On hands four and crossing over:
Ron,
I've had the same experience - I'm not sure if I forgot to tell
people in the beginner session (when I usually do it, like Chris)
that when they became ones or twos at the top or bottom, that they
should wait out and cross over, or whether I had some newcomers that
missed the instruction, but I remember a couple popping out at the
top and then racing to the bottom of the set to start over. Quite fun
to watch. So I definitely try to make sure if I can that newcomers
aren't clueless.
And Richard, I'm certainly not going to stop saying "Hands four from
the top", especially since in a lot of places I've called, even if
the dancers start to line up crossed over, it just doesn't seem to
propagate all the way down the line, and the people at the bottom
have no idea what group they are in. The fact that some partners are
running around getting a drink or whatever and leaving gaps in the
line makes it particularly difficult for people to figure out what
group they're in if hands four (or three (or two!) plus ghost(s))
isn't done. Sometimes if people are being particularly slow I just
say "do-si-do your neighbor (whatever the dance) and everyone
suddenly rushes about trying to figure out who their neighbor should
be - then I say - OK, that was just to identify your neighbor, now
this is the dance.
Oh, and Chris, I suspect that the dancers line up proper here in San
Diego because over the years the callers here have called proper
dances frequently enough that our dancers wait to find out what we
are up to. I do try to make sure mine are fun ones with double
progressions or both ones and twos swinging their partners, for
example. Hey, and you've called a number of 2's crossed over recently
- which is easier to instruct if they haven't crossed over yet.
Martha
On Dec 1, 2010, at 5:51 PM, [email protected] wrote:
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Today's Topics:
1. Telling couples to switch at the end of a contra set (Mark
Widmer)
2. Re: Telling couples to switch at the end of a contra set
(Ron Nelson)
3. Re: Telling couples to switch at the end of a contra set
(Richard Fischer)
7. Re: Telling couples to switch at the end of a contra set
(Chris Page)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2010 16:37:08 -0800 (PST)
From: Mark Widmer <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Subject: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end of a contra
set
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Hey, I was wondering what other callers thought about the
following: often, during the walkthrough of the 1st contra dance of
the evening, the caller explains that dancers should trade places
with their partner whenever they reach the end of the set
However, I never do this, and have never had a problem as a result
-- the experienced dancers in the set, apparently, are able to get
the new dancers to do this, and nobody has ever complained to me
that I didn't instruct dancers to switch
I have wondered what others thought about this -- my own thinking
is why take time to explain something when it isn't necessary?
Regards,
Mark Widmer / central NJ
------------------------------
Message: 2
Date: Thu, 2 Dec 2010 00:43:18 +0000
From: Ron Nelson <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end of a
contra set
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Hi Mark,
One unintended consequence of not covering the end effect on the
walk through that happened when I was calling was to have the top
couple dash to the bottom of the set to get back into the action.
Ron Nelson
Chula Vista, CA
------------------------------
Message: 3
Date: Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:55:32 -0500
From: Richard Fischer <[email protected]>
To: [email protected], Caller's discussion list
<[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end of a
contra set
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
And a related question: when will callers stop saying "Hands four
from the top, number ones cross over"--in acknowledgement that
improper formation is the default for modern contras? I'm curious
how many callers have already stopped saying that. Or to put the
question another way, in how many dance communities do dancers line
up inproper and not expect a reminder to "cross over" and be in
improper formation?
Richard
------------------------------
Message: 6
Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2010 20:41:04 -0500
From: Donald Primrose <[email protected]>
To: "Caller's discussion list" <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end of a
contra set
Message-ID:
<[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
The prompt "hands four from the top" should always be said, I would
never assume, nor do the dances I call on a regular basis make that
assumption. The instruction.. Cross over when at the foot of the set..
I leave out of my walkthroughs.. and they have always figured it out.
On occasion when calling in a new venue and I see dancers
automatically lining up improper.. I call hand six, it keeps them
focused. I call many proper dances (chestnuts) in any given night
keeping the dancers connected to the music the dance and our shared
history.
Don Primrose / Nelson NH
------------------------------
Message: 7
Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2010 17:51:28 -0800
From: Chris Page <[email protected]>
To: "Caller's discussion list" <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [Callers] Telling couples to switch at the end of a
contra set
Message-ID:
<[email protected]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
I dunno. I'm happy to encourage them to automatically take
hands four -- it saves me the hardest part of my job if they
can organize without my prompting. When I do call triple
minors I just remember to start announcing hands six
early in the line-up phase.
Interestingly enough in San Diego, the dancer default
is to line up proper, even though it's unusual for a
proper dance to be called.
As for the original question, adding "ones cross over"
while they take hands four isn't time you could be saying
anything else, as people are still getting organized and
aren't in place for the first move of the dance.
I tend to talk about crossing over at the ends during the
beginner's session, rather than the first dance. Though if
they've heard it, they have some context as experienced
dancers are waving to them to trade sides.
-Chris Page
San Diego
------------------------------
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End of Callers Digest, Vol 76, Issue 1
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