Fancy dance
Encyclopedia
Fancy dance, Pan-Indian dancing, Fancy Feather or Fancy War Dance is a style of dance some believe was originally created by members of the Ponca
tribe in the 1920s and 1930s, in an attempt to preserve their culture and religion. It is loosely based on the War dance
. Fancy dance was considered appropriate to be performed for visitors to reservations
and at "Wild West" shows. But today, fancy dancers can be seen at many powwow
s across the nation and even the world.
and Comanche
s created new styles of dance regalia in the 1930s that included long-johns with bells attached to the knee up to the waist, two small arm bustles with white fluff, two bustles
with white down, beadwork harnesses, and some feathers, and the roach being tall and usually with fluffs. This regalia would be incorporated into the fancy dance.
The fancy dance was developed after 1928, when the Ponca Tribe built their own dance arena in White Eagle, Oklahoma
. Two young Ponca boys are specifically credited with developing the fast-paced dance that the audiences loved. One of the boys was the grandfather of Parrish Williams, a Ponca roadman. The Wild West shows popularized the dance. Gus McDonald (Ponca) was the first World Champion Fancy War Dancer.
The intertribal powwow circuit was established in the early 20th century, spreading across the Southern Plains. The Kiowa
held contest powwows as early at 1918. Among Kiowa, fancy dancing was incorporated into the O-ho-mah Society. Contest powwows became an important source of income during the Great Depression
. Professional fancy dancers of the 1930s included Chester Lefthand (Arapaho
), Stephen Mopope
(Kiowa
), Dennis Rough Face (Ponca), and George "Woogie" Watchetaker (Comanche
). In the 1940s, Elmer Sugar Brown added back flips to his fancy dancing and Gus McDonald added both cartwheels and splits.
In the late 1930s, women began fancy dancing, wearing the same regalia as men. By the 1940s, women's fancy dancing was well established. Shalah Rowlen (Sac and Fox) fancy danced with her sisters, wearing bustles, in the early 1940s. Women's fancy dancing declined in the 1950s, but in the 1960s and 1970s, the dance came back as the women's fancy shawl dance.
are one of the hallmarks of modern fancy dance regalia, along with a beaded
bodice, leggings or breech cloth and side tabs (most popular), bells just below the knees, Icelandic sheep hair or also known as "Goats", moccasins
, a roach with two feathers (Most wear a roach rocker which rocks the feathers with the dancer's movements, beaded cuffs, beaded headband, and other feathered or beaded accouterments. The regalia often has a fringe of many colors. The old style regalia is making a comeback.
The women's fancy shawl dance represents the opening of a cocoon when the butterfly emerges. The shawl is usually the most extravagant piece. The fringed shawls are colorful and flashy, often featuring embroidery
or ribbon work
. The fringe on the shawl have a movement that coincides with the dancer. The dancers usually wear beaded or appliqued designs, and beaded hairpieces. Chokers, earrings, bracelets, and eagle plumes are usually worn as well. Elaborate moccasin
s and leggings complete the regalia.
The popularity of fancy dance - sometimes as a competitive sport - has spread, and is now practiced by many Native American
tribes (hence the name, "Pan-Indian dancing").
Ponca
The Ponca are a Native American people of the Dhegihan branch of the Siouan-language group. There are two federally recognized Ponca tribes: the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska and the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma...
tribe in the 1920s and 1930s, in an attempt to preserve their culture and religion. It is loosely based on the War dance
War dance
A war dance is a dance involving mock combat, usually in reference to tribal warrior societies where such dances were performed as a ritual connected with endemic warfare....
. Fancy dance was considered appropriate to be performed for visitors to reservations
Indian reservation
An American Indian reservation is an area of land managed by a Native American tribe under the United States Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs...
and at "Wild West" shows. But today, fancy dancers can be seen at many powwow
PowWow
PowWow is a wireless sensor network mote developed by the Cairn team of IRISA/INRIA. The platform is currently based on IEEE 802.15.4 standard radio transceiver and on an MSP430 microprocessor...
s across the nation and even the world.
