Contra Callers

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31 participants
4403 discussions

by Chrissy Fowler

Amen, with additional postscript: "... and in your own space on the dance floor." Yee-ha! Chrissy Fowler Belfast, ME > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Date: Sat, 26 Jun 2010 15:20:58 -0400 > From: Will Loving <will(a)dedicationtechnologies.com> > > I am always mindful as both dancer and caller of Larry Jennings comment in > one of his books (paraphrased): "Twirl away for all I care, but do it on > your own time." > > Will _________________________________________________________________ The New Busy think 9 to 5 is a cute idea. Combine multiple calendars with Hotmail. http://www.windowslive.com/campaign/thenewbusy?tile=multicalendar&ocid=PID2…

15 years, 4 months

Alternating Corners - was Gender role switching and 64-bar dances

by Martha Edwards

I could swear that I danced Alternating Corners once a long time ago and when the caller dropped out and we forgot who was supposed to do the contra corners, and, what I remember is that we ALL did the contra corners, and it worked! I've never had the nerve to try to do such a thing on purpose, but theoretically, it should work. Your corner isn't in his or her place while you're allemanding in the middle, but then again, neither are you. Done right, all corners get to their appointed places just in time to allemande left back to their partners. Has anyone else ever done this? M E > > I don't like the dance alternating corners because dancers don't > internalize it properly. They learn it ok, so they can do it, but > they usually can't handle the caller dropping out. Once the caller > drops out people forget which turn it is and they have to step back > in. I've seen this happen even in groups where a caller could drop > out after two times through on a simplish dance. > > Jeff > > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers > > -- For the good are always the merry, Save by an evil chance, And the merry love the fiddle And the merry love to dance. ~ William Butler Yeats

15 years, 4 months

The Core Issue: Was: "dance floor capacity"

by Greg McKenzie

Martha wrote: >But you are right. I'm not aware of any regularly scheduled dances for >basically non-dancers, unless you count Family dances. But a Family dance >that goes on for a while begins to resemble a contra dance - those darn kids >learn so fast! Since my first contra dance I have considered contras to be: "...regularly scheduled dances for basically non dancers...." This perception is based upon the fact that there are no separate lessons, and the events are open to the public. I understand that "barn dances," might fit this definition more closely. Still, I think contras are as close as we come to this definition in this country. More to the point, this might be the best frame from which callers can view these events. It would certainly place the task of integrating first-timers into the dance event at the forefront of the caller's job. I consider contra dances to be, primarily, social events. The contra dance form is used because it is so effective at sweeping in newcomers. Once you begin to re-frame a contra dance as an open public social event...the task of the caller changes and, I believe, the event becomes more fun for everyone. Just a thought. - Greg

15 years, 4 months

dance floor capacity

by John Sweeney

Hi Martha, You said "Wouldn't it follow that sometimes some of the 1.5 square yards will have to be wasted if the width isn't a multiple of 10 feet (for contra) or 15 feet (for English)?" Absolutely, it is just a quick rule of thumb to get an idea of the capacity of a hall, i.e, No you can't get 150 people doing a dance at the same time! I susepct a wedding party will be happy to squeeze two lines into that space, especially if you can push the chairs back a bit to make it slightly bigger. And of course, for a wedding party, I wouldn't be calling modern American contras, or what you call English Country Dancing (Playford-style). I would be selecting simple barn dances such as you will find at: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/greenery/BarnDances/ http://www.mts.net/~jinks%20/fd/menu.htm http://www.ceilidhcalling.co.uk/dancelist.php I'm not sure if you do this sort of stuff much in America; when I visit I only ever seem to find contra and ECD (which is fine, as I love both). But here in England there is a whole other stream of social folk dance known as Barn Dance or Ceilidh. Hope that helps. Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk <http://www.contrafusion.co.uk/> for Contra Dancing in Kent

15 years, 4 months

Re: [Callers] Dare to Be Square Archive

by Suzanne Girardot

I thought I had heard about Bob doing DTBS in Brasstown. I might just have to take a trip there - it's only been 20 years since I was last there. Thanks, David! -----Original Message----- >From: David Millstone <David.Millstone(a)valley.net> >Sent: Jun 17, 2010 3:15 PM >To: suzanneg(a)wolfenet.com, callers(a)sharedweight.net >Cc: Tony Mates <CKittyroo(a)aol.com> >Subject: Re: [Callers] Dare to Be Square Archive > >--- Suzanne Girardot wrote: >If you are curious about DTBS, we will be having another DTBS weekend in Seattle >on November 4-7. >--- end of quote --- > >And Bob Dalsemer is organizing one for the following year at the John C. >Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. Dates are November 18-20, 2011. That's >the weekend before Thanksgiving. Full details coming soon. > >David Millstone

15 years, 4 months

Re: [Callers] Dare to Be Square Archive

by David.Millstone＠valley.net

--- Suzanne Girardot wrote: If you are curious about DTBS, we will be having another DTBS weekend in Seattle on November 4-7. --- end of quote --- And Bob Dalsemer is organizing one for the following year at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. Dates are November 18-20, 2011. That's the weekend before Thanksgiving. Full details coming soon. David Millstone

