The View From The Dance Floor
Several years ago, a nationally respected caller came up to me during a dance and asked me, "Can't anyone here dance?" My response was, "Not really."
That's still true today.
We see Challenge dancers who:
By the time a dancer gets to C2, he or she should have a pretty good handle on these things, but
. . . an astonishing number of dancers don't!
There are several reasons for this.
Most dancers don't have "Positional Awareness". They don't recognize the formation and they don't know where they are in formations - centers, ends, leaders, trailers, etc. No one explains positioning to them in the depth required to promote understanding. No one explains to them the requirement to establish a proper matrix formation at the beginning and end of a call. As a result, they don't know where they are on the floor in any given formation.
No one explains to them that they are expected to know the definitions of all of the calls, in detail, and that they must know the fractional parts of the definitions where applicable.
No one explains the kinds of positional distortions that take place at Challenge.
The number of calls at each level is large. The call modifiers, e.g., Interrupt, Replace, Finish, etc., and the various Concepts greatly expand the number of dance situations that dancers may encounter. Additionally, the calls and concepts may be stacked. There is a large number of formations in use. Because the number of choreographic possibilities is large, dancers don't get a thorough exposure to many of them. It may take years for the dancer to be exposed to the overwhelming barrage of choreography they will experience. As such they can hardly stay current in a dancer's mind. Examples of this are doing the center's part of Counter from ocean waves and Coordinate from 3 and 1 lines. Newer dancers may dance at a level for a couple of years without seeing some possibilities.
The callers have created a huge sea of choreography. Most dancers paddle around at the shallow edges - unable to swim and challenge the deeper waters of the sea.
The sheer number of possible choreographic combinations is overwhelming to most dancers.
Dancers are moving up the levels without being aware that they have been dancing at reduced-difficulty levels-"LITE" dances. The result is that they cannot handle difficult material at those few dances where it is used. And, they don't handle the lower level calls well at higher level dances. It is not at all unusual to see dancers at C3A dances who cannot handle Blocks or Concentrics. There are difficult concepts, such as Disconnected, that are seldom used, and then in little depth. Parallelogram concept calls that we see most are In Roll Circulate and Pass Thru. Once Removed calls are also severely limited.
If dancers are expected to be able to do all the material in the definitions and dance program lists, then the callers have an obligation and responsibility to use all the material in the definitions within a reasonable period of time (Whatever this is). This means all the calls, all the concepts, all the call modifiers from all the applicable formations and in all the allowable combinations. Otherwise, the dancers forget the material or, at best, become "rusty". However, we know that the dancers cannot generally do the material in the definitions. They don't understand positioning, the definitions or how to dance from distorted formations. So one might reasonably ask why the dancers cannot perform. Is there too much choreography? Are the dancers poorly taught? Do the dancers not have the natural ability (both physical and/or mental) to perform the material? Do the dancers dance often enough to keep their skills current? All of the above?
Most of today's dances are of the "LITE" variety which says that the callers do not call difficult material because the dance floor would be broken down continually.
Are the programs then relevant from the dancers' perspective?
It would seem that the caller community should have some kind of plan which states what the dancers should reasonably be able to perform for any given dance program. If the current dance programs reflect such a plan and have resulted in "LITE" dances, then they are not relevant. The activity seems to have grown in a random fashion with no plan. There doesn't appear to be an understanding of what the effects have been on the dancer community of the uncontrolled growth in the size and complexity of the dance programs over the years. There seems to be an assumption that the dancers can absorb anything thrown at them.
What is being done to change this?
Are the dancers being taught better? More thoroughly? Are the definition programs being changed?
Some observations . . .
The weak level of dancer ability has caused callers to call "LITE" dances, using fewer calls, concepts and distorted formations. There is so much choreography that some call/concept/position combinations may not be seen for long intervals.
Dancers don't develop their skills dancing to "LITE" material. The better dancers get "rusty".
Yet the Callerlab programs still contain about the same number of calls and concepts as they once did, maybe more. The dancers who made it their business to learn the dance programs seldom get to dance it. The newer and less experienced dancers don't get to see enough material to improve their dancing skills. Some never do.
Is it fair to expect dancers to become knowledgeable in the dance programs if the material isn't used?
