Welcome, New Dancers!

What is a Square Dancer?

A Square Dancer is a person who knows his left from his right, but occasionally forgets it.

A Square Dancer is someone who has learned to do as he is told (by the caller), but doesn't always do it.

He is fanatical in his search for a good time, traveling miles in all kinds of weather, going places he would never go otherwise, spending all night on his feet which were killing him at work, and smiling happily all the time.

A Square Dancer speaks a language all his own. He calls his partner his taw, his honey, his date, darling or pretty little thing, and he promenades, sashays, weaves, circulates, dances, circles around the ring, circle or set.

He learns his dancing thru and thru: right and left thru, pass thru, turn thru, step thru, barge thru - and he must be agile enough to do such unlikely things as box the gnat, shoot the star, slip the clutch, pickup up a girl or shuck the corn.

If this description fits you, don't worry. Although it is practically incurable, this disease is not at all harmful, and most square dancers have a strong desire to infect other members of the community.

"Square Dancing is Friendship Set to Music"

Happy Dancing!

Square Dance Ethics

Square dancing behavior is based on a long tradition which has been evolved and modified over the years. We no longer follow the pattern which many people visualize as an overall-clad hillbilly prancing to "Turkey in the Straw" while someone yells "Do-Sa-Do" with a bottle of moonshine waiting in the corner.

From cooperative barn raisings and basket socials we have come to the modern social function where class distinctions, social position and cultural background are replaced by a desire to join and participate in an activity which excites us mentally and yet exhausts us physically to the point that it acts as a therapy and is thus recommended by many doctors. Especially is it a fine activity to reunite couples who were drifting apart with their own separate interests. So join in, lose your pompousness, enjoy life, learn to dance and HAVE FUN.

As a BEGINNER you will join a class to be taught by a CALLER who will soon become your idol, and you will learn to follow his every command. He will instruct you in the art of LISTENING so that you will be a cooperative dancer not interfering with the pleasure of a group called a SQUARE. He will remind you that because of the large amount of hand-to-hand contact to be fastidious in your grooming (freshly bathed, deodorized, trimmed fingernails), appropriate in dress (long sleeved shirts for men, no bare midriff for women), and concentrating so completely on executing the figures of the dance that all of your everyday worries are gone.

You will be taught DANCING (not dances), both square and round dancing, learning to not fall over your own two feet nor step on other people, and learning to be polite enough to not interfere with the movement of the others in your square. You will be taught a courtesy turn and will not be guilty of forcing a girl to run to keep up in a star figure. You will be taught the art and practice of consideration for others.

Of course you will have to be enticed, forced or tricked into attending your first class session - but that is usually replaced by an excited, enthusiastic, Go-Go-Go-where-can-we-get-more-lessons-faster attitude.

Square dancers will generally follow a fairly set pattern - they become "badge happy", the wife makes matching dress and shirt outfits, they are rough in their dancing, they jerk and pull, hold on for dear life to their partner, they jump and hop (partly because of poor floors) - but they are eager. We've all been through it and expect it of others. We only hope they progress out of it before they get their feelings hurt or give up.

Each class will usually have one or two couples who emerge as the leaders and often set the pattern for the floor to follow. This is why it is good to have some helper couples - experienced dancers - to show how to keep the squares lined up with the walls of the room, not spread the squares out too far, how to identify your corner and opposite, how to keep in your correct position, how to smoothly cut into a square and how to be a desirable dancer.

As a CLUB MEMBER, you have added responsibilities in helping to keep the square dance activity growing, active and alive. FRIENDLINESS is the biggest factor - greeting people, inviting strangers into your square, meeting new people (many of them are worth knowing and some become good friends), and doing your share to make yours a friendly club. But share this responsibility with others in your club - visitors like to know that your club has more than one friendly couple. Besides, you will want to have at least one or two tips per evening set up when you can dance with your special friends (don’t become a martyr - we don’t want to lose you from square dancing). In you own square (with your special friends and by mutual agreement) is the time and place if you want to try out your ability to twist, to twirl on a chain, to wind up and unwind on a dip and dive, to do the special "cutting up" of fun dancing which is not appropriate when dancing with strangers or at a round-up type of dance. In a square with your friends, you may dance more relaxed or more vigorously, as the occasion dictates. Politeness and consideration of others is the keynote.

At about this time in the life of a square dancer, there is a ‘plateau of learning" when the dancer thinks he knows all there is to know about dancing. He’s a "hot shot"; likes to show off, anticipate the caller, kick, saw wood on the see-saw, twirl the girl all the way around the square, flip the girl on a right and left grand, not properly execute a courtesy turn, devise fancy ways to end a promenade, reverse direction on a right and left grand, and generally going through the "growing up" period of square dancing. Unfortunately, this is as far as many dancers progress and is the picture that much of the public sees as modern square dancing. Again, we hope they progress out of it in time to continue giving and receiving pleasure from square dancing.

