Hi Jeremy:
Independence Squares is an LGBTQ and straight member group located in downtown Philadelphia with dancers from NJ, De and Pa. We run workshops and classes for all levels up to C2.
We use the terms Boys and Girls and everyone is free to dance whichever role they wish (gender free). We do not use identifying bands or sashes. We dance our roles by definition and if the caller directs us "Boys Run" (for example, or "Boys Fold") we identify ourselves "Boy" and then do the figure.
We create our sets, not by asking someone to dance, but by taking a place in the set and holding out the hand we'd like someone to take. If I want to dance "Girl" then I hold out my left hand for a "Boy" to take. If I'm "ambidanceterous" then I would hold out both hands and someone will join me who is able to do one role or the other.
Our callers are fantastic and I'm sure this isn't easy for them to call without visual identifiers, but calling by definition shouldn't need that...unless the sets get out of sorts. If we're in a workshop situation and the sets get confused the callers will say "Boys (or Girls) Identify" and we raise our hands and the caller knows who's out of place.
Hope this is helpful.
Donna Hunt
-----Original Message-----
From: Jeremy Child via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net>
To: callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net>
Sent: Wed, Oct 4, 2017 4:23 pm
Subject: [Callers] Gender Free MWSD
Hi
I have a question for anyone who calls or dances Gender Free MWSD (by Gender Free I mean where no assumptions are made about what role a dancer will take based on their gender).
I've been told that GF MWSD dances still use the terms "Boys" and "Girls", but please correct me if I'm wrong.
MWSD is unique amongst folk dancing in that dancers need to know the role being danced by others in the square (if I'm a "boy" and the call is "boys trade", I need to know who the other boy in my line / wave is in order to do the call).
So to my question: How do the dancers identify which roles the other people are dancing? Traditionally this is done with dancers taking the opposite role to their gender wearing bands, but that is surely inappropriate if the dance is GF.
Also, if any MWSD clubs are using truly non-gendered terms, please let me know.
Thanks in Advance
Jeremy
www.barndancecaller.netwww.genderfreedance.net
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On Wed, Oct 04, 2017, Jeremy Child via Callers wrote:
>
> I have a question for anyone who calls or dances Gender Free MWSD (by
> Gender Free I mean where no assumptions are made about what role a dancer
> will take based on their gender).
For pedantic reasons, I'll note that MWSD doesn't use the term "gender
free", it's called "gay square dancing".
> MWSD is unique amongst folk dancing in that dancers need to know the role
> being danced by others in the square (if I'm a "boy" and the call is "boys
> trade", I need to know who the other boy in my line / wave is in order to
> do the call).
Callers also need to track gender because there are some gendered calls.
They're not necessarily what you might think. For example, if you're
calling Mainstream, Right & Left Thru is a gendered call.
> So to my question: How do the dancers identify which roles the other people
> are dancing? Traditionally this is done with dancers taking the opposite
> role to their gender wearing bands, but that is surely inappropriate if the
> dance is GF.
Bands are especially useless when you're gender-swapping in a square,
just like contra. (And yes, I often gender-swap in square dancing, as do
a lot of other people, mostly in gay square-dance circles but a few
coming primarily from straight club backgrounds.)
> Also, if any MWSD clubs are using truly non-gendered terms, please let me
> know.
As a caller and dancer, I really can't imagine switching to gender-free
terminology in MWSD. Contra works because standardization of vocabulary
matters much less when you teach each dance before starting, and it's
easy to switch between gendered and gender-free dances. MWSD requires a
deep realtime link between muscle memory and the auditory command loop.
There's also Salsa Rueda de Casino, I know almost nothing about it (and
really nothing about gender management) but I know a couple of people I
could ask.
--
Hugs and backrubs -- I break Rule 6 http://rule6.info/
<*> <*> <*>
Help a hearing-impaired person: http://rule6.info/hearing.html
Hi, all! I recently wrote this dance and would like to know if it’s already out there somewhere and being called by people. As always, your feedback is appreciated. I test called it in September and it went well. Seth Tepfer called it in River Falls and it went well, though he is going to try it with LLF&B at the top of A2.
