1 Jul
2025
1 Jul
'25
5:41 p.m.
Thanks for the report. It sounds like it went pretty well, and could be a fun trick. The
Butter choreography was just an example, so there doesn’t always have to be two circles in
a row (not that there’s anything wrong with that). It could be used in place of a full
hey and swing in just about any dance (improper or Becket). It could be substituted in
Delphiniums and Daisies for example, although that’s maybe not a good idea, since it would
destroy the simple and flowing feel of that dance.
Russell
On Jul 1, 2025, at 5:39 AM, Peter Foster via Contra
Callers <contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
I tried this tonight, and it went well, with the dancers really enjoying themselves.
Lots of fun variations in the hey, not all of which were intended, but the final circle
sorted people out nicely.
Te only negative is from an aesthetic point of view: it has 2 circle lefts, and it
is not generally desireable to repeat a figure. Although in this case it is all right,
as the 2 circles are very distinctive, and you will not be confused as to where
in the dance you are.
As for a name, the original dance was named Butter. With all the mixing
up in the hey, perhaps name the dance Churning Butter.
Anyway, a definite thumbs up from the dancers.
Peter Foster
Canberra, Australia
On 30/06/2025 3:45 pm, Russell Frank via Contra Callers wrote:
Watching dancers play around at a recent dance, I
had the following idea for a “choose your own adventure” variation.
The idea is that you do a full hey, but any or all crossings can be replaced by
ricochets, with no pattern or requirements (other than that both people have to agree on
the choice made at each stage.) They can then straighten things out by circling left
until every body is on the side where they belong.
For example, here is the modification of Gene Hubert’s Butter along these lines
Becket
A1 Progress left to the next couple, circle left 3/4,
Neighbor swing
A2 Long lines
Robins chain
B1 Robins start a full hey by the right, with ricochets permitted, but not required at
each of the 4 crossings
B2 Circle left until everyone is on their original side with their partner
Partner swing
I don’t know whether the variable circle length and resulting shorter or longer swing
will be a source of fun or an annoyance, but it looks worth trying.
I think if everyone ends up where they started at the end of the hey, they probably
should do a long swing, rather than requiring a circle left all the way, but that’s a
detail.
At this point, I am calling dances only occasionally, so I won’t be trying it out any
time soon.
Please let me know what you think, and how it goes if you try it out.
Thanks,
Russell Frank
Monterey, CA
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