Not many people in Texas can say they don’t know how to two-step. I however, had never had that experience until recently. A couple weeks ago some friends and I decided to go to Midnight Rodeo for fun. Going to midnight rodeo seemed like a fun alternative to our usual Thursday’s down on good ole 6th street. I distinctively remember walking into that dark venue. I could hear the “clicking” of boots all around me, smell the slightest hint of beer from the bar, and see a crowd around the dance floor. It was the definition of a Texas dance hall.
Many girls and guys watched others dance around the floor like elegant swan swimming through the lake. I had no idea how many different way people could make two-stepping their own. You could tell there were classical two-step moves, but couples added spins, flips and twirls to their routine. If you’ve never two-stepped before (like myself), it was definitely an intimidating site.
Sure enough, my friend pulled me to the dance floor and began two-stepping. Now, it’s a very easy dance once you get the hang of it, but different songs have different speeds which means you need to adjust how fast or slow you two-step. Thankfully, my friend was a veteran two-stepper and he was patient enough with me. As soon as I got the hang of the basic two-step, he could tell, then began adding in twirls to the mix. It was a crowded dance floor and you have to move to the music so you don’t run into anyone. He lead me around people so smoothly, even I was in shock.
They played many songs, but I’d have to say my favorite part of the night was when they played “Copperhead Road” and every single person in the venue stood up and began to line dance. I know this isn’t two-stepping, but it was neat to see everyone be able to participate (especially the people who didn’t have partners to two-step with). The stomping of boots and hollering of people proved to be unusually comforting for me. It’s probably because it represented a community of people who have something in common coming together to enjoy a dance with one another. Overall, the experience was new, fresh, and exciting for me. I love doing things outside of my comfort zone and this definitely proved to be worth it.
What a great idea to write about two-stepping! If there is one thing I love in this world its dancing. Whenever I go out I somehow always end up on the dance floor and I usually drag my friends out there with me. Recently I went to a country bar with a bunch of my friends. One of my friends was from California and didn’t know how to two-step so I taught him a few of the classic moves so that he could try them out on other girls. Needless to say, girls love a good two-step so I did him a huge social favor. Anyways, good for you for stepping out of your comfort zone and trying something new! I enjoyed reading your article!
Hi Stephanie! I’m so glad you made it out to Midnight Rodeo! Like you, I fell in love with that place when I went for the first time last semester. I knew how to two-step going into it, but really only the basic steps. I learned at a summer camp I went to where they had a two-step every week; although it was no swan lake, more like awkward pre-teens haha! So when I went to Midnight Rodeo I was still intimidated. It’s such a fun atmosphere though, and everyone there is more than willing to show you a few moves. Reading your article sure brought back some fun memories, I hope you decide to go back soon!
As an out of stater, I also was intimidated when I went to Midnight Rodeo, especially when it seemed like everyone around me was an expert at two-stepping! I agree, it is an awesome community of people and I thought it was an amazing experience, it felt quintessentially Texas. It took me a while to learn exactly what I was doing when it came to two-stepping, but I thought the mix of my favorite genre of music and the laid back atmosphere was incredible. I wish they had a wider range of music, instead of almost exclusively red dirt country but it was still a ton of fun!
Couldn’t agree with this post any more! I’ve only went dancing a handful of times, but when I went it was very intimidating to go out on the floor and to start. Especially when you see some people doing the crazy spins and such! I tried to start learning more but must admit didn’t keep up with trying to learn, but did get better! As a native Texan, my first time going dancing was kind of embarrassing but also eye-opening since I had never seen anything like it before!
I thought the Midnight Rodeo in Austin was closed? Did it re-open? I went to the one in Houston about a year ago and it was the worst date of my entire life. I love to two-step as much as the next girl, but it was a bad crowd and I was with a bad crowd when I went. There was this really weird pageanty show type thing where girls paraded around in scandalous black outfits and shook their butts around, and the guy I went with, now fondly referred to as Crazy Steve was one of the louder responders. It was creepy at best, and he beat me at pool so I was really having a terrible time. I went back to his apartment afterwards (only to pick up my car, trust me) and in lieu of sheets he had a John Deere comforter STAPLED TO THE WALL OVER HIS WINDOW. So yeah, seems like we had pretty different experiences, ha.