Contra Callers

contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net

6 participants
4371 discussions

by Chris Weiler (home)

Hello everyone, It's that time of year again: Time to sign up for the Ralph Page Dance Legacy Weekend! John McIntire kindly reminded me that preregistrations are due soon. If you haven't been before, it's a wonderful weekend with great workshops, opportunities to meet other callers and fabulous dancing! And don't forget our annual SharedWeight lunch gatherings! I've had some great discussions at that table with other callers. Hope to see you all there! Chris Weiler Goffstown, NH -------- Original Message -------- Subject: RPDLW Date: Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:18:58 -0400 From: John C. McIntire <circleleft(a)uninets.net> Reply-To: circleleft(a)uninets.net To: chris.weiler(a)weirdtable.org Hi Chris, A warm, rainy (and muddy) day allows me to stay indoors, at home, and get something useful done. Like catch up on committee work! I have attached the flyer/registration sheet for the 2009 RPDLW. Would you please pass this along to the Shared Weight list? It is too late to apply for scholarships but work exchange is still available for those who find the program costs prohibitive. Also, you could remind folks that the food offered is an easy but expensive option. Bringing one's own is easy and there is a more than decent grocery nearby. Hope to see you at the weekend. Cheers, John

16 years, 5 months

Becket progression (was Re: Another Name/Author Search)

by Mark Widmer

Yes, that's the correct way for a normal Becket The way I remember is, the couple who were in the "1's" position before the circle-left-one-place-into-Becket will still progress down the set as expected Regards, Mark Widmer / central New Jersey, USA Liz and Bill <staf186(a)ext.canterbury.ac.nz> wrote: Hi, When I check the dance out, the progression is to the left (clockwise). Someone help me with the terminology, I thought this was the usual way for a Becket to progress, or can it be either way?

16 years, 5 months

Boomerangs

by Bree

Here are Gene's comments about Boomerang, which he wrote April '85 "When you reach the end of the line on the pass thru along the set, the couple at the top should stand in the ladies' line while the couple at the bottom should stand in the gents' line. Then do the diagonal ladies' chain and face into the set (lady on the right, gent on the left) and your partner will return on the pass thru along the set and everyone will be back in the dance again. It is said that boomerangs always come back and so does your partner in this dance." In Feb '92, he altered the A parts to allow for neighbor swing and named it Double Boomerang. Jack, you copied it almost exactly right. I've written out both dances, directly from Gene's notes, for anyone who didn't catch the earlier clarifications. It's also interesting to see how his notation became briefer by '92. Boomerang, Becket A1 Lines F&B; R&L thru across the set A2 Ladies Ch across the set, then on left diag. (Your ptr is now in another group of four.) B1 Pass thru ACROSS the set and turn alone. Circle L all the way around; pass thru ALONG the set to meet your ptr. B1 Balance and Swing your partner. Double Boomerang, Becket A1 Men allmd L 1 1/2, N Swg A2 LC on L diagonal, F&B B1 PT across, Cir L, PT along B2 B&S P

16 years, 5 months

Name / Author Search

by Jeffrey Petrovitch

Hey Everyone: I recently discovered this dance via a youtube video and wondering if anyone knows the name and author of this dance. Becket Formation A1: (4) Balance the ring (2) Petronella twirl to the right (2) Neighbor #1 pull-by left (2) Neighbor #2 pull-by right (2) Neighbor #3 pull-by left (4) Neighbor #4 allemande right A2 (2) Neighbor #4 pull-by right (2) Neighbor #3 pull-by left (8) Neighbor #2 swing B1: (8) Circle left 3/4 (8) Partner do-si-do B2: (16) Partner balance and swing Thanks, Jeff

16 years, 5 months

Re: [Callers] Name / Author Search

by Stacy Rose

I think you are referring to "Vote with your Feet" by Bob Issacs. On Mon, Dec 29, 2008 at 8:21 AM, Jeffrey Petrovitch wrote: > Hey Everyone: > > I recently discovered this dance via a youtube video and wondering if > anyone knows the name and author of this dance. > > Becket Formation > > A1: > (4) Balance the ring > (2) Petronella twirl to the right > (2) Neighbor #1 pull-by left > (2) Neighbor #2 pull-by right > (2) Neighbor #3 pull-by left > (4) Neighbor #4 allemande right > > A2 > (2) Neighbor #4 pull-by right > (2) Neighbor #3 pull-by left > (8) Neighbor #2 swing > > B1: > (8) Circle left 3/4 > (8) Partner do-si-do > > B2: > (16) Partner balance and swing > > Thanks, > > Jeff > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers

16 years, 5 months

Questions on dance style.

