Here are a few for you, Rich.
Have fun! Linda
Halloween
by Al Olson
Contra/Improper/Easy
A1 -----------
Neighbor swing
var: B & S
A2 -----------
Circle left three-quarters
Partner swing
B1 -----------
Promenade
Ladies chain
B2 -----------
Long lines
Right and left through
Devil's Dervish
by Al Olson & Linda Leslie*
Four Face Four/Four Facing Four/Int
A1 -----------
Forward and Back
Opposite allemande right once and three-quarters
Pull by this opposite to start:
A2 -----------
Half hey for eight!
B1 -----------
Same Opposite Balance and Swing
B2 -----------
Ring Balance Circle left one-half
Partner Swing
*This dance beads on Devil’s Duty by Al Olson, so I include his name as an author.
Ghosts in the Night
variation on a dance by Don Flaherty
Contra/Improper/Easy
A1 -----------
Balance R,L, slide right
Balance L,R, slide left
A2 -----------
(16) Neighbor balance and swing
B1 -----------
Ladies Do si do 1 & 1/2 (or alle R)
Partner swing
B2 -----------
Circle Left 3/4
Flatten to a wave, Balance
Walk forward to new waves
Witch's Stars
by Linda Leslie
Contra/Improper/Easy
A1 -----------
Hands across right hand star
Left hands back (gents drop out)
A2 -----------
Ladies continue to partner and swing
B1 -----------
Long lines forward and back
Ladies chain
B2 -----------
Hey (ladies center right)
On Oct 12, 2017, at 9:16 AM, Rich Sbardella via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Hello Friends,
> I need some Halloween themed dances. Any suggestions?
> Rich Sbardella
> Stafford, CT
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
Ding, Dong, the Witch Is Dead <>Duple improper October 24, 2000
A1 Women do-si-do (or gypsy or allemande right as well)
Women swing (unisex style or Galway swing)
A2 Men allemande right 1 ½
Men Galway swing*
B1 Balance and swing your partner
B2 Half a hey, women start right shoulder (Alternate: right and left through)
Women chain across
* Men's Galway swing is done with a hold that provides some personal space. The men maintain the right allemande hold, and they cup the other man's right elbow with their left hand, this makes for a very strong and stable, tetrahedron-like hold and a powerful swing. This swing also appears in Smog Check.
This contra was written for a Halloween dance. The “Ding, Dong, the Witch is Dead” riff from “The Wizard of Oz” is fun to throw into a tune if the band knows it. Originally written with the women’s role doing a unisex swing, but why should the men’s role have all the fun? You are at liberty to have both roles do the same swing. Women’s role allemande right is a little more odd from the position it is starting in though.
One I wrote.
> On Oct 12, 2017, at 7:38 AM, Maia McCormick via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> Devil's Backbone? Wizard's Walk? (Okay, I no longer have an objective sense of how Halloween-y this one is because it was the tradition at my school's contradance that we'd close out the Halloween contra with this one, with the band and the dancers competing to see who could go faster... it was a good time!)
>
> On Thu, Oct 12, 2017 at 10:34 AM, Bob Peterson via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweightnet>> wrote:
> There’s this no-swing dance, which I got from https://www.cambridgefolk.org.uk/contra/dances/devils_dream.html <https://www.cambridgefolk.org.uk/contra/dances/devils_dream.html>
>
> The Devil's Dream
>
> Traditional
>
> Improper Contra
>
> A1
>
> 1s face down and lead down the centre while the 2s face up and go up the outside
> all turn alone and lead back to give neighbour nearest hand and half turn neighbour
> A2
>
> 1s facing down the outside and 2s up the middle: lead up or down again
> you promenade in the same direction both times
> all turn alone and lead back to give left hands to neighbour
> B1
>
> turn neighbour into a full ladies chain across
> B2
>
> half promenade neighbour across set
> half right and left back
> In CDM6 and 500 Zesty Contras
> Note that this dance has no swing; however it is probably the most popular contra in English dance clubs.
>
>
> \Bob
>
> On Oct 12, 2017, at 09:16, Rich Sbardella via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote:
>
>> Hello Friends,
>> I need some Halloween themed dances. Any suggestions?
>> Rich Sbardella
>> Stafford, CT
>> _______________________________________________
>> List Name: Callers mailing list
>> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:Callers@lists.sharedweight.net>
>> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/ <https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/>
>
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:Callers@lists.sharedweight.net>
> Archives: https://www.mail-archivecom/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/ <https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
There’s this no-swing dance, which I got from https://www.cambridgefolk.org.uk/contra/dances/devils_dream.html
The Devil's Dream
Traditional
Improper Contra
A1
1s face down and lead down the centre while the 2s face up and go up the outside
all turn alone and lead back to give neighbour nearest hand and half turn neighbour
A2
1s facing down the outside and 2s up the middle: lead up or down again
you promenade in the same direction both times
all turn alone and lead back to give left hands to neighbour
B1
turn neighbour into a full ladies chain across
B2
half promenade neighbour across set
half right and left back
In CDM6 and 500 Zesty Contras
Note that this dance has no swing; however it is probably the most popular contra in English dance clubs.
