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2524 discussions

by frannie via Callers

I have it as a variation of Berkeley Bind by Erik Hoffman. Long lines instead of a full circle Left. If it's actually something else I'd love to give it correct credit. ~Frannie On Thu, Oct 6, 2016 at 11:08 AM, Maia McCormick via Callers < callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: > Any insights? > > A1: neighbor B&S > A2: long lines > gents alle. L 1 1/2 > B1: PB&S > B2: circle L 3/4 > Bal. the ring, CA twirl to face new neighbors > > Cheers, > Maia > > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net > > -- twirls, Frannie

8 years, 3 months

[Callers] What dance is this?

by Maia McCormick via Callers

Any insights? A1: neighbor B&S A2: long lines gents alle. L 1 1/2 B1: PB&S B2: circle L 3/4 Bal. the ring, CA twirl to face new neighbors Cheers, Maia

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by Aahz via Callers

On Tue, Oct 04, 2016, Yoyo Zhou via Callers wrote: > > Try not to cancel the dance unless you all literally would rather go have > some ice cream. Dancers don't go to a dance like this expecting the contra > contra contra experience, but simply that you will lead them in dance and > help them have fun. Just to put up a contrary opinion: even though I'm a pretty hard-core dancer, I might well prefer to choose the ice cream with six or fewer people. That applies even to folk dancing, where there are LOTS of options for just a few dancers -- line dances can obviously be done with only one person. There's an energy that comes from something that feels like a group that for me is an important part of "going to a dance". -- Hugs and backrubs -- I break Rule 6 http://rule6.info/ <*> <*> <*> Help a hearing-impaired person: http://rule6.info/hearing.html

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by Read Weaver via Callers

“Improper is tougher” It certainly sounds like an opportunity for people to switch roles, and that it’s tougher suggests it’d be a new experience. If they’ve never done that before, even familiar and simple dances will seem new and newly challenging. Read Weaver Jamaica Plain, MA http://lcfd.org > On Oct 4, 2016, at 5:27 PM, Jerome Grisanti via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: > > Jacqui, > > I have called proper longways dances (without diagonals or out-of-minor-set interactions) for two couples, switching active couples with every other iteration but maintaining the same orientation in the room. Works well with many English dances -- for example Softly Good Tummas -- because they are proper. Improper is tougher. The idea is similar to Dale's calling party orientation, but the mechanics are a bit different, and the one he describes is better for improper dances. > > My group (Maryville MO) is accustomed to smaller attendance, and thus ready to switch to three-couple longways English when another couple shows up, then into old-time squares when a fourth couple shows up. A fifth couple or more puts us into longways duple minors. And always ready to mix it up with a circle mixer. > > --Jerome > > Jerome Grisanti > 660-528-0858 > http://www.jeromegrisanti.com <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 > > On Tue, Oct 4, 2016 at 2:09 PM, QuiAnn2 via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote: > I recently called at a contra dance where we had exactly 6 dancers for almost the entire evening (one joined us later but only occasionally danced). This was unexpected as they usually have attendance in the 12-20 range. I was able to piece together a night of mixers, triplets, and oddball dances to make it work and the dancers were game for anything so it ended up being a fun night. But it got me thinking about what to do if only 4 dancers came to a dance (meaning even if I jumped in, we would only have 5 total dancers). In order to be better prepared for next time, I have a couple of questions. > > 1) Do you have any dances you can share that would work for 4 or 5 dancers? Or also dances for 6 dancers that are not triplets (have plenty of triplets). I have already collected Do-Si-3 and Haste to the Divorce, both of which I modified so that they would not progress. > 2) Could a whole evening (3 hours) of dance be put together for just 4-5 dancers? > 3) What preparation can be done by me in advance to help with this situation? It’s possible to talk with the organizer in advance about canceling the dance if only 4 or 5 dancers show up, however, this particular dance is a 75 minute drive one-way and I’d prefer to avoid the round trip if there won’t be enough dancers. For various reasons, any dance promoting that I do myself would be largely ineffective for this particular dance. > > Would love to hear about any ideas you can share. Thanks! > > Jacqui Grennan > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:Callers@lists.sharedweight.net> > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net <http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net> > > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net

