Thursday, March 27, 2025
From cowboy boots to sneakers, dancers of all kinds have shuffled across the floor at Garden Social in East Meadow, learning the art of country line dancing one step at a time. The dance classes, led by Liz Mooney, an East Meadow native and the creator of “Country Fusion” — a workout program and lifestyle brand based in Nashville — brought generations of dancers together,
Mooney, 41, is a graduate of East Meadow High School. She was a dance major at Nassau Community College and spent time as an early adult taking classes like Steps on Broadway and the Broadway Dance Center, both located in New York City. The fitness world found her, she said, and at 23 she began working at the Synergy Fitness Club in Levittown.
Eight years ago, Mooney created “Country Fusion,” the only country-based fitness program, rooted in dance. She began touring with fitness companies and certifying instructors, and during the coronavirus pandemic, she decided to expand her efforts further. She founded Country Fusion’s headquarters in Nashville four years ago, bringing dance back into the city.
“There was nowhere to dance,” Mooney recalled. “I took a risk and went as a single mom — my daughter is now six, so she was just 3 years old when we went to Nashville, and I became a name and staple of Nashville. I brought dance back there.”
Mooney’s Nashville headquarters cater to tourism, she explained. They’ll host bachelorette parties and other events, where she and her instructors teach people the basics of line dancing. Her ventures have led her to choreographing dances for country artists, and she’s appeared on programs for CMT, previously known as Country Music Television.
Mooney a dance instructor before she thought of Country Fusion and a few things in her life pushed her in the direction of country music.
“When I was a little girl, my family would go every year to a dude ranch in upstate-New York, right outside Lake George,” she said. “And then when I was 30, country music was starting to grow, with people like Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan. I put a couple of country numbers in my dance fitness class, and I saw (that participants) loved it.”
At first, Mooney dubbed the program “Country Fit,” but then transitioned to “Country Fusion,” as the classes blend in other styles of dance, including salsa, cha-cha, and swing. Country Fusion doesn’t end in her Nashville gym, Mooney said, as participants can take what they learn and hit up nightlife and concerts, near and far.
“It’s based on low intensity interval training,” Mooney said. “You’ll start with a warmup, a slower song, and then it will get to a faster and more intense song. It’s really for everyone — seniors, children, men, and women.”
Mooney recently moved from Nashville to Florida, where she planned to launch the beginnings of Country Fusion aquatics, a water-based version of her program, but her home was hit hard by the hurricanes in 2024. Back in East Meadow while her Florida residence is rebuilt, Mooney’s held a few country nights at Garden Social, a restaurant, beer garden and event space, also in East Meadow.
“I’ve been bringing a little bit of Nashville and my dancing there,” she said, “and it’s been full circle, coming back to my hometown.”
Mooney ventured into other creative areas, recently publishing a memoir, “The Light in the Devil’s Tavern,” a memoir that reflects on her journey of resilience, healing, and self-discovery. In it, she discusses her background as a dancer, choreographer and fitness enthusiast, and readers are taken on a journey that begins during her formative years in East Meadow to her transformation in Nashville. It’s available for purchase through Amazon, and online at WingAndWolf.com.
“When I was little, I loved dancing and I just wanted to be a performer,” Mooney said. “Life happened, it took me through twists and turns, and I created Country Fusion because it came to me. I didn’t know it was going to grow. But I believed in it, I loved it, so I was passionate, and it kept growing. I just felt, intuitively, that this was the path I was supposed to go on and I took risks and chances.”
Now, Mooney is a published author, working on the beginning stages of a podcast, and is writing her first children’s book. “I just went on the journey of life,” she said. “It led me to one thing to another, and it’s been just beautiful.”
Mooney’s first class at Garden Social took place on Dec. 4, and her most recent classes were on Jan. 29 and Feb. 12. For more on what’s to come locally, visit GardenSocialLI.com, and for more on Country Fusion, visit CountryFusion.net.