Many times we go to a "LITE" dance with little challenging material only to be surprised by 1 difficult call in an evening that requires a lot of knowledge and experience. This call generally breaks down the whole dance floor. This happens all too often. It is not fair to the knowledgeable and skillful dancers and it is not fair to those with lesser skills.
The Callerlab dance programs must reflect the reality of dance floor, not the desires of a committee sitting in a room somewhere, no matter how talented, knowledgeable or well-intentioned the members of the committee.
At one time, the Callerlab dance programs provided the promise of wind-in-your-hair dancing. They no longer do that. The callers can no longer call that kind of material because the dancers cannot do it. Change is necessary.
The Callerlab Program Policy White Paper (revised July 17, 2004) includes the following statements:
5. Callers are required to teach dance programs completely and thoroughly.
9. Each dance program shall contain only as many calls as can be comfortably taught to dancers in a single teaching session. Dance programs shall be neither too large, nor too small in this regard. The definition of a teaching session for a given dance program shall be determined by that dance program's committee.
Lessons are concerned with one thing, getting the dancers introduced to the calls and concepts of a new level within the accepted time period for the lessons. Lessons are not comprehensive at all compared to what dancers will experience out on the dance floor. There is no way that a dancer can learn enough in the course of the lessons to cover many of the choreographic possibilities that will be encountered on the dance floor. For example, at C1 one learns Scoot and Plenty but most likely will have not done that call from T-Bones. At C2 one learns the Once Removed concept but has probably not seen Once Removed Peel Off from ocean waves. At C3A one learns both Plan Ahead and the Split Phantom concept but not Split Phantom Lines Plan Ahead from lines facing out. Yet these situations will be seen along with many, many more. The best callers are very inventive. They continually find new ways to use the calls and concepts in truly amazing ways that can keep the more experienced dancers hopping. This inventiveness appears after the dancers finish lessons and get out on the dance floor.
The dancer who emerges from lessons has had only a smattering of the number of choreographic combinations in use at any level. There is insufficient time within lessons for each level to provide more than a minimum of exposure. As a result, the new dancers go to dances and are blown off the floor by material they didn't know existed. And no one tells them that this will happen.
The observational evidence of what is happening on the dance floor shows that many Challenge dancers are sadly deficient in many of the basic skills of Challenge dancing. We regularly see dancers at many Challenge levels through C3A who can't do Chain Reaction or Square Chain Thru and can't dance from distorted formations like Blocks, "O"s and Butterflies and Staggers. If the C1 program is so large and complicated as to prevent the dancers from learning it well, then that explains why it is not unusual to see dancers at levels above C1 who cannot do Blocks and Concentrics. These dancers never learned C1 adequately yet continued up the levels dragging their inabilities with them like Marley's ghost dragging his chains. Many dancers never learn C1 adequately. It shows.
Let's take a look at what faces the new C1 dancer.
The current lessons for the C1 program cover about 60 calls, 7 concepts, 4 formations and 12 call modifiers. These must be taught in terms of how well the caller can teach the dancers in the time allotted for the lessons. Additionally, there are about 35 calls from levels below C1 that have well-defined parts. The C1 list adds about 23 calls with well-defined parts. That is almost 60 calls at C1 that are concerned with parts of calls compared with none before. Currently the teaching emphasizes the call and concept list (let's cover everything) and not how well the dancers can handle distorted formations, calls with parts and unusual formations (like T-Bones). This is an overwhelming amount of material for dancers who never had to know definitions well and never knew that calls had parts or that they might have to pay any attention to the parts of calls.
The importance of the definitions and the importance of knowing the parts of calls were never stressed in any lessons I had. It is only through personal study and bad experiences on the dance floor that the importance of knowing the definitions and the parts of calls comes through.
The transition from Advanced dancing to Challenge dancing is too drastic a change for dancers to absorb in the 20 or so lessons that teach the C1 program. The dancers must learn many new calls, new concepts, new formations and the call modifiers. This is a dramatic change from Advanced. In additions, these new C1 dancers were never really responsible for detailed call definitions which includes knowing the parts of the calls. The current lessons are not adequate to cover all the material specified in the program lists. The transition from Advanced to Challenge must be designed to work in a gentler manner.
All Position Dancing (APD) and Dancing By Definition (DBD) failed years ago because the pre-Challenge dancing community didn't want to dance that way. Yet APD and DBD are alive and well in Challenge dancing. In fact, they are a requirement of Challenge dancing. Now those very same dancers who didn't want it at pre-Challenge dances must learn to use it at every Challenge dance.