When you have been elected to office in your club, do the best you can, use your imagination and promote your club whenever possible. Introduce visiting clubs and VIPs and let the guests go first if you have a refreshment line.

Quarreling has no place on the dance floor, either between members of a square or between husband and wife. If it is a matter of interpretation of a dance - ask the Caller. If you foul up the dancing and can’t pick up or recover, go back to home position. Internal club problems and club policies have led to the downfall of many clubs. Callers can be replaced and most club decisions can be amicably resolved. Your Association will generally be able to help with club problems if you will only ask.

After having been in square dancing for swhile, you will be asked to participate in a presentation of square dancing for the public - at a PTA meeting, a church social, a hospital visitation, a county fair, a store opening, a TV program, a parade, etc. Here’s where you get to show off!

Now that you are "on stage", you wear you fanciest and prettiest clothes, doll up in a costume to show that you "belong" and prove that you are an experienced dancer. You keep time with the music, you've learned to count and be in the right place at the right time, you lead gently but firmly, you release your partner at the correct time facing in the right direction, you move to one side to facilitate a smooth maneuver, you watch and follow the lead of the number one couple in your square, you slide your feet when promenading, and on a swing the girl leans out to counterbalance the centrifugal forces.

As visitor you should attend, and as a member you should join clubs which do the level and type of dancing you enjoy. Generally, dancers who belong to only one club will soon drop out. Moderation is recommended in many things, and in square dancing moderation in the number of new figures and routines to be learned is essential to the continuation of this recreation for many dancers.

Square dance clubs join together to form Associations and there is continual need for replacement in the leadership of the Clubs and the Associations. Drop out occurs, people get tired or discouraged, and there must be a continuing line of willing, able dancers to carry on this Traditional American fun-type of family recreation.

•DANCE STEP - 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.

•MUSIC - 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.

•POSTURE - Stand erect and tall with your shoulders back and knees slightly bent. BE A PROUD DANCER. Do not lean forward when dancing - this does not look good and will tire a person quickly. Keep a loose relaxed feeling and enjoy the music and calls.

•TIGHT SQUARES - 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

•BELIEVE THE CALLER - 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.

•DON’T RUSH A CALL - 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.

•UNDERSTAND THE DEFINITION - In learning a call, try to understand the definition of the call rather than just memorizing a position. If you understand the definition, you will be able to do the call from any position. Be sure you have your own personal dictionary of square dance terms and use it.

•ASK THE CALLER - After a call is taught and if you are not sure of the correct definition, ask the Caller to explain it again without using the terms "boys" and "girl’s.

•ARM RESISTANCE - Any time you use your arm to execute a call (e.g.. Allemande Left, Star Thru, Swing Thru, Touch 1⁄4, Turn Thru, etc.), offer resistance with the arm you are using, stiffening it slightly. This smoothes out the move and enables you to exercise control of the call. DO NOT have limp spaghetti arms. This causes you to lose your positioning and result in the square executing the command incorrectly and/or breaking down.

•GENTLEMEN - The man is always responsible for guiding the ladies to start a call correctly. Men should always be gentle with the ladies when holding their hands, turning them or guiding them in the proper direction. Be firm, BUT NOT ROUGH! Too much show of strength on the part of the man can be painful to the ladies. MEN, always make an effort to be gentle (the ladies do not care how strong you are!).

•JOINING 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. Hands should always be joined within one-half second after the completion of any call. Failure to join hands often results in sloppy lines or waves, confusion on where you are, which in turn, causes the square to break down.
bullet IDENTIFY YOUR POSITION - Always be aware of the position you are in before you start a call and right after you complete the execution of a call (e.g., are you an end, center, couple, boy, girl, etc.). This aids you in performing the next call correctly.

•SKIRT WORK - Ladies, hold your skirt in your free hand about waist high and use a very slightly rhythmical flourish to move the skirt in front and back. Your right hand moves with your left foot, and your left hand moves with your right foot.

•COURTESY ON THE FLOOR - Please DO NOT talk while the Caller is explaining something to the dancers. You may not need help but others may and you don’t help the Caller or the square by distracting people. If a Caller is walking the dancers through a call, DO NOT get ahead of the Caller’s prompting even if you know what is going on. It is not smart! It is inconsiderate of your fellow dancers who want to learn what is being taught. If you deprive your fellow dancers of a good understanding of the call and they break down later, you will be standing right along with them.

•DANCE TO OTHER CALLERS - Dance to as many different Callers as you can. This is one of the best ways to sharpen your dancing skills. Your Caller may advise you against going to a particular dance because the level of material will be too high for you. This is all right and you should follow the advice. However, if your Caller advises against visiting ANY clubs or ANY dances, then do not follow this advice.