What is Square Dancing?
Square Dancing is a social activity where eight people form a square made up of two people per side. There can be many squares dancing in a room or hall at the same time.
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They walk to the beat of the music, executing a series of movements as the "Caller" announces each one. As the "call" progresses, the movements create fascinating patterns, mixing up the group of eight and then magically returning them to their original positions at the end. It's like a puzzle!
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The program of a dance is made up of "tips" with breaks in between.
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A "tip" is a "patter" or "hash" call followed by a "singing" call.
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A patter call is a quick and fluid succession of commands to the beat of an instrumental piece of music. It's like a challenging warm-up for the dancers, putting them through their paces, often giving them a clue of, and rehearsal for, what's to come in the next "singing" call.
The singing call is choreography set to a song, with square dance commands mixed in with the lyrics.
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Square Dance music can be of any genre - the possibilities are endless.
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With Square Dancing, there is no choreography for the dancers to memorize. You learn the movements or commands, and then execute them on-the-fly, as the Caller announces each one. Calls can be simple and straightforward, or complex in the way that they are put together. It never gets boring!
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Square Dancing has levels.
The first level can vary a bit, depending on where you are dancing. It can be known as "West Coast", "SSD / Social Square Dancing", or "Basic". They are fairly similar in that they are each made up of about the same 50-some-odd moves.
It typically takes 10 - 12 weekly 2-hour lessons to learn these basics.
The goal of these programs is to get new students dancing and having fun as quickly as possible, knowing they all have busy schedules and commitments!
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The next level is "Mainstream". This is a fairly standard level, called all over the world. You can walk into a dance in any other country and participate, because Square Dance calls are identical, and called in English, no matter where they are. Mainstream adds another 15 or so moves, for a total of almost 70. This set of lessons includes the teaching of the new moves, reinforces the basics, and covers some of the many variations that can come up.
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Higher levels include Plus, Advanced (A1, A2), and Challenge (C1, C2, C3A, C3B, C4, C5)
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Square Dancing is a great form of low-impact exercise. It's really just walking, and no special dance skills are needed. There is never any drinking at Square Dance events; a lot of mental concentration is required, and those two things don't mix well together! It's a very healthy and social activity. Casual, comfortable clothing and footwear are all you need.
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What is Round Dancing?
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Round dancing is often done at Square Dance events, usually in between "tips". It is essentially cued ballroom dancing. A set of moves are chosen by a choreographer to go with a piece of music, and a "Cuer" announces the moves to the dancers, as the music is playing in the background. As with Square Dancing, the dancers don't memorize the choreography, they learn and memorize moves and then perform them on-the-fly as they are announced by a Cuer. The couples move in a circle around the dance floor, all performing the same move at the same time.
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Some of the rhythms of Round Dancing are:
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Two Step
Waltz
Cha Cha
Rumba
Jive
Foxtrot
Quickstep
Viennese Waltz
Tango
West Coast Swing
Slow Two Step
Polka
Lindy
Hustle
Bolero
Merengue
Paso Doble
Salsa
Mambo
Samba
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There are "Phases" to categorize the levels within each rhythm (Phase I, II, III, IV, V, VI). They represent increasing degrees of difficulty and moves to memorize.
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There are classes around Vancouver Island that teach Round Dancing. You usually need to find a dance partner - someone who will commit to doing a set of lessons with you. Dance partners can be of any gender.