After the rodeo
Texas dance halls and the two-step
What happens after the last bull at a Texas rodeo: the covered dance hall, the two-step in plain steps, and the Hill Country dance hall tradition.
Book a rodeo night ↗Quick answer
After the rodeo, Tejas moves the evening to an outdoor, covered Texas dancehall with live country and western music. The dance is included with rodeo admission. The Texas two-step is a country dance built on a step-close-step pattern, and individual dance halls may have their own variations, so watching the floor for a song is a fair first move.
The dance hall at Tejas
From the end of the main rodeo performance, Tejas runs live country and western music and dancing in an outdoor, covered Texas dancehall. The venue says every Saturday features a rotating lineup of Texas bands playing everything from country classics to contemporary hits, and that live music is included with all rodeo tickets. The ticket describes a band that plays for hours in the covered pavilion and calls the dance family-friendly. The rodeo season and the music run on the same Saturdays, from March through November. A pavilion bar serves drinks while the music plays, and the venue says guests can bring boots and two-step the night away under the stars.
The two-step in plain terms
The country and western two-step, often called the Texas two-step, is a dance usually done to country music in common time. Most Texas dances are variations of a two-step, which is simply a step-close-step. The dance is related to the polka, the Texas waltz and the jitterbug. As with other country and western dances, there are many versions across the United States, and even individual dance halls may have their own variations that they consider correct. In other words, nobody on the floor will expect perfection from a visitor.
Quick and slow
Traditionally, the two-step includes three steps: a quick step, a quick step and then a slow step. A second version, known in Texas as the Texas two-step and elsewhere simply as the two-step, is danced in 4/4 time with four steps timed quick, quick, slow, slow, often described as step together, walk, walk. The dance can be done over a fairly wide range of tempos, and its positions include an open position and a closed position, so a pair can hold each other loosely or close. The two-step was influenced by European and Mexican dances.
A Hill Country tradition
Gruene Hall, built in 1878 in the historic town of Gruene, Texas, now part of New Braunfels, bills itself as the oldest continually run dance hall in Texas. It still has the original layout, with side flaps for open-air dancing, a bar in the front, a small lighted stage in the back and a huge outdoor garden. The Hill Country culture around such halls is described as a fusion of English, Spanish and German influences in food, beer, architecture and music. Gruene Hall is among the recorded historic landmarks in Comal County, the county Bulverde belongs to, so the tradition is local as well as Texan.
Joining in
Anyone can step onto the floor. The venue recommends comfortable shoes because the grounds are not paved. The venue says the dance floor is covered but open-air, like the arena, that blankets are welcome in cooler months and that guests should stay hydrated in warmer ones, which matters more on a dance floor than in the stands. The same night includes a shop on the grounds that sells boots, hats and Western apparel, which some visitors use before the dance.
Who this isn't for
A visitor who wants to leave soon after the final event will miss the dance. The dance goes on for hours, and the ride home is the part to plan. Someone who dislikes country music should know the lineup is country and western, with the style ranging from classics to contemporary hits. For everyone else, the ticket calls the dance family-friendly.
Frequently asked questions
Is the dance extra?
No. The venue says the live music is included with all rodeo tickets.
Do I need to know the two-step?
No. Dance halls have their own variations, and the basic pattern is a step-close-step.
What music plays?
Live country and western, from country classics to contemporary hits, by a rotating lineup of Texas bands.
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