The large amount of choreographic material must be reduced to the level where it is possible to present dancers at any level with interesting dance programs without having them drown in the choreographic sea.
A warning about tape lesson groups. Tape lessons can provide a false sense of accomplishment in that dancers can redo the material until they get it. This can't be done with a live caller. With a live caller the material must be done as it is called.
Dancers who learn a level by reading the definitions are particularly at a disadvantage because they must imagine how the calls and concepts operate in a physical environment they can't experience in the pages of a book.
The promotion of "crash" courses in the levels doesn't create a viable dancer population - it only creates groups of dancers who don't dance very well and who, in turn, drive the better dancers away. Two weeks of intensive lessons does not create adequately skilled dancers.
Finishing the lessons is equivalent to riding on a train and being let out a mile from the station in a swamp. Lessons are simply introductory. It takes a lot of practice and floor time experience to pick up all the knowledge needed to perform adequately on the dance floor.
Since the basic premise of this paper is that many Challenge dancers lack adequate dancing skills, one is left with the conclusion that the instructors are not successfully teaching the dancers what they need to know before the dancers get out on the dancer floor.
Callers should be able to know which dancers who cannot perform well when the lessons are done. Those who can't do the choreography adequately must be advised to retake the lessons, go to workshops and perhaps retake the lessons. Too many dancers hit the dance floor without a clue as to what they will be expected to do. It doesn't help for the caller to tell the new dancers to go to every dance they can. The difficulty of dances varies from easy to difficult. New-to-the-level dancers are generally not competent to perform at difficult dances. They must spend time at workshops and less-difficult dances before they venture onto difficult dance floors. Instructors must avoid pushing their dancers onto the dance floor before they are ready.
The transition from Advanced dancing to Challenge dancing is too drastic a change for dancers to absorb in the 20 or so lessons that teach the C1 program. The dancers must learn many new calls, new concepts, new formations and the call modifiers. This is a dramatic change from Advanced. In addition, these new C1 dancers were never really responsible for the detailed call definitions which includes knowing the parts of the calls. The current lessons are not adequate to cover all the material specified in the program lists. The transition from Advanced to Challenge must be designed to work in a gentler manner.
A New Basic Challenge Dancing Program
The problem starts at C1. C1 is a dramatic shift in how the dancer must think about square dancing and what he or she must know and do on the dance floor.
There is a wide gulf between Advanced and Challenge that takes many dancers by surprise. Most dancers don't know what is expected of them. They have no idea about what takes place on the dance floor when they complete lessons. No one tells them, especially if they learned the material from tapes.
So how and what should the new C1 dancers be taught?
The new Challenge dancers must be trained in basic Challenge skills before they encounter the large volume of choreography in real-world dancing.
The solution seems obvious -- teach beginning Challenge dancers positioning in the formation, distorted formation dancing and what the definitions are all about . Teach them how to dance these Challenge requirements and teach them at a level where they can focus on just these skills without having to worry about the calls and concepts that are normally taught.
A new Basic Challenge dance program must be established that teaches the 3 items above while introducing a very small set of calls and concepts.
This program would add calls and concepts that stress distorted formation dancing, fractional call dancing and the importance of knowing who and where each dancers is in the square at any time. Most of the calls used would be calls the dancers should already know with the addition of some calls, concepts and positioning from higher levels.
