September 7.2001 * ju s t (Hit 49
R
emember
the Bugs
Bunny car
toon where
he square dances
with two feuding
hillbillies? The country
bumpkins try to match
wits with the wily hare,
but he gets the better
of the two as he leads
them through a crazy
(and violent!) square
dance. If you watched
Looney Tunes as a kid, that was probably
your first impression of square dancing: odd
characters, twangy country music and yokel calls.
Over time, your impression of square danc
ing probably hasn’t changed much. First in
junior high you likely suffered through square
dancing in phys ed, feeling like a geek, forced
to dance with assigned classmates (of the oppo
site sex, of course). And today, all you see on
television and in the movies are old straight
couples wearing silly matching polyester outfits.
Well, throw those old images away! In the
hands of today’s gay and lesbian community,
square dancing is now a high-energy, exciting
activity where you meet new friends and build
a sense of community.
“It’s definitely not your grandfather’s square
dancing,” says Karin Kelley, president of the
Rosetown Ramblers, Portland’s gay and lesbian
square dance club. “It’s about the people, the
camaraderie and the dancing. You just need to
let go of any preconceived notions and give it a
try. You’ll be surprised!”
You might be thinking: “Yeah, right. Square
dancing is still square dancing.”
Wrong. Today, gay men and lesbians have
taken this old, boring activity and turned it
into a fun, upbeat social event fit for anybody.
In 1983, the Rosetown Ramblers
began. It was one of the founders of the
International Association of Gay and
Lesbian Square Dance Clubs, an orga
nization that now comprises more than
60 organizations around the United
States, Canada, Europe and Japan.
Founding member Dick Burdon
recalls how the Ramblers started out,
oddly enough, by enlisting the help of
a straight woman. “The Ramblers
were just starting, and they didn’t really
know what to
do,” he recalls.
“Jan Phipps was
a local caller,
and she and her
husband agreed
to teach those
J I
first classes. It
was all new.”
Involvement
in the Ramblers
changed Burdon’s
life. “I was just com
ing out at the time. I
didn’t know a lot of
gay people. Joining the
Ramblers became an
important part of my
coming-out process.” He
Improving square dancing
speaks of the Ramblers as “his family and
friends” and has remained active with the club
during its 18 years.
T
here was a time when square dancing was
done mostly by white, straight America. All
that changed in the early 1980s when the gay
and lesbian community discovered and adopted it.
But first some improvements had to be
made. Gone is the dress code— no more silly
matching outfits and frilly crinoline skirts!
Also discarded is the requirement for assigned
partners. Now, you can dance with whomever
you choose, and singles are welcomed.
Even the music has taken on a more mod
em, upbeat flavor. During a typical night you
might hear the Beatles, the Pointer Sisters,
Garth Brooks— even the Village People. (This
is gay square dancing, after all!)
When gay men and lesbians saw the fun and
camaraderie this new square dancing offered, they
began forming clubs all around the country,
including here in Portland.
thought that was the end of it. But it
wasn’t,” Krivd adds with a mischie
vous grin. “Lo and behold one night
we were at the old Eastside Bar and we
saw fliers for the Ramblers. There was a
gay square dance group after all!”
Reluctantly, Kelley kept her promise,
and the two started the square dance class
that fall. “I thought I was going to be
bored to tears,” Kelley laughs. “But I wasn’t.
I found out that it was a lot of fun. And the
people were so nice. After just a few weeks I
was addicted!"
Kelley and Krive have remained active
with the Ramblers dur-
their fellow dancers as ’ _________
their
closest
friends.
They speak
highly of
the strong
network of
people they
have met both
locally and around
the nation at major
gay square dance
events.
Why square dancing
isn't square
The Rosetown Ramblers want you to do-si-do
by
P al -1. F indlay
Friendship set to music
B
urdon’s feelings are typical. When you talk
with gay and lesbian square dancers, you
often hear them speak of family, friends
and community. Square dance has long been
called “friendship set to music,” which is par
ticularly true for gay men and lesbians.
“There is an incredible sense of community
in square dancing,” longtime caller Michael
McMullen says. “Square dancers really treat
each other as family.”
Indeed, many “families” have been formed
through square dancing. “Square dancing is a
wonderful alternative to the bar scene,”
McMullen says. “You get to meet people in a
nonsexually charged environment and connect
with them on a deeper level.”
