A light-hearted thumb-saver I like — “The thumb is not a souvenir” Box the Gnat — Larks: when raising your joined hand, use the same force as turning on a light switch
Give & Take can have more connection than most dancers put in. In the walkthrough I say for example (from Joseph Pimentel) (and, I think, as its creator Larry Jennings envisioned it) — "Walk forward, take your partner's free hand. Take a step back to make some tension in those arms; robins, release that tension by zipping across the set into a partner swing." Rick (Philadelphia) On Tue, Jul 30, 2024 at 4:15 AM JJ via Contra Callers < [email protected]> wrote: > One way I like to teach no/loose thumbs is with the line "you are a > delicate rose, not a Venus flytrap," after explaining why it can be > dangerous and uncomfortable to have grippy-thumbs. It always gets a > chuckle, and I think makes the point more memorable. > > My friend Tess Dawkins came up with that line, btw. It's one of my > favorites to pull out 😊 > > On Wed, Jul 17, 2024, 17:25 Julian Blechner via Contra Callers < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> Good hand placement on swings >> >> No/loose thumbs >> >> Flourishes are optional >> >> How to accept or decline a basic Twirl >> >> Looking at the other dancer even if no eye contact >> >> Opportunities for eye contact - especially in dances where you can >> connect and one role follows the other without contact >> >> Looping wide where appropriate (hey for four, other various examples >> where one role has momentum and can flow into another move) >> >> Good shared weight, especially for beginner crowds >> >> End effects, as relevant and not intuitive from the choreo >> >> How to properly do a pushback in a ricochet hey >> >> Spinning the correct way in a petro spin >> >> How a courtesy turn is two people moving as a unit, not one person >> scooping the other around >> >> 1 step per beat of music, forwards usually - (newbs love to side shuffle >> on swings, ya know?) >> >> When a move has extra time to fill, or arrive early, etc >> >> Asking people who sat out to dance >> >> A swing should be smooth, not skipping >> >> Optional swings (like the Shadow thread, or a same role alle R in the >> middle, sometimes) >> >> After walking through a few connected moves, conveying how to flow them >> together >> >> Prolly more, but, I'll stop here. :) >> >> In dance, >> Julian Blechner >> He/him >> Western Mass >> >> On Wed, Jul 17, 2024, 4:24 PM Harris Lapiroff via Contra Callers < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >>> I’m trying to add more style points to my teaching. What are some of >>> your favorite brief style or safety tips to deliver from the mic? Ones that >>> are relevant to specific sequences, general tips, for beginners, or for >>> experienced dancers, I’m interested in any and all of them! >>> >>> Harris Lapiroff >>> >>> Dance Caller and Organizer >>> Boston Intergenerational Dance Advocates Board (Cambridge MA) >>> Pinewoods Camp, Inc Board (Plymouth MA) >>> https://chromamine.com/contra/ >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Contra Callers mailing list -- [email protected] >>> To unsubscribe send an email to >>> [email protected] >>> >> _______________________________________________ >> Contra Callers mailing list -- [email protected] >> To unsubscribe send an email to >> [email protected] >> > _______________________________________________ > Contra Callers mailing list -- [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] >
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