Screen shot 2013-02-11 at 11.53.28 PMIf you are dancing this Thursday for V-Day and like me, find choreography difficult, I have created a table with the Debbie Allen steps next to the lyrics. I really love this dance and I love the way it tells the story of the song in gesture! I am not a dancer and have never written choreography down before. I just copied what was written in the You Tube and added a few words to hopefully make it even clearer.

My apologies for any errors, but I hoped it might help others get the hang of the dance. It helped me to understand and visualise the structure better, which I couldn’t get from just watching the video over and over. I hope it helps.

Have a wonderful time dancing and may you all have a joyous and safe celebration on V-Day!! There are now 199 countries signed up- and did you see our Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s clip in support of V-Day. Hope she’ll be dancing too!

Lyrics by Tena Clark; Music by Tena Clark/Tim Heintz; Choreography by Debbie Allen

PART LYRICS

I raise my arms to the sky
On my knees I pray
I’m not afraid anymore
I will walk through that door

Invocation

Free dancing

or see Sheffield You Tube ideas for this bit

1 a Walk, dance, rise
Walk, dance, rise

 

Walk on spot, 1R, 2L, 3R,4L

Side R, Step L

   b   Walk on spot, 1R, 2L, 3R,4L

Party , party (pivoting, arms up)

 2 I can see a world where we all live
Safe and free from all oppression
No more rape or incest, or abuse
Women are not a possession
Box step: start R foot fwd, cross L, R back, L to start.  TWICE

Swag R, Swag L

REPEAT ALL

   3 You’ve never owned me,

don’t even know me

I’m not invisible, I’m simply wonderful

I feel my heart for the first time racing

I feel alive, I feel so amazing

Hand crosses: R out, L out, cross

Walk back

Walk fwd

 

Clap in circle clockwise starting bottom left, 3 times

4 CHORUS: I dance cause I love
Dance cause I dream
Dance cause I’ve had enough
Dance to stop the screams
Dance to break the rules
Dance to stop the pain
Dance to turn it upside down
CHORUS: Step, party (choose how you want to ‘party’)

Pivot, party

 

 

5 It’s time to break the chain,

oh yeah
Break the Chain
Dance, rise
Dance, rise

Arms circle clockwise

Break, ball change (break chain to left over right knee)

swag R, SWAG R

REPEAT

6 In the middle of this madness,

we will stand I know there is a better world

Take your sisters & your brothers by the hand

Reach out to every woman & girl

(REPEAT 1A & 2)

Walk on spot, 1R, 2L, 3R,4L

Step to R, Step to L

 

Box step start Right foot fwd, cross L, R back, L to start.

Swag R, Swag L

REPEAT

7 This is my body,

my body’s

holy

 

No more excuses,

no more abuses

 

Wave down body

cross hands over lap

Namaste up, down, side, side

 

R foot fwd, L hand STOP gesture

L foot fwd, R hand STOP gesture

R foot fwd, L hand STOP gesture

L foot fwd, R hand STOP gesture

8 We are mothers,

we are teachers,
We are beautiful, beautiful creatures

Walk back 4 counts

Walk fwd arms out 4 counts

Point all directions and at each other

 

 

 

9

 CHORUS:

I dance cause I love
Dance cause I dream
Dance cause I’ve had enough
Dance to stop the screams
Dance to break the rules
Dance to stop the pain
Dance to turn it upside down
It’s time to break the chain,

oh yeah
Break the Chain, oh yeah
Break the Chain

 (REPEAT 4 & 5)

CHORUS: Step, party

Pivot, party

 

 

 

Arms circle clockwise

Break, ball change (break chain to left over right knee)

swag R, SWAG R

REPEAT

10 Dance, rise
Dance, rise

Sister won’t you help me, sister won’t you rise x4
TWICE

CHA CHA

In the Debbie Allen version you cha cha in own space, but we can also have fun connecting and dancing to each other (as they do in Sheffield version), as long as we keep a track of the count: 8x 8 beats!

11  

This is my body,

my body’s

holy

 

 

 

No more excuses,

no more abuses

(REPEAT 7 & 8)

Wave down body

cross hands over lap

Namaste up, down, side, side

 

R foot fwd, L hand STOP gesture

L foot fwd, R hand STOP gesture

R foot fwd, L hand STOP gesture

L foot fwd, R hand STOP gesture

12 I dance cause I love
Dance cause I dream
Dance cause I’ve had enough
Dance to stop the screams
Dance to break the rules
Dance to stop the pain
Dance to turn it upside down
It’s time to break the chain, oh yeah
Break the Chain, oh yeah
Break the Chain
(REPEAT 4 & 5, but break chain 8 times)

CHORUS: Step, party

Pivot, party

 

 

Arms circle clockwise (start bottom left)

 

Break, ball change (break chain to left over right knee)

swag R, swag R

8 times

13 One billion rising! Hands in circle up, down to centre

Point right finger fwd and raise vertically up

(in the Debbie Allen choreo you bring the finger from skywards to fwd)

Find your local event at the one billion rising org website or if you are an Australian Byron shire local, see you at 7am Main Beach on Thursday, February 14. More details at the FB event page. Read the blog below or the one billion rising org website to understand more about the event. obr_logo-web