TEXAS TWO-STEPPING

By Stacey McLeod

Dressing the Part

Sure, you can wear any kind of shoes to your two-step lesson, but when in Texas, you might as well go big. Cowboy boots are a popular Austin souvenir, but be warned, they don’t come cheap (ranging from $150 to $5,000 US). But just about everyone claims you’ll wear them for life. Plus, once you’ve been bitten by the Austin style, you’ll find ways to rock those boots in cities everywhere.

There’s an old saying: you don’t break in cowboy boots – they break you in. If you’re purchasing boots on your Austin visit right before hitting the dance floor, you might want to chuck a pair of flip-flops in your purse or bag – just in case.

Allen’s Boots , over on South Congress in the hip SoCo neighbourhood, has been an Austin institution since 1977 and popular tourist stop. We asked them for a little lesson on picking out the perfect dancing boots.

Learning the Moves

In the Texas two-step, one person leads and the other follows, travelling counter-clockwise in a circle around the dance floor in a series of “quicks” and “slows.” The dance can be done to any song with a 2/4 or 4/4 time signature. Once you know the moves, and as long as the tempo’s there, you can break into a two-step dance anywhere, anytime.

If you struggle with two left feet, several authentic Austin dance halls and bars offer lessons, including East Austin’s The White Horse, and The Broken Spoke honky-tonk, with all-ages dance lessons from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. For $20 US, you get a one-hour dance lesson, which includes admission to the show afterwards, where you can test out your new moves. Lessons are led by Terri White, a long-time dancer and daughter of the club’s owners.

Be sure to check out James White’s “tourist trap room,” chronicling the countless celebrities who’ve swung by since it opened in 1964.

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Photo © Jason Hatch