A gym trainer once told me I should stick to lifting weights and going to spin classes because boxing, Zumba and yoga required more coordination than what I appeared to possess. (It turns out she was right, but I ignored her advice. I am terrible at saluting the sun, but I like trying).

My chronic lack of coordination also extends to the dance floor, where I lack poise, grace, and any sense of rhythm. I can’t keep a beat, let alone dance to one. Despite this, I really like dancing. I just prefer to do it in my bedroom when no one is home and the curtains are shut.

So when I heard about No Lights No Lycra, a dance community that started in Melbourne in 2009 and has since spread to places like Chicago, London, Paris, Berlin and Canberra, I was more than curious. It’s a weekly dance event where anyone who’s keen can rock up to a pitch-black room and dance for 90 minutes in total darkness (total darkness!)

The No Lights No Lycra website describes it like this:

“There is no light, no lycra, no teacher, no steps to learn, no technique, just free movement. NLNL Is a space where you can completely let go, shake out the stresses of the week, and lose yourself in the music and the physicality of your body. NLNL is a daggy, non-pretentious place to completely be yourself.”

When I went to my first No Lights No Lycra, I wasn’t sure what to expect. What if it was an excuse for strangers to meet up and grope each other in the dark under the guise of “dancing”? I needn’t have worried. The vibe was fun, and totally daggy and non-pretentious like the website said it would be.

My friend and I each paid $5 at the door, took a free lolly snake and entered a room with covered up windows on one side, a stereo system in the corner, and about 30 people (I’m bad with numbers, but the room seemed pretty full) dancing in the dark. We waited in a corner for our eyes to adjust and then found our own space on the dance floor. And we danced. For an hour and a half.

This week was 90s themed (Backstreet’s back, alright?), which meant that dancing like Elaine from Seinfeld was not only acceptable, but also encouraged.

Eventually my eyes adjusted to the dark and I could see other people dancing, but this didn’t matter. They didn’t care that I was dancing like how my Dad dances at weddings, and I wasn’t paying attention what they were doing.

It felt like how dancing is supposed to feel – free, uninhibited and natural. I was having such as great time that when they turned the iPod off a little after 9pm, I wasn’t even close to being ready to leave. Normally I can’t leave a dance floor fast enough, but this was different.

The crowd was mostly women under 30. Some dressed up for the 90s theme, but most wore old exercise gear – something I wish I’d done, as closed doors and windows plus a small room full of people dancing to Right Said Fred means it gets hot quickly. A tip: Don’t worry about dressing nicely. It’s a serious workout, and no one leaves looking pretty.

I loved my first No Lights No Lycra, and I’ll definitely be back. Whether you love to dance or haven’t updated your moves since 1999, No Lights No Lycra is a fun and non-intimidating workout that is worth checking out.

No Lights No Lycra has been held every Tuesday in Ainslie for quite a while, and southsiders can also join in the fun every Friday.

The Griffith event was created by Fiona Harris, a dance devotee who has been embarrassing herself on dance floors since ’88. Fiona believes in the power of uninhibited dance and says, “No Lights No Lycra recaptures the pure joy of dancing that you felt as a kid.”

“We offer a place to dance that’s free of judgement and expectations. We turn off all the lights and dance like an un-coordinated version of Kevin Bacon in Footloose. We play everything from Beastie Boys to Beyoncé and everyone is welcome!”

So embrace the philosophy – dance like nobody’s watching…because nobody is!

the essentials

What: No Lights No Lycra Canberra
Where: Corroborree Park in Ainslie and Mugga Mugga Scout Hall, off Astrolabe Street, Griffith
When: Twice weekly – 7.45-9.15pm Tuesday (Ainslie) and 7pm-8:30pm Friday (Red Hill).
How much: $5
What to take: Comfy clothes (you’re going to sweat!), water bottle, enthusiasm