Collegiate Shag lessons

Collegiate shag is a highly energetic and fun dance, usually danced to upbeat swing music. Shag is known for its quick footwork, flashy moves and big smiles

What is it?

Shag is a partner dance, which is danced to swing music that has a tempo of 185 bpm or higher. The standard form is a six count basic, with a lot of kicking. Note: Collegiate Shag and St. Louis Shag are not the same.

History

Collegiate Shag is a member of the swing dance family, just as Lindy Hop is. It started out as a street dance in the United States in the 1920s, by African Americans. Later it was adopted by the famous Arthur Murray dance studio in the late 1930s. Although this dance had different names (such as Flea Hop) in the beginning, it was later named Shag. The term ‘collegiate’ was added, because of the popularity amongst American college students in the 1930s and 40s.