Contra and Square Dances by Peter Foster

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Updated 11 April 2023. Added the following:

• Star Trek the Next Generation
• Happy Reunion
• Sam and Janet Evening
• Window Shopping
• Four Corners Triplet (triplet)

Here are some of my contra/square/circle dances. See also my sicilian circle dances. Comments are welcome - email pfoster@pcug.org.au

Contras

Written for Rob Mahony.

For Rob's birthday, he had a contra dance party on a train. Dancing in a moving train is definitely an interesting experience!

The dance was written during lunch and first danced on the return journey, so perhaps a more accurate title would be "14:30 to Canberra".

In A1, men do the figure 8 by going clockwise around the person on their right (their previous neighbour, to say goodbye), then anticlockwise around their new neighbour (to say hello)

Women do the figure 8 by going anticlockwise around the person on their left (their previous neighbour, to say goodbye), then clockwise around their new neighbour (to say hello)

Either way, the figure 8 starts with the person you did the final ladies chain with, by walking in front of them.

The caller needs to specify each time whether it is the men or women who do the figure 8. Adventurous callers may even like to try “couple 1 do the figure 8” (so it’s men on one side of the set, women on the other). Good luck!

While it looks straightforward, the figure 8 can be a bit disorienting. It seems easy enough to walk around 2 people and finish where you started, but dancers tend to get themselves lost, especially at the ends of the set. Also, dancers can get confused as to who they are dancing with this time. That is why I suggest actually saying "goodbye" to the old and "hello" to the new.

P.S. Given the name of the dance, it may be approriate that the dance ends with chaining the ladies...

Adapted from An Antipodean Astrophysical Adventure by Alison Scott

The hey is a bit confusing: you balance in line with a couple, but then the hey is with a different couple. And after the final swing, you finish facing yet another new couple (heck, maybe this would be better as a single progression).

This was the first contra I wrote.

Notes

1. "Avenues and alleyways" refers to the two sets of long wavy lines, one up and down the hall (avenues), the other across the hall (alleyways). A single set can still do the dance, but if there are multiple sets then the adjacent sets should join the wavy lines across the hall at the end of B2

2. In B1, the 5/8 hey is a bit unusual: after a normal half hey, the men do one more pass to finish facing their partners (on the man's side). Then the allemande right takes up the rest of the music, to finish in wavy lines across the hall.

3. When doing the allemande right into the wavy lines, it doesn't actually matter if the allemande is 1/2, or 1, or 1+1/2 times around, either way you still end up swinging the correct person. If everyone does it as written then the wavy lines alternate men and women, which is nice but not essential. But telling the dancers that it doesn't really matter will probably only confuse them more.

Al's Safeway Produce by Robert Cromartie is a good dance with one aesthetic flaw: the neighbour swing comes after the partner swing. This dance is basically a slight rearrangement to fix this. I also changed the circle left to a give and take, in order to reduce the clockwise rotation and to increase the partner interaction.

Begin with the last figure, neighbour dosido 1+1/4, to get into a wavy line

Swing through: allemande right 1/2, those in the middle allemande left 1/2

A1 is from Heyllamande by Jim Hemphill

After the balance in A2, face down the hall holding neighbour with right hand in right. Some couples have the woman on the right, some have woman in the left – don’t try to “correct” this! Note that the balance is forward and back (rather than right and left) so that you get on the appropriate side of your neighbour

Optionally (but recommended), also take neighbours left hands to make the low promenade hold (both hands in front). This also makes the turn alone a bit more fun

After the down the hall and back, the front couple turns inward to make the right hand star with the couple behind. It is obvious which couple turns, as you make the star with the couple that includes your partner

This dance has an aesthetic flaw in that the neighbour swing comes after the partner swing. You may prefer to start with B2 and make it a becket

The Condamine is a river in Queensland. The name of the dance is taken from the name of a well known folk song, although the tune is not suitable for the dance. The long wavy line and the down the hall and back can be said to symbolise the meandering and flow of the river, in some suitably obscure way

Dance written to commemorate our new contra dance venue in Condamine Street

In A2, note that the rights and lefts is with hands all the way. It is NOT right and left over and back, it is more like a mini grand right and left.

To do the slice left: take neighbours inside hand and go forward 3 steps on the left diagonal to meet them, then push off directly back to finish facing them

In B1, the end couples take two hands and sashay to the middle and back. Although they tend to come up with lots of variations (eg making arches, or even swapping ends!)

This Galop move is from Gallop Speed by Chris Page. See also Melbourne Cup, for another dance with this move.

Oh, and the name comes from the date the dance was written (my wife's birthday)

After each time through the two couples swap places in their line.

In A1, the men may twirl the women (clockwise) into a swing hold

If you don’t like the right hand star to swing, you can instead do the following:

A1 Men star left halfway to neighbour swing

A2 Give and take (women take)

B1 Give and take (men take)

B2 Circle halfway and balance the ring, then pass through left shoulder

The give and take bit was inspired by Pam Gainsford's Delight by Noreen Grunseit

Triple progression, so no-one is ever out at the top. One downside is that the 1s progress perhaps too rapidly, so you need fairly long sets so that the 1s actually get to do the dance several times.