15 years, 4 months

Re: [Callers] Dare to Be Square Archive

by Suzanne Girardot

Thanks, David, for filling in the blanks on those dances. I know that Tony Mates is out of town right now, and would have provided names if he knew them, so now he can update those videos with the correct dance titles. This was a huge labor of love by Tony and other volunteers at Dare To Be Square (DTBS), and I really appreciate having such a wonderful archive available for us to refer back to. If you are curious about DTBS, we will be having another DTBS weekend in Seattle on November 4-7. It is still in the planning stages, but more information can be found at http://www.bubbaguitar.com/d2bs/. Suzanne -----Original Message----- >From: David Millstone <David.Millstone(a)VALLEY.NET> >Sent: Jun 17, 2010 11:20 AM >To: callers(a)sharedweight.net >Subject: Re: [Callers] Dare to Be Square Archive > >Jack asked about the two Ted Sannella dances shown here: > >> The Dare to be Square 2009 Archive is on the air! Go to >> http://vimeo.com/ and find the search box, click on "channels" and >> enter "dtbs". Have a look around. > >Both of these dances appear in print in Ted Sannella's book "Swing the Next." >The first one is "Pass Through and So-si-do," for which Ted suggests the tune >Ronde de Voyageur. The second one is "Gents Three-Quarter Star," for which Ted >suggests the tune Brenda Stubbert's Reel, written by Jerry Holland. > >For callers on this list who do not already own copies, I highly recommend Ted's >book and his earlier one, "Balance and Swing." In addition to presenting lots of >material (contras, squares, triplets) written by Ted as well as by others, the >books offer excellent tips on how to present each dance, suggested wording of >calls, notes on challenging transitions... in short, a master class on how to >present each dance. > >Both books are available online from CDSS: > >http://www.cdss.org/north-american-dance.html?order_by=&per_page=20&filters… >at&format=bk&for=sannella&search= > >David Millstone >Lebanon, NH >_______________________________________________ >Callers mailing list >Callers(a)sharedweight.net >http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

15 years, 4 months

Re: [Callers] dance floor capacity

by Suzanne Girardot

I agree with David. My worst calling experience (quite a long time ago) was when I tried to call a contra dance at a wedding. It was not a good choice for me to make. The top couple was drunk, no one had ever done a contra dance before, and it was an unmitigated disaster. Unless it is a contra dance crowd (which it sounds like Joy will not have), I would do the easy, fun dances that David sugests. Many of those types of dances can be done in individual couples, 2-couple sets, circles, or simple longways sets that can accommodate a lot of people. I also agree with Richard in that the edges of the dance floor can be dangerous. In addition, if people are dancing on or near grass, I would advise anyone with high heels to be quite careful (or take them off). Another thought about small dance floors is that the people who want to dance will get up first, and when the dance floor is full, the others who are less interested often just stay put, so overcrowding might not happen. Of course, we would love to have everyone get up and dance, but that probably can't happen with a too-small dance floor. Suzanne Girardot -----Original Message----- >From: David Millstone <David.Millstone(a)VALLEY.NET> >Sent: Jun 17, 2010 12:28 PM >To: callers(a)sharedweight.net >Subject: Re: [Callers] dance floor capacity > >My aim at such outdoor events is to have as many people participate as possible, >regardless of the size of the dance floor. In fact, if it's a party of 150-200 >people, and it's going to be under a large tent, I encourage the wedding couple >not to get a dance floor if ours is the only dancing. Participants at such >events don't do a buzz step swing; they'll be just as happy to walk/hop around >their partner with an elbow swing. I'll call simple dances-- rarely any that are >actual contras in lines-- that allow maximum participation with minimum >instruction. Having the dance floor in the center can send the wrong message >that this is only for the few people who can squeeze onto that space. > >And if that decision has already been made and there's a floor there, then >simple longways dances (such as Galopede) can and do extend off the floor >allowing many more to participate. A Sicilian circle such as Haste to the >Wedding can go all around the open space in the tent, crossing over the official >dance floor as needed but not limited to that space. > >David Millstone >Lebanon, NH >_______________________________________________ >Callers mailing list >Callers(a)sharedweight.net >http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

15 years, 4 months

dance floor capacity (Joy Greenwolfe)

by John Sweeney

Hi Joy, We usually plan 1.5 square yards / person. 35 feet x 16 feet = 62 sq.yds. so 40 people will be able to dance comfortably. 60 people is starting to get tight. Hopefully you can get them to push some of the tables back when you start dancing, or at least get rid of some of the chairs. Good luck! Happy dancing, John John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 & 07802 940 574 http://www.modernjive.com for Modern Jive Events, Instructional DVDs and Interactive Maps http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Contra Dancing in Kent

15 years, 4 months

Re: [Callers] dance floor capacity

by David.Millstone＠VALLEY.NET

My aim at such outdoor events is to have as many people participate as possible, regardless of the size of the dance floor. In fact, if it's a party of 150-200 people, and it's going to be under a large tent, I encourage the wedding couple not to get a dance floor if ours is the only dancing. Participants at such events don't do a buzz step swing; they'll be just as happy to walk/hop around their partner with an elbow swing. I'll call simple dances-- rarely any that are actual contras in lines-- that allow maximum participation with minimum instruction. Having the dance floor in the center can send the wrong message that this is only for the few people who can squeeze onto that space. And if that decision has already been made and there's a floor there, then simple longways dances (such as Galopede) can and do extend off the floor allowing many more to participate. A Sicilian circle such as Haste to the Wedding can go all around the open space in the tent, crossing over the official dance floor as needed but not limited to that space. David Millstone Lebanon, NH

15 years, 4 months

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