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Modern social round dance , or round dancing , is a choreographed and cued ballroom dance that progresses in a circular counter-clockwise pattern around the dance floor. The two major categories of ballroom dances found in round dancing are the smooth and international ballroom styles (such as foxtrot and waltz ) and the Latin dances (such as cha-cha-cha , salsa , and rhumba ). It is not to be confused with circle dancing , which is a type of folk dance in which dancers are connected in a circular chain.

Description [ edit ]

Round dancing differs from free-style ballroom dancing in that each round dance has been fully choreographed ahead of time, and a " cuer " or leader at the front of the ballroom tells the dancers, as they dance, what steps to do. As the music plays, and just ahead of the beat , so the dancers have time to respond, the cuer names each dance figure in the choreography. As a consequence, all the dancers on the floor are dancing the same steps at the same time.

To create a round dance, a piece of music is selected by the choreographer, and the different steps or figures are chosen to fit the music. If the music swells and pauses briefly, then a dance step that rises and stretches is put into that place. If there is a little syncopation in another part of the music, then a quick step is inserted. The creation of a piece of choreography is like engineering a machine, with every gear and lever in just the right place to give smooth and flowing motion. The step-by-step instructions on how to dance this choreography are written out in what is called a cue sheet.

Types [ edit ]

Examples of social dances that may be danced in "round" fashion are ^{[ citation needed ]} bolero , cha-cha-cha , foxtrot , hustle , jive , mambo , merengue , paso doble , quickstep , rhumba , salsa , samba , single swing , slow two step , tango , two step , waltz , Viennese waltz and West Coast swing .

Roundalab , the International Association of Round Dance Teachers, Inc., has established a "Phase Rating System" of round dancing, in order to rate round dance figures according to difficulty and complexity.

Salsa rueda , also referred to as casino de rueda, is a kind of round dance in which there is no complete pre-choreographed sequence, and the dance patterns are called out in a random order.

See also [ edit ]

• La Ronde (play)
• Rondeau (dance)
• Line dancing
• Romvong , a popular Cambodian round dance

External links [ edit ]

• Round dance instruction
• Round dance server
• Cue sheets from All Over
• Roundalab
• Square and Round Dancing Australia/NZ - square and round dancing in Australia and NZ - Australian products and area information for square dancing, round dancing and clogging
• Queensland Round Dance Association (Australia)
• International Choreographed Ballroom Dance Association - formerly known as URDC]
• Square and Round Dancing United Kingdom - square and round dancing in Great Britain and associated Commonwealth Territories]