Tips For Better Square Dancing

                                                       

The following "Square Dance Tips" were gleaned from various square dance publications, and are directed toward new dancers.   But, it does not hurt for experienced dancers to review them now and then. . .

Don't worry if you make a mistake.   We all make mistakes!

Shuffle your feet.   Put your weight on the ball of your foot, lift your heel off the floor and take short, smooth gliding steps.   Lifting your entire foot tires you more rapidly and breaks the dance rhythm.

Be a dancer, not a walker!   Listen to the music, pick out the beat and take a shuffle step with each beat of music.   Walking a call instead of dancing a call does not look good, throws your timing off, affects the timing of the entire square, and results in an uncomfortable dance feeling.

Be a proud dancer.   Keep a loose relaxed feeling and enjoy the music and calls.

Don't worry if you make a mistake.   We all make mistakes!

Keep your squares tight, do not spread out.   When dancers form large squares they will be slow in executing the calls.   The reason is, they are forcing themselves to cover much more ground.   When the squares are small, you have ample time to do the calls.

No matter what the Caller calls, DO IT!!!   Often dancers will stop if the Caller tells them to do something and they do not know why he told them to do it.   This results in a needless breakdown of the square.   Don't worry about the 'why' - do as the Caller says.   It is the Caller's responsibility to guide you through a call.

Step on the beat of the music ....   Calls have a specific "timing".   That means there is "x" number of beats/steps to complete a call.   If you take one step per beat you will find that you will have an easier time in accomplishing each call.

If a club member seems to be doing a call differently from the way you were taught, ignore them!   Sometimes we old dancers are so used to doing frills during calls that we forget and do them with class members.   You'll have plenty of time to learn the frills and stylings.   For now, just concentrate on learning the calls.

Don't rush through the calls!   Sometimes dancers seem worried they will not make it through a call and they rush, push and jerk.   This disturbs others, can hurt a person and many times causes the square to break down.   Just relax, move to the beat of the music and enjoy the call.

Join Hands - At the completion of any call, you should immediately join hands with the dancer or dancers standing next to you.   This helps you to see the formation you are in (e.g., Lines, Waves, etc.) and aids you in doing the next call.

Get into lines - If your square breaks down, get into facing lines.   The approved way to get into lines is to square up and then the heads slide to the right to form a line with the sides.   The caller will usually have you moving again within four or five calls.

Square dancers are not necessarily tee-totalers. . .except at square dances!   Alcohol should not be consumed before or during any dance.   You are free, of course, to do what you want after the dance.

Don't leave early.   By leaving early you are telling the other dancers and the caller that you didn't have a good time.   The 'wind up' tip is just as important as the first or the middle tips.   (If you really must leave early, make contact with your host and let them know you had a good time but have to leave.)

And, did we mention . . . Don't worry if you make a mistake.   We all make mistakes!