During the long lines, the 1s do a roll to swap with the NEXT couple. The 1s need to drive this, to make sure that the appropriate people do the roll to swap (the appropriate couple is the one that did not swing in B1. So they don’t get to swing, but they do the roll to swap). The 1s then swing in the middle and face down, ready to restart with two new couples. This roll to swap is the Brexit, where the 1s exit their set to join a new set.

Origins of Brexit Strategy: a caller had presented the traditional triple minor contra British Sorrow, as a comment on his feelings toward the outcome of the Brexit vote. That dance was not particularly interesting, especially as it was single progression. So I looked to make a more jazzed up triple progression version. The result bears only a small relation to the original British Sorrow (the stars, and two half circles rather than a full circle).

I came across a messageboard request for a simple becket dance (glossary moves only) that did not start with a circle left. I came up with this one. It almost fits the bill, the only move that is possibly not straightforward is the california twirl. So the dance is named after it

The cast of stars

This is a continuous movement for the four dancers. Essentially, there is a right hand star that goes around 4 times, but the dancers are continually dropping out and joining back in. Here is a blow by blow description:

The women always join in the star in *front* of their partner. Note that, in the part where the women cross and then cast left, their path is exactly the same as in a ladies chain.

The original dance, by Rob Mahony, is as follows: A1 Balance and swing neighbour, A2 Ladies chain across and back, B1/B2 Cast of stars

The first half gives lots of amusement to the band, as the number 1s try to attract the attention of the third couple.

After A2, a bit of shuffling by man 1 (man 3?) is needed to get into the appropriate lines of 4

This is my third fourth version of this dance (in the first half I changed the circles to stars). I think I'm finally happy with this one. For now, anyway

In this dance you progress along the set and also into the adjacent set. You may also find yourself changing direction - keep alert!

It's a double progression so no-one is out at the top of the set. Make sure that people swing the correct neighbour in A1 (everyone swings a NEW neighbour, not the one they swung at the end of the dance)

It's a double progression in both directions, so this is actually a double double progression

The progression depends on whether the men or women do the allemande in A2. You need to alternate them, otherwise the progression becomes a bit poor (2 men allemandes in a row puts many couples back where they started, while a womens allemande leaves 2 couples stationary). Recommend alternating men and women, eventually leaving it to dancer's choice

Another dance similar to Delphiniums and Daisies by Tanya Rotenberg

B1- Pass through, swing through: this is a pass through to a wavy line (ie women take left hands as they pass, men turn right and take neighbours right hand), followed by allemande right halfway, then men allemande left halfway

The first half of this dance is from Devil's Dream.

Note your neighbour before you start - it's easy to come back to the wrong person...

Dixie Twirl: with everyone still holding hands, centre couple raise their joined hands to make an arch. The two women go under the arch while the two men go clockwise around the outside. The effect is that the line wheels around from facing down to facing up, with the right hand person still on the right of the line.

The Dixie Twirl move is usually done in a line that alternates men and women, so one couple goes under the arch. In this dance it is the two women who go under the arch, so it is a more souped up California Twirl.

In the hey in A1, women should take left hands as they pass. This makes it easy to remake the wavy line

Based on Take Some of the Credit by Chris Page (which was in turn based on Take All of the Credit and None of the Blame by Larry Edelman and Nancy Donahue)

Here is another version, where the main figure is done with partner:

Becket

An alternating dance with double contra corners.

• 1st corner is opp-sex, across & right
• 2nd corner is opp-sex, across & left
• 3rd corner is same-sex, immediate left
• 4th corner is same-sex, immediate right

Each time, the active couple turns partner by the right 3/4, then corner by left once around

The alternating makes this dance a bit confusing. Note also that when the 2s are doing the corners, they are doing it from the "wrong" side (at that point, everyone is improper).

The only thing you do with your partner is a swing – women start by leaving their partner, then not see him again until he suddenly sneaks up behind for the final swing

After the men cross in B2, they can tap their partner on the shoulder, to remind them to turn around

An easy dance that includes the petronella move

End effects are virtually non existent - if you find yourself out the end of the set then you can quickly cross over, but it doesn't really matter if you don't, as the swing in B1 will straighten you out again.

Beware of dizziness - the first 3/4 of the dance is fairly clockwise, which is why it starts with a dosido and swing rather than a gypsy and swing

The dance is named for the date that it was written (11/11/11)

Notes

In A2, be careful not to turn the star too far.

This dance is a variation of Enid's Delight by Philippe Callens, to include some swings. I have come up with many versions of this dance over the years. This is the one I like best.

Use as a final dance for the evening: there is good partner interaction and swinging 2 neighbours each time through means that you will likely meet everyone in the set.

The box circulate was used in Steve Schnur's 24th of June, Don Lennartson's 24th of October, and Tom Lehman's 24th of August and The 24th, Once More. Only that last one has 2 swings, but it is a bit difficult. So I put together an easier 2 swing dance.

This dance has gone through a number of versions, none of which were written on the 24th, so I had to come up with another name.

A slight adaptation of Another Flirty Attempt by Marian Hepburn (it's also awfully similar to Gypsy Hey, below)

A bit of an alternating dance, with first the top couple being brought into the middle, then the bottom couple.