Joyous Rose
by Jacqui Grennan
Contra/Becket-CW
A1 -----------
(4) Gents Give & Take their N
(12) N Sw
A2 -----------
(8) Circle L 1x
(8) N allem RH 1-1/2 plus to short waves, ladies LH in middle (allemande is just under 2x)
B1 -----------
(4) Balance the wave
(4) Move forward to new wave, w/ NEW N allem. Right 1/2 (gents middle LH) <=PROGRESSION
(4) Balance the wave
(4) Swing thru - Neighbor allem. Right 1/2, Ladies allem. Left 1/2
B2 -----------
(16) P B&Sw
End Effects: Wait out improper
I wrote out a glossary dance; not a first in the evening, but maybe second.
Anyone know of a prior version?
Spend Some Time Together
by Luke Donforth
Contra/Improper/Easy
A1 -----------
(8) Long lines, forward and back
(8) Neighbor swing
A2 -----------
(8) Men allemande Left 1-1/2
(8) Partner Do-si-do
B1 -----------
(16) Partner balance and swing
B2 -----------
(8) Promenade across the Set
(8) Women's Chain across
The B2 moves could be swapped, but I liked how much time you could get with
a partner this way (hence the title).
I wouldn't use it as a first dance, but it seems like a nice second one to
teach the a chain.
--
Luke Donforth
Luke.Donforth(a)gmail.com <Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com>
Hi Jeremy,
At MIT’s Tech Squares, “boys” and “girls” are used, sometimes with “ladies” and “gents” thrown in. However, many dancers dance either role. If you are dancing a role that does not visibly match your gender, you typically call out (not too loudly) “boy” or “girl”, when the caller gives a call that is specific to a gender. As you get more accomplished as a dancer, you seem to not need to call that out as much - if the dance is moving, the flow of the dance should usually indicate who is supposed to move.
Seth
> On Oct 4, 2017, at 1:54 PM, Jeremy Child via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> Hi
>
> I have a question for anyone who calls or dances Gender Free MWSD (by Gender Free I mean where no assumptions are made about what role a dancer will take based on their gender).
>
> I've been told that GF MWSD dances still use the terms "Boys" and "Girls", but please correct me if I'm wrong.
>
> MWSD is unique amongst folk dancing in that dancers need to know the role being danced by others in the square (if I'm a "boy" and the call is "boys trade", I need to know who the other boy in my line / wave is in order to do the call).
>
> So to my question: How do the dancers identify which roles the other people are dancing? Traditionally this is done with dancers taking the opposite role to their gender wearing bands, but that is surely inappropriate if the dance is GF.
>
> Also, if any MWSD clubs are using truly non-gendered terms, please let me know.
>
> Thanks in Advance
>
> Jeremy
> www.barndancecaller.net <http://www.barndancecaller.net/>
> www.genderfreedance.net <http://www.genderfreedance.net/>_______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
On Wed, Oct 4, 2017 at 2:00 PM, Charles M. Hannum <root(a)ihack.net> wrote:
> This terminology is standardized worldwide.
>
BTW, a subtlety you may not be aware of is that MWSD terminology *is*
standardized by CallerLab. You can't advertise that you do the CallerLab
program if you use different terminology. This is why even "gender free"
groups continue to use the traditional gendered terms.
Up through plus level, "boys and girls" and "ladies and gents" are used.
This terminology is standardized worldwide.
At advanced level, "beau and belle" are introduced. They are positional
(beau = left, belle = right), but also refer to the common position for
that gender in typical square dance choreography.
On Wed, Oct 4, 2017 at 1:54 PM, Jeremy Child via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> Hi
>
> I have a question for anyone who calls or dances Gender Free MWSD (by
> Gender Free I mean where no assumptions are made about what role a dancer
> will take based on their gender).
>
> I've been told that GF MWSD dances still use the terms "Boys" and "Girls",
> but please correct me if I'm wrong.
>
> MWSD is unique amongst folk dancing in that dancers need to know the role
> being danced by others in the square (if I'm a "boy" and the call is "boys
> trade", I need to know who the other boy in my line / wave is in order to
> do the call).
>
> So to my question: How do the dancers identify which roles the other
> people are dancing? Traditionally this is done with dancers taking the
> opposite role to their gender wearing bands, but that is surely
> inappropriate if the dance is GF.
>
> Also, if any MWSD clubs are using truly non-gendered terms, please let me
> know.
