swinging... ;)

[jay]

Double progression. Balance and swing, Hey-for-4, Star-left, chain through to a courtesy turn, right-through-to-an-ocean-wave... swinging around fast enough to get dizzy. All moves I've learned two weeks ago and today, going to a 3-hour contra dance workshop in SF. Most confusing was the third dance today, when the #1 couples were sent out of the room, the #2's taught the dance by the caller, and then the #1s returned to be taught *only* by the #2s, while actually dancing. I was a #2 lead, blanked and threw my quad into chaos. (blush)

It did get better... I was the only beginner in the room, which surprised me. It was taught by a visiting caller from Boston (Chris Ricciotti) who did a great job of giving tips and suggestions and challenging the experienced dancers there (nearly all had been dancing for years) while giving me enough explanation to allow me to learn the dance moves. The last couple of dances were complex, enough so to give the other dancers some difficulty. But... the transitions were interesting, once it starts moving it's like... a roller coaster, swinging and swirling seamlessly and flowing up and down the two lines. I noticed my pre-planning and eye contact improving, and was praised as a fast learner :).

Afterward.... I went over to Berkeley, and had Ethiopian food at a new restaurant with tenacious_snail, whom I'd met at the dance.

Comments

[elissaann.livejournal.com]

I love the idea of the mystery dance for the #1's.

That definitely sounds like a workshop for experienced dancers! Yay you for getting through it.

As you've probably figured out by now, the gent is not actually the lead, except in deciding when the swing ends (and I'll take over that decision if I think we're going to be late for the next move). All four people (and the caller and the band) are leading the dance, which is one of the things I love about it. If I space out, there are 3 people ready to get me back to reality; conversely, I can make things go easier for another dancer with a head nod or hand gesture.

[brian1789.livejournal.com]

This was a "gender-free" dance, hosted by a LGBT group, so it was called as "leads" and "bares" (no armband) rather than gents and ladies. And it's just a positional term... I was being lead by the more experienced dancers!

I usually default to ending swings a bit early, rather than risk being out of position.

[tenacious-snail.livejournal.com]

There was one guy that I danced with a few times that I noticed I often ended up out-of-position after swinging with him. Only after noticing that someone else he was dancing with have the same problem, I realized that it probably wasn't my fault/my confusion. I mentioned it to him, he seemed to appreciate it, and was able to correct his swings. Yay for you for realizing that a little less swinging, while less fun, also means less confusion, and that is better for all the dancers.

note to non-Bay Area folks: this dance was associated with the Lavender Country and Folk Dancers

[brian1789.livejournal.com]

I have a history of being willing to forgo my own fun at socialk events in order to enable the group to work together less awkwardly. ;)