After the swing, the middle couple go straight into the double contra corners. The others need to get into position quickly to facilitate this. In particular, when it is the top couple who are swinging their partner at the start, they need to finish improper.

Adapted from Bashful Bachelor by John Coffman

Written in the car while on a short drive to my parents place.

When men roll their neighbour into the gypsy star, remember to let go of your neighbour...

The star promenade is only a few steps, so that after the roll to a gypsy star you are facing your neighbour more or less across the set. The women then immediately push the gypsy star back the other way, finishing on the side of the set with neighbour (on the opposite side from the neighbour swing)

During the Rory O’More slides, the others must not turn around, just let go of hands and then put the same hand back in to make the next star

Suggest a slide rather than a twirl (less chance of collision – it’s a bit crowded in there)

For the star in B2, men’s hands should be underneath the women’s, to allow for a smooth transition to the swing

The roll to a gypsy star is from Broom in the Trunk by Luke Donforth

Slice left: holding partner's inside hand, advance toward the couple on the left diagonal, then back directly away from them so you are facing them across the set.

In B1, the men follow their partner to the other side, in preparation for the final gypsy and swing. This following of partner is a bit stalker-ish, allowing for a lot of fun.

That stalker move (the gypsy with the men following) is from The Gypsy Chase by Joy Greenwolfe

This is double progression, so there is no waiting out at the top. If there is a spare couple at the bottom, the man and woman re-enter the dance separately

The allemande sequence is from Nelson Madness by Jan Larsen. In that dance, only the men did it. I wanted both men and women to get to do it

The 1s can keep swinging while the others start the dance (this is the hangover). Just make sure that you finish proper in time for the circle.

Note: the grand right and left is fairly quick, with 8 beats to pass 4 people. Dancers should maintain the shape of the set.

For the ladies chains, you may prefer a zestier dance by going two places each time, rather than just one place (there are three ladies chains, so either way you finish back where you started)

Note that during the long lines, your shadow is opposite. Make sure that this is the case, especially when you get towards the end of the set.

This dance is based on Rendezvous by Dan Pearl.

Getting back together after Covid. Just wanted a dance with a surprise reunion with partner

The progression: As the mad robin is completed, dancers look in direction of progression. Ladies would be moving inward and right, continue in this direction to start the hey with next lady. Similarly the gents will be moving back and to the left, continue in this direction and pass your next neighbour outside before looping into the hey

Adapted from Macadamia Nut by Jim Hemphill

Couples reaching the end of the set in A1 should immediately cross over so they can join in for the second half of A2

Slice left: holding partner's inside hand, advance toward the couple on the left diagonal, then back directly away from them so you are facing them across the set.

Note that the two allemande/orbits are not quite symmetric: the women allemande 1+1/2 while the men only allemande once around

A2/B1 is from Rocks and Dirt by Erik Weberg. I wanted to also allow the women to orbit

Based on Heiner’s Circle by Heiner Fischle

Last time: B2 Circle left 3/4 and swing partner

The key to this dance is the final gypsy left into a new neighbour gypsy right, which is a bit like a hey. But make sure the dancers don’t rush that bit.

To turn as a triple: the man with a woman on either side turn as a threesome so that the women swap places: man makes an arch on his right hand side and the women swap over, left hand woman going under the arch. The lone man on the other end simply turns alone

Invert the line: Man 2 (the man on the end of the line) makes an arch with lady 1; lady 2 leads her neighbour under the arch and they swing on their opposite side as man 2 and his neighbour walk to the opposite side to swing

This dance is adapted from The Arcadian Fling by Jim Hemphill

See also Multi Hat Syndrome, for another dance with the invert the line move

To do the slice left: take neighbours inside hand and go forward 3 steps on the left diagonal to meet them, then push off directly back to finish facing them

End effects:

• after the slice left, a spare couple stands across the end of the set, with the woman on the right as usual
• during the galop, any spare couple need to do a solo galop to swap sides (this applies to both the first half and second half of the galop). So during the galop sequence, everyone galops over and back

Note that you do the galop with your neighhhh-bours (can’t write the whinnying sound, but you know what I mean)

The galop sequence is from Cream Coloured Ponies by Keith Wood

In B1, after finishing the promenade, retain neighbours left hand and open out to make the long waves. It is actually a similar action to that in A1

In B1, after doing a normal half hey, the women pass left in the middle one more time to go to their partner

The leap day theme is that various moves are augmented (the allemandes, hey, circle and even the final pass through). This makes it a fun dance to walk through, emphasising the “just a bit more”. Also, after calling “one more time”, then do an additional time through, to again do just a bit more!

It’s actually a fairly ordinary dance, with no neighbour swing and little partner interaction. But for a dance that is only done once every 4 years, you can probably get away with it.

Finally, an obscure trivia question: the dance was written on 24 February of a leap year. What is the significance of this date?

Begin in long wavy lines, right hand with neighbour, men facing out

Similar to Leap Day. This is certainly a better dance, but does not have the “extended” moves

PS It’s also very similar to Camp Sertoma Slide by David McMullen

The hey along the side is done as follows: Pass neighbour left shoulder, gypsy next neighbour by right, pass original neighbour by left, gypsy previous neighbour by right, come back to original neighbour for the third time (dancers wrap around the ends as necessary). Dancers should make a conscious effort to keep level with their partner, who should be directly across the set.

