By Wade O'Leary
A Sydney nightclub promoter has started a campaign to ban a style of dance that he says is a danger to other patrons.
"Shuffling" — a mix between the moves of one-hit wonder MC Hammer and the frenetic steps required by dancing machines in amusement arcades — has long been a staple of the Melbourne rave scene.
But Tim Sabre of Raw Entertainment says Sydney clubbers swallowing booze rather than ecstasy tablets are turning the free-flowing style into a dancefloor disaster.
"I've seen some near-misses and some not-misses involving young ladies being sideswiped … it's more the patrons who are going off about it, the clubs are happy to have anybody there," he said.
"It's ridiculous — what are they doing?"
Sabre promotes nights at some of the city's classier venues — including Soho, Mandalay and Goodbar — and says the smaller Sydney clubs can't cope with the southern style.
"It used to be in those clubs where people stood two metres apart from each other and they were all on ecstasy, so if they bumped into each other they'd give each other a hug," he said.
"In Sydney, on the other hand, they try to do it on a crowded floor while drunk.
"You need precision and when you're drunk you lack that, so when somebody goes staggering around and hits the wrong people … it's not good."
But fellow club promoter and DJ Peter Glass described the campaign as "ludicrous".
"That's their self-expression, that's what dancing's about," he said.
Glass — a fixture at top-drawer Sydney venues like De Nom, Ruby Rabbit and Will & Toby's — believes there is a simpler solution.
"If you play that sort of music you're attracting that sort of clientele, so if you're having that problem you should change your music policy," he said.
"I've never come across this sort of thing in any venue I've worked in."
But Sabre insists he will continue his fight to let his patrons dance in safety.
"We're just trying to get it banned, basically," he said.
"With the help of the media, this could be a thing of the past."
Watch the video below for an example of (safe) expert shuffling by Singapore shuffler Steven.
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