by Linda Besant“More steps per minute than any other show in town,” said dance writer Nancy Reynolds of Square Dance. For fifty years, audiences have been wowed by this non-stop ballet: “Tempos that could only be called lickety-split.” (Manchester, 1958) “Filigree footwork that requires the most astonishing technical dexterity.” (Kaplan, 1988) “The speed of the… Read More
Balanchine’s First Square Dance Caller
Gents go ‘round, come right back, Make your feet go wickety-wack . . . Crackerjack square dance caller Elisha Keeler was profiled in The New York Times and The New Yorker in 1957. Next thing you know, George Balanchine was making a new dance to the music of Baroque composers, prancing his City Ballet dancers… Read More
Your Daily Dance Break: Square Dance, the Lawrence Welk Version
We’ll be presenting Balanchine’s idea of a Square Dance as part of our Song & Dance program in April. So we thought you might enjoy a peek at traditional square dance (as interpreted by the dancers on the Lawrence Welk Show in 1968) Did you learn square dancing in P.E. as a kid?
