And don’t forget the “Hat Dance” - which out here I do as the “Gorilla Dance” - it’s
amazing how long kids will do this dance! Three chairs, two lines perpendicular to either
side of the chairs, top person from each line sits in an outside chair, and one person
sits in the middle. The middle person, in the original version, has a hat. But when you
are dealing with kids - you have to think “head lice”. So no hats. Instead, I do the dance
with a fairly large, cute, cuddly, stuffed animal gorilla. Person in the middle has the
gorilla, and when the music starts, gives it to one of the other two chair people, then
takes the one without the gorilla and sashay/polkas down between the two lines. Person
with gorilla moves to center chair, next two sit down, repeat. Music goes on and on,
people who’ve danced to end of line join on the ends for another go. I have seen this go
20 minutes until the musicians revolted, and the kids just shouted “Again, again!”. I’ve
done it at dance camps and when we are going to dance the next day they run up and yell
“The Gorilla Dance!” So it’s really a hit. You may use whatever large stuffed animal you
like - it can be the Elephant Dance, the Unicorn dance, the Doggie dance. But it’s fun.
I guess this is a mixer dance. Oh well - it’s really good.
Martha
On Jan 30, 2020, at 12:10 PM, Kalia Kliban via Contra
Callers <contracallers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
On 1/30/2020 10:16 AM, Jonathan Sivier via Contra Callers wrote:
While that looks like a fun dance I don't
think it is really appropriate for kids ages 4-10.
You should check out the books from the New England Dancing Masters. I have Chimes of
Dunkirk, Sashay the Donut and Listen to the Mockingbird. These have several good dances
for kids.
Here are some that I use at an annual dance I call at our local library. The event is
called the Fairy Tale Ball and I often feel like I'm standing in a sea of knee-high
princesses.
Great image!
The Blobs
Boston Tea Party
Chimes of Dunkirk
Circassian Circle - no-swing, non-mixer
Cumberland Reel
Duckpins
The Duke of York
Galopede
Heel and Toe Polka Promenade/Reel - longways, non-mixer
Jacob's Potato
Margate Hoy
Over The Top
Sasha
Snake
Traffic Jam
The dances on this list that I recognize are all great for mixed-age groups, including
with quite small children who are latched onto a parent (though Heel and Toe Polka would
be tricky in that situation). They're in my steady rotation as well. And the dances I
don't recognize I'm going to look up right now :>)
Dances I use all the time that I don't see here are Le Brandy, La Bastringue (can be
done as a non-mixer), variations on Virginia Reel, a wind-up/spiral dance (no partners),
Family Contra (by Sherry Nevins) and Circle Shuffle (which might be by Luke Donforth).
Kalia in Sebastopol
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