The following concepts and calls that would be used include:
| Own concept | This concept is particularly significant because it allows so much variation in what the caller can call. It allows 2, 4 and 8 person calls to be used from various positions and allows 2 person calls to be used, for example, with 4 or 8 person calls. It allows the caller to specify leaders, trailers, boy, girls, centers or ends. This is truly a valuable teaching tool which can be used to get dancers used to dancing fractional parts of calls and makes the dancers learn where they are in the formation. | |
| Counter Rotate | A very commonly used call that can is very from many different positions |
|
| Press | Teaches dancers to dance to spots on the floor where no one is standing. Teaches that there are other valid spots on the floor to dance to that don't always contain another dancer. |
The following Distorted Formations that would be used include:
| "O" formation | Limited to very simple calls - Trade By, Walk and Dodge, Track 2 (with take out). Demonstrates distorted positioning | |
| Butterfly formation | Limited to very simple calls - Trade By, Walk and Dodge, Track 2 (with take out) Demonstrates distorted positioning | |
| Blocks | Teaches dancers to dance in distorted formations with unusual spacing. Teaches dancers to dance to spots on the floor and to footprints. Can be used to teach use of take outs for calls like Split Transfer and Square Chain Thru. | |
| T-Bone | Teaches dancing from normal formations but with unusual dancer facing directions. Use with Split Transfer, Scoot Back and Follow Thru. |
The following Call Modifiers would be used:
| Left | Allows many calls to be done left-handed that are normally done right-handed | |
| Interrupt | Allows calls with well-defined parts to be interrupted at call part boundaries with other calls | |
| Replace | Allows calls with well-defined parts to have a part of the original call replaced with another call. |
| The Interrupt and Replace Call modifiers would be introduced to get dancers used to dancing the parts of calls. | |
| Choreography would stress use of these Call Modifier concepts with calls that should be known to Advanced level dancers |
Calls whose definition changes in Challenge, like Chain Reaction and Recycle, must be retaught.
The objective would be to get dancers used to dancing in positions and formations other then plain vanilla lines/waves, columns and diamonds. Because the list of new calls and concepts is small, the callers could then exercise the calls from lower levels (that the dancers should already know) from many positions and formations that dancers would normally seldom see because of the large number of calls available. The fractional parts of familiar calls would be taught.
Additionally, the dancers must be taught about call breathing and how important breathing is. This is currently not a part of any formal documentation or calling programs except on a casual catch-as-catch-can basis.
These lessons must take a substantial amount of time - probably 10 weeks.
At the end of lessons from this level the dancers would be in a much improved position for learning the established call programs. Because they have learned about the importance of definitions, distorted formations and positioning, and have developed workable skills in these areas, new calls and concepts from the new programs should be less of a challenge to learn.
A program like this could be set up in trial areas to test the effectiveness of the training. If it doesn't work, no one loses because the new program would not interfere with existing programs and maybe some of the skills learned would be useful to the dancers involved.
The benefits from this program would be in more skilled dancers and ultimately more enjoyment for all dancers. Additionally, it would be manifested in fewer breakdowns and more interesting choreography since the callers would have some expectation that the dancers could actually dance the material.
There is a great step from Advanced to Challenge that takes many dancers by surprise. Most dancers don't know what is expected of them. They have no idea about what takes place on the dance floor when they complete lessons. No one tells them, especially if they learned the material from tapes.
Some of the problems with Challenge square dancing may be attributed to dancers moving up the levels without developing their skills at the lower levels. Thus, we see C3A dancers making a lot of mistakes with C1 and C2 calls (and often pre-Challenge calls) because they never spent enough time at those levels gaining experience with many of the choreographic situations that develop within each level. They are, in effect gaining experience with material from previous levels while trying to dance at C3A. The end result of this is many breakdowns and the easing of difficulty of the choreography to accommodate the minimal skills of the dancers.
We must examine the reasons why dancers move up the levels so quickly. Anecdotal evidence abounds. We hear dancers saying the following:
We took C2 because there was no C1 dancing available.
We took C3A because C2 was boring.
Our friends took C3B so we did, too.
We have been dancing a long time. We deserve to dance C3B.
There is a perception that the upper Challenge levels are made up of "ELITE" dancers and that those who go to upper level Challenge dancers are "ELITE" by inference. Nothing could be further from the truth. Bill Heimann wrote that "Just because someone "dances" C3 doesn't mean he's a good C1 dancer. Indeed, that fact alone doesn't mean he's a good dancer at all! It simply means that he spends part of his life inhabiting a C3 floor."
Callers who refuse to teach dancers the next level because they don't have the dancing skills often find those dancers at the next level the following year because some other caller gave them the lessons. And guess what, they still can't dance the previous level and they sure can't dance the new Leoville caller once told us that if he didn't teach the dancers the next level that someone else would do it. He was right and the results are as expected.
Successful Dancer Characteristics
The square dancing community needs to provide a set of standards as to what is expected of dancers at any stage of
their dancing experience. A list of expected dancer skills and abilities must be provided for new dancers.
The list of strong dancer characteristics which follows is based on observations of hundreds of dancers at hundreds
of dances over many years. These practical characteristics are derived from what dancers have to do and know to
be successful, competent dancers.
