(Late to the game, having just stumbled back bleary-eyed from a week at
Pinewoods, but still excited to weigh in!)
The list of style points one can (effectively) offer from the mic/while
calling and not in an on-the-floor lesson context is somewhat limited,
alas. I don't have a super regular rotation of style tips that I give while
calling (i.e. not during the lesson), but some ones I find myself coming
back to are--
From the mic:
- when balancing forward and back, reminding folks not to wrench
shoulders. "Remembering that everyone has different length arms, and
without dislocating anyone's shoulders, balance forward and back."
- direction of balance in a box circulate, i.e. right+forward and
left+back (as opposed to just right / left or forward / back)
- direction of a turn alone, i.e. that it's customary to turn facing the
person on the side with you
- stretching long lines up/down the hall to avoid
gaps/crunching/spreading out the sets too much; noting when particular
dances should be kept tighter or more spacious
During a demo:
- I often find it's worth it to demo a pousette into a swing, and in
particular letting go of inside hands / robin swinging left arm up so lark
can catch their shoulder blade. (This one is explainable without the
demo/from the mic, tho)
- Which way to turn and face on the side during a square through: "pull
by your partner and consider your neighbor next to you. If you want to turn
and face them, there's an easy way (demo turning directly to face) and a
hard way (demo turning the wrong way around to face). You want to turn the
easy way."
- How to catch and swing out of a petronella spin or similar: a) by
convention the lark is doing the catching/is the anchor point, so if they
need to omit a spin to do that accurately then they probably should. b)
robins should lift up left arm to avoid elbowing the lark. c) larks can
hint their position to the robins with a touch, esp. on the shoulder blade,
before robin is done spinning
Writing this up now, I'm noticing that most of my style tips are
choreo-specific. I haven't yet found a good way to effectively explain e.g.
how to give weight in a swing from the mic (and I'm not sure I would even
attempt it--though that's another conversation). I want to work in the
mechanics of offering/declining flourishes but I'm still figuring out how
best to do that. (It feels like I need a particularly relevant bit of
choreography as an excuse, unless the spinning on the floor is particularly
egregious.)
I haven't thought about this in a particularly systematic way but uh,
here's what I've done in the past, hope any of this is helpful!
I'm enjoying reading people's thoughts!! If others chime in though, I'd
sure appreciate if you clarified which style tips you give in the lesson
and which you give during the dance itself--either while on stage or in a
quick demo. (I thiiink this was the subject of the original question?) I
can give style tips in a lesson context all day long, and am more curious
about ones that can be delivered effectively during the dance itself.
Cheers,
Maia
--
Maia McCormick (she/her)
917.279.8194
On Mon, Jul 22, 2024 at 10:34 AM Rich Dempsey via Contra Callers <
contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
When teaching Contra Corners, take a moment to alert
the inactive dancers
that their first left allemande always comes from their right. "Look right
for the first one". The dance will flow more smoothly and save confusion.
Also, inactives are responsible for giving the actives a "good ride",
which favor is returned when they become active.
I like the little LEGO person image of hooked but not grabbing hands. I
dislike flat hand allemandes: when done with wrists straight, there's no
connection; when done with wrists turned to get that connection, there's
bad strain on my wrist. I recognize this is a point of contention, with
strongly held views. If you want to contest the point, please start a new
thread.
Rich Dempsey
Country Dancers of Rochester (NY)
On Wed, Jul 17, 2024 at 4:24 PM Harris Lapiroff via Contra Callers <
contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
I’m trying to add more style points to my
teaching. What are some of your
favorite brief style or safety tips to deliver from the mic? Ones that are
relevant to specific sequences, general tips, for beginners, or for
experienced dancers, I’m interested in any and all of them!
Harris Lapiroff
Dance Caller and Organizer
Boston Intergenerational Dance Advocates Board (Cambridge MA)
Pinewoods Camp, Inc Board (Plymouth MA)
https://chromamine.com/contra/
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