It's a great dance, and I've generally not seen problems with the "face
back in" and "face the next" california twirls (though I have a couple
of times had people try to balance before the swing, only to discover
that they didn't have time for the swing. The balance, roll away,
balance, california twirl sequence feels really good, so I would,
personally, hesitate to take it out. If you do try different versions,
though, let us know how it goes. Whenever I've called it, I've had
people come up and comment about what a great dance it is (and callers
asking for a copy).
Jack
At 12:19 PM 9/1/2009, you wrote:
Hi Janet,
That's a neat dance that I'd like to try. I would think the way it's
written
(swinging your *next* neighbor) works best since the CA Twirl makes
you
change the direction your facing. But since dancers have turned to
face back
in the opposite directiona fter the previous two CA Twirls, it may
be tough
to "switch modes" and do a regular CA Twirl. I'd have to dance it to
see
what that feels like...
Anyway, if you changed the dance to "swing your current neighbor",
you'd
lose a progression. You could then swap in the "2x progression" B2
option
you suggested (no roll away) and it would make a regular single
progression
dance. Hmm...now I want to try it!
Thanks for sharing!
-Sargon
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 2009 07:24:31 -0400
From: Janet Levatin <jlevatin(a)massmed.org>
To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
Subject: Re: [Callers] California Twirlin' author
Message-ID: <E5186D70-4924-49AC-85ED-757AE9A86AD5(a)massmed.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed; delsp=yes
Bill,
Thanks for letting me know the square dancing terminology. When I
wrote the dance I was trying to think of a move (or a variation on a
move) that I didn't see used in contra dancing, at least not in
dances
I had done.
I think the swing in A2 is fine as the dancers are facing a new
neighbor and have plenty of time for the swing. Someone, like Seth,
who has called the dance a lot may have more feedback on that. If I
remember correctly, I think when he first called it he had the
dancers
swing their current neighbor instead of their new neighbors. I'm not
sure how that would work.
Janet
On Sep 1, 2009, at 6:06 AM, Liz and Bill wrote:
> Hi Janet,
>
> An interesting use of California twirl. Looks like a neat
dance.
> I'm getting a lot of square dancers
> at my contra dances in New Zealand. In MWSD terminology
"California
> twirl and face back in" is
> "California twirl and roll". How do women find the swing coming
out
> of the California twirl in A2?
>
> Cheers, Bill
>
> _______________________________________________
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> Callers(a)sharedweight.net
> [1]http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>
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The dance "California Twirlin'" has been travelling all over the country. I've seen multiple versions of the B2, and I've seen the author's name spelled multiple ways. It's something like Janet Leviton or Levinson. Does anyone know Janet? I'd love to get the correct spelling of her name, and her version of the dance.
Thanks,
Lynn
Hi all -- been lurking for awhile, but posting for the first time now. Sorry for any formatting issues I create.
Jo, I like this new dance. I'd been toying with the idea of a reverse-progression improper dance, but never quite got around to implementing it. Your dance seems different, but still accessible. I'm writing it down.
Laila Lewis
>This is a fairly new dance, just written in June. I've called it twice,
and people like it very much. Callers ask me for it afterwards.
It has two quirks, which need to be explained at the beginning. One is
that it is a reverse progression dance. The ones progress up the hall,
the twos progress down.
The other is that when you and your partner progress out of the line,
during A2, you will naturally swing each other at the end of the line.
After you swing, while you are waiting to get back into the dance, the
lady needs to be on the gent's LEFT.
Galena
Duple Improper
Jo Mortland, 2009
Begin in wavy lines of four, ones facing down, twos facing up,
women holding left hands, everyone's neighbor is in their right hand
A1 Balance right and left, slide right
Balance left and right, slide left (as in Rory O'Moore)
A2 with neighbor, allemande right half way and walk forward to the
next neighbor (progression is here)
Swing
B1 Circle left 3 places
Partner swing on the side of the set
B2 Circle left 3 places
With neighbor (the one you swung) do si do to wavy lines of four
________________________________
From: "callers-request(a)sharedweight.net" <callers-request(a)sharedweight.net>
To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2009 9:00:28 AM
Subject: Callers Digest, Vol 60, Issue 17
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Today's Topics:
1. Re: which hand (Tina Fields)
2. Re: emerging artists (Mortland, Jo)
3. Re: Help with a contra for newbies (Gillian Carney)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 2009 11:01:33 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tina Fields <tfields8(a)yahoo.com>
To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
Subject: Re: [Callers] which hand
Message-ID: <215767.71503.qm(a)web180107.mail.gq1.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Re: diagramming dances, Jerome suggested some terrific web flash, then wrote,
> And of course, there's always salt and pepper shakers....
then Alan responded,
> I like coins.? (Different denominations for different numbers - pennies,
nickels, dimes, quarters tells you who's who in a square, face-up or face-down
for? gender, and you can have them face one way or the other.)
