Re: [Callers] Heys for new dancers

Ladies Chain. I start by telling the women that they already know this next move and have them do the chain with no hands -- including walking around the opposite gent. Then I tell the gents that they'll be following the same path but not right behind the lady -- poeple will be passing in between. Once everybody gets the half hey -- usually pretty quickly -- I introduce the full hey -- talking about taking your time on the loop at the ends because that's usually a source of problems and confusion when someone tries to start back in too soon. And of course I mention for the full hey, when all else fails, just get back to where you started. Dale On Wed, Feb 15, 2012 at 9:14 PM, Hilton Baxter &lt;hiltonb(a)binghamton.edu > wrote: > Adding to Linda's good thoughts - > > For a full hey I usually point out that people should end up in their > starting place, and if there are lots of newer dancers I may add "how > you > get there is just a detail, as long as you don't crash into anyone > else." > Folks often chuckle at that point, which I take as a good sign. But how > to > officially teach it? If most people are new I've done the first > walkthrough > with hands, as in Grand R & L, then without hands. > > One thing that confuses a lot of new folks is how to turn and re-enter > on > the other side. I've seem many people turn sharply back and collide. It > sometimes helps to describe it as a LH U-turn (or RH U-turn as the case > may > be), or to suggest pretending that they're hooking their arm around an > imaginary lamppost. Or pretend they are little airplanes and have to > "bank" > to turn. Most kids (and some adults) embrace being silly with the > airplane > idea, which makes the whole figure less intimidating. > > For a half hey, it helps to point out they'll be diagonally across from > their staring place at the end (usually the same gender neighbor's > spot). > > Hilton Baxter > > > > I agree with Tavi that heys don't have to be perceived as a difficult >> move. I use them all the time with newer dancers, using the following >> guidelines: >> A full hey which occurs anywhere but in the B2 is easier, since the >> dancers do not have to progress out of the hey >> A hey which ends up with a B & S, or gypsy and S (either P or N) will >> smooth over any tendency to get a bit lost. Great dances that are >> perfect examples are: >> The Carousel by Tom Hinds >> Flirtation Reel by Tony Parkes >> There are many others! >> Sometimes using a dance that introduces a half hey is a great way to >> get folks ready for a full hey later on in the evening. >> These dances add variety. >> >> One other quick point that I thought about when Emily first posted, >> but did not share at the time: I use four in line down the hall quite >> a bit with new dancers. I have never found that it caused confusion >> about location in space/the dance. Quite the contrary, it gives folks >> encouragement to move to the music in a quite natural way, and is >> another move that adds variety. I can understand avoiding these dances >> because of space constraints. However, four in line down the hall to a >> great march makes for wonderful dancing. >> >> Cheers! Linda >> > > > ______________________________**_________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)sharedweight.net > http://www.sharedweight.net/**mailman/listinfo/callers<http://www.shared… > > -- *So if you knew what was broken...how long would it take you to fix it?* ______________________________**_________________ Callers mailing list Callers(a)sharedweight.net http://www.sharedweight.net/**mailman/listinfo/callers<http://www.shared…