A nice social dance site, Aria’s Dance Page, with some interesting things to say about dance partnerships:

We already know about not monopolizing a partner. Dance etiquette has ruled that no more than two consecutive songs be danced with the same partner, so that everyone can find a diversity of partners to dance with. To do this is not only fair, it is smart: you will get to dance with everyone and improve the prospects of your social dancing.

Dancing with a wide set of partners is a cornerstone of social dancing. This general principle applies to everyone, including dancers who are romantically involved. A romantic pair that dances only with one another undermines the structure of soical dancing by refusing to contribute to it.

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If MWSDers are so concerned about square dancing being the “National Folk Dance,” I wonder why they/we (because I do consider myself part of the MWSD world) aren’t involved in Dancing in the Millennium. This is a serious academic conference, organized by these organizations:

• Congress on Research on Dance;
• Dance Critics Association
• National Dance Association;
• Society of Dance History Scholars

with the participation of these organizations:

• American Dance Guild
• American Dance Therapy Association
• Country Dance and Song Society
• Dance and the Child International/ USA Chapter
• Dance Films Association
• Dance Heritage Coalition
• Dance Librarians Committee/American Library Association
• Dance Notation Bureau
• Dance USA
• Dance Perspectives
• International Association of Blacks in Dance
• International Association for Dance Medicine and Science
• International Tap Association
• Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies
• National Dance Education Organization
• Preserve, Inc

Now, square dancers don’t normally have much to do with these kinds of dance professionals. But I’d like to point out the participation of the Country Dance and Song Society, which is very much a recreational dance organization. I’d also like us to think about a quote from the Dancing in the Millenium site:

Dancing in the Millennium invites everyone to think about dance, its meaning, how it feels and why, and how it has evolved within the self and society. The Conference also seeks to increase communication among dance professionals of all kinds, and to make a case for increased funding for dance as an art form and as a vital educational tool.

I’d also like to point out that if we wish to lay claim to being some kind of national folk dance, we ought to be involved in a leadership role in the national recreational dance scene.

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Can you find the well-known MWSD caller in this picture from Dance Flurry 2000?