"Thump! Thwap! Whack-a-slap-smack!"
A clattering herd of a couple dozen people, ages 5 to 70, shuffled, stomped and kicked their way across a black-and-white tiled dance floor while the Jackson 5 belted out "I Want You Back."
It's Tappy Hour — actually two hours — a Friday night event at Can Can Wonderland, the eclectic entertainment venue in St. Paul's Hamline-Midway neighborhood.
Can Can Wonderland, which opened in January, is best known for its artist-inspired miniature golf course, arcade games and boozy malts and slushies. But since February, couples on dates, friends on a dare, gal pals and children-and-parent teams have been showing up to try their feet at flaps and slaps, shuffles and shim shams, and such combinations as the front essence and the Maxie Ford.
The free tap sessions, which run from 4 to 6 p.m., are led by Ellen Keane, a longtime local dance instructor, University of Minnesota dance and theater adjunct faculty member and owner of the Keane Sense of Rhythm tap dance company.
You don't need any dance experience to give Tappy Hour a whack. For the most part, participants are first-timers or people who tapped years ago and want to pick it up again, Keane said.
"Anyone can pick up the stuff we're doing," she said. "We do a lot of repetition."
You don't even need your own shoes. You can borrow one of the dozens of tap shoes that Keane brings to Can Can.