What is Challenge Dancing?
Challenge dancing is Square Dancing taken to its puzzle-solving extreme.
If the words "square dancing" make you think of 6th grade
and "swing yer pardner round and round," I should point
out that Challenge dancing bears very little resemblance
to what happened in 6th grade. It has become an
extremely intellectual and mathematical activity far removed from its
beginnings. Square Dancing itself has changed from a country
activity to a city activity in that it has become more sophisticated
over the years.
Ok, so what is Square Dancing?
Eight people work as a team (called a square) to successfully complete
a set of complex figures delivered in real time. The caller
choreographs the figures either on the fly or ahead of time, but the
dancers do not know what is coming next. The figures are called
calls, and they are put together in groups of 12-25 calls called
sequences. Each call takes from 2 to 16 beats of music (typically in
4-4 time, though sometimes in 2-4 time). Each sequence starts and ends
at home position, and the goal of the square is to solve all the
puzzles in the sequence and return to home.
So how is Challenge Dancing different than Square Dancing?
Square Dancing has different levels, starting with Mainstream, then
Plus, Advanced 1 and Advanced 2. After Advanced comes Challenge, Levels
One through Four. The difference is not a step function; ordinary
Square Dancing blends into Challenge dancing, and it is hard to discern
the break points. At each level, more calls are added to what the dancers
must be able to do, and eventually, concepts are added. Concepts change
something about a call, as adverbs modify verbs,
and are delivered as concept call - never alone.
At lower levels, dancers usually wear traditional Square Dance clothing;
the higher the level, the more appropriate it is to wear t-shirts, shorts, and
athletic
shoes. At the highest levels of Challenge dancing, it is an almost purely
mental event, consisting of real-time puzzle solving in a highly
mathematical context. If you can walk in reasonably close time to
music, you have all the prerequisite dancing skills for challenge dancing.
It is the use of concepts that most clearly differentiates Challenge dancing from other forms of square dancing. If you have a bent for algorithmic thinking and problem solving (logic, linguistics, mathematics, engineering, science, etc.), challenge dancing is worth a look.
How Do I Start?
Call 1-800-33-DO-C-DO - this information number will be able to tell you
where square dance classes start in your area. If you are already a square
dancer, and want to know what advanced clubs are in your area, you can
look on Rob French's
Modern Western Square Dancing page, or contact the author of this
page.
Back to the Challenge Dancing Page
Lynette Bellini