Friday, November 4 Community Dance – Atlantic City Nat’l AOSA 2016
Hot Comment ça va by Peter Amidon
formation: circle of couples
music: Any reel medley
A1 Promenade in, back out (8)
Forward, clap on 4th beat while turning 180 (8)
A2 Walk straight back out & turn right walking single file CW (8)
Take hands (“snap”)and circle left.
(This is the same direction you had already been going in)
B1 Allemande left Neighbor
Dosido Partner
Allemande left Neighbor
B2 Promenade partner: jump on last beat of tune from promenade to all facing center in order to start the opening Forward and Back. (I had us all count from 5 of the last 8-beat phrase so that we all jumped together on 8, landing on the first beat of A1).
NOTES:
* The challenge of the end of A1 into the beginning of A2 is for the whole group to move in such a way that when the hands “snap” into the circle left halfway through A2 that everyone is evenly spread out with easy arm’s length between dancers.
* Try this for teaching the B1 figure: Allemande left your Neighbor while looking for your partner (“partner, partner”), Dosido your Partner while looking for your Neighbor, Allemande left your Neighbor while looking for your partner, then “shake and take” partner’s hands to get into promenade position.
Swing Party – by Peter Amidon
FORMATION: Scatter mixer
MUSIC: Any jig medley
A1: Walk around randomly
A2: Grab someone’s muscles and swing.
B1: Walk around randomly
B2: Grab someone’s muscles and swing.
NOTES: Here is a lovely little tutorial on swinging (with the traditional ballroom position).
Here is a great contra dance video with a lot of swinging.
I learned the gender free swing that we did from the late Marianne Taylor: “Grab your partner’s muscles (upper arm), your partner grabs your muscles, sit (give weight by leaning back a bit), then swing.
Monterey Detour – by Bob Dalsemer
In NEDM’s “Sashay the Donut”
MUSIC: Any jig or reel, but we prefer flowing jigs.
FORMATION: Improper contra dance.
A1 (16)Ones step between the twos. All face down, taking hands along lines of four and walk down the center of the set. All drop hands, turn alone to face up the set. (8)
Take hands along the lines of four, and walk back up the set. Keeping hands joined, ones stop, twos take an extra step forward and bend the line to a circle (this is the progression). (8)
A2 (16)Circle right. (8)
Circle left back to place. (8)
B1 (16)Dosido neighbor. (8)
Swing neighbor, ending the swing exactly where you started it. (8)
B2 (16)Take hands along long lines and all go forward and back. (8)
Twos stay put while ones step into the center to swing partner. (8)
Ones finish swing, facing down towards new neighbors (new twos).
Repeat sequence with new neighbors.
NOTES:
* “improper contra dance” means the Number One couples are crossed over. That way, if folks are dancing gent/lady partners, the gents dosido and swing with the ladies. We ignored that and made it a gender free contra.
* The four orientation points: “I am: across from my partner, next to my neighbor, in a circle, and in a line”.
* Start by having dancers take hands in circles of four from the top. In each circle of four the couple closer to the top of the set are Ones, the couple in the circle of four further from the top of the set are Twos. The Ones work their way down the set. When they reach the bottom of the set they wait out one time through the sequence and then come back in as Twos. The Twos work their way up the set. When the Twos reach the top of the set they wait out once through the sequence, and then come back in as Ones. That is the basic rule for all contra dances.
Larry’s Mixer – in NEDM’s “Listen to the Mockingbird”
FORMATION: Couples in a circle with the gents on the inside facing out and the ladies on the outside facing in.
MUSIC: We used “Cheris” from NEDM’s “Other Side of the Tracks”.
A1 (16) Do-si-do partner. (8)
Allemande left the person to the left* of your partner. (8)
A2 (16) ‘See saw’ partner. (8)
Allemande right the person to the right* of your partner. (8)
B1 (16) Right elbow turn partner. (8)
Promenade partner
B2 (16) Continue promenading partner.. (8)
Gents move up to the next lady and promenade. (8)
TEACHING NOTES:
* A1 – “the person to the left of your partner” means the next person you see if you look at your partner and then move your eyes to the left. From your partner’s perspective this person is on their right.
* B1 – you can replace the “partner elbow turn” with a short partner swing (the gender-free muscle-grabbing buzz-step swing I taught).
* B2 to A1: When going from the promenade in B2 to the partner dosido in A1: Let go of partner’s left hand and pull into the dosido with your and your partner’s right hands.
* Dance to the phrasing of the music: never stop moving, but start each figure (especially in A1 and A2) only when the music starts that phrase, by taking wide, sweeping turns.