Me, I like Extreme Visual, No-Tech style. My dirty secret is this: Smurfs. I borrowed a bunch of figurines from a friend, each of which sports a different-colored hat. I have male and female red, blue, and yellow hat couples. The fourth couple is a pair of green toy soldiers, with the one holding his gun up higher in the air designated as male. I walk them around through the dance, noting when each is facing her/his neighbor, etc., when the progression happens, and potential weird effects. It's goofy but it really works.
Tina
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:07:35 -0500
From: "Mortland, Jo" <j-mortland(a)neiu.edu>
To: "Caller's discussion list" <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
Subject: Re: [Callers] emerging artists
Message-ID:
<9B0B0B8FF2328E48930D4B6273C1B261132CEBC6(a)EXNODE2.univ.neiu.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
This is a fairly new dance, just written in June. I've called it twice,
and people like it very much. Callers ask me for it afterwards.
It has two quirks, which need to be explained at the beginning. One is
that it is a reverse progression dance. The ones progress up the hall,
the twos progress down.
The other is that when you and your partner progress out of the line,
during A2, you will naturally swing each other at the end of the line.
After you swing, while you are waiting to get back into the dance, the
lady needs to be on the gent's LEFT.
Galena
Duple Improper
Jo Mortland, 2009
Begin in wavy lines of four, ones facing down, twos facing up,
women holding left hands, everyone's neighbor is in their right hand
A1 Balance right and left, slide right
Balance left and right, slide left (as in Rory O'Moore)
A2 with neighbor, allemande right half way and walk forward to the
next neighbor (progression is here)
Swing
B1 Circle left 3 places
Partner swing on the side of the set
B2 Circle left 3 places
With neighbor (the one you swung) do si do to wavy lines of four
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:08:32 -0400
From: Gillian Carney <gillcarney(a)hotmail.com>
To: <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Help with a contra for newbies
Message-ID: <COL114-W9CBB61C48C46ECBB239B5C3F50(a)phx.gbl>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Thanks Alan and Lark for the wonderful and positive feedback.
Incidentally, amused to see Cary Ravitz's name in the message following mine - his mother is one of my infrequent dancers who provided me with the loveliest quote. To paraphrase; three hours after the dance I was aching, but found it was my face that was aching because I was still smiling. This is the experience I am used to with my dance group, and the experience I want to bring to the estates contra.
In refering to "real contra", I meant keeping away from set dance or ceili/ceilidh type barn dances which I also call. Nothing against them, but want to emphasize contra. I will be repeating the first session as the second session, and think I can build up to a (one) longways duple improper. But, Alan, thank you so very much for the dances you included.You gave me a lot to consider.
A band member gave me a copy of Good Morning last night, and the estates are working on getting me copies of programmes from dances Ford would have attended. But, I didn't like feeling pushed for time in getting a programme like this together, which is why I asked for help from the list - and I'm glad I did. Thanks, and wish me luck!
Gillian Carney
fortmyersdancers(a)hotmail.com
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End of Callers Digest, Vol 60, Issue 17
***************************************
Re: diagramming dances, Jerome suggested some terrific web flash, then wrote,
> And of course, there's always salt and pepper shakers....
then Alan responded,
> I like coins. (Different denominations for different numbers - pennies,
nickels, dimes, quarters tells you who's who in a square, face-up or face-down
for gender, and you can have them face one way or the other.)
Me, I like Extreme Visual, No-Tech style. My dirty secret is this: Smurfs. I borrowed a bunch of figurines from a friend, each of which sports a different-colored hat. I have male and female red, blue, and yellow hat couples. The fourth couple is a pair of green toy soldiers, with the one holding his gun up higher in the air designated as male. I walk them around through the dance, noting when each is facing her/his neighbor, etc., when the progression happens, and potential weird effects. It's goofy but it really works.
Tina
Lisa Greenleaf is going to give a fantastic callers workshop in Chicago in
October! It's cheap, there are still spaces available!
The music is going to be amazing!
