[Callers] Box - Swat - CA - Jersey/Nevada

Sat Jun 13 14:12:19 PDT 2015

There are many others out there, as well.  I can't name one where you
swap and then face, but I'm sure there was one.  Take a look through
Burlson's Square Dance Encyclopedia to find it.  With a squares group
I'd call it as "California Twirl/Partner Trade and Roll To Face,"
although I think Trade and Roll would suffice.

Lots of figures were developed (with multiple names) between the 1940s
and 1980s, but they are no longer on the active call lists.
CallerLab's preference in recent years has been to eliminate calls
that are mirror duplicates and go with the phrase "left."  For
example, Swat the Flea is now known only as "Left Box the Gnat," a
"Nevada Twirl" is now "Left California Twirl," and "Seesaw" (except in
the case of the combined "seesaw round your courner, dosado your own")
is now "Left Dosado."  I learned THAT one when I tried to use Seesaw
in Arizona and the dancers got mad at me...I told them to just do it
anyway.

Other figures:

Curlique: As Box the Gnat, trading places, but only change facing by
1/4 right-face instead of 1/2.  In a contra, this would set you up for
a box circulate if done along the lines or for a march along the
set/walk and dodge progression if done across.  There was a left-hand
version of that, but I don't recall the name.

Left Star Thru: A Star Thru done with Men's left, Lady's right hands.
I'm sure it had an older name, but I don't know it.  (As Erik said, in
a Star Thru the dancers make an arch with the indicated hands and pass
by with the lady going under the arch; while trading positions, they
also both turn their facing 1/4 in the direction of the joined hand.
This ends with them facing the same direction)

Interesting note: Star Thru is one of the few figures in modern
squares which by definition CANNOT be done by two facing people
dancing the same gender role.  Box the Gnat is another, and possibly
California Twirl depending on the exact definition.  The
gender-neutral replacements are Slide Thru and Partner Trade.

On 6/13/15, Erik Hoffman via Callers <callers at lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> I learned several subtle distinctions. Back in the 80s, when Larry
> Edelman was on staff at lots of our weeks and weekends, he'd drill us in
> these figures:
>
> These moves depend on where you're facing when you start, and which way
> you face when you end.
>
> Both Box the Gnat and Swat the Flea start facing the person you're doing
> it with, and have you change places and end facing them
> Box the Gnat starts facing the person you're boxing with, joining right
> hands turning the woman or raven under, and swapping places, ending
> facing each other and right hands are still joined.
> Swat the Flea is the same, except you have left hands joining left hands
>
> Both the California Twirl (also called the Frontier Twirl) starts
> standing next to the person you're doing it with, woman or raven on
> right, man or lark on left with near hands joined, and ends with the
> couple about facing. That it, it results in the pair turning as a couple.
> The Jersey or Nevada Twirl does the same, but with the man (or lark) on
> the right, woman (or raven) on the left.
>
> A star through starts with a pair facing each other with the man's
> (lark's) right hand joined with the woman's (raven's) left hand and ends
> with them swapping sides, but facing the same direction.
>
> There are several contras that use it. A part might be
>
> A1 facing your new neighbor: join inside hands (man's right, woman's
> left), balance, star through (end facing partner); Women chain
>
> I don't recall if there's a reverse star through: starting facing
> someone, joining hands -- Man's left, Woman's right, and "reverse star
> through (moon through?) -- ending side by side, woman on left, man on
> right.
>
> And I don't think I've ever learned one where you start side by side, do
> a swap to change, and end up facing each other....
>
> ~erik hoffman
>      oakland, ca
>
> On 6/12/2015 9:17 PM, Jeff Kaufman via Callers wrote:
>>
>> Huh. If learned it as:
>>
>> G right in L left: California twirl
>> G right in L right: box the gnat
>> G left in L left: swat the flea
>> G left in L right: star through
>>
>> Or just tell people what hands to join and then "twirl to swap".
>>
>> On Jun 12, 2015 10:40 PM, "Charles M. Hannum via Callers"
>> <callers at lists.sharedweight.net
>> <mailto:callers at lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote:
>>
>>     Indeed, the only times I've seen “star thru” used in contra, it
>>     was directly borrowed from MWSD.
>>
>>     This is what Callerlab says.  Even in Tech Squares it's considered
>>     incorrect to call it from other formations.
>>
>>
>>     24. Star Thru
>>
>>     Starting formation: Facing Dancers (man facing woman)
>>
>>     Command example: Star Thru
>>
>>     Dance action: Man places his right hand against woman's left hand,
>>     palm to palm with fingers up, to make an arch. As the dancers move
>>     forward the woman does a one quarter (90 degrees) left face turn
>>     under the arch, while the man does a one quarter (90 degrees) turn
>>     to the right moving past the woman.
>>
>>     Ending formation: Couple
>>
>>     Timing: 4
>>
>>     Styling: Hands are joined in raised position at approximately eye
>>     level, palm to palm, with fingers pointed up to form an arch. The
>>     arch will be offset to the man's right and woman's left. The man's
>>     hand should be used to stabilize as the woman provides her own
>>     momentum. As the call is completed, the hand grip should be
>>     readjusted to couple handhold.
>>
>>     On Fri, Jun 12, 2015 at 11:25 PM, Aahz Maruch via Callers
>>     <callers at lists.sharedweight.net
>>     <mailto:callers at lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote:
>>
>>         On Fri, Jun 12, 2015, Jeff Kaufman via Callers wrote:
>>         >
>>         > Nit: a "California twirl with other hands" is traditionally
>>         called a "star
>>         > through".
>>
>>         Really?  I haven't seen Star Thru in contra much; in MWSD, at
>>         least, Star
>>         Thru is normally done with partners facing each other, as
>>         opposed to the
>>         California Twirl with partners facing the same direction.
>>         What's being
>>         asked for here is a sashayed California Twirl -- I don't think
>>         I've ever
>>         seen that before.  However, "Nevada Twirl" does have plenty of
>>         hits when
>>         I search, which suggests a clear provenance...
>>
>>         (You could argue that in a ring partners are sort-of facing
>>         each other,
>>         but I think that's a wasted argument when people already have
>>         a clear
>>         choreographic name for the concept.)
>>         --
>>         Hugs and backrubs -- I break Rule 6 http://rule6.info/
>>                               <*>           <*>          <*>
>>         Help a hearing-impaired person: http://rule6.info/hearing.html
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>>
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