*"if we had more time we'd throw in a square"*
The contra dance medley at NEFFA
<https://www.neffa.org/folk-festival/new-england-folk-festival-2023/> is
normally six dances, each six times through (well, the last one is five or
seven). I was thinking about what you'd need to do if you actually wanted
to include a square...
The main problem is that you need to switch the dancers from groups of four
to groups of eight, and there isn't really a great way to do this. In
computer science speak the issue is that it takes time linear in the number
of dancers. But maybe you could have the top couple sashay down from the
top, and everyone takes hands eight as they pass, which is fast enough even
in a long hall that it's ok (~16 beats, and you adjust the time by figuring
out how much intro to do on the square)? And then tell anyone left out at
the bottom to square up?
(Going back into contra lines from aligned squares should be easier: side
couples circle left three quarters and twirl to swap, lines at the sides,
etc)
Would this work?
Jeff