Info about Square Dancing
More about square dancing
If you’re into dancing then you should really try this one! The square dance is a folk dance that is composed out of four couples that form a square on the dance floor. Basically all they have to do is dance all the moves that are called but if you have two left feet then this dance is not for you. So, let’s see: what’s the geometry of the square dance?
As mentioned above, the square dance is a folkloric dance composed out of eight people. There are two main couples and two side couples. The dance begins with the first main couple facing against the square and going counter clockwise until it gets to couple four and the square is full again. The dance was first mentioned of in 17th century England but it was pretty popular in France as well as in the whole of Europe. The dance resembles quite well the Scottish Folk Dances. It got known in the United States of America because of its affiliation to Scotland. There are two types of square dancing: the traditional folkloric square dance and the modern square dance. The classic square dance is also known as the old time square dance. This type of dance doesn’t have particular form, being subsidized into several categories, by region. The modern square dance is basically a western American dance. It was first introduced in the 1930’s by Lloyd Shaw, a teacher who asked people across the state for definitions for the dance so it could be preserved as an American tradition. In order to dance a square dance you must be able to answer all the calls called by a caller. These “calls” are basically dance moves that must be done by the four couples. A call can sometimes be a short one or a long one being, thus, harder to execute. In parts like New England the calls go hand in hand with the music lasting as long as the phrase in the music lasts. In the classic square dance, calls are pretty short. They last only about 14 or 15 steps.
Even if we’re talking about a classic folkloric square dance or a modern one, the fun is still the same. All you need to do is listen to the calls and to the music and you’ll be just fine. But remember, “this ain’t no ring around the rosies”.