Type: Contra, Becket CW/Left
Status: Proven
I was reviewing candidate dances for the 2017 New England Folk Festival, and this dance literally wrote itself. It came to me in a straight stream of consciousness, in a little under a minute. Despite the date, that’s not an April Fool’s joke – don’t you wish they all came that easily? 🙂
This is one of a series of dances I’ve written featuring a Hole in the Wall* move taken from English Country Dance. Like Mad Robin, this is not a literal lift of the move here but rather a modification for contra dance use. For other compositions with a similar move, see my The Love Pirate & Ladies, Whirled, Linda’s Gifts, Give the Gents a Whirl and Another Gent-le Whirl dances.
Emphasize with the dancers that the Hole in the Wall bit takes a full 8 beats or it’s likely they’ll rush it (by design, the circle and swing can absorb that). One way to do this would be to tell them it’s effectively a hands-free Long Lines Forward & Back – except you swap facing direction with your Neighbor halfway through. Having a partner target for the left diagonal chain helps anchor dancers.
A1
(4,4) Slice Forward on left diagonal, Fall Straight Back
(8!) Hole in the Wall* (with N straight across – “Go Forward, Neighbor Swap, Fall Back”), look away from Partner
A2
(6) Circle Left 3/4 (w/same N & your shadow)
(10) Neighbor Swing
B1
(8) Left Diagonal Ladies Chain (to P)
(8) Half Hey Ladies Pass Right (straight across)
B2
(4,12) Partner Balance & Swing
End effects: When ejected for the circle, swing your neighbor on the left diagonal and be ready for the Ladies Chain. Wait out with your Partner on left diagonal to enter via the slice.
*Hole in the Wall: Borrowed from an English Country Dance move, you walk forward 3 steps to face N across, Gypsy Right 1/2x to swap places with the Neighbor and back out 3 steps. It’s very similar to a hands-free Long Lines Forward & Back (with the same cadence) – except you change places/facing direction with your Neighbor in the middle. For contra dancers, I call this with something like “Forward, Neighbor Swap, Fall Back” – I avoid using Hole in the Wall to limit the terms in play.
First called by me at the Monday Contras series at the Concord, MA Scout House on 6/5/17.