1 Jan
2013
1 Jan
'13
7:49 p.m.
Chrissy wrote:
It does seem that some women dancers depend on
leadership from the gent
role, and some men dancers feel pressure to direct the non-gent role
dancers. But I don't think there's any lead/follow component inherent in
the contra dance form.
That may be true from a traditional perspective of partner dancing.
Contras (and other called dances, to some extent) however are another sort
of thing altogether. There is lots of leading and following going on, but
it is not gender specific and the vast majority of it is done with the
eyes. In contras eye contact is a lead that means "Dance with me now."
I encourage regular contra dancers to avoid making eye contact with anyone
they are not currently dancing with...particularly if that person is
confused. "Help only the one(s) you are currently dancing with," is the
rule. If the regulars do this then the only one looking at you should be
the one you are dancing with next.
This assumes, however, that the caller is using the most effective word
order and calling precisely to the music. The first information given in
the call should be the "who" information. That way the regulars can lead
first-timers with eye contact.
It's a different kind of "lead" that is not gender-specific, but it fits
what the word means. When dancing with multiple people this becomes a very
useful form of lead.
Just a thought.
- Greg McKenzie