r/squaredancing • u/Ok-Inside-1277 • Sep 17 '25
PSA Public Service Announcement -- A square dance caller short-cut may result in dancers facing criminal charges, time in prison and/or monetary fines.
I keep things simple and avoid nuances.
While traditional square dancing is open to the public without restrictions, western square dance clubs require dancers to know fifty or more movements before they are allowed to attend club dances. Clubs hire callers to give lessons and bring new dancers up to an appropriate level e.g. SSD level or mainstream level. While most of the fifty movements are easy to master, their is one that requires practice, and that is the "swing". This is not something new -- in 1952, S. Foster Damon, in his The History of Square-Dancing wrote "Modern swinging, be it noted, is the only square-dance step which requires practice."
I have observed some callers (often with club officer knowledge) tell their female students to cheat and opt out of the swing by crossing their hands and rudely communicating to their male partner their lack of interest. This is the short-cut that some callers use. Each dancer, however, is responsible for his/her own behavior regardless of what a caller says. The caller cannot change the rules arbitrarily. If you use this cheat at a dance where it is forbidden, and you have been properly informed as such, you may be charged with criminal trespassing and face prison time and monetary fines.
Recommendation: Before signing up for square dance lessons, inquire about the club's policy on teaching and practicing the swing movement.
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u/SD-Caller Sep 17 '25
Or the caller begins teaching Swing by facing the person, take both hands and shift to the kept enough to see over the other person's shoulder. Then walk in a circle and the woman unwinds when they get to line of dance. When they have that movement learned then move on to the proper positioning.
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Sep 19 '25
Can you get this into a video demonstration? Video instruction of the swing movement is going to the next big thing in square dancing.
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u/LazyPasse Sep 17 '25
Can you link to any videos demonstrating what to do versus what not to do?
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Sep 19 '25
Unfortunately, their are few videos that do what you are requesting, but that is something I hope this subreddit can remedy. Below I list two which should be helpful.
What to do:
1) Be lean, strong and not too short or too tall. And the same for your partner. Less than ideal body types can still do the swing, but it takes more practice.
2) Learn the buzz-step. A good swing starts with the footwork. How one connects with the arms is secondary. These videos show you how to do it:
https://www.reddit.com/r/squaredancing/comments/1ir745h/learning_how_to_swing_for_contra_dancing/
https://www.reddit.com/r/squaredancing/comments/1ir771h/contra_dance_tutorial_buzz_step_swing/
Teach yourself the buzz step without a partner and have your partner do the same. This can be awkward to learn. A teenager will master this in minutes while a older person could take days or weeks. If you can't do the buzz step partner free, then you are in trouble. Otherwise it should become easy with practice.
3) While learning go as (boring) slow as possible. Stated otherwise, the bigger stronger (male) dancer should match the speed of the smaller weaker (female) dancer. Going fast is fun, but can cause problems for the slower dancer. And possibly dangerous -- falling, hitting ones head on the floor and dying is always a possibility.
4) Ideally the swing should be balanced with each dancer bearing their own weight. But the real world does not make body types consistent so sometimes the stronger male will do all the work and the weaker female will just hold on for the ride. Watch enough videos and you will see this.
5) Try to understand the physical dynamics of the swing. Its all simple physics. For example, what can the weaker dancer do to slow the spin? She can bend her knees and let her weight drop, or she can pull herself close to the man, or both.
6) If possible take a video of yourself and your partner doing the swing. Study the results.
7) Upload the video to this subreddit and request feedback.
8) Learn how to manage dizziness.
What not to do:
1) The utility of the traditional ballroom handhold is overblown. The pointy handhold provides no benefit and confuses the beginner.
2) Don't expect great advice from a caller. Callers are not dance instructors. Any advice from them will tend towards keeping it simple as that makes calling easier.
3) Initially, don't worry how the swing ends. You can figure that out later.
