Prairie Chicken Style is based on the courting dance of the Greater Prairie Chicken and to fully understand and dance this style we must also get in touch with the bird from which the dance originates. How men portray this dance differs across geographic and cultural lines. The dance looks different in Alberta than it does in Albuquerque. It may have different incarnations when danced in competition opposed to other times when it is danced. However one aspect of the dance remains constant, the movements and attitude of the dance come from the Prairie Chicken itself.
Male Prairie Chickens engage in a courting dance to impress female Prairie Chickens. This dance is called Booming. In Booming males stomp their feet, jump and kick in the air, puff out their chests and throat sacks in addition to other movements that might impress a female. This dance occurs in an area called a Lek, which is a gathering of males who all want to court a female. Just as in the dance arena, the bird that makes the best showing in the Lek will likely win the admiration of the female birds and therefore be able to be able to pass on his genes, continuing the survival of his family line.
In understanding the biology and behavior of these birds we can better understand the dance, the movements, the attitude and the meaning of what we're doing. Here is a great gallery of Prairie Chickens Booming