In A2, pick up your partner in a promenade hold and go slightly out to your right (gents passing left shoulder). This should flow easily from A1.

In the promenade around and back, you need to remember your current neighbours so you can come back to them.

Couples waiting out on the end should participate in A1. They will have finished the dance on the "wrong" side (not yet crossed over), but from there they can immediately join in, starting by passing each other left shoulder (while the others are passing their neighbour by the left shoulder).

A1 is from Carol Ormand's dance "Jurassic Redheads". My original version had the hey with your neighbour and 2 next neighbours, but when I saw Carol's dance I thought it was much nicer to do the hey with your next and previous neighbours (it also flows better into A2). Thanks Carol!

P.S. I have since found that Bill Pope has a similar themed dance, "Look, Don't Touch". However, in Bill's dance the "hands off" is limited to your opposite sex neighbour.

Notes

To make the same sex sicilian circle, first make a normal sicilian circle. Then those on the outside swap places with neighbour. You then have a same sex partner, facing 2 opposite sex neighbours, women are facing clockwise, men anticlockwise. This formation was previously used in Laurie’s Reel by Jane Sekulski.

Either the men or women swap sides during the dance. In B1, if the men do the allemande then the women swap sides. And vice versa (so alternate it).

In B2, when making the ring of 4, the couple nearer the middle simply turn alone, do NOT turn as a couple! They may like to go into the middle, then turn alone, so they are facing the other couple on the way back

The name comes from a run that I did that morning, on the trails around Mount Stromlo. Except I misread some signs and ended up in the middle of nowhere, not finishing the race

Caution the dancers not to rush the two mad robins (note that the path taken is like a hey for three on the side)

A1/A2 is from Mad Robin Migration by Jim Hemphill

B2: Start a pass through, but the NEXT men take left hands as they pass and allemande left about 3/4 to return to the side they just came from.

To explain this move, I suggest having everyone start a pass through until all are in a line in the middle. Then have the women continue to pass through and turn to their right as the NEXT men allemande left 3/4. This brings everyone facing their partner for the swing. After the partner swing, finish facing that new couple

The single file march is also in Middlesex March (Tony Parkes) and Brown Bag Reel (Donna Calhoun), although neither of those have neighbour swings

The Melbourne Cup is Australia's biggest horse race. Feel free to rename the dance to a more local race

See also Birthday Galop

Begin in a line of 4, all facing down

Alternating dance – the women and men take turns doing the double contra corners. Note that all 4 corners are opposite sex (except possibly at the end of the set)

• 1st corner is across & right
• 2nd corner is across & left
• 3rd corner is immediate left
• 4th corner is immediate right

With your 3rd and 4th corners, one is your partner, the other a shadow

A note for the caller: if there is a neutral couple at the top then it is the men who do the contra corners. If there is no neutral couple then the women do it.

Suggest having an odd number of couples. Then there will always be a full set of corners to turn

For another alternating dance with double contra corners, see Double Trouble

Contra corners with a same sex person opposite is also done in Precket for Kara by Erik Erhardt, and Alone at the End by Al Olson.

Turn as a triple: the man who is between 2 women does right hand high, left hand low to swap the women while turning around. The solo man does a turn alone

When the line of 4 is coming back up the hall, I suggest that the middle couple make their arch. Then the end people can bend around and go through that arch, with everyone moving continuously (it's also then clear who makes the first arch)

The diagonal ladies chains at the start is where this dance can fall badly apart, especially if people don't finish the dance in a reasonably neat set. To help ensure this, after the final partner swing, make sure you finish opposite the other couple (so facing the neighbour that you swung).

A dance designed to finish with a dip and dive to a partner swing. What happens is that you lose your partner immediately at the start, then don't see them again until they suddenly appear in front of you after the dip and dive

Inspired by A1 by Rick Mohr. Also very similar to Avenues and Alleyways

Monophobia is the fear of being alone - in this dance you are never alone, you are always in contact with someone

Based on Fuzzy Cozy by Linda Mrosko and others

Invert the line: Man 2 (the man on the end of the line) makes an arch with lady 1; lady 2 leads her neighbour under the arch and they swing on their opposite side as man 2 and his neighbour walk to the opposite side to swing

This dance is adapted from Double Hat Syndrome by John Coffman (but the “invert the line” move is by Jim Hemphill)

See also Highly Flung, for another dance with the invert the line move

Re-enter with the woman on the left

Note that the progression happens in A2, when you turn to face (and swing) a new neighbour

The original petronella contra is fairly ordinary: from a proper set, get in diamond formation, then turn and balance (rather than balance and turn), 1s only go down and return to progressed places, rights and lefts over and back. I came up with this version while watching the old one.

The diagonal ladies chain is to a shadow, which should make that part a lot easier. A neutral couple must participate in the diagonal ladies chain

Both swings are with people who are behind you, hence the name of the dance it's fun to call "behind you!").

In all the half figure 8's, woman 1 has precedence.

