If you remember my Beyography column from a few months ago, you already know that dance is not my forte. This Justin Bieber–inspired class is no exception — once again exemplifying the fact that I can’t dance, but it sure was fun trying!
Diana Reyes, or Fly Lady Di, meets me at Habeeba’s Dance Studio (Jarvis and Dundas). She is young and dressed the part. At 45, I look like a sad Bieber wannabe. Don’t tell my husband this, but I’m a huge Justin Bieber fan. As a side note, I think we’re a little tough on the Biebs — one of our most celebrated young Canadian musicians. I mean who hasn’t peed in public or thrown an egg in their youth? But I digress.
The actual video that inspired this dance class launched last year and quickly racked up over 30 million views in the first month. Parris Goebel is the 23-year-old New Zealand choreographer and mastermind behind it. Goebel has created routines for massive summer tours like Nicki Minaj’s Pinkprint run and Janet Jackson’s Unbreakable World Tour.
The story goes that Bieber’s team contacted Goebel, and she pulled the video together in just two days. If you’re looking to see Bieber’s toned abs, you will be disappointed. Goebel and her crew of dancers, ReQuest, are the only ones featured in the colourful, ’90s-attired video for the hit song “Sorry.”
Reyes started teaching the classes last November for small groups after a friend suggested the idea to her. Once the classes were featured in a blog, they got a huge response and regularly sell out in two days or less.
First, we work on the moves in sections, counting out loud, then in our heads, and slowly it’s all pieced together with the music. Reyes is very patient and sweet with me. There is a lot of booty “pumping” and “self-loving” (freestyle hand movements) that make me feel a little shy and thankful it’s a private class. We also incorporate some of her own moves into the routine.
Reyes was born in North York and grew up in Markham, and her parents immigrated from the Philippines. I try to impress her with my limited Tagalog (my first boyfriend was Filipino). She was always called Lady Di (having been named after the late princess) and the “Fly” was added when, as a kid, she obsessed over the Fly Girls from In Living Color.
Following in Fly Girl J. Lo’s footsteps, Reyes grew into a talented dancer who now spends her days choreographing, performing and even deejaying.
After this class, I will never watch a music video or go to a concert without appreciating the skill of the dancers. It can’t be stressed enough how hard these routines are to memorize and execute, but like I said, it sure was fun.
