Dancing is not easy, admits Multi-Emmy award-winning choreographer and So You Think You Can Dance judge, Mia Michaels.
In fact, it's down right scary for many of us (chorophobia is real), including Johnny Depp, who told Ellen DeGeneres in 2012 that he "fears [dancing] more than anything in the world".
![Good dancing is expressing what's on the inside.](/web/20170206220506im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/6/m/5/k/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gu6dpb.png/1486411640225.jpg)
"It's a state of being vulnerable," says Michaels, who is in Australia for a series of dance workshops for children and adults alike. "That terrifies people."
It also terrifies dancers.
![NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 23: Mia Michaels attends the Opening Night performance of 'New York Spectacular' at the Radio ...](/web/20170206220506im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/6/m/5/r/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.gu6dpb.png/1486411640225.jpg)
Michaels says the best dancers expose their inner world and use dance as a "language' to express and reveal, using their bodies to "speak to the world".
But that many dancers, she says, "hide behind the steps".
"We're so protected and that sometimes holds us back," says Michaels. "[Good dancing] is exposing every part of yourself - putting your heart and soul out there."
For this reason, Michaels says that technique alone does not make a great dancer.
"You have to have technique," she says, as well as athleticism "power" and artistry "definitely". "And the most important quality is uniqueness - being themselves... being ble to move in their own way."
This is why Michaels believes we can all be good dancers. Even those with proverbial "two left feet".
"Everyone can dance, I believe," says Michaels, whose first workshop in Melbourne on Sunday saw a turn-out of about 500 "dancers, non-dancers and people who used to dance" aged from 8 to 60. "People have to allow themselves to dance. Everyone moves differently... and that's the beauty of it."
Michaels says that "awkward" dancers are often a source of inspiration for her when choreographing.
"Awkward people are the most interesting," says the 50-year-old Miami-native, who has been dancing since she was three.
For those who are self-conscious - or fearful - however, she says dancing can be "healing".
She is not the only one.
Much more than movement or exercise, dance has been found to reduce anxiety, stimulate memories, activate the brain's pleasure circuits and regulate mood.
It is also used as a form of therapy.
"Dance movement therapy is the therapeutic use of movement to further the emotional, cognitive, physical and social integration of the individual, based on the empirically supported premise that the body, mind and spirit are interconnected," according to the Dance Movement Therapy Association of Australasia.
And although it is a popular sport for children (with more than 5,500 dance schools in Australia and dance - including jazz, tap, ballet, hip-hop, cheerleading, contemporary, Irish, acrobatic, musical theatre and lyrical - dance is second only to swimming), it's never to late for adults to find their feet and reap the benefits.
"They have to let that go and be fearless and unapologetic and have fun - it's how you speak to the world through your body," says Michaels.
"Think back to when you were a little kid and turn on your favourite song and dance like no one is watching - tap back into that - that sense of freedom - try to bring that back into your life.
"I encourage dancers and non-dancers dance every day. Close the door to your room and just dance... that's how you become friends with it."
To book your tickets and for further information on Michaels' Sydney workshops on February 12, go to www.miamichaelslive.com.au