McMullen knows this well; he met his long
time partner through square dancing. For oth
ers who are already partnered, square dancing is
an opportunity to make new friends and
strengthen bonds with your mate.
Kelley and her partner, Risa Kriv£,
began square dancing almost 10 years
ago. Krive had long been interested in
square dancing (and the beautiful
crinolines she saw the straight
women wear!), but Kelley wasn’t
interested.
“Karin told me,
‘I’ll square
dance...but only if
it’s with a gay square
dance group.’ Karin
Annual convention
O
ne of the most exciting gatherings is the In
ternational Gay and Lesbian Square Dance
Convention. Each year between 1,300 and
1,500 people from throughout the world get to
gether for a long weekend of dancing and partying.
Although the primary focus is dancing, of
course, the convention offers many other
events and traditions—some with a distinctly
gay twist. One of the most popular is the hilari
ous Honky Tonk Queen contest, which pits
lip-synching drag queens against each other in
categories such as talent, beauty and dance
ability. (The coveted tiara is a crown covered
in tacky velvet and Christmas lights and
topped with an old cowboy boot.) Finding an
empty seat at the show is next to impossible.
Another activity is the Moonshine Tip, a
dance customarily held at midnight during the
convention. After the dancers enter the ballroom,
they strip to their birthday suits and (you guessed
it) dance in the nude! The Moonshine Tip always
attracts a crowd of a couple hundred dancers. No
spectators (or cameras) are allowed.
In addition to the annual convention,
many of the larger gay and lesbian square
dance clubs sponsor weekend dance events
known as fly-ins, so called because dancers
fly in from all over to attend. The Ram
blers’ own fly-in is held every year on
Halloween weekend. (Imagine 150
costumed witches, devils, ghosts and
pirates all square dancing, and you
get the idea.) Attending fly-ins dur
ing the year helps tide dancers over
while they wait for the next annual
international convention.
Rick Hawes was the co-chair of the
convention when it was held in Port-
j
land three years ago. In
1990 he co-founded Heads
to the Center, for advanced
gay and lesbian square
dancers.
“We believed that the
Ramblers would be overex
tended if they tried to be
responsible for both the
upper and lower dance lev
els,” Hawes explains. “Heads
to the Center provides an
opportunity for gay dancers
who are interested in the higher
levels to continue to leam and
stay in a socially comfortable environment.”
Teaching the beginning level is the job of
instructor Cornell Trouw. A square dancer of
more than 20 years, he decided a few years
ago to try his hand at calling and teaching.
“The part I like most is teaching new
people to dance and seeing how much fun
they have when they discover that they’re
actually dancing,” Trouw says. “This happens
the very first night they try square dancing.”
Active in the community
eing active and involved in the community
is a square dance tradition, and the Ramblers
are no exception. Every month they sponsor
a skating party and country western dancing. In
addition, the Ramblers make a donation of
$1,000 each year to the Audria M. Edwards
Scholarship Fund, which benefits gay and les
bian students pursuing a secondary education.
The new season of classes starts Sept. 26
and meets 7:30 p.m. every Wednesday for
about six months. The fee can be paid by the
session, by the month or by the week. You
must complete the classes to join the club.
The Ramblers have various square dance
levels, and these classes cover the first two lev
els. Club members join in as experienced part
ners during the classes, and regular Wednesday
evening dances continue throughout the year
after the classes end in April. JT1
Contact the R osetown R amblers at
503-234-9944 or www.rdrop. comfusers/ramblers.
The monthly skating party is held from
7:30-9:30 p.m. every third Monday at Oaks Park,
which is located at the east end of the Sellwood
Bridge. Admission is $5. Country uestem dancing is
held from 10 p.m .-l :30 a.m. after the monthly
square dance every first Saturday at the Portland
Metro Club, 6 18S.E . Alder St., and $5 gets you in.
Prospective members are invited to cry a free night of
square dancing from 7:30-9:30 p.m. Sept. 12 and
19 at Trinity United Methodist Church’s Fellowship
Hall, 3915 S.E . Steele St.
PAUL F indlay is a Portland free-lance writer who’s
not ashamed to say he loves square dancing.