Time to celebrate - NATIONAL SQUARE DANCE MONTH Mr. & Mrs. Henry Ford enjoyed it and put their money behind it. Queen Elizabeth took a turn around the dance floor. President Ronald Reagan proclaimed it “Our National Dance”. Movies made it a “Star” It is danced all over the World. In September, we celebrate “National Square Dance Month”. All over the world, Square dancers open their doors to new students – young and old. People from all walks of life come together in a “Ring of Friendship” and enjoy the dance. Modern Western Style Square Dance has come a long way from its beginnings on the Wagon Trails and at Barn Dances. Square dance is a combination of dance movements from various Folk Dances from around the world. Those dances brought to America by our fore fathers and later transformed into Traditional or Hoedown Style Square Dancing. In the 1920’s and 1930’s, Henry Ford visited the Wayside Inn in Massachusetts and met a Dance Master, Benjamin Lovett. Upon purchasing the Inn and Mr. Lovett’s contract, he relocated him to Michigan and began a square dance program. New instructors were trained, company executives took lessons and a dance hall was built. Square dancing was taken into the schools, published in the papers and put on radio for the public. A book is published and Edison was recruited to record music on 78’s under his label. About the same time, Lloyd “Pappy” Shaw, a school administrator from Colorado, was transitioning his dance group from World Folk Dances to include “Our American Folk Dance”. From those beginnings of traditional square dance movements, he progressed the dances so all dancers were moving and dancing together as a unit. As the group traveled, people from all walks of life saw the dance and liked it. Communities throughout America increasingly began to dance. This was a chance for a couple to have an activity to share together and enjoy. This is the place where singles could meet and socialize in a comfortable setting. Family could bring out the wee ones and have a night of fun. Repost from
Posted on: Tue, 03 Sep 2013 16:00:13 +0000
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