History
During the 1920s and 1930s, Native American religious dances were outlawed by the United States and Canadian governments. Many dances had to go underground to avoid detection by European-American authorities. Tribes created new dances that could legally be danced in public. KiowaKiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
and Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
s created new styles of dance regalia in the 1930s that included long-johns with bells attached to the knee up to the waist, two small arm bustles with white fluff, two bustles
Bustle (regalia)
The Native American bustle is a traditional part of a man's regalia worn during a dance exhibition or wachipi and originates from the Plains region of the United States. In its modern form, the men's bustle is typically made of a string of eagle or hawk feathers attached to a backboard...
with white down, beadwork harnesses, and some feathers, and the roach being tall and usually with fluffs. This regalia would be incorporated into the fancy dance.
The fancy dance was developed after 1928, when the Ponca Tribe built their own dance arena in White Eagle, Oklahoma
White Eagle, Oklahoma
White Eagle is an unincorporated community in Kay County, Oklahoma, United States.White Eagle was named for the Ponca principal chief, White Eagle , who led the Ponca to their reservation in Indian Territory. Other names for the town are Ponca, White Eagle Agency, and Whiteagle.-Geography:White...
. Two young Ponca boys are specifically credited with developing the fast-paced dance that the audiences loved. One of the boys was the grandfather of Parrish Williams, a Ponca roadman. The Wild West shows popularized the dance. Gus McDonald (Ponca) was the first World Champion Fancy War Dancer.
The intertribal powwow circuit was established in the early 20th century, spreading across the Southern Plains. The Kiowa
Kiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
held contest powwows as early at 1918. Among Kiowa, fancy dancing was incorporated into the O-ho-mah Society. Contest powwows became an important source of income during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Professional fancy dancers of the 1930s included Chester Lefthand (Arapaho
Arapaho
The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...
), Stephen Mopope
Stephen Mopope
Stephen Mopope was a Kiowa painter, dancer, and flute player of Spanish descent, from Oklahoma. He was the most prolific member of the Kiowa Five-Early life:...
(Kiowa
Kiowa
The Kiowa are a nation of American Indians and indigenous people of the Great Plains. They migrated from the northern plains to the southern plains in the late 17th century. In 1867, the Kiowa moved to a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma...
), Dennis Rough Face (Ponca), and George "Woogie" Watchetaker (Comanche
Comanche
The Comanche are a Native American ethnic group whose historic range consisted of present-day eastern New Mexico, southern Colorado, northeastern Arizona, southern Kansas, all of Oklahoma, and most of northwest Texas. Historically, the Comanches were hunter-gatherers, with a typical Plains Indian...
). In the 1940s, Elmer Sugar Brown added back flips to his fancy dancing and Gus McDonald added both cartwheels and splits.
In the late 1930s, women began fancy dancing, wearing the same regalia as men. By the 1940s, women's fancy dancing was well established. Shalah Rowlen (Sac and Fox) fancy danced with her sisters, wearing bustles, in the early 1940s. Women's fancy dancing declined in the 1950s, but in the 1960s and 1970s, the dance came back as the women's fancy shawl dance.
Description
Men's fancy dance is flashy and colorful, but also highly energetic. It requires strength and stamina and is usually performed by younger men and boys. The drum can play a medium war beat, a ruffle, crow hop, and a fast beat. It is always expected that a fancy dancer should do a pose at each end of the beat. Some might do splits or stop in mid-air. Male fancy dancers typically wear brightly colored regalia. Twin feather bustlesBustle (regalia)
The Native American bustle is a traditional part of a man's regalia worn during a dance exhibition or wachipi and originates from the Plains region of the United States. In its modern form, the men's bustle is typically made of a string of eagle or hawk feathers attached to a backboard...
are one of the hallmarks of modern fancy dance regalia, along with a beaded
Beadwork
Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another or to cloth, usually by the use of a needle and thread or soft, flexible wire. Most beadwork takes the form of jewelry or other personal adornment, but beads are also used in wall hangings and sculpture.Beadwork techniques are broadly...
bodice, leggings or breech cloth and side tabs (most popular), bells just below the knees, Icelandic sheep hair or also known as "Goats", moccasins
Moccasin (footwear)
A moccasin is a slipper made of deerskin or other soft leather, consisting of a sole and sides made of one piece of leather, stitched together at the top, and sometimes with a vamp . Though sometimes worn inside, it is chiefly intended for outdoor use, as in exploring wildernesses and running from...
