Participation dance

Participation dance (also group-participation dance or audience participation dance) is a major class of dance that encourages dancing in a group. It includes social games based on dancing, for example at weddings, festivals and other social gatherings. Some have simple words to be sung to the music, which may act as a reminder of the steps - one example is the Hokey-cokey. Some consist of a few simple steps learned either from simple instructions given by a leader or from watching others. Examples are Electric Slide, Macarena, YMCA, and the Chicken Dance.

Participation dance games may have elimination rules that disqualify a dancer or dancers, due to lack of endurance, entering a particular part of the floor, or being of a specific age. Well-known examples are statues and musical chairs.

In "follow the leader" dances a designated leader makes some motions which the rest repeat, in some cases in a chain or a file. Examples are Conga line, Bunny Hop and Finnish dance Letkajenkka, a dance craze in Europe during the 1960s adapted from the Madison, Conga and Bunny Hop dances and played to a Finnish traditional folk dance song.

A mixer dance or dance mixer is a kind of participation game for partner dancers. During well-known dances - Waltz, Foxtrot, West Coast Swing etc. - at certain moments dancers change partners.

See also

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