Email me with questions, and let me know to expect your mail! (applications
due soon, but we can be flexible)
Website at: http://fac.uchicago.edu/leadership.html<http://fac.uchicago.edu/leadership.html>
Just wanted to add my 2 cents on Luke's (Lisa's?) dance
I would hesitate to have the last 3 moves in the dance be a partner swing, ladies half-chain, star left, since it seems that more modern contras end with those moves than with any other 3-move combination (eg. The Nice Combination, The Baby Rose to name two) This makes it tough to fit such a dance into a program, if you would like to have other callers call your dance from time to time
If I were trying to finish a dance that had a partner swing (on the gent's original side) in B1, I'd rather go with the slightly less common long lines, ladies half-chain in B2
Mark Widmer
ps I seem to be the only one who thinks the women should do a left allemande in the dance Luke posted -- mainly because of the balance that follows it
Bronwyn made the point that the neighbor can better assist leading into a right-hand allemande, but since the preceeding move is a long-lines-fwd-&-back, I'm not sure that is as important here
That being said, I just don't get to dance the ladies role very often these days, so will defer to a woman's opinion about the best flow for this dance
Date: Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:17:39 -0400
From: Bronwyn Woods <woods.bronwyn(a)googlemail.com>
To: "Caller's discussion list" <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
Subject: Re: [Callers] question about flow and feel
Message-ID:
<a8bd02ee0908251417m12d7e671vbb42d90aa5988d9(a)mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
I would find a left allemande awkward. For me, the issue comes before the
allemande rather than after. When the ladies are on the right, their
neighbors can assist them into a right allemande. The neighbor cannot
assist into a left allemande, so the ladies have to break the connection to
their neighbor before beginning the figure. This connection is more
important to me than which hand begins a balance.
-Bronwyn
On Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 4:59 PM, Luke Donev <luke.donev(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> I'm sitting at home writing a contra (they get in my head and won't
> leave me alone till I write them down). I unfortunately don't have a
> closet full of dancers to pull out and test things on, but I've got a
> question about flow.
>
> When the ladies are standing to the right of their neighbor on the
> side of the set, facing their partner, and are going to allemande
> over to their partner for a balance and swing, should it be an
> allemande Right or Left? I feel like the R is more traditional for
> ladies, but an allemande L would leave their R hand free for a
> smoother transition to a balance and swing (I feel lead's L, follow's
> R is a better 1 hand balance to go into a swing with than lead's R,
> follow's L).
>
> To put it in context, consider the following dance:
> Sample dance 1, Improper
> A1: N bal & swg
> A2: long lines, fwd & back
> Ladies Allmnd L 1+ to partner
> B1: ptr bal & swg
> B2: ladies 1/2 chain
> star L 1x, on to next
>
> I think the ladies should allemande L there, but I'd be curious what
> other people think of the flow.
>
> If it was something like going to a R hand R hand balance for a box
> the gnat, it would seem to force the issue, but it seems more open
> when it's just going into a swing. Preferences? Thoughts?
>
> --
> Luke Donev
> http://www.lukedonev.com
> Luke.Donev(a)gmail.com
> _______________________________________________
Thanks Alan and Lark for the wonderful and positive feedback.
Incidentally, amused to see Cary Ravitz's name in the message following mine - his mother is one of my infrequent dancers who provided me with the loveliest quote. To paraphrase; three hours after the dance I was aching, but found it was my face that was aching because I was still smiling. This is the experience I am used to with my dance group, and the experience I want to bring to the estates contra.
In refering to "real contra", I meant keeping away from set dance or ceili/ceilidh type barn dances which I also call. Nothing against them, but want to emphasize contra. I will be repeating the first session as the second session, and think I can build up to a (one) longways duple improper. But, Alan, thank you so very much for the dances you included.You gave me a lot to consider.
A band member gave me a copy of Good Morning last night, and the estates are working on getting me copies of programmes from dances Ford would have attended. But, I didn't like feeling pushed for time in getting a programme like this together, which is why I asked for help from the list - and I'm glad I did. Thanks, and wish me luck!
Gillian Carney
fortmyersdancers(a)hotmail.com
_________________________________________________________________
Hotmail® is up to 70% faster. Now good news travels really fast.
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Hi all,
In January, the NYC contra is holding a dance themed around "emerging
artists". I will be calling to Stunt Double (Laurie Tupper, Christopher
Jacoby, Dave Casserly, Julie Vallimont). It should be a great dance.
Anyway, in keeping with the theme, I would like to call some dances by
"emerging" choreographers. I'm currently looking for dances that fit this
loose description - "emerging" can really be defined however you want. So,
if you know of dances that you like that you think fit the bill, let me
know! Also let me know if the dances have been called before or still need
to be given a trial run.
Thanks,
Bronwyn
When faced with really complicated dances and no likely suspects I
take out my set of matched change -pennies, nickels etc., even a
couple Sacagaweas. Heads are one sex, tails are the other - you can
choose who you want to be heads or tails, I'll leave my choices out
of this - each value is a couple. Line them up and move them through
each figure.
On Aug 27, 2009, at 9:00 AM, callers-request(a)sharedweight.net wrote:
> Send Callers mailing list submissions to
> callers(a)sharedweight.net
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> callers-request(a)sharedweight.net
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>
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..."
