Just recently I was asked by a gentleman (my partner in the dance) to wait for him for the star promenade (being one of those ladies who started across the set). After several practice rounds, I had to agree that it was more "satisfying" to make the connection with him on my side of the set and travel with him through the promenade across and then the BF twirl.
However, we had some room up and down the lines. There were times when I had to dodge the oncoming lady from the neighboring 4-some which made the Star promenade less fun for me. In the future if I'm dancing a contra dance I would probably decide to "wait or to go" depending on how crowded the hall was. BTW, if I'm dancing a Star Promenade in a square I wait to be scooped up by my partner since there are no opposing ladies to bump into. Donna Hunt In a message dated 2/8/2012 7:01:23 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, [email protected] writes: I have been reading these complaints about ladies who start across the set with great interest, having hitherto been one of those ladies. I'll certainly try not to be one in the future... BUT BUT the reason is that there is NO ROOM for the star promenade until you get past the lady coming at you from the opposite direction in the next set. Shall I give the gentleman a satisfying bit of whirling and get myself clocked by the oncoming lady's shoulder? Shall I hang back and make us late? Or shall I go forward and be there when the gentleman gets there? ALSO - many times the gentlemen are late in deciding what to do, or they've run into traffic, so they're often not there at the moment you should be starting that portion of the promenade. Beginning across the set before the gentleman gets there is usually simply another attempt to stay with the music. After listening to you all, I would be remiss in not attempting to hold back and wait for the gentleman to come pick me up. I shall do so henceforth, earnestly and in good faith, and I shall report my injuries, if any, to my shoulder or to my sense of timing, to you in the future. M E On Wed, Feb 8, 2012 at 5:28 PM, Marlin Whitaker <[email protected]> wrote: > What Amy said. Hear, hear. > > It is very unpleasant to arrive at the spot where I am supposed to meet a > lady to start a star promenade but find her already part way across the > set, so I have to chase her to try to catch up with her. Usually that > happens in time for the butterfly whirl, but that's too late to have the > "satisfying, connected" star promenade that Alan is looking for. > > -- Marlin > > > On 02/08/2012 12:55 PM, Amy Cann wrote: > >> Hmmm. I agree with everything below except for: >> >> As to the star promenade/butterfly whirl, the non-allemander* should be >>> >> moving before the person he/she is going to promenade with gets there. * >> >> >> This may be true in some cases, but I think the caller needs to be careful >> here - I would choose >> >> "be ready to be swept up" instead. >> >> I have very clear memories of dancing the inside part of a star promenade >> and having a VERY unsatisfying time of it, just like in the original post. >> The main problem? The outsides kept "helping" me by starting to walk round >> the star before I got there and really latched on. >> >> It didn't feel like a mini, gentle, star-shaped game of crack-the-whip, it >> felt like a bunch of outsides promenading around a little track while the >> insides trotted to catch up, their inner hands hooked together in a tangle >> that had no functional purpose. >> Bleh. >> >> >> >> >> The ones that felt the best were the ones that waited until my arm was >> truly around their waist, and then *hung back a little* . >> >> When dancing the outside, it felt to me that "giving weight behind myself" >> made it work best. >> >> >> Just my two cents. >> Oh, and BTW: >> >> >> >> calling Amy Cann's "Sweet Music" (*great* dance), >>> >> Nope. :) >> >> I mean, yep, it is a great dance, but -- >> >> Amy Kahn, rhymes with "John", lives in western NY and wrote the dance >> "Sweet Music". >> Amy Cann, rhymes with "Dan", lives in Vermont and wrote the tune >> "Catharsis" and the dance "High Five." >> >> Cheers, >> Amy >> ______________________________**_________________ >> Callers mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://www.sharedweight.net/**mailman/listinfo/callers<http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers> >> > > ______________________________**_________________ > Callers mailing list > [email protected] > http://www.sharedweight.net/**mailman/listinfo/callers<http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers> > -- As you set out for Ithaka, pray that your journey be long, full of adventure, full of discovery... May there be many summer mornings when, with what pleasure, with what joy, you enter harbors you're seeing for the first time. ~Constantine Cavafy, "Ithaka" 1911 _______________________________________________ Callers mailing list [email protected] http://www.sharedweight.net/mailman/listinfo/callers
