The dance
Native American hoop dance explained
What hoop dance is, how a dancer builds formations with several hoops, why it is told as a story, and what to watch for at a dinner show.
Reserve your seat for dinner and dance ↗Quick answer
Native American hoop dance focuses on very rapid moves and the construction of hoop formations around and about the body. Up to 30 hoops may be used in storytelling rituals to create formations such as the butterfly, the eagle, the snake and the coyote. The Heard Museum in Phoenix has held a World Championship Hoop Dance Contest since 1991. Red Heritage in Page features hoop dancers.
What the dance is
In its general sense, hoop dance is the manipulation of, and artistic movement or dancing with, a hoop or hoops. Native American hoop dance is its own tradition, and Wikipedia notes that Native Americans developed their own traditions surrounding the dance independently. It focuses on very rapid moves and on building formations with the hoops around and about the body. Native American hoops are typically small, between one and two and a half feet in diameter. Hoops are used in storytelling rituals, so the dance is more than a display of skill.
How the hoops become shapes
Native American hoop dance focuses on very rapid moves and the construction of hoop formations around and about the body. Up to 30 hoops may be used in storytelling rituals to create formations such as the butterfly, the eagle, the snake and the coyote. Because the formations are named for animals, a narrator who says the name gives you something to look for. The photograph above shows a dancer with a cluster of hoops in motion at once.
Hoop dance as a cultural heritage
Native American hoop dance has been recognised as a cultural heritage. The most popular competition happens each year at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. The Heard Museum says its World Championship Hoop Dance Contest has been held since 1991, and it calls the contest a cornerstone for honouring cultural heritage and continuing traditions, celebrating the profound history of hoop dancing within Indigenous communities. The Museum's results list winners by age division and by nation.
Contest and stage are not the same
A contest is judged, with divisions by age, and dancers there perform to score points. An evening show has a different aim: the dancer performs for a room of diners alongside other parts of the programme. Expect the same hoop work, but not the structure of a competition. At a dinner show you are watching a performance, so applaud at the end of a set and keep your phone steady and silent.
Hoop dancers at the Page show
Red Heritage describes itself as a Native American dinner theater showcasing several styles of powwow dancing and featuring world class hoop dancers. Guests single out the hoop dancers in their reviews, and one reviewer on the ticket page says the show was amazing, especially the hoop dancers. The dancers perform alongside powwow dancing, flute, drum and storytelling in a two-hour dinner evening.
Watching with respect
Hoop dance carries meaning for the people who dance it. The Page show's organiser presents its programme as passing on stories, and describes its storytelling as preserving the rich history and legacy of ancestors. Listen to the narration, and ask questions in the slot at the end if you want to know what a figure means. Ask the dancers and the narrator what a figure means, and avoid guessing.
What to look for
Watch for the very rapid moves that define the dance, and for the hoop formations built around the body. If the narrator names an animal, such as the butterfly, the eagle, the snake or the coyote, look for its shape in the hoops. The hoops are small, between one and two and a half feet across, so the figures are built close to the dancer. Watch the whole body as well as the hoops, because the dancing is part of the story.
Who this isn't for
If you are hoping for a competition, with scores and rounds, a dinner show will not give you that. If you want a long hoop dance routine, note that the ticket describes the evening as a mix of powwow dancing, hoop dancing, music and storytelling, and guests say that some of the evening is narration. The show is also not suitable for people with epilepsy, according to the ticket, and flash photography is not permitted during the performance.
Frequently asked questions
How many hoops does a hoop dancer use?
Up to 30 hoops may be used in storytelling rituals, according to Wikipedia. The number varies by dancer and by dance.
Is hoop dance part of the Page show?
Yes. Red Heritage says its programme features hoop dancers, and guests mention them in reviews.
Where is the big hoop dance contest?
At the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, where the World Championship Hoop Dance Contest began in 1991.
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