Dear Jack,
I also enjoy this dance. It seems to work well for me as is.
Your question brings up a larger point which is that many, perhaps
most, callers usually fail to teach that critical transition from B2
to A1 during the walk-through. This causes trouble for callers in
many dances. Part of that may come from visualising the dance as a
series of figures. I find it much more helpful to visualize the
dance as a series of transitions (between the figures). Accordingly
I would feel remiss to end my walk-through with the final
figure. What comes next? Most dancers have already forgotten. This
is particularly critical where there is only one walk-through.
At the end of the walk-through I sometimes say something like:
"Right hand turn three-quarters to put the men in the middle, ready
for a left-hand turn...but don't do that! Come back to your original
crossed-over position and we'll do it with music."
"Chuck the Budgie" is an example of a dance that works even better if
you can roll in the music during the walk-through. That is my
preference, if the band is willing.
On my card I write my calls in the context of the tune and as spoken.
B2: _ _ Left Hand Turn to Long Waves _ and Balance
_ _ Right Hand Turn; NEW Gents Left Hand Turn
I hope this helps.
Regards,
Greg McKenzie
********
At 03:51 PM 1/14/2008, you wrote:
Chuck the Budgie by Rick Mohr is a favorite dance of mine (thanks
Rick!), and I've called it pretty frequently. I've noticed that
generally, if there's going to be a problem, it's in the transition
back around to the beginning of the dance (Long Waves, New N
Allemande R A1 New Men Allemande L 1x -- no balance) It feels
different coming from the waves than it does starting from Improper position.
So, a while ago, someone suggested shifting the dance by 2 parts so
that the A becomes the B and vice versa. At the time, I didn't see
the point, but after calling it on Saturday and having serious
problems with that transition, I'm reconsidering. Making this change
would let one walk through cover that transition, rather that having
to do a second for people to feel that transition. Alternately, I
could leave the dance as is, but start the walk through as if it was
a Becket (beginning with long lines in B1 with with your partner on
the side). I'd be interested in any thoughts on either of these
alternatives, or on folks who advocate leaving it as is.
Jack
Here's the dance:
Chuck the Budgie
Rick Mohr
Improper
A1 Men All L 1x
N Sw
A2 CL 3/4
P Sw
B1 LL F&B
Ladies All R 1 1/2
B2 Form Short Waves (Ladies in middle, LH to N)
Balance Waves
Allemande L 3/4 to long waves
Balance Waves
(New N) Allemande R 3/4
(A1 New Men in the middle Allemande L)
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