The half figure 8 is not used much in contra. This may be because it leaves half the people standing still and feels like a "fix up" move, i.e. a move that is done just to get people where you need them. This dance makes the half figure 8 into a theme. Mind you, the final half figure 8 is a bit of a fix up, but it provides a thematic farewell to this couple and flows perfectly into the start of the dance with the next couple.

The original version was written in Jan 1990 as a Scottish Country dance. It has been modified to include a partner swing.

Another box circulate dance. If your dancers are sufficiently zesty, you may prefer to make the allemande in A1 one and a half times (so the box circulate starts with the men facing in)

A bit similar to a number of other dances, hence the name

Push Off Hey:

At the end of the push off hey, you are on the side with your partner, women on the right

The repeated allemandes and men crossing (starting in B) is called the Georgia Rang Tang. The phrasing is a bit loose, the swing at the end will end up being about 12 counts

See also Rang Tang Mixer in the circle mixer section

A straightforward dance with some nice transitions

Variation (it fits in with the rings and twirls theme, but I'm not sure that the dance needs another balance the ring):

B1	(4)	Balance the ring
	(4)	Petronella turn one place right
	(8)	Swing partner (on ladies original side)

The first half of the dance is from Retronella, by Rick Mohr

This is a (better?) alternative to the original becket version (the original went as follows: Star left 3/4 to a new neighbour swing, down the hall and return, double rotunda, petronella and swing partner)

Origins of "Rotunda": during a committee meeting, the discussion turned to beginners and how, to beginners, most calls are meaningless. One of us then made a bunch of nonsense calls as an example. One of them was "double rotunda", and this became a bit of a catchcry for the rest of the meeting. So of course I had to come up with a rotunda move and put it into a dance.

A2 is the round trip, where you wander across the room and return to your own set (of course, if couples are on the edge of the room and facing a wall, they need to promenade around an imaginary couple).

Before starting the walkthrough, make sure the sets are aligned, by having couples take hands in lines across the room

Inspired by Salmonella Evening (written while watching that dance)

The church hall we dance in is used by several dance groups, and was in need of a refinish. This was carried out by a number of volunteer dancers, who happened to have some good renovation skills

There is some symbolism:

• Down the hall is sweeping the floor
• The basket is the sanding
• Dosido and swing is applying the finish
• Long lines is a nothing move, which is waiting around for the finish to dry
• 1s swing is the final polish

This dance tells a bit of a story:

The man goes out with his partner

The man wanders away to check out some other people

He eventually chooses one, after a final once over

His partner decides that enough is enough and drags him home

The dance can be made single progression by doing the initial "half gypsy" (and subsequent star) with the couple across. However, the end effects are much messier.

All moves are 3/4, hence the name. The first time I tried this dance, after the walkthrough I asked how confident people were about doing the dance. One wag responded "about 75%"

The pass through in B1 tends to confuse people - note that you pass by your partner, so you and your partner end up in different stars

In the second half of the dance, if you find yourself out at the end then quickly swap over and face in (so the woman is on the right as usual). Note that this popping out at the end tends to happen unexpectedly.

Note that each of the 3 stars is with a different couple

A2/B1 is from Shoot The Moon by Lynn Douglas. This dance adds a neighbour swing. And another star

I was looking for an easy dance to start the evening so I quickly threw this one together. It probably already exists. (And indeed, the first 3/4 is the same as Marion's Delight by Carol Kopp)

Note: after the star left in B1, everyone will be in the middle of the set. Dancers should take their partners in a promenade hold and move slightly out to the right, passing the other couple on their left (this is the natural way to go after the star left). They then continue anticlockwise around the major set, to the next place.

To get from promenade to swing, gents should turn the ladies out under their joined left hands and then pull into a swing.

This is triple progression, so no one is ever out at the top of the set

Re-enter with the woman on the left.

Make sure that the initial star does not turn too far (call the swing slightly early).

Note: after the first star, retain partner’s right hand and move along the line (men in the lead) to the next couple to again form a right hand star

Adapted from Star Trek by Mike Richardson. That dance has the same star to star transition, but both stars are all the way round, which feels a bit rushed (or maybe our dancers are less expert). Making the second star just 3/4 is more comfortable timing, and also allows for a neighbour swing.

The date inspired me to write a Star Wars themed dance. All I had to do was to come up with an unusual way to use stars. The result certainly fits that description.

Note the left hand star with the adjacent set: if you mess this up, you can cause 2 sets to break down, rather than just one. Think of this as the Death Star.

The interaction between the sets means that the sets need to be fairly close together, so I suggest having one more set than usual. Also, after getting into improper formation, have the couples take hands across the room, to ensure that the sets are aligned correctly

In A2, note that the circle is to the right and the pass through is by the left shoulder, across the set. Yes, this is not a common move.

Oh, and in case you're wondering what the date has to do with Star Wars: "May the Fourth be with you"

Pass through, swing through: this is a pass through to a wavy line (ie women take left hands as they pass, men turn right and take neighbours right hand), followed by allemande right halfway, then men allemande left halfway

Note that in the double figure 8, the end people start by casting as the middle people are doing their cross. Then the middles follow the same sex person

At the end, if the 1s stay on the outside (facing a new couple) and the 2s finish on the inside, then the 2s can start the dance next time through (so 2s will swing in the middle and the line will come up the hall).

