Well. Yes. I can see how many folks feel. Many of us encounter rolling eyeballs when we tell our friends about contras and we feel compelled to assure them that: "No. Its NOT like the goofy square dancing you learned in Jr. High. It's NOT about bouncing up and down, waving your arms, and making foolish animal sounds. Its actually very cool and you'll feel comfortable doing it."
Then, when we finally drag these folks to a contra dance, the caller does one of "those" dances.
Is this being "limited" or "close-minded" (as one caller once referred to me)? Maybe.
If you want to see real "closed mindedness" just try fitting one simple mosh pit slam dance with recorded screaming rock music--for just ten minutes--into your contra dance program.
The point is that "folk dancing" is an extremely "limited view" of what dancing should be. Contra dance is an extremely "limited view" of what folk dancing should be. And "folk music" is an extremely "limited view" of what music should be.
On the whole, I would venture to say that in many ways contras are more open to variation than most "folk dancing." We have seen electronic instruments sneak in along with non-traditional percussion (such as trap drum sets), and many variations of dance figures.
Personally I think that the beauty, magic, and sustainability of contra dance comes precisely from the limits of the tradition that governs it. It is within that rigid traditional structure that people feel safe, and free enough to open themselves to others and to connect in extraordinary ways. This is not to say that I am a "traditionalist" by any means. But we should not try to "change the direction" of that tradition without a clear idea of what our common purpose is.
The real question is: What is your purpose? And what is the purpose of the majority of those who attend? Are you trying to "preserve a tradition," to "open folks to other dance traditions," or simply "to offer an open community social dance with live music," or a combination of all those. ...Or are we doing something else entirely? The answer will surely vary for each dance series or event.
This is a question seldom discussed yet it seems to be a central issue regarding how we organize dances and what the role of the caller is. I think that discussion would be very useful.
What is the purpose of our event and what is the caller's job in realizing that purpose?
Perhaps if we answered that question we might come to a better understanding of why we sometimes get "hairy eyeballs" when we wander off into some more "limited" goal.
Just a thought, Greg McKenzie ********* Winston Wrote:
I think I'd believe how much of a hairy eyeball you got. There are a lot of people with very limited views of what ought to happen at a contra dance, and they're not shy about letting you know. [I once saw somebody yell "English!" and refuse to do a bouree balance (not unlike an English setting step) in what was otherwise a perfectly conventional longways duple improper contra.] (Wide assortment of *reasons* for not liking what they don't like, and not being willing to give a chance to what they don't know they won't like. It's hard to influence the program and the dancer attitude very much if you're not the main caller, and if your desire to change the direction isn't shared by other callers. But anyway, if half of 'em sit down and grumble for squares, getting them to do a dorky (in a good way) scatter mixer to non-Celtic, non-old-timey, non-New-Englandy music is going to be a challenge.) -- Alan -- =============================================================================== Alan Winston --- [email protected] Disclaimer: I speak only for myself, not SLAC or SSRL Phone: 650/926-3056 Paper mail to: SSRL -- SLAC BIN 99, 2575 Sand Hill Rd, Menlo Park CA 94025 =============================================================================== _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list [email protected] http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