8 years, 3 months

[Callers] Need caller this Sunday, 45min. outdoor family dance part of Harvest Fest

by Amy Cann via Callers

at The Putney School in Vermont. Galopede, Lucky Seven, Alabama Gal, maybe one more, boom done. Band/sound system provided. I'd do it myself but I can't be in three places at once. Respectable budget. Email me directly or call 802-222-7598. Thanks, Amy

8 years, 3 months

[Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by QuiAnn2 via Callers

I recently called at a contra dance where we had exactly 6 dancers for almost the entire evening (one joined us later but only occasionally danced). This was unexpected as they usually have attendance in the 12-20 range. I was able to piece together a night of mixers, triplets, and oddball dances to make it work and the dancers were game for anything so it ended up being a fun night. But it got me thinking about what to do if only 4 dancers came to a dance (meaning even if I jumped in, we would only have 5 total dancers). In order to be better prepared for next time, I have a couple of questions. 1) Do you have any dances you can share that would work for 4 or 5 dancers? Or also dances for 6 dancers that are not triplets (have plenty of triplets). I have already collected Do-Si-3 and Haste to the Divorce, both of which I modified so that they would not progress. 2) Could a whole evening (3 hours) of dance be put together for just 4-5 dancers? 3) What preparation can be done by me in advance to help with this situation? It’s possible to talk with the organizer in advance about canceling the dance if only 4 or 5 dancers show up, however, this particular dance is a 75 minute drive one-way and I’d prefer to avoid the round trip if there won’t be enough dancers. For various reasons, any dance promoting that I do myself would be largely ineffective for this particular dance. Would love to hear about any ideas you can share. Thanks! Jacqui Grennan

8 years, 3 months

[Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by Edmund Croft via Callers

Scottish dances can also be a good source when you're short on numbers. And if you have internet, you can look them up when you arrive at the venue, as the abbreviated instructions for many of them can be found at http://my.strathspey.org/dd/index/ (you can filter for set size using the menu: Extra > Complex Dance Search). At least for the quick ones (jigs and reels, not Strathspeys), the step doesn't really matter. There are many dances for 2 couples in a longwise set (which could be as short as 2C or 3C if that's what you've got). And they are almost all proper, so you don't need to worry about swapping sides each time through. And they don't (ever?) feature interactions outside your group of four for that time through the dance. There are quite a few triplets (3C in a 3C set), but they'll be different from the standard repertoire of contra triplets. Most of the dances are for 3C in a longwise set of 4C (1s lead from 1st place, repeat from 2nd place, run away to the bottom as the new 1s start), so in a 3C set you will need to make the 1s run to the bottom every time. This often happens in Scottish dance groups (one of my local groups is often seven couples, so one set will have to make this adjustment), so it should be pretty feasible. If you're trying to fill a whole evening, you could teach them a figure or two that you don't get in contra, to widen your choice of Scottish dances. For instance the Allemande (not the hand-turn contra figure!) - two or three couples, depending on the dance, promenade round half way and the ladies spin round back to their own sides, basically - is quite a common progression. Edmund Croft, Cambridge and Worcestershire, UK Michael Barraclough wrote: > There are many, many 2-couple English Country Dances. Yoyo Zhou wrote: > Proper dances make the 2-couple progression easy. Jacqui Grennan wrote: > I recently called at a contra dance where we had exactly 6 dancers for almost the entire evening… > 1) Do you have any dances you can share that would work for 4 or 5 dancers? Or also dances for 6 dancers that are not triplets (have plenty of triplets).

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by James Saxe via Callers

On Oct 4, 2016, at 3:18 PM, Yoyo Zhou via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: > - Do 4-person dances and let the 5th person cut in wherever they please. The notion of cutting in can also apply to other situations where you have a fixed-size set or sets and an extra person (or more than one, but not enough for another whole set). At the risk of stating the obvious, this works best when everyone involved understands what's going on and is willing to play and not to get their nose out of joint if they get separated from original partners for the duration of the dance. It's not so good if a cut-out person stumps off to the sidelines and sits there moping instead of cutting back in on someone else. --Jim

