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Solo practice5 minutes

Practice Quickstep solo: 4 exercises for confident figure pathways

By Bernhard De LucaUpdated

In short
  • Four solo exercises on quarter turns, Progressive Chassé, Forward Lock and Backward Lock reinforce figure patterns you have already learned.
  • Start with the target direction, then add path control, the free foot for the next step and backward orientation.
  • An exercise is successful when the ending position and free foot are correct without an additional corrective step.
  • Solo practice does not replace coordinating both movement paths as a couple later on.

In class, sometimes your partner's movement carries you through a section you don't yet know confidently yourself. When you're alone, that gap becomes visible, especially in the brief moment between two figures.

How the practice sequence is structured

  • Four tasks, increasing effort

    The sequence successively adds direction of travel, path control, the connecting foot, and backward orientation; after that, only the assessment follows.

  • Only Previously Learned Figures

    A quarter turn, Progressive Chassé, and both Lock Steps are assumed knowledge. You won't be learning them for the first time by following a description.

  • Visible Result

    Each exercise has a verifiable endpoint, a final alignment, or a specified free foot for the next step.

  • No paid recording

    No one paid for the recording; the selection contains only practice exercises and a final assessment.

  • As of October 30, 2026

    The order is an editorial learning aid, not a scientifically measured ranking of training methods.

A floor marking is a point of reference, not a target you should try to reach by forcing an extended final step.
A floor marking is a point of reference, not a target you should try to reach by forcing an extended final step.

Four exercises, from a simple goal to backward checking

  1. 01

    Quarter Turn: Find the Final Facing

    Quarter Turn to Right, your own dance role, one figure

    • Target direction
    • final position
    • orientation

    Before you start, place a flat directional arrow on the floor pointing toward the final facing you learned in class. Dance your familiar Quarter Turn and stop after the last weight transfer, without turning your feet afterward. You succeed if your final facing matches the arrow and you reach the intended position without taking an extra step: for now, this single checkpoint is all that counts.

  2. 02

    Progressive Chassé: Stay on Your Own Path

    Progressive Chassé, your own dance role, start and finish

    • Path
    • sense of space
    • endpoint

    Mark the start and a generous target area along the path you have already learned for Progressive Chassé. Perform the figure with a familiar step length and stop at the end. You complete the task if you land in the target area without veering sideways or stretching out the last step. Compared with the first task, this adds control over the distance you cover.

  3. 03

    Forward Lock: keep the next-step foot free

    Forward Lock, role dancing forward, figure ending

    • Weight transfer
    • free foot
    • next step

    For a Forward Lock you know, note which foot bears your weight at the end and which foot is meant to take the next step. Dance the figure on your own, then show the free foot by lightly tapping it without transferring your weight. You succeed if that foot is immediately available and you don't have to free it first by transferring your weight to the other foot; this extra check reveals what simply reaching the right final position does not.

  4. 04

    Backward Lock: reach your destination moving backwards

    Backward Lock, dancing backwards, clear path

    • Backward path
    • final orientation
    • free foot

    Walk the unobstructed path beforehand, mark your intended end area, and dance the familiar Backward Lock backwards, then check the end area, your orientation, and your free foot together. The task is successful only if you avoid sidestepping or an additional weight shift. Since you cannot see the destination directly in front of you while moving, this task requires the most simultaneous checks.

  5. 05

    Review: record the first error

    After the four tasks, three checkpoints

    • Path
    • alignment
    • closing foot

    After each of the four tasks, note whether the path, alignment and free foot were correct, and mark the first element that deviated during a figure. This review is not a fifth exercise: it determines which of the four tasks you repeat, so you don't cover up a failed backward path with extra steps or mistake an incorrect final alignment for a foot problem.

The final check needs a real stop

One thing stands out in the selection: being in the right place on the floor is not enough. You can be in the right spot and still have your weight on the wrong foot. So finish each task with the last prescribed weight change, not with a correction afterward. A foot that is merely next to your standing foot is not automatically free.

Before your attempt, decide on three things: your own figure path, your ending alignment, and the foot intended for the next step. These details come from the version of your dance role you have already learned. Do not simply copy your partner’s foot sequence. The method for writing down dance steps is a good way to create a short, easy-to-read guide.

Dance with small, familiar steps in an open space. At the end, pause only long enough to identify the result; you are not practicing a frozen stage pose. Repetition cannot replace missing knowledge of the figure. If the backward path is unclear, start with the guide to the Quickstep Backward Lock. Passing a solo attempt only shows that you can perform your own path. You can then adjust your spacing and shared movement together with a partner.

Your overview in three numbers

Solo exercises for familiar dance figures
4
Criteria for your evaluation
3
Additional corrective steps
0

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. The exercises are suitable only once you have learned the figure for your dance role. Without that foundation, you won't know the target values for the path and finishing position. You don't need to know all four figures: start with a figure you know and add the other exercises after the relevant lesson.

Standard classes for your Quickstep figures

In the course, you'll learn the figures, and you can reinforce their individual patterns with these solo exercises.

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Share your dance figures later

On udansa, you can find dance partners to put together the Quickstep figures you’ve already practiced as a pair. Describe your dance role and the figures you already know.

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