It probably flows better by always having the 1s start the dance, but making it an alternating dance makes it more symmetrical. And more farcical.

Turn as a threesome

The man with a woman on either side turn as a threesome so that the women swap places: man makes an arch on his right hand side and the women swap over, left hand woman going under the arch. The lone man on the other end simply turns alone. The result is that you go down the hall with your partner and return with your neighbour.

A double progression dance with contra corners. The double progression means that you will turn contra corners with 2 new neighbours each time. And the quicker progression allows more couples to become active

It is preferable to have odd numbered sets. This has 2 advantages:

1. For the contra corners, all active couples have a complete set of corners
2. You will swing half the neighbours on the way down the set, then the other half on the way up

Rory O’More spins, but to the right both times.

Half the dance is allemandes, half is waves (and swings). Hence the name

B1: Start a pass through, but the women take left hands as they pass and allemande left about 3/4 to return to the side they just came from.

To explain this move, I suggest having everyone start a pass through until all are in a line in the middle. Then have the men continue to pass through and turn to their right as the women allemande left 3/4. This brings everyone facing their partner for the swing

The name of the dance comes from the fact that you swing 2 neighbours each time, but it’s only single progression. So you swing each neighbour twice

This dance has no difficult moves but it is still a bit tricky: going down the hall, and staying there, is a bit unusual! And when it's the 2s that swing, they need to remember to face up for an up the hall. The constant changing to a new neighbour is also disorienting - note that in the up/down the hall, you are *not* with the neighbour you have just swung (you are actually back with your original neighbour).

Note: I was aiming to create a 2 swing dance that had Rory O'More spins with neighbours in long waves. When it was done I noticed that it had some similarities to Tom Lehmann's dance "Waiting for Her". While it was not based on that dance, I decided to give it a related name (presumably, the "waiting" refers to the end of the dance where the women are waiting for the men to cross the set: in Tom's dance, it is the women who cross while the men wait for them).

Note that everyone is dancing throughout B1/B2: if a couple is momentarily out at the end they need to quickly swap sides (if they are on the ball they can do a balance and swap as the others do the balance and twirl/turn).

To do the slice left: take neighbours inside hand and go forward 3 steps on the left diagonal to meet them, then push off directly back to finish facing them. This push off is with a shadow, that is, it will always be the same person.

"The Well Oiled Machine" refers to the last half of the dance, which is supposed to symbolise the meshing of gears with clockwork precision, resulting in being reunited with your partner. If the dance breaks down, the alternative title is "Piston Broke".

Note the dosido in B1. This is ALONG the set, facing up and down. The 1s finish back to back in the middle of the set, woman facing up, man facing down, ready to star with the other couple

In this dance there are 3 bits that the 1s have all to themselves. I suggest shorter sets than usual, so that everyone gets a good go at being couple 1

Adapted from Here’s to the Fiddler by Tony Parkes

The entire B part is the whirligig. Note that after the circle 1/4, you always face your partner, then pass by your partner

The gypsy star is easy to get into: after the final california twirl everyone reaches for the new couple with their spare hand. This automatically makes the gypsy star (incidentally, women appreciate a gypsy star in which the *men* go backward!)

The whirligig is from Whirligiggin’ Around by Cis Hinkle

Slice left: holding partner's inside hand, advance toward the couple on the left diagonal, then back directly away from them so you are facing them across the set.

The name comes from the fact that you spend a lot of time looking at your neighbour before finally swinging them.

There are a number of dances in this collection with the sequence men allemande left 1+1/2, half hey, gypsy and swing partner. In this dance it is the women who do the turn in the centre

The dance is slightly harder than it looks, due to the change in orientation in B2.

Note the sequence ladies chain/circle/ladies chain on the other axis. This reminded me of Gene Hubert's dance "Boomerang", which has the sequence pass through across/circle/pass through up and down. For this new dance a related name seemed appropriate. "Woman's Boomerang" looks a bit silly, but the similar sounding "Woomera" fits the bill beautifully (a woomera is a hooked stick, used by Australian aborigines to throw spears). A pronunciation note: the oo in woomera is short, as in "look".

(P.S. I have another dance, "called "Throwing Sticks", that includes both sequences, but I haven't yet tried it out yet)

Squares

All Chain: Women do a 4 ladies chain while the men trade places by the right hand to courtesy turn whatever lady comes his way. Note that the men continue in the same direction around the set. Men do a total of 3 passes, finishing opposite from where they started the dance

Do heads, heads, sides, sides. When the sides are leading they face their right hand couple, so then the men will be going in the other direction.

Note that in the transition from right and left to the All Chain, the lead women have a bit further to go to get into their right hand star. Also in the All Chain, the men need to wait until the women have started their right hand star before they can do their right hand change.