, a roach with two feathers (Most wear a roach rocker which rocks the feathers with the dancer's movements, beaded cuffs, beaded headband, and other feathered or beaded accouterments. The regalia often has a fringe of many colors. The old style regalia is making a comeback.
The women's fancy shawl dance represents the opening of a cocoon when the butterfly emerges. The shawl is usually the most extravagant piece. The fringed shawls are colorful and flashy, often featuring embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
or ribbon work
Ribbon work
Ribbon work is an appliqué technique for clothing and dance regalia among Prairie and Great Lakes Native American tribes.-History:Silk ribbons, brought to North America by European traders, inspired a new, uniquely Native American art form. Mi'kmaq people created ribbon appliqué as early as 1611...
. The fringe on the shawl have a movement that coincides with the dancer. The dancers usually wear beaded or appliqued designs, and beaded hairpieces. Chokers, earrings, bracelets, and eagle plumes are usually worn as well. Elaborate moccasin
Moccasin
A Moccasin is a form of shoe worn by Native Americans, as well as by hunters, traders, and settlers in the frontier regions of North America.Moccasin may also refer to:* Moccasin , an American Thoroughbred racehorse-Places:...
s and leggings complete the regalia.
Competition
The men's fancy dance is one of the most popular contemporary powwow dances. Thus living up to its name, the fancy dance is a highly athletic dance with lots of tricks and movement. As the dancer dances, his regalia moves with the dancer to create the tone of the following of motion. The medium war, ruffle, crow hop, and fast beats are usually mixed together and are usually called mix-up songs or confusion songs. The Fancy Dancer must dance according to the beat and must strike a "pose" whenever the drum beat stops. Singers can try to trick the dances with unexpected final beats.The popularity of fancy dance - sometimes as a competitive sport - has spread, and is now practiced by many Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
tribes (hence the name, "Pan-Indian dancing").
See also
- BustleBustle (regalia)The Native American bustle is a traditional part of a man's regalia worn during a dance exhibition or wachipi and originates from the Plains region of the United States. In its modern form, the men's bustle is typically made of a string of eagle or hawk feathers attached to a backboard...
- Gourd DanceGourd DanceThe Gourd Dance is a type of Native American celebration dance and ceremony. It is believed that the dance originated with the Kiowa tribe. Gourd dances are often held to coincide with a pow-wow, although the Gourd Dance has its own unique dance and history...
- Hoop DanceNative American Hoop DanceNative American Hoop Dance is a form of storytelling dance incorporating anywhere from one to thirty hoops as props, which are used to create both static and dynamic shapes, or formations, representing various animals, shapes, and storytelling elements. It is generally performed by a solo dancer...
- Jingle dressJingle dressJingle dress is a dance dress worn by women participating in the "Jingle Dress Dance" at a Pow wow. Made of cloth, the dress includes several rows of metal cones, which are sewn across the dress on the skirt . The metal cones create a jingling sound as the dancer moves...
- Native American musicNative American musicAmerican Indian music is the music that is used, created or performed by Native North Americans, specifically traditional tribal music. In addition to the traditional music of the Native American groups, there now exist pan-tribal and inter-tribal genres as well as distinct Indian subgenres of...
- Pow-wowPow-wowA pow-wow is a gathering of North America's Native people. The word derives from the Narragansett word powwaw, meaning "spiritual leader". A modern pow-wow is a specific type of event where both Native American and non-Native American people meet to dance, sing, socialize, and honor American...
- The Business of FancydancingThe Business of FancydancingThe Business of Fancydancing is a 2002 film written and directed by Sherman Alexie.The film explores the tension between two Spokane men who grew up together on the Spokane Reservation in eastern Washington state: Seymour Polatkin and Aristotle...
External links
- Men's Fancy Dance, "Wacipi Powwow", Twin Cities Public Television
- Menominee Fancy Dance Bustle, c. 1982, Wisconsin State Historical Society