Square to Contra or effective Contra is, as Seth said, incredibly easy. All it technically takes is

“Sides lead right,” but there are infinite solutions. There is inter-square choreography in Lloyd Shaw’s book, so the basic idea goes back to at least the 1930s, and it has been done as a gimmick periodically by my club to transition to a contra since the 50s. I believe there is mention of it in the notes of the Shaw Fellowship.

The challenge with creating squares from a contra is propagating the eight hands down the line. If you don’t mind “breaking” the contra flow by taking a moment for that, then it isn’t too hard—get into becket and count. Making it organic is harder. You can use some of these tricks:

1. With two parallel contra lines: down hall In lines of four, merge to lines of 8. Face the center, centers Star through, chain, and proceed.

2. Scatter promenade, merge to groups of 4, circle, merge to sets of 8

3. Start with Tempest formation and go.

4. My favorite for a natural propagation: create lines of four, down and return. Have lead 4 wheel and start a dip and dive. You now have upward and downward facing lines of four that will self-propagate. Once complete through all lines, call as you will.

5. Same idea as above, except grand March style with progressively conjoined alternating peel offs until you have lines of 8.

6. ChainsAw promenade in lines of 4

If you are really leaning into it as a square, or have actual square dancers, there are other options. You could have them simply come up as 4s, 1st set wheel and call “if you can trade by and everyone repeat.”

On Tue, Apr 25, 2023 at 6:33 AM Tepfer, Seth via Contra Callers <contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:

Ron Buchanan was the first person I saw medley a square into a contra. I don't remember him doing the reverse, but he may have.

Going from square into contra is actually pretty easy. Sides chain, get the heads in between the sides (say, heads DSD opposite, current corner DSD), then go down the hall four in line. Turn alone, come back up, CL 3 places, partner swing. poof.

I haven't found a method for smoothly going from contra to a square on the fly. The best I've done is Circle left, now pause, and change into hands eight. Then circle left, open up. Then identify the square - and have sides chain across.

Seth Tepfer, MBA, CSM, PMP (he, him, his)

Senior IT Manager, Emory Primate Center

From: Jeff Kaufman via Contra Callers <contracallers@lists.sharedweight.net>
Sent: Tuesday, April 25, 2023 8:12 AM
To: Contra Callers <contracallers@sharedweight.net>
Subject: [External] [Callers] Putting a square in a contra medley

"if we had more time we'd throw in a square"

The contra dance medley at NEFFA 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

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