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
> 1. Re: which hand (Delia Clark)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:56:05 -0400
> From: Delia Clark <deliaclark8(a)gmail.com>
> To: Caller's discussion list <callers(a)sharedweight.net>
> Subject: Re: [Callers] which hand
> Message-ID: <A2FA13CD-B6E1-42E4-9BE6-6EA2E76D1845(a)gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed
>
> Not only can I not easily visualize flow, I can't easily visualize
> how you would diagram a dance!! Can anyone scan and post one they've
> done, or recommend a website that shows one?
>
>
> On Aug 26, 2009, at 12:02 AM, Dave Colestock wrote:
>
>> Hi All,
>>
>> Great suggestion Tom. Diagramming dances is the best way to see
>> the flow, especially for those who cannot easily visualize the
>> flow. Thanks for pointing out the Allemande change in Luke's dance
>> - that makes it flow much nicer.
>>
>> Dave Colestock
>> Harrisburg, PA
>> www.davecolestock.com
>> www.frolicinthefall.freeservers.com
>> www.harrisburgcontra.org
>>
>>
>>
>> --- On Tue, 8/25/09, Tom Hinds <twhinds(a)earthlink.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>> From: Tom Hinds <twhinds(a)earthlink.net>
>> Subject: [Callers] which hand
>> To: callers(a)sharedweight.net
>> Date: Tuesday, August 25, 2009, 10:14 PM
>>
>>
>> I'd suggest an allemande right in Luke's dance. The reason is that
>> an allemande left would tend to have the couples end their swing
>> slightly staggered. That is, they wouldn't be exactly across from
>> each other. If the women allemande right this isn't an issue. Draw
>> it out and see if that's correct.
>> Tom Hinds
>> On Aug 25, 2009, at 6:11 PM, callers-request(a)sharedweight.net wrote:
>>
>>
>>> Send Callers mailing list submissions to
>>> callers(a)sharedweight.net
>>>
>>> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
>>> http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
>>> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
>>> callers-request(a)sharedweight.net
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>>> You can reach the person managing the list at
>>> callers-owner(a)sharedweight.net
>>>
>>> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
>>> than "Re: Contents of Callers digest..."
>>>
>>>
>>> Today's Topics:
>>>
>>> 1. question about flow and feel (Luke Donev)
>>> 2. Re: question about flow and feel (Bronwyn Woods)
>>> 3. emerging artists (Bronwyn Woods)
>>> 4. Re: emerging artists (Martha Edwards)
>>> 5. Re: question about flow and feel
>>> (Alan Winston - SSRL Central Computing)
>>> 6. Re: emerging artists (Jeff Kaufman)
>>> 7. Re: emerging artists (Dave Colestock)
>>> 8. Re: emerging artists (richgoss(a)comcast.net)
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>
>
> <>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>:<>
>
> Delia Clark
> PO Box 45
> Taftsville, VT 05073
> 802-457-2075
> deliaclark8(a)gmail.com
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
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>
> End of Callers Digest, Vol 60, Issue 15
> ***************************************
Hi everyone,
I've been teaching ECD in Ft. Myers (Florida) since Jan 2007, and we're now trying to establish a contra group. I've been given the opportunity to call a contra dance at the Edison & Ford winter estates in Ft. Myers on Sept 20th - I began contra dancing at Lovett hall, danced there for 13 years and attended the final dance there, so I fully understand the significance of this - and am looking for resources, ideas, any sort of help. Depending on the success of this contra, the estates are willing to work with us on having a monthly dance.
The contra will be part of the opening day ceremonies for the new exhibit - Ford; Movies, Music and Dance. It will be 4 hours long, with a 20 min break. The estates prefer that I do it as 2 separate sessions. I would like to keep it somewhat historical. The attendees will be primarily estate members (non dancers). We also have to involve the local ballet school as they are members and recognised in the community.
In my research I've found the following dances menetioned as onees that HF would have done: Gavotte, Minuet, Varsouvianna, Black Hawk Waltz, Blue Pacific Waltz. I think it would be best if I taught some of these to the ballet students and let them perform them during the break. I've not called much contra before - but then I'd never called ECD 22 months ago and now we have a group of 30 regulars and are approaching our second annual dance weekend - so would like some help choosing easier but fun dances to teach to a complete group of newbies. I thought of The Virginia reel, Money musk (done as a triplet with 4 couples as in Scottish) and Chorus Jig. Also the Gay Gordons and Schottische which I have experience teaching to strangers in bars and coffee shops in under 5 mins.
I have an amazing band who can play anything... I just have to come up with a fun programme and would like it to reflect how beautiful and how much fun contra, real contra, can be.
Help? Advice? Feel free to contact me off list at fortmyersdancers(a)hotmail.com
Thanks,
Gillian Carney
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