Southlanders Answer the Call to ‘Allemande’

Square dancing is a seemingly unlikely activity for urbanites, but the Southland is a major center for this up-to-the-minute version of the old barn dance. Its followers revel in an activity that provides exercise, socialization and mental stimulation at the same time.

Many people are introduced to square dancing by their neighbors and friends, but you can get much of the information you need from your local square dance clothing store. (They’re listed in the Yellow Pages or in a copy of Open Squares, a monthly magazine of square dance, round dance, clogging and contra dance activities, also available at some dance-apparel stores.)

It is important to recognize that modern square dancing is a far more complicated activity than what you might remember from your school days: Mainstream dancing has 70 calls, Plus has 28, Advanced has 78 and Challenge has more than 1,000. It has become so complicated, in fact, that CallerLab, an organization of square dance callers, has devised a 25-week experimental program designed to get beginners dancing quicker. There’s a description of this program in the February, 1987, issue of Open Squares.

Many square dance clubs--virtually all classes are held under the auspices of clubs--meet once a week at schools, recreation centers, fraternal halls, union halls and square dance centers in virtually every nook and cranny of the Southland.

For more information, contact Sets in Order/The American Square Dance Society, 462 N. Robertson Blvd., Los Angeles, (213) 652-7434.

Open Squares magazine is published by Lea and Jim Veronica, 411 Culver Blvd., Playa del Rey, Calif. 90293.

For information about Bachelors ‘n’ Bachelorettes, telephone Betty Sigur at (714) 823-5640.

The following is a list of 10 clubs and centers--from among hundreds in the Southland.

Fremont School, 1130 North M St., Oxnard. Bachelors ‘n’ Bachelorettes meets the first, third and, when applicable, fifth Fridays, 7:30-11 p.m. This is an international organization of square and round dancing, which meets in hundreds of places around the nation. For more information, call Phyllis Johnson at (805) 495-5420 or Bonnie Carter at (805) 658-7168.

Las Posas School, 75 Calle La Guerra, Camarillo. Upper 8s, advanced dancers, 7:30-10 p.m., Thursdays. Telephone (805) 484-9820.

Wilkinson Center, 8956 Vanalden St., Northridge. Home dance floor of the B-Sharps and various other square dance clubs. The B-Sharps hold A-1 workshops Thursdays at 8 p.m., the Haymakers dance Saturday nights at 8 and the Harrisons on Mondays at 8 p.m. Telephone (818) 846-2296.

Elaine’s, 11128 Balboa Blvd., Granada Hills. Located in a shopping center, Elaine’s combines an apparel shop and a 5,000-square-foot hardwood dance floor. It is home to several clubs. It’s also a center for round dance activities. Telephone (818) 363-0131.

McDonalds Barn, 13201 Saticoy St., North Hollywood. Despite its location in an industrial section of North Hollywood, or maybe because of it, this is a popular place for square dancing, round dancing and clogging. Telephone (818) 994-6327 or (818) 781-8731.

Westchester Senior Citizen Center, 8740 Lincoln Blvd., Westchester. Double-C-Squares of Culver City, beginner’s class in progress, Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Other beginners or angels (experienced square dancers) welcome. Telephone (213) 478-2887.

Square Dance Land, 26940 E. Baseline Road, Highland. San Bernardino Bachelors ‘n’ Bachelorettes holds classes Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. and chapter dances on the first, third and fifth Sundays, 6:30-10 p.m. Telephone (714) 824-8332 or (714) 823-5640.

Plumber’s Hall, 3904 West 1st St. (at Harbor Boulevard), Santa Ana. Calico Singles, second Saturday of each month, 8-11 p.m., plus level dancing. Also, Single Bees, third Sunday, 1-4 p.m., for beginners. Telephone (714) 667-5199 or for a prerecorded message: (714) 531-3574.

Balboa Park, San Diego. Mainstream level dancing on Sundays. San Diego activities aren’t listed in Open Squares, but there are some 30 clubs in the San Diego County Square Dance Assn., P.O. Box 81573, San Diego. The organization sponsors a dance on the third Saturday of each month at 7:30 p.m. On Sundays, the Raylin Cloggers hold split sessions at 4 and 6:30 p.m. Telephone past president Dana McCreary at (619) 465-9205 or current president Don Hartman at (619) 447-5769.

YMCA, 5505 Friars Road, Mission Valley, San Diego. The Jewel Squares, plus level dancers, hold dances each Thursday. Telephone president Wayne Kerns at (619) 274-2728.

Contributing to this article were Liz Kinchen, Bobbi Trantafello of West Hills, Arlen Miller of Northridge and Pete Lestrel of Van Nuys.