\Bob
> On Oct 12, 2017, at 09:16, Rich Sbardella via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> Hello Friends,
> I need some Halloween themed dances. Any suggestions?
> Rich Sbardella
> Stafford, CT
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
Zombies of Sugar Hill (Gene Hubert) comes to mind. Perhaps Cats and More
Cats by Melanie Axel-Lute?
The Pirate-themed dance email I put out last month could have some useful
overlap.
Other key words to look for that might not be immediately obvious, but
could be construed as Halloween-themed: "candy", "spirit" (has anyone
written a dance called That's the Spirit, for example?).
Just have the band play "Jump at the Sun" all night, and you'll be set. ;)
On Oct 12, 2017 9:16 AM, "Rich Sbardella via Callers" <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Hello Friends,
> I need some Halloween themed dances. Any suggestions?
> Rich Sbardella
> Stafford, CT
>
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
>
>
You can see videos that Art Hoffman made a few years ago taking with Marie
in her home:
https://youtu.be/0DE1yiMT2Yo
Jerome
On Wednesday, October 11, 2017, Jerome Grisanti <jerome.grisanti(a)gmail.com>
wrote:
> Lovers of traditional dance,
>>
>>
> It is with sadness I announce that Marie Cassady, a dancer and teacher of
> dance in Louisville Kentucky for many many years, died on Sunday afternoon.
> She was 104, just two months shy of 105.
>
> Marie founded Louisville Country Dancers, which has since become a mostly
> contra dance group, but in the day featured English dance as well, and even
> occasional international dances.
>
> I first met her in the mid 1970s, when she and husband Frank Cassady
> taught Italian folk dances to a performance troupe that my siblings were
> involved in. (I was too young to join the first few years). As it turns
> out, they also taught performance troupes for many ethnic groups.
>
> She was interested in many things besides dance, including national and
> international travel. She also sang with her church group for many years.
> As well, she reared several children and was a maternal figure for many
> others.
>
> A few years ago, she related to me her memories of the influenza epidemic
> of 1919. Imagine that, she had memories of her father from that time, and
> of Camp Taylor in Louisville! She also talked about the 1937 flood of the
> Ohio River.
>
> She slowed a bit over the years, remaining active in English and
> international but leaving contra to younger bodies. She also took up hula
> dancing in her 90s. Gotta keep learning!
>
> She remained active and mentally sharp until very recently. I saw her in
> August, and she immediately called me by name.
>
> There will be a memorial service for Marie in early November, but the
> details are not yet determined.
>
> Many thanks to you, Marie Cassady, for introducing so many people to dance
> and the communities it engenders. I am grateful to have known you.
>
> Jerome Grisanti
>
>
> --
> Jerome Grisanti
> 660-528-0858
> http://www.jeromegrisanti.com
>
> "Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and
> power and magic in it." --Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
>
>
--
Jerome Grisanti
660-528-0858
http://www.jeromegrisanti.com
"Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and power
and magic in it." --Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Lovers of traditional dance,
>
>
It is with sadness I announce that Marie Cassady, a dancer and teacher of
dance in Louisville Kentucky for many many years, died on Sunday afternoon.
She was 104, just two months shy of 105.
Marie founded Louisville Country Dancers, which has since become a mostly
contra dance group, but in the day featured English dance as well, and even
occasional international dances.
I first met her in the mid 1970s, when she and husband Frank Cassady taught
Italian folk dances to a performance troupe that my siblings were involved
in. (I was too young to join the first few years). As it turns out, they
also taught performance troupes for many ethnic groups.
She was interested in many things besides dance, including national and
international travel. She also sang with her church group for many years.
As well, she reared several children and was a maternal figure for many
others.
A few years ago, she related to me her memories of the influenza epidemic
of 1919. Imagine that, she had memories of her father from that time, and
of Camp Taylor in Louisville! She also talked about the 1937 flood of the
Ohio River.
She slowed a bit over the years, remaining active in English and
international but leaving contra to younger bodies. She also took up hula
dancing in her 90s. Gotta keep learning!
She remained active and mentally sharp until very recently. I saw her in
August, and she immediately called me by name.
There will be a memorial service for Marie in early November, but the
details are not yet determined.
Many thanks to you, Marie Cassady, for introducing so many people to dance
and the communities it engenders. I am grateful to have known you.
Jerome Grisanti
--
Jerome Grisanti
660-528-0858
http://www.jeromegrisanti.com
"Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and power
and magic in it." --Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Hi Angela,
“Hole in the Wall” isn’t a move. It is a dance from 1695.
The “Hole in the Wall Crossing” is not a new move. It is a stylised version of a normal Cross Over.
You can see it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=25&v=TUxbcJIOHNY
There are countless contra dances already with moves like: Balance the Ring; Ladies Cross.
You just do the crossing in that style and you are doing a “Hole in the Wall Crossing”. You don’t need to write new dances, just give the dancers that stylistic option.