This is a keeper, so you finish with your original partner, but progressed to the next place around the square. For the final swing, make clear that you mean the ORIGINAL partner

B2: the cross trail is like a right and left without hands: pass through by the right shoulder, then men turn right and women turn left, and pass that person by the left shoulder. Alternatively, just do Right and Left. then the next move (the dosido and swing) is done with the next person around (could call them your corner, but for some people it is their original partner, so that may cause some confusion)

C2: the couple in couple 1s place are the leaders (but note that they are not actually partners). Everyone promenades halfway around, then when the leaders get to the bottom they come straight up the middle, everyone else still following them to finish in a longways set, men on one side and women on the other. All stay facing the front, ready for the next move

D: for the cast off, leaders separate, going behind their own lines, and all follow the leader. When the leaders meet down the bottom, they start a progressive grand right and left. Everyone will meet their original partner at the same time (after going about 3/4 around the set). Then everyone swing partner and square up in progressed positions

The promenade probably won’t finish quite in time, but that doesn’t matter: it can finish while the cast is starting, so everyone gets to keep moving continuously

The D part is from Teakettle by Ron Buchanan

Women are stationary, men have progressed left one place.

Here is a slightly different start:

(Note that after the swing you still face down for the line of 8)

This then results in the men being stationary while women progress right one place

Sequence: 8 times in total, alternating the 2 starts (so after 4 times through you are reunited with your partner on the opposite side of the set. Feel free to do a break at that point)

The start of the dance is rather confusing. It's easy to turn the stars too far or not far enough. It's also easy for the wrong couple to star with their side couple. Emphasise that it is couple 1 who do both stars

Dance a square and finish by progressing (with partner) into a new square. You will keep your partner, but dance in squares all over the hall.

To set it up have each square join hands in a ring, then line up the squares in rows and columns. Make sure they're straight, with no gaps. Spare couples can also be accommodated: they just stand around the edge somewhere and join in at B2.

Note that in A2, the basket can go any distance. It is good to have it vary a bit, as it better mixes up the couples. Note that, after the basket, the forward and back allows a further opportunity to square up.

The dance is named for the Glenloch Interchange, one of Canberra's more interesting intersections

Notes (lots of notes - read them all before trying this dance!)

Dance a square and finish by progressing (with partner) into a new square. You will keep your partner, but dance in squares all over the hall.

To set it up have each square join hands in a ring, then line up the squares in rows and columns. Make sure they're straight, with no gaps. Spare couples can also be accommodated: they just stand around the edge somewhere and join in at B2.

Note that the timing in B1 is a bit sloppy. The promenade is less than halfway around, so it doesn't take very long. However, well behaved contra dancers like to take the full 8 steps so that they start the next figure on the beat. For this dance, that doesn't work very well: there is 16 steps to do a short promenade, a ladies chain and an extra half turn. In order to fit, the dancers must be instructed to do the ladies chain as soon as the promenade is done. Emphasise this point.

Each time through, the dancers will finish on the opposite side of the set and progress in that direction, so that they progress either up and down the hall or across the hall. BUT... (here's the good bit) in A2 there is a simple variation to swap the heads and sides: grand right and left to person number 4 (rather than number 3). This results in a slightly longer promenade but a shorter ladies chain (the ladies chain is then only one place around, the call is "ladies chain to partner"). Since this swaps the heads and sides, couples will then progress on the other axis. Note that the timing of B1 will then be slightly different, but again it all fits into a 16 count phrase.

The first few times through the dance, the caller can specify the number of hands in the grand right and left, either 3 or 4 (I suggest the sequence 3, 3, 4, 3, 3, 4 etc). After people are comfortable with the dance and no longer need prompting (so the caller can shut up), each individual set can decide for themselves how far they will go (ie someone in each set simply shouts out "third person" or "fourth person"). This gives a nice erratic progression. (Incidentally, if you are feeling courageous, try calling out "second person". This results in a very short promenade and a long ladies chain. It also rotates the set, but in the other direction. The very last time the caller can say "fifth person". Guess what that does).

Ideally, the number of sets should be enough to make a nice solid block (eg 9 sets arranged 3x3 or 12 sets arranged 3x4 or 15 (3x5) or 16 (4x4) etc). Then any additional couples can promenade around the outside and come in at a fairly random location. This, together with each set individually deciding how they will progress, makes for a wonderfully wild progression, truly a "magical mystery tour".

Sequence: couple 1, sides, couple 2, break (with progression), couple 3, heads, couple 4, all

The original Nelly Bly has swing corner, then promenade partner. That feels a bit odd to me, so in this one you stay with your corner and get a partner change. Of course, a partner change makes it a bit trickier to give everyone a go at leading the figure, hence the fairly unusual sequence. Note that the break also needs to have a partner change, which gets you back to your original partner (I usually use forward and back; swing corner, swing the next; swing the next, swing the next; swing the next, promenade; forward and back)

The promenade is just under once around. If you would prefer a slightly longer promenade (just over once around) then promenade to the woman's home instead

Do with the heads leading twice, then the sides leading twice (when the sides lead, make side lines rather than head lines).

>From the name of the dance, you can probably figure out the date it was written...

The star-chase move is easy for the women, they simply follow the man in front of them

St Patrick's Hangover also uses the star-chase sequence (or half of it anyway)

Do 4 times: heads twice then sides twice

Note: with the corner dosido and swing, finish the swing with the woman on the right. Both men and women progress in these swings (for example, the first of these dosido and swings, in C1, is on the corner of the set). The 3 corner swings therefore progress you nearly halfway around the set. The final promenade is just under once around.

