New to me .. accomodating tap dancers

[Robin D]

I have a school show in March where the director wants tap dancing. The floor is four year old planked wood or laminate that's recently been recoated. The school admin and caretaker do not want tap shoes on it.

 

What options do we have with a budget of just over zilch please? Is Harlequin flooring the right stuff for tap? If so can we hire it and how do we lay it please? I can see a purchase price of about £35 per 1.6 sq metre. We would need about 40 linear metre?.

 

Would laying a number of sheets of 6mm ply, or even hardboard suffice as an alternative? If so, what's the best way of laying them please.

 

Or a cheap roll of lino perhaps?

 

Thanks in anticipation for your knowledgeable input.

[Dave m]

I'd go for hardboard. It works for flamenco and tap

[sunray]

Yes hardboard is noisier than 3 or 4mm ply to walk on.

[gyro_gearloose]

If you cant even tap dance on the original floor, how are you going to attach the ply/hardboard/etc?

[andy™]

If you cant even tap dance on the original floor, how are you going to attach the ply/hardboard/etc?

 

if your using something thicker (I.e 12-18mm) then you can fit these on the floor in the corners / edges facing up then push the wood onto it - itll hold the sheets together from the bottom and hopefully not damage the existing floor

 

https://www.toolstation.com/safe-plate/p20903?store=FG&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gclid=Cj0KCQiAmZDxBRDIARIsABnkbYTuB4S7s26xArlRX4bwcXzaD3oiwLbR7x8xJhShSNtvyMJ3TNwCsREaApAtEALw_wcB

[Dave m]

just use gaffer tape upside down to join the sheets and also tape normally around the edges. you could use double sided tape but once the floor gets large enough, it tends to stay put down to weight

[ninjadingle]

Let them tap on the floor then charge the director for making good. If this is a school show and the director is employed by the school then it sounds like there's some internal politics here that I would stay well clear of!

[Robin D]

Let them tap on the floor then charge the director for making good. If this is a school show and the director is employed by the school then it sounds like there's some internal politics here that I would stay well clear of!

it is a school show in 6 weeks time, and yes I'm aware of the politics, but as a volunteer, stay well clear. However, it's the kids that lose out if we can't find a way through and as I volunteer for them, rather than the staff, I would rather find a painless solution.

 

Thanks for all the advice. ?

[kerry davies]

For a school show I would just lay decent hardboard and join it with good quality dance floor tape. I might cut the sheets in half to lay it flatter.

 

Not as if you are doing a Sadler's Wells run, is it? Keep it simple.

[the kid]

If you can its worth investing in some NEC tape for holding it dow on the underside also.

[david.elsbury]

It’s common practice over in my part of the world to lay good quality gaff and then use double sided tape on that. Seems to mostly protect the floor.

[Robin D]

Many thanks good people of Blue Room.Hardboard and tape it will be. I assume shiny side up?

[TomHoward]

We have 4 fairly tired rolls of black Halequin that you might be able to borrow in East Anglia depending on the dates if it is of interest - but I'm afraid I have no idea whether Harequin is the right stuff for tap or not.

[sunray]

Many thanks good people of Blue Room.Hardboard and tape it will be. I assume shiny side up?

Yes shiny side up, much noisier.

 

[TeeJay]

Definitely do not use lino, marley or expensive Harlequin rolled dance floor for tap!

 

You need to have a hard dance surface for both the sound of the tapping and also for the pushback that the tappers are expecting (which is more important to you can vary ...)

 

Soft dance floor will not survive repeated impacts in a usable condition (and particularly not if a tap shoe breaks and one of the metal pieces catches it)

 

remember that you will need to ensure that the sheets of whatever you use don't ruck up at the edges, particularly if there is any kind of slide action. You may find using clear dance floor tape on tape as well could be necessary

 

And if using tape on the floor, I'm sure you know but check that the adhesive of your tape isn't enough to damage the fresh coating ...

 

Hope it all goes well