>
> Thanks in Advance
>
> Jeremy
> www.barndancecaller.net
> www.genderfreedance.net
>
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
>
>
Hi
I have a question for anyone who calls or dances Gender Free MWSD (by
Gender Free I mean where no assumptions are made about what role a dancer
will take based on their gender).
I've been told that GF MWSD dances still use the terms "Boys" and "Girls",
but please correct me if I'm wrong.
MWSD is unique amongst folk dancing in that dancers need to know the role
being danced by others in the square (if I'm a "boy" and the call is "boys
trade", I need to know who the other boy in my line / wave is in order to
do the call).
So to my question: How do the dancers identify which roles the other people
are dancing? Traditionally this is done with dancers taking the opposite
role to their gender wearing bands, but that is surely inappropriate if the
dance is GF.
Also, if any MWSD clubs are using truly non-gendered terms, please let me
know.
Thanks in Advance
Jeremy
www.barndancecaller.netwww.genderfreedance.net
Isaac, you raise a very good question. There are so many dances that the issue of originality is bound to come up.
> Of course we're all going to have different opinions. To those who have been on this list for some time I apologize for repeating myself. Since you are relatively new I'll relay something I heard Ted S. say. A dance has to have 50% new choreography to be new. And Ted was looking at contras and squares of his day like Petronella and Hull's which had unique A parts and the same B.
Sent from my iPad
> On Oct 2, 2017, at 10:05 PM, Isaac Banner via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
>
> Hey all,
>
> A question I've been mulling over for several months now is where the line blurs from "a variation of" to "a dance based on" to "a dance of my own" when writing contras.
>
> For example:
> Last Hey (First Hey var.) - Paul Balliet and maybe Isaac Banner in a way?
> Becket, CW
> A1: (8) Circle left 3/4
> (4) Rings balance
> (4) Pass through u/d
> A2: (8) Ladies alle. left 1.5x
> (4) Short waves balance
> (4) Partner alle. right 3/4
> B1: (16) Ladies pass left, hey for 4
> B2: (16) Partner balance/swing
>
> In this case, I took First Hey, shifted it off by a phrase, and changed what had then become the A2. I've called it at four or five dances out in the northwest now, and I've waffled back and forth between calling it "a variation of..." or "a dance of mine, based on..." and I'm still not sure on which I want to use.
>
> I'll admit I'm still fairly new to this list, but at least in the several months I've been following conversations here it seems fairly regular that I see someone put out a dance, asking if it exists, only to get several responses of "Oh, yes, I wrote that but with 8/16/32 counts different." I always feel like it must be exciting, in a way, to know that you and another caller both put together the same ideas, but I also would guess that it must be a little disheartening, in a way, to know that your newfound baby isn't quite yours and yours alone...heck, Newton and Leibniz both developed Calculus and 300 years later even that can't seem to be settled.
>
> Over the last few years I've heard callers talk about when they consider a dance to be a unique sequence and the majority opinion seems to be if a full phrase is unique between the two, but I'm not sure that's always a hard and fast rule...
>
> Anyways, I've been very curious what other people have to say on the topic. Please let me know what you think.
>
> Thanks,
> Isaac Banner
> _______________________________________________
> List Name: Callers mailing list
> List Address: Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net
> Archives: https://www.mail-archive.com/callers@lists.sharedweight.net/
Presume the one you encountered was "The Love Pirate"? There's a few more
of mine featuring the move:
http://veino.com/blog/?tag=hole-in-the-wall
(One really must stress the timing of the move for contra dancers or
they'll fly through it in half the time (you can only build in so much
"shock absorber" capacity otherwise to deal with that). I replaced a HitW
in another new (not as yet posted) dance because I believed dancers would
tend to rush it and an alternative approach would be more robust there (it
wasn't central to the theme in that one).)
There's a few more of my ECD-feely dances currently posted:
http://veino.com/blog/?cat=328
On Mon, Oct 2, 2017 at 6:48 PM, Angela DeCarlis via Callers <
callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> I'm pretty happy with the choreography, generally. I think adding a
> Gents' chain would serve to make the dance less accessible, and that wasn't
> my goal in writing it.
>
> I recently picked up a dance by Don Veino that has an English figure in
> it, too. I think the figure is called Hole in the Wall? That's another
> figure I'd love to see plopped into more contra choreography for
> easy/intermediate dances!
>
>
