Dee McNeely teaches free line dancing lessons three times a week at Nick's. She demonstrates entire routines before breaking steps down to a class of 30. When teaching a simple four-step dance, she plays a song with a frantic beat. People usually learn three sequences of steps during her hour-long class. McNeely swears that to master the basics of line dancing that's all you need.
Most line dances are just variations on a few basic steps.
Beginners generally stick around after class, when Nick's really starts to fill up and pros step out onto the floor. During peak hours, novices tend to stay in the middle of the group, so that they never have to lead when the dance changes direction, but they're definitely in the swing of things. But on Tuesday nights several people gather on the dance floor for free line dancing and two-stepping lessons, followed by a night of dancing to greats like Dolly Parton and Johnny Cash. Spurs , a country bar in Waldorf, offers scheduled lessons during the week and semi-private lessons with local dancers on Saturday night. Live bands play on Friday and Saturday nights and draw an older crowd, mainly couples in their forties who look like they're out on a date.