by Dave Colestock

Hi All, I'd like to tap the collective experiences of the group for a couple of questions. I have an event coming up where the organizers want to improve their groups dance "style", and are having one of their dance evenings dedicated to providing dance style tips. I will be calling that dance. The group has a mix of dancers with many younger dancers between 12 and 25. Sometimes half of the dance crowd is comprised of these dancers. Many of the rest of the dancers are older, some in their 60's and beyond, and many of them have danced for years. 70% of the dancers are in the intermediate level, but not where you can do a no walkthru contra corners or hey for 4 dance. There are almost always a few new dancers at each dance, and the average number of dancers is between 35 and 55. The caller usually teaches the workshop, with a few of the regular dancers participating when needed, but is not a large workshop, nor do many of the regular dancers come in time for the workshop. What I would like from the group is specific ways of integrating style tips that will teach the dancers safe and courteous dancing without sounding overtly preachy. What kind of common problems do you see that dancers have that they can improve on? This night is billed as a dance evening with style tips taught, so those that come will expect some extra teaching during each walk thru. But I don't want to over do the teaching, or do too much talking. I'd also like to hear some of the specific things that you all would teach to try to improve a groups style of dancing so that it is fun and safe for everyone. Specific dance tips or examples would be helpful. During the dance I envision a specific tip to teach or highlight during each walkthru, and the dances I choose will emphasize the tip being taught. One example is that in a Rory O'More style balance it is best to look in the direction you are moving and make eye contact with the person you are balancing towards. Teaching that the balances are all inter-dependent, so when one person does it the wrong way it can ripple affect the whole line, and that the eye contact reinforces the motion - of moving toward the person you are looking at. Another question I have is this - Do you prefer to have the caller teach the workshop, or do you prefer to have in-house people or local callers who attend the dance teach the workshop? Perhaps this question is more directed to those who are also dance organizers. I have heard the idea that if a group wants to make sure their dancers are learning to dance properly then they need to control that by having their own people teach the workshop, rather than leaving that to the caller, who is usually a different person each evening. Then there is the fact that the caller knows what his program is and what goals he may have for the evening and will teach a workshop that includes what he will be presenting. Many veteren dancers don't attend the workshop, even though some of them would benefit from attending, so that teaching the workshop only really benefits the newer dancers and those veterans who do attend. What do you do at your local dance for the workshop? Do you have a group of local people who teach it? Is that goup comprised of callers or other very experienced dancers? Do you follow a specific format for the workshop? Or, do you leave the workshop and the information taught in it up to the caller? As a caller, I always welcome the opportunity to teach the workshop, and impart my style tips and info during the workshop, as well as throughout the dance. The event above that I am calling is where I will hope to teach some of these tips during the dance itself. I know there are callers on this list who have done workshops like this at dance weekends and festivals. I welcome your input - on or off list. I have been to a few of these workshops on safe dancing, on dance style, dancing in your own space, etc. I'd like to do a similar type of event, but during this regular dance night, and help the organizers fulfill their goal of advancing the experience level, and safe dancing style, of all of their dancers. Thanks to you all in advance for your ideas, tips, info and opinions. Dave Colestock www.davecolestock.com

16 years, 5 months

Festivals - mixed abilities and ages

by Jeanette Mill

Hi from Australia I'm interested in strategies for incorporating a huge range of abilities and ages in to a fun workshop at a festival. I will be calling at a festival in a few weeks - it is not a dancing festival as such, more a music festival, where some dancing is held. As well as the regular dancers, brand new dancers, including their tiny children, will get up to have a go. It can ultimately be a mix of about 50/50 dancers to non-dancers, numbering about 30 people in total. Cheers Jeanette The piano - 88 little mistakes waiting to happen; Peter Barnes Stay connected to the people that matter most with a smarter inbox. Take a look http://au.docs.yahoo.com/mail/smarterinbox

16 years, 5 months

Re: [Callers] A Magical Moment: The Quiet Contra Dance

by Tina Fields

When reading this, the thought occurred to me that with this dance, you folks were returning to the original English Country Dance roots of contra, where all the tunes and dances were meshed so that when the music began, everyone just knew the moves and performed them. Interesting! The magical feeling Will reports makes me wonder where our dance form will go next... Happy new year, everyone. Tina Fields Will Loving wrote, > Now here?s the magical part: You have an entire hall of > dancers, three sets, > standing in long wavy lines ready to balance. It?s > completely quiet. Becky > Tracy starts playing the introduction on her fiddle and 16 > beats later, you > hear 100+ bodies balancing right, balancing left, and then > sliding (ROM) to > the right ? all with no talking and no calls, just the > sound of the music > and everyone dancing in unison. And it continued from there > and was repeated > throughout the night with each new dance. >

16 years, 5 months

"birthday" contra dance

by Joy Greenwolfe

Hi all, I'm calling a contra dance this weekend, and had a request for a "birthday dance" to honor somebody's birthday. I can't think of any contra dances that reference birthdays. Any suggestions or ideas? The crowd is likely to include a significant number of beginners mixed into a mid-to-high level crowd. They are not amenable to anything too far outside a modern regular contra, although it might depend on the ratio of challenge: satisfaction. Thanks in advance for any ideas! Joy Greenwolfe Durham, NC

16 years, 5 months

Re: [Callers] A Magical Moment: The Quiet Contra Dance

by gtwood＠worldpath.net

Yahoo, what fun! The last time I had one of those magical moments was, at the Down East Dance Fest, a couple of years ago. (the order of events was reversed) Linda Leslie was calling... she ran through the dance a few times then let the band take over.... (Wake the Neighbors????) they played some very sultry tunes, the dance was like a carnival ride (I have the name archived some where.... I will find for the list!) There was the music and at the appropriate times Laughter from the dancers, (as I remember) not a whole lot of chatter, many gypsys! just this very magical romp through the land of contra! then exhausted dancers as the dance came to an end.... Gale

16 years, 5 months

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Contra Callers