More than a Dance: HScrU

Hardin-Simmons University continues to celebrate Black History Month by highlighting Black leaders in the community, sharing stories, and spotlighting student-led programming and organizations. This Tuesday, chapel provided a stage for HScrU and Proven to share their talents with the campus.  

HScrU performs during every basketball halftime and at various events across campus. Their step routines not only provide entertainment to spectators, but also an educational opportunity, as their routines provide a link to African, African American, and Black culture. Any time HScrU performs, they express a piece of history. 

HScrU Co-Captain Stasia Hodge ’23 said, “I feel like dance tells a story. Dancing shows us where we have been and where we are now.” Across time and continents, dance has always provided a way to communicate emotions and life’s events. Many sources agree that stepping, the type of dance HScrU performs, is derived from African culture. The incorporation of slapping arms, legs, and chest while dancing can be linked to dance in West Africa.  

The evolution of step can be found across history. Characteristics of the dance style have been influenced and came about due to enslavement, Tin Pan Alley, the rise of Historic Black Colleges, the civil rights movement, hip-hop and rap, and more.  

For centuries dance has served as an outlet to express emotions whether it is celebration or mourning. Stepping continues that tradition. Each step symbolizes much more than a part of the choreography, but a time capsule of history. HScrU Co-Captain Danielle Sauls ’23 shared, “Dance is more than just moving to the beat. Dance is an art form that allows people to tell their stories. Dance is a way to communicate with one another without even speaking. It shows us who we are and where we came from.”