Pow-wow Dances

This evening, we were introduced to a number of the dances that are performed at Pow-wows, and the etiquitte we should observe if we attend a Pow-wow. Unless otherwise specified--often when ceremonies are more distinctly spiritual, I think--photography is fine at Pow-wows. I didn't really like taking pictures, though, because I felt like by looking through the camera I was distancing myself from the dances. So I just tried to get one shot of each dance to share. They're not very good, and don't really show what the costumes look like (most of them were made by hand by the dancers). I'm going to make the photos larger here to try and show more detail. The dances were performed by the One Star and Bad Hand dance and drum group, basically an extended family group who have all been dancing and singing for their entire lives.

First, a shot of the drum circle. The drummers beat the drum in unison while they sing. You can't see the drum in the middle of the circle:



The first dance was the Chicken Dance. It is supposed to resemble how the Prairie Chicken walks during the mating season:



The next dance was the Grass Dance. There was a story that goes with it, but if I try to repeat it I will botch the details:



In the Jingle Dress Dance, the women wear dresses that are covered with the rolled-up tops of snuff cans. Before snuff arrived out West, shells or bones might be used, but these become brittle and eventually fall apart:


There are two variations of the shawl dance, one of which is much more reserved. This photo is of what I think was called the Fancy dance:


Finally, we have the men's Fancy Dance. It was getting dark at this point, but I didn't want to use a flash, so you really miss how extensive the costume is here: