Lovely Couple's Outstanding Shag Dancing Will Knock Your Socks Off

Mar 01, 2019

The American Swing Dance Championships has been an annual event for decades. It has changed over the years in style and form, and the competition has added and removed various different dance types in order to reflect current dance culture. The Internet is a funny place where the old and forgotten can become new and viral.

This happened recently when someone converted a VHS tape to digital format and uploaded it online. The tape in question captured a winning shag dancing routine from the ASDC 1995 Open Swing Finals!

Shag is a family of dances often associated with beach music, sometimes known as Carolina beach music or beach bop. That’s why shag is sometimes called Carolina shag. This is a partner dance that has evolved into a number of different forms, including collegiate shag.

Although the form is outdated from the perspective of youthful pop culture, it has been recognized in the U.S. and internationally for formal dance competitions for many years. It is often performed to beach music or really any music that has 100-130 beats per minutes in a 4-4 time signature.

The dancers in this particular video are Jackie McGee and Charlie Womble. They’re wearing matching pantsuits, and while the dance is fairly traditional with a bit of 90s flare, the song choice certainly reflects what was popular at such competitions during this time period.

The pair really cuts a rug—as in shag carpet. Get it?

The pair remain in harmony throughout the 3-minute set. The dance is filmed in Atlanta, Georgia, where the finals were taking place that year. You can hear the modest crowd react to the finish.

The entire dance is now available online and preserved. Perhaps it was kids having a good laugh that made the video go viral, but it will bring back sweet memories for many. Was it so long ago?

Interestingly enough, the 2019 shag finals are not too far off. It will be interesting to compare this year’s winner to the winner nearly 25 years ago.

So, there you have it. Perhaps one of the greatest Jack and Jill shag dance performances ever caught on tape. Do you agree? Join in on the fun by telling us what you thought and passing it along to your friends and family!