What Is Round Dancing?
Round
Dancing is a form of social ballroom dancing in which the steps are
choreographed precisely to the music, and those steps are announced by
a "cuer," as we dance. The presence of the cuer makes a round dance
look different than the usual ballroom dance — all the couples are
dancing in unison and the choreography can be relatively complex and
interesting (since the man doesn't have to think it up as he goes) —
but otherwise round dancers are ballroom dancing. We hold our partners
in the normal way. We take the same kinds of steps. The rhythms are the
familiar rhythms — waltz, foxtrot, cha-cha, rumba, and others listed in
the navigation bar to the left. more
This
manual describes how to round dance. The steps, figures, and techniques
also work well at weddings, dinner dances, and other social ballroom
functions.
Take a quick Site
Tour
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About Dance—
Or for a list of all educational articles on how to
dance more smoothly and comfortably, see this TOC.
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Latest Additions To the Site—
International Ballroom, A Maturing Influence by Bill & Mary Lynn
The Two Step Can Go Beyond Country to
Elegant—an article by Annette Woodruff.
Chainé Turns, A New Way To Rotate, by Sandi & Dan Finch
"Feathers" — Round Dance Tips by Tim Eum
One
Figure, a discussion of the Waltz Back and Back Lock Back.
Matching Body Lines—A Fred & Ginger photo showing that the shape of the body can be
pleasing and can add to the beauty of the dance.
"The Feather Figures" and other articles on round dancing — Round About, © by Roy &
Phyllis Stier
A Few Notes On West Coast Swing by Dan & Sandi Finch
Lead and Follow in
West Coast Swing—If the man wants to lead the woman
forward, he must not pull her to him with his arm. Instead, both he
and she must maintain toned arms. He steps back, not pulling, but
drawing her toward him with his whole body. He “takes her with
him.”
Foxtrot
Bounce — In the Smooth rhythms, we are usually encouraged to rise and
fall over the measures of music but are warned not to bounce on each
beat. But quite a few foxtrots do call for some bounce, and it can add
a light gaiety to a fun dance.
Closed Position by Don Herbison-Evans
If You Like
Jive, You'll Like West Coast Swing, Too
A new West Coast Swing figure, the Tsunami.
While sometimes people think of Jive as a
"jumping dance," Jive is really a very "in the floor" dance, an article
by Gert-Jan & Susie Rotscheid.
In the swing rhythms, lead and follow come from the
toned frame, as usual, but at a remove, through joined hands.
Swing and
Jive are Different—Swing is a little more side to side, apart and
together. Jive is faster and more up and down.
Dancing with feeling is called “musicality,” relating
the steps and characteristics of the dance rhythm to the energy,
melody, and mood of the music.
Effective leading
is based on giving one's partner a feeling of assurance that you know
what the next step is to be and on communicating this knowledge through
proper positioning and hand signals.
At it's simplest,
cueing is simply a matter of naming the figures we are to dance, in
order, and ahead of the beat on which we are to step. But cuers usually
try to give additional information in the form of "helper cues."
A Check
is a step in which we stop and prepare to change direction. Checking is
not a step, but is the process of stopping and preparing to change
direction. A Contra Check is a check forward with contra-body action.
What
Do We Want from Our ROQ Programs?—an article by Annette Woodruff.
What
Do I Look For In A Good ROQ Dance?—an article by Bob Ensten.
Tango is a modern,
not a latin, rhythm. It sounds exotic, but it is not hard to do; by
Gert-Jan & Susie Rotscheid.
Slow Two Step is a smooth,
flat, gliding, elastic style of dance.
In Bolero, the Cross Body is done in
closed position, and the left pass incorporates a partial wrap and roll
across.
English
Country Dancing Before, During, and After Jane Austen by Veronica
McClure
Differences
In Rhythms—The
music of our different dance rhythms differ significantly in what beats
are accented, in the mood that is evoked, and in the way that you want
to move, by Gert-Jan & Susie Rotscheid.
That Pesky "Other"
Cha-Cha Rhythm - 4&1—
Four-and-one timing can be traced back to Cuba. We begin a figure on
the 2-count and dance the "cha" on the 4&1, an article by Jim &
Bonnie Bahr.
The Cuddle is a rumba figure whose
name especially tells us to focus on our partner, to dance together.
The cue Switch
is used in many ways in Round Dancing. In Slow Two Step, Switches are
much like a progressive "man across; woman across;" or Open In and Out
Runs (sqq; sqq;).
Bolero uses a
dramatic rise and fall and a reaching recover step, an article by
Annette Woodruff.
The cues, the figures, even the music are just the
context within which
you are "partnering" someone else, so it is important to attend
to your partner.
We have so many dance rhythms to choose among today—from
the tango and rumba to the hustle and slow two step. How and when did these new
rhythms arise?
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