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by QuiAnn2 via Callers

Dale, Thanks for answering my query. This sounds like a great idea! Jacqui > On Oct 4, 2016, at 12:19 PM, Dale Wilson <dale.wilson(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > We have something we call the "calling party progression" because we sometimes try out new dances with only four people present (or four + a caller). > > We form one set with "Up" being "North" (for example). At the end of the dance we progress by changing "Up" to be "East." and turning to face the new direction. This swaps neighbors for partners, but everyone ends up standing in the right place (although not facing the right direction until after the turn) for the next time through the dance. > > I'm not sure how well this would work with inexperienced dancers, though (and it certainly doesn't work with out-of-set dances, diagonal chains, etc.) but for a lot of dances its actually quite fun. > > Dale > > > On Tue, Oct 4, 2016 at 2:09 PM, QuiAnn2 via Callers <callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> wrote: > I recently called at a contra dance where we had exactly 6 dancers for almost the entire evening (one joined us later but only occasionally danced). This was unexpected as they usually have attendance in the 12-20 range. I was able to piece together a night of mixers, triplets, and oddball dances to make it work and the dancers were game for anything so it ended up being a fun night. But it got me thinking about what to do if only 4 dancers came to a dance (meaning even if I jumped in, we would only have 5 total dancers). In order to be better prepared for next time, I have a couple of questions. > > 1) Do you have any dances you can share that would work for 4 or 5 dancers? Or also dances for 6 dancers that are not triplets (have plenty of triplets). I have already collected Do-Si-3 and Haste to the Divorce, both of which I modified so that they would not progress. > 2) Could a whole evening (3 hours) of dance be put together for just 4-5 dancers? > 3) What preparation can be done by me in advance to help with this situation? It’s possible to talk with the organizer in advance about canceling the dance if only 4 or 5 dancers show up, however, this particular dance is a 75 minute drive one-way and I’d prefer to avoid the round trip if there won’t be enough dancers. For various reasons, any dance promoting that I do myself would be largely ineffective for this particular dance. > > Would love to hear about any ideas you can share. Thanks! > > Jacqui Grennan > _______________________________________________ > Callers mailing list > Callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:Callers@lists.sharedweight.net> > http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net <http://lists.sharedweight.net/listinfo.cgi/callers-sharedweight.net> > > > > -- > There are only two hard things in computer science: cache invalidation, naming things, and off-by-one errors.

8 years, 3 months

Re: [Callers] Fewer than 6 dancers - Ideas?

by Yoyo Zhou via Callers

On Tue, Oct 4, 2016 at 12:19 PM, Dale Wilson via Callers < callers(a)lists.sharedweight.net> wrote: > We have something we call the "calling party progression" because we > sometimes try out new dances with only four people present (or four + a > caller). > > We form one set with "Up" being "North" (for example). At the end of the > dance we progress by changing "Up" to be "East." and turning to face the > new direction. This swaps neighbors for partners, but everyone ends up > standing in the right place (although not facing the right direction until > after the turn) for the next time through the dance. > > I'm not sure how well this would work with inexperienced dancers, though > (and it certainly doesn't work with out-of-set dances, diagonal chains, > etc.) but for a lot of dances its actually quite fun. > Dale's set-rotation progression here is one I've used before. It's fun with dances where not everybody swings. And you can use it on a huge number of regular contras. Other ideas: - Rory O'More, Petronella, and other classic chestnuts. (It's ok if the band doesn't know the tune. Not sacrilegious.) Proper dances make the 2-couple progression easy. - Use other progressions (e.g. for 4 couples, promenade across the set can become promenade to meet any other couple). - Do 4-person dances and let the 5th person cut in wherever they please. - The most fun I've ever had was at Camp Sturtevant where Cis Hinkle was calling a square, and one square had only 4 dancers, all dancing the gents role, with ghosts. Some squares can also be done with just 2 couples in some position or other. - Teach wacky square dance figures and use them in a simple dance. - The Humors of Bandon and other Irish ceili and set dances. Lots of set dances are typically done just for the heads, then just for the sides, in a square formation; just do it for the heads. - Call family dances, community dances, etc. - Borrow some of the musicians, if they are willing to dance. Try not to cancel the dance unless you all literally would rather go have some ice cream. Dancers don't go to a dance like this expecting the contra contra contra experience, but simply that you will lead them in dance and help them have fun. Yoyo Zhou

8 years, 3 months

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