Musical statues facts for kids

Musical statues is a super fun game often played at birthday parties! In the United States, people call it "Freeze Dance". In the Philippines, it's known as "Statue Dance". It's a bit like musical chairs, but instead of chairs, you freeze!

How to Play Musical Statues

This game is easy to learn and play. All you need is some music and a "game master." The game master is the person who controls the music.

Starting the Game

• First, all the players stand in an open area. This could be a dance hall or just a living room.
• The game master starts the music.
• When the music plays, everyone should dance! The more energy you put into your dancing, the better.

Freezing in Place

• At any moment, the game master will suddenly stop the music.
• As soon as the music stops, all players must freeze! You need to stop moving completely, like a statue.
• The game master then walks around. They look for anyone who is still moving. If you wiggle or don't stop fast enough, you are out of the game.

Winning the Game

• The game continues until only one player is left.
• That last player who manages to freeze perfectly each time is the winner!

Making it More Fun

• Sometimes, if it's hard to decide who is out, the game master might ask players to dance even more wildly. This makes it harder to stop exactly on time!
• Another fun twist is to add a "theme" for the statues. For example, the game master might say "animal statues!" Then, when the music stops, everyone has to freeze like an animal. Or they might say "sports statues!"

Musical Statues in the Philippines

In the Philippines, this game is very popular at parties. The rules are mostly the same. Players are eliminated if they don't freeze when the music stops.

Newspaper Dance Variation

There's a cool variation called the "newspaper dance".

• Players work in pairs. Each pair gets one page of a newspaper.
• They dance around the paper while the music plays.
• When the music stops, both players must stand on the newspaper. They can't step off it!
• As the game goes on, the newspaper is folded in half for each new round. This makes the space smaller and smaller.
• Pairs that step off the paper are out. The last team standing on their tiny piece of newspaper wins!

World Record for Musical Statues

Did you know there's a world record for musical statues?

• It was set on August 16, 2013.
• Over 1,500 students played the game at Mansfield State High School.
• This huge event happened in Brisbane, Australia.