Traditional Greek Dancing At Your Wedding

Written by Greek Boston in Greek Wedding Traditions Comments Off on Traditional Greek Dancing At Your Wedding

Here in the United States, there are certain aspects of the Greek culture that have come across the ocean with our ancestors. Traditional Greek dancing is one of those traditions. They are still danced today in the United States because the steps have been passed down through the generations.

One place where Greek dancing is particularly festive is during weddings. There are several ways you can do this. First, if you decide you want a traditional Greek wedding, you should consider hiring a Greek band. Or, if you decide to have a DJ, you can ask him to play Greek songs as well as the standard wedding music to give your guests a taste of both cultures.

Dancing the Traditional Wedding Party Dance

It is the custom for the whole wedding party to dance the special song “Orea Pou Ine Nifi Mas” which means “How Beautiful Our Bride Is”. This song is played at every wedding as the entire wedding party dances the Kalamatiano while the bride leads.

Here in the United States, not everyone knows how to do these dances anymore. Also, it is possible that not everyone in the wedding party will be Greek. So, they will need to learn the Kalamatiano so they can dance to the traditional song and adhere to the tradition.

Greek Dancing at Your Wedding

Even if you don’t hire a Greek band, you can ask the DJ to play a selection of traditional Greek music so that your guests can dance. It is also a good idea to have the DJ explain that everyone is encouraged to dance even if they don’t know how to do it because the less experienced dancers will be able to join at the end.

Some of the more popular traditional dances include the Kalamatiano, Hasapiko, Zeibekiko and Tsamiko. Of these, it is the Kalamatiano, Syrto and Hasapiko that are the most common. Work with the DJ to come up with a selection of songs so you can enjoy Greek dancing at your wedding.

LEARN THE STEPS FOR THE MANY GREEK DANCES HERE!

How to Learn Greek Dancing

Since it is important for the whole wedding party to dance the Kalamatiano to the traditional song, someone needs to teach it to them in advance. Since it can be difficult getting people together, a good choice is to teach the dance during the rehearsal dinner.

If teaching the Kalamatiano proves too difficult to teach everyone this dance, you can teach the Hasapiko and have him or her dance that instead. Even though this isn’t the traditional choice, people often adopt this practice.

Also, you will want the guests at your wedding to enjoy dancing, too. The Hasapiko, for example, is one of the easiest to learn and to teach and it may be fun for an experienced Greek dancer to take the mike and explain to the guests how to do it so they can participate in at least one Greek dance.

Dancing traditional Greek dances at your wedding is a great way to celebrate the Greek culture. At the least, you should have the wedding party dance to the traditional song. However, it can be fun to include at least a few traditional Greek songs so that your guests can also dance.

LEARN THE STEPS FOR THE MANY GREEK DANCES HERE!

Categorized in: Greek Wedding Traditions

This post was written by Greek Boston