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Beginners
Experienced
Callers
Directions
What is it |
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Square dancing - some more info:
Some of you did something that was called
"Square Dancing" when they were in primary school. Unfortunately at
most schools the material used had not been updated for 30 years, so
it had little to do with Current Square Dancing.
There are still movements called 'swing your partner' and 'do-sa-do',
but they are not quite the same as those at school.
Square Dancing uses a variety of lively up-beat modern music to suit all
tastes, and there is still some country and western. Dress code for beginners is neat casual (jeans, slacks,
skirts etc.). Many of the longer term dancers dress up in traditional
square dance attire, so we end up with a variety of clothing styles
at our weekly dances.
The dancing is not strenuous so you don't sweat much, but it is
energetic enough that you will tone up, and maybe even lose weight!
In each 20 minute dancing bracket, we start by getting a line of
boys and a line of girls facing the front, then we pair everyone up
using a dance called a "round-up". If you and someone else want to
dance together in a particular brackets, you can ensure you get
paired by getting near the front of the lines.
Everything you need to know is taught to you. Most of it is so easy
we can teach it on the fly without even stopping the music. For
example, the first move is 'join hands in a circle and circle to the
left' - self explanatory.
As you dance we call lots of little fun things to make you think and
make you laugh, and each week you learn a little more.
The classes progress at a leisurely pace and much of the lesson is
taken up with social dancing. This keeps everyone entertained, and
reinforces the moves that are taught so that they become automatic.
You do not need to learn lots of step names and definitions. Most
people find they can do the moves long before they actually remember
the names.
There are many different levels in square dancing, but there are no
tests. There is no pressure. You find the levels you enjoy most. The
high levels are for those that enjoy puzzles and mental challenge,
while the more popular levels are for those that just want to have
fun dancing. Different Square Dance clubs dance at different levels,
or like ours have different levels in different brackets. (In the
experienced brackets we mainly dance "Plus level - DBD"
and some Mainstream)
People do not drink alcohol during dance
sessions, because they want to stay alert as they do not know what
we will call next
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