in front of you and form a beak with your fingers and thumb.
• Open and close your beak four times.
• Quickly tuck your thumbs into your armpits to create wings.
• Flap your wings four times.
• Quickly tuck your arms behind your back, with palms facing upward, and wiggle your hands while you shake your butt and shimmy down to the floor and back four times.
• Clap four times.
• Repeat all four steps four times.
• Grab the hands of the people on either side of you and move in a circle.
• Just when you begin to get dizzy the DJ will have you switch sides, stop and then repeat the dance steps.

Don't worry if you get confused; the DJ usually keeps the instructions going. If the DJ doesn't, just look at someone else in the circle and do whatever they're doing.

How to Do The Hustle
While The Chicken Dance is about acting goofy, The Hustle is all about style. Based on disco dancing from the 1970s, The Hustle has simple moves that you can dress up with your own personal flair.

• Start the dance right after you hear "Do the Hustle" for the first time and the flute melody begins. Everyone should be in the center of the dance floor.
• Walk backward for four steps on the beat.
• Walk forward for four steps on the beat.
• Turn to the right in place for four beats, so that you wind up facing forward again.
• Turn to the left for the next four beats.
• Do the pointing move from Saturday Night Fever (pointing up and pointing down while standing in place) for the next eight beats.
• Ball your hands into fists and roll them in front of you for four beats.
• Take one step forward, one step backward, step to the side and do a quarter turn to the left. Repeat the series of steps until the music ends.

Some brides and grooms discourage wedding line dances but they really are a great way to get everyone at your wedding onto the dance floor.