Notes:
They almost certainly didn’t cross over like that in 1695. That style was added by someone, probably in the middle of the 20th century, and it became so popular in that dance that when people wanted that style in other dances they started referring to it as the “Hole in the Wall Crossing”.
While the video of them dancing The Hole in the Wall is very nice, it was extremely unlikely to have been danced in Jane Austen’s time. It was over 100 years old, and they didn’t dance old dances in the way that we do today.
I hope that helps to clarify things! 😊
Happy dancing,
John
John Sweeney, Dancer, England john(a)modernjive.com 01233 625 362 http://www.contrafusion.co.uk for Dancing in Kent
I’ve got a gypsy star dance (I actually call it “Star Wrong” and not just because of the g-word, but because if you say “gypsy star” everybody starts to gypsy and NOT star, so I gave up on that confusing terminology). Haven’t seen another dance like it. The move from mad robin into the star wrong actually flows quite well. I use men and women for roles, not genders. When I first started calling, we considered “lady” to be a four letter word - women’s movement and bra burning and all that. I still find it hard to use the word “lady” and not bristle. Times have changed, now people bristle at men and women. Go figure. I didn’t correct the “g-word” use on this version either.
The Wrong Star <>
Duple improper July 3, 2015
A1 Mad robin, women to right in front
Gypsy star 3/4 (star wrong) with women taking right hands, men left, women move forward
A2 Gypsy and swing your partner
B1 Four in line down the set, couple on left (2s) slide to right in front of couple 1, who slide to left^
Turn alone and come back up, bend the line
B2 Balance in a circle, circle left 1/4*
Swing your neighbor
*The circle 1/4 is merely a teachable way to have the men draw the women to their side along a circular path. I prefer this to just saying draw your neighbor to your side and swing, because I would like people not to be skewed relative to each other when the mad robin is to start.
^The "sliding glass door" approach to turning the four in line about is seen also in Erik Weberg's "Now We Are Four". I have the 2s moving in front of the 1s for the sliding glass door move as the #1 man’s role can lead the #2 woman’s role into the move as he passes behind her.
If interested, this and other dances are on my Google website https://sites.google.com/site/marthawildscallsofthewild/ <https://sites.google.com/site/marthawildscallsofthewild/> which, for reasons that are obscure to me, and even though I’ve shared it as public, appears on no searches whatever, no matter how exactly I copy the name and more on it.
Martha
> On Oct 2, 2017, at 2:41 PM, Bill Olson via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> OK then... Here's a gypsy star dance where the star doesn't start in interwoven long waves. From a dance choreography workshop. Been waiting for me to wrap my brain around it and publish it for a year and a half now.. It actually works and is easier to dance than it might appear at first glance. It has a figure that Peter Johnson had dreamed up and had been sitting on for a while.. Guess then *I* sat on it. Not sure if anyone else of the authors published it any where. If so, I didn't see it.. - bill
>
> Stellar Gypsy Becket
>
> by: Bill Olson, Peter Johnson, Riley Geistman, Sam Smith, Ray Jantzen, Laura Garchar, Patricia Danscen, Anthony Risenhoover, Peter Koza, Tina Fields, Hamish ?
>
> A1 promenade 3/4*, Swing new N (on ladies' home side)
> A2 1/2 R&L, W 1/2 chain (to partner)
> B1 LLF&B, Arch to Gypsy Star** (facing partner, move Star 1/2 way)
> B2 Gypsy and Sw Partner (on home side)
>
> *Promenade 3/4 is just continuing a normal promenade another 1/4 position so dancers are across from partner
>
> **Arch to Gypsy Star (concept was presented by Peter Johnson): Make Arch, walk forward, Ladies walk through arches.. when hands are all together, women take Left hands across and Men take Right hands across to form the Gypsy Star (women's hands under, men's hand over). Looking partner in the eye women sort of "draw" the men half way around the star. (the women are actually doing a do sa do pattern with each other here)
>
> written at a dance choreography workshop at Stellar Days and Nights dance weekend in Colorado, Feb 2016
>
> _______________________________________________
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> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/ <https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/>
Hi All,
I posted a request for suggestions on preparing for an upcoming dance a couple of weeks ago. I had not called a dance in 18 months, and had expected to stay on “emeritus” status. Thank you for your suggestions! You helped buck me up and get my head back in the game. The dance was an annual one for our "living local” foodie folks. They were sure ready to dance after diner was finished! It was not hard at all to get folks up and moving. The Flying Elbows String Band is always a treat to call to. We all had big fun! The band and I might end up with an additional gig or two from this. One of the band members posted a video of dance from the 2015 dance for this same group. I was even wearing the same shirt. I recognized the dance that I used to use at almost all ONS dances. Dang! I had forgotten all about it! The band and I did another dance gig this weekend. We again had big fun. We managed to do our dances while several small children danced in and out of the sets. One result of these two dances is that some locals may finally get together to have a regular dance series again. The band and I have a wedding gig coming up this next weekend. I have shaken off my mental cobwebs and am back in the groove.
Thank you all for your encouragement!
John B. Freeman