Circle Mixers

In A2, the left hand turn with corner can be either 1 or 1+1/2. If you go 1+1/2 then you will swap places with that person so your single file march will be in the other direction (and with men on the outside, women on the inside).

I walk through the dance twice, first doing the single turn, then the 1+1/2 turn. It is then dancer's choice, each time through, whether to turn once or 1+1/2 (in practice, dancers do a quick right hand turn, then turn left hand several times around).

Based on Larry's Mixer, by Larry Jennings

As in Larry's Other Mixer, the right hand turn in A2 can be either 1 or 1+1/2. This will likely result in meeting some same sex people in the grand right and left.

A variation of Larry's Other Mixer

If you don't find anyone for the swing then go into the middle, where you will then find a new partner. So the middle of the circle becomes a kind of lost property office

Adapted from Chris & Lisa Found Each Other by Grant Goodyear

A scatter mixer version of Rang Tang Contra. I actually prefer this one over the contra.

Note: I have since come across two very similar dances: Rings of Spring by Chris Ricciotti and Mash-Up Mixer by Chris Page

Zia Formation Dances

Zia formation is a combination of both square and contra in a single dance. The simplest has a single square, with a contra set extending from each side (or think of it as 2 intersecting contra lines, with a square at the intersection). If there are more people then you can have multiple contra lines, intersecting to make multiple squares.

The dance is designed so that the same calls apply to both the contra and the square. Dancers progress along the contra line until they reach the square. The square rotates one place so that couples progress to a different contra line.

Zias are usually double progression. This means that the square appears each time through the dance. Also, since double progression also progresses dancers more quickly through the contra lines, it means that dancers get lots of goes at the square. This is highly desirable, as the whole point of a zia is to experience both contra and square in a single dance.

Bob Isaacs has a document about Zia dances. There is a link to this document at the Callers Mailing List.

There are 2 issues with Zia dances:

1. They tend to have slightly unorthodox choreography. For example, swings are in the middle of the set, and ladies chains are along the set
2. There is a bit of a "shadow" effect: since couples follow each other around the set, you tend to keep meeting the same couples in the contra lines

The dances in this section address both of these problems:

1. The contra still feels like a normal contra. That is, figures are done as they are normally done in contra. So swings are on the side of the set, ladies chains are across the set
2. To reduce the shadow effect, there is a bit of variation built into the square, so that it does not always progress the same way. So you may progress one place clockwise, while a following couple may progress across the square

The dance starts with a corner gypsy and swing. In the contra, "corner" actually means "neighbour". You may prefer to use neighbour instead, as long as those in the square know what it means

In A2, the contra people promenade as normal, across to the other side. In the square, the promenade is about half way round. It’s actually either 3/8 (so the women end up opposite to where they started) or 5/8 (so the men end up opposite to where they started). It is actually preferable to have the dancers mix it up a little, so that sometimes it goes just under halfway, and sometimes it goes just over halfway

In B2, the gate is done as follows: Drop hands with the others, just retain partner’s hand. Then the woman acts as a gatepost, turning more or less on the spot as the man moves forward and to the right (clockwise) about a quarter of the way around. This leaves you facing out, facing the couple in the next set, ready for the balance and pass through.

A1: In the square, this is a star 3/4 around to your far corner. In the contra this is an allemande once around to a neighbour swing (but calling it as 3/4 should not confuse people)

B2: The "Square the Set" move is from Irish set dancing. Here is a description for the square set. The contra is the same, except they do it as a half set so they have less distance to travel:

• take partner in waist shoulder hold (just open up from the swing)
• as a couple, lead out to the right (turning clockwise 1/4) and face out of the set in that couples place (all four couples move at once, so there won't be a couple there when you get there). This takes 4 steps
• you will meet a couple from the adjacent set, so advanced dancers may choose to clap their spare hand with that couple (clap on the fourth step)
• progress another place around the set, this time moving backwards while turning clockwise 1/4. This leaves you opposite to where you started this figure, facing into the set. This also takes 4 steps
• again go out to the right to the next place (4 steps)...
• ... but now pass through with that couple to progress (4 steps)

Note that the square progresses differently according to who starts the figure in A1: if the men start the figure then the square progresses straight ahead, but if the women start then the square progresses to the right. So couples will get shuffled a bit better, reducing the shadow effect

In this zia, the contra is normal, keeping your partner. But in the square you pick up a new partner, to dance with during the next contra bit. In A2, the ladies chain leaves you with your new partner – remember who it is!

A1: In the square, this is a star 3/4 around. In the contra this is an allemande once around to a neighbour swing (but calling it as 3/4 should not confuse people)

A2: The circle left 4 places is either all the way (contra) or halfway (square)

This dance is very similar to Suburban Mayhem, above. See that dance for a description of the "Square the set" figure

The name refers to a train switching yard, where trains are separated into carriages, which are then recombined into different trains. Which perfectly describes the mechanics of this dance

In the contra, the moves are normal:

• A1 – the circle is once around
• B1 – the star promenade is across the set

In the square, it doesn’t matter much how far the circle and star promenade go. Depending on how far they go, the square progresses either straight ahead or to the right