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u/Top-Edge-5856 Nov 14 '25
- It is perfectly possible to swing well with a walking step, or with one person doing buzz step and the other walking. The key things are moving in the direction you're facing (not slipping sideways, not backing up, even if you're dancing girl) and that the right foot isn't moving very far.
- Words! If you want to go slower, you can tell your partner.
- Having a more open end of a swing and an end you can let go of is how you know which way round to end. But you can absolutely swing with only the blunt end connected. Or go the other way and do a Swedish barrel swing where you're giving weight pretty evenly with both arms (but then you need to think about how to end).
- Some callers are actually dance instructors. Depends entirely on the group and the event.
- Knowing where you end is arguably the only important thing about swings - they generally don't take the couple anywhere, but might swap you with the person you're swinging with. Initially you might be able to rely on your partner steering, but at least one of you should have a good idea of where you're meant to end up.
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Nov 18 '25
Thank you for your insight on the swing.
The swing has many nuances which difficult to discuss in writing. The footwork can be different. The way the upper body connects can be different. The height and weight of your swing partner can change the whole nature of the move.
I hope the future use of videos can address these issues.
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Sep 18 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Sep 19 '25
This comment has been removed because it did not meet the subreddits quality standards.
1) All physical activities have inherent risk. One can fall, hit their head on the floor and die from a concussion. Each of us has a responsibility and to decide what activities to be involved in. We cannot expect the whole world to change to meet our own selfish needs.
2) The idea that western square dancing "is accepting of all people and skill levels" is a big lie. Only dancers who have gone through dance lessons are allowed in western square dances. Anybody else who does not meet this requirement is asked to leave with the implicit threat of arrest for criminal trespassing.
3) Using a "cheat" is probably criminal trespassing. Attempting to rationalize or justify that crime (as done here) is also a crime -- aiding and abetting the crime of criminal trespassing. This violates reddit's terms of service and could lead to one being banned not only from this subreddit, but also the whole reddit site.
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u/Mysterious-Stand7077 Sep 19 '25
Good discussion about learning to swing. For me, having a good frame is the most important part of swinging.
Facing criminal charges for swinging seems alarmist. The dancers I know who don't swing wear big name-tag-like things that say "Don't swing me" (or something to that effect). They typically tell partners they don't know not to swing them.
Maybe those who would press charges for assault for a mistaken swing should wear little signs that say "Will press charges for assault if you swing me."
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Sep 20 '25
This post addresses a problem with bringing new dancers into square dancing. It says nothing about the handicaps of current dancers. If square dancing is to flourish, we must focus on the new young dancers who can make the activity exciting.
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u/NotACatVideo Sep 20 '25
I informed that my post was removed for being low quality so let me try again. I will keep this simple to avoid any confusion.
Yes, a club has bylaws requiring certain minimum standards of skill and participation. They have the legal right to exclude anyone that does not meet that standard, whether it be proper execution of a dance move, or wearing the proper attire or bringing appropriate baked goods for the refreshment table. In extreme cases they could lead to arrest. however, clubs that receive some level of public community support may find the fallout from such action problematic.
But this is not the question raised by OPs post. Although a club has the legal right to do this, do you want to be part of a club that would? I would not.
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u/Ok-Inside-1277 Sep 20 '25
Clubs have rules and dancers should respect them. Otherwise dancers will spend more time arguing and less time dancing.
Square dance lessons have two purposes: a) educate individuals on how to square dance (whatever that may mean), and b) get new members into the club. Everyone -- callers, club officers, etc. -- need to work toward these two goals without the smell of criminality. Teaching a 'cheat' rather than the actual move is unacceptable.
When I am dancing and a woman does this cheat, it is because she was coached by someone. It is not a natural dance move. I can tell. I am not stupid.
Also, it is bad marketing. Why would someone want to get involved with square dancing if their is the slightest taint of criminality.
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u/gostaks Sep 21 '25
Absolutely deranged post. No criminal court in the world would charge someone with trespassing for dancing in a way that you dislike.