Bridge of Athlone in NEDM’s “Listen to the Mockingbird”
FORMATION: Longways set of 7 or 8 couples
MUSIC: Any three part (AABBCC) jig or reel. We love using “Reel De Rimouski” from NEDM’s “Any Jig or Reel”
A1 (16) All forward & back, clapping partners two hands on the fourth beat of the music in a “high ten”. (8)
All cross over to partner’s place, passing right shoulders. (8)
A2 (16) All forward and back, clapping partners two hands on the fourth beat of the music in a “high ten”. (8)
All cross back to original place, crossing right shoulders again. (8)
B1 (16) First couple take two hands and sashay down the center. (8)
Sashay back to the top of the set. (8)
B2 (16) First couple cast off and all follow behind down the outside of the set.
It is wonderful if the dancers skip all the way through this figure. (16)
C1 (16) First couple make a two hand arch at the bottom of the set. Other dancers meet their partners below the arch, take one hand with partner, duck under the arch, and walk back to place. All but the original first couple take two hands and make arches, forming a long tunnel. (16)
C2 (16) The original first lady goes up the center through the tunnel while first gent goes up the outside of his side of the set (behind the gents line) (8) Then the original first gent goes down the center through the tunnel while the first lady goes down the outside of her side of the set (behind the ladies’ line). Then all step back to place to prepare for the opening forward and back. (If you want, you can have each couple go into a two hand swing (around and around and around) as soon as the gent has gone down through their arch.) (8)
NOTES: Here is a Youtube of some elementary school students dancing “Bridge of Athlone” with their teacher to “Reel de Rimouski” music from NEDM’s “Any Jig or Reel”.
Durham Reel In NEDM’s Chimes of Dunkirk collection
Formation: Longways dance for 4 – 6 couples
Music: Slow G from NEDM’s Sashay the Donut CD, or any jig.
This dance does not need to go exactly with the phrasing of the music.
Take hands in a circle and circle left and right.
Top (Lead) couple lead a cast off around outside. Lead couple meet partner at bottom, take one hand, and promenade back to top; all others follow.
Lead couple lead 2nd cast off.
Lead couple hang on to partner’s hand and lead a promenade around to the left and back to place; all follow. This is called ‘Coach and Horses’.
Lead couple lead ‘Coach and Horses’ promenade to the right and back to place.
All take hands along lines and at the bottom (but not the top) thus forming a semicircle. Top two ladies (‘Queens’) make the Queen’s Arch, by raising their held hands. Top gent (‘King’) lead the entire line through the Queen’s arch. The top ‘Queen’ keeps her feet planted throughout; the second ‘Queen’ follows the rest under the arch, and changes her grip with the first ‘Queen’ as her hand twists around.
Top Queen lead lines through the King’s Arch, and back to place.
Repeat sequence.
Sellinger’s Round from the Playford English Country Dances, 1670
FORMATION: Circle of couples
MUSIC: Sellinger’s Round
You can purchase and mp3 of music for Sellinger’s Round on iTunes by typing in “sellinger’s round cupola”.
Go to the 2:00 minute mark in this Youtube to see Sellinger’s Round at a dance festival.
Measures 1- 8 Take hands and circle 8 slip steps left, and 8 slip steps back.
CHORUS:
9-12 Two singles into the center, and a double back to place
13-16 Face partner, set and turn single.
17-24 Repeat 9-16.
1- 8 Take hands in a circle and forward and back twice.
9-24 CHORUS
1- 8 Siding with partner twice. It is like doing a two hand turn halfway and back, but without hands.
9-24 CHORUS
1- 8 Right elbow turn with partner, left elbow turn with partner
9-24 CHORUS
1- 8 Take hands and circle 8 slip steps left, and 8 slip steps back while singing the tune.
9-24 CHORUS, continue singing the tune
Circle Waltz Mixer in NEDM’s “Sashay the Donut
FORMATION: circle of partners
MUSIC: “In Continental” waltz from Sashay the Donut CD
or any waltz, played ABAB (not AABB).
A (48) Take hands around circle and step in and out. (6)
Gents roll lady on left from left to right*. (6)
Take hands in circle again and step in and out. (6)
Gents roll new left hand lady from left to right. (6)
Take hands in circle again and step in and out. (6)
Gents roll new left hand lady from left to right. (6)
Take hands in circle again and step in and out. (6)
Gents roll new left hand lady from left to right,
but this time the gent turns right (facing CCW)
taking both hands with this lady. (6)
B (48) With this new partner step in towards the center, swinging arms in,
and then step out, swinging arms out. (6)
Step in swinging arms in, let go of partner’s hands and each of you turn single (gent turning CCW and lady turning CW). (6)
Take hands with partner again and reverse:
Step out, swinging arms out and in swinging arms in. (6)
Step out swinging arms out, let go of partner’s hands and
each of you turn single (gent turning CW and lady CCW). (6)
Two hand turn; end on original sides, and take hands
in big circle to start the whole sequence over again. (24)