Dances often Dances at least once a week. Knows call/concept definitions well Demonstrates a great depth of understanding of the call and concept definitions including a knowledge of the fractional parts of calls. Has spent significant time at each level Has spent at least two years at each level, preferably more time
than that before taking lessons for the next level. Dances to live callers Dances to live callers as much as possible. Knows elemental calls Knows basic calls such as Trade, Tag, Cast, Hinge, Explode,
etc., and can do these calls with no errors. Knows where he or she is in the formation at all times Knows if he or she is a Leader/Trailer, End/Center, Belle/Beau,
etc. Makes very few mistakes when dancing Mistakes are defined as those errors which result in failure to
complete a call or sequence which result in the square breaking down.
Sees and understands distorted formations Understands and successfully executes distorted formations such
as Jays, Offset Lines/Waves/Columns, Parallelograms, "O's", Butterflies,
etc., as appropriate for the dancer's current level. Understands call timing and execution Executes calls in the required number of musical beats, never
getting ahead of or behind the required positioning for each part of a
call. Demonstrates accuracy in positioning (makes accurateformations) Begins and ends calls in standard formations properly positioned
for the current formation, facing the proper wall and with good
spacing. Understands and executes proper dancing paths of a call Performs accurate shoulder passes, circulates, rolls, etc.,
required in call execution. Understands formation symmetry Knows that normal formations are symmetrical and that his or her
opposite is always in a corresponding opposite spot in the formation.
Knows that the geometric shape of a normal formation is always in
symmetry. Believes that he or she must execute 100% of the calls Understands that call completion percentage is statistically
cumulative and that percentages below 100% cause large call failure
rates. Is able to help other dancers Helps other dancers with subtle hand pressures and gestures,
head movements and soft words of direction. Knows how to correct minor errors without breaking down Uses knowledge of the current call and formation symmetry to get
to the proper position in the formation as the call is progressing. Can
continue to dance even if in the wrong position. Displays a positive attitude and friendly demeanor Is always pleasant. Dances with a positive attitude. Never
pushes or shoves or has a hostile or unfriendly word for another
dancer. Callers will tell their new-to-the-level dancers to go out to every dance they can to gain experience. What happens
is that these dancers cannot do difficult material because it wasn't covered in class (no surprise there). Experience
must be gained at workshops and easier local dances before tackling the more difficult dances. Yet no one tells them
that.
Most dances are easier today than they were 5-10 years ago. As a result, many dancers have come up through the
levels in the era of easier dances so they have no concept that dancing can and should be more difficult than it is. As
a result, when these dancers get involved with the higher levels, they have a lot of difficulty with calls done from
unusual formations. And they have not stayed at any level long enough to really gain the dancing skill that many
dancers develop through spending a lot of time on the dance floor.
Computer squares don't help either. Computer squares allow unqualified dancers to attend any dance they want and
get into a square. And the square dancing community permits this. Some dancers argue forcibly and loudly and often
that it is not fair for dancers to come to a dance and be shut out by set-up squares. They are correct, except that they
argue their case for unqualified dancers.
We see weak dancers at various levels whom we have known for many years and who were always weak dancers.
We see dancers at all kinds of dances who absolutely devastate almost every square they are in. Yet these dancers
don't know how weak they are and maybe they don't care. What this says is that there is a failure to educate them
as to what Challenge square dancing is and what they must know and do in order to dance successfully. They climb
the levels willy-nilly and never learn what their responsibilities are as Challenge dancers. Dancers need to know what
is expected of them so that they have a choice whether or not to go to the next level. They need to be able to make
informed choices. Most do not.
It is shameful that the square dance community accepts unqualified dancers wherever they appear and does nothing
to prevent their appearance at dances where they just don't belong. And those dancers have no idea that they are
not competent dancers.
Recommendations
It is well-known that most dancers lack "positional awareness", don't know and understand the call definitions and don't understand distorted formations.
These problems may be alleviated by:
The weaker dancers must be made to understand that having both good dancers and good callers are required in order to have a good dance. If you don't dance well, you degrade the dancing experience for everyone.
Jim Mayo's excellent book "Step by Step Through Modern Square Dance History" says that maybe square dancing has to die and be reborn. Maybe he's right.
"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them."
-- Albert Einstein