What started as a toe-tapping bit of fun has quickly turned into a full-blown craze for Raglan’s growing line dancing community.
Boots are sliding, playlists are pumping, and the energy shows no sign of slowing down, with The Critter Club podcast.
The pet project of music fanatics Ciane Ellen and Sean Reid, The Critter Club was created to keep dancers moving when there’s no band or musician on hand.
“The Critter Club provides a curated playlist with gaps between the tracks, just like you’d have with a live performer,” Sean says.
Those pauses are more strategic than awkward silence. They give dancers a chance to catch their breath, swap a laugh, and figure out what moves they’ll need for the next song.
As well as traditional country favourites, Ciane and Sean mix contemporary tracks into their sets. “We like to play around with all sorts of genres,” Ciane says.
“We’re trying to add a little bit of colour to it, and we’ve found some New Zealand songs that have that swing and swagger you can dance to,” Sean adds.
As well as curating music for the Foxy Squirrels & Prairie Dawgs, aka Raglan Line Dancers, the pair are enthusiastic boot-scooters themselves.
Although Ciane describes herself as “uncoordinated”, she says the supportive atmosphere keeps her coming back.
“There’s no judgment, there’s nothing but fun,” she says, “Basically, you laugh at yourself for three hours in a supportive environment.”
The pair credit teacher Louisa Alix with helping grow the group to nearly 40 regular dancers from across the district.
“She’s done hours of teaching over the years for free. It’s because of people like Louise putting in the hard work that a dance community like this can grow,” Ciane says.
The Critter Club podcast first airs on Raglan Community Radio before making its way to the Foxy Squirrels & Prairie Dawgs dancers. Songs are paired with dances sourced through line dance platform BootStepper, which features thousands of routines from choreographers around the world, along with detailed step sheets for learners.
“We send out a link to the show and to BootStepper, so people can listen to the show before they get to the social dancing if they want to,” Sean says.
Join Louisa’s line dancing classes at Te Uku Hall every Monday. Absolute beginners can step in for free from 6-6.30pm, followed by Beginners Plus from 6.30-7.15pm and Improvers from 7.15-8pm.
Free beginners’ lessons are also held every Thursday from 6-7pm at The Raglan Club, except on the last Thursday of the month.
