[Callers] Re Improper

I am afraid I have to disagree with some of the previous answers. Improper is a position, not a formation, and yes, you can have a single couple improper. If you line up as couples, all facing the music, with the lady in the man's right hand then all the couples are proper. So all the men are in one line and all the ladies are in the other. So "proper" is a formation as well as a position, since there can be no confusion about where anyone is. But if you want some couples to be improper then you have to specify which ones are improper. The most common improper formation is a duple minor (hands four from the top) and first couples improper. This is such a common formation in contra dancing that contra dancers use the term "improper" to mean this formation. So, OK, yes, it is a formation - as long as you are working in a community which uses the term that way. But there are contra dances where the first couples are proper and the second couples are improper (the short name for this is "indecent"). You can also have triplets or triple minors (hands six from the top) where only the first couple is improper and the other two are proper, or where only the second couple is improper. I call one dance where all three couples swing their partner, but the first couple has to finish improper and the other two couples proper. There are four couple dances where the second and fourth couples are improper, or where the third and fourth couples are improper. So "proper" is unambiguous. But if some couples are "improper" you do have to explicitly state which couples are improper. 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 Dancing in Kent