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Dance Technique: Enjoy Dancing Better
Chippenham Folk Festival, 2006 I dance because I enjoy it. Admittedly there are times when I find I'm not enjoying it, and it's interesting to analyse why not. Often it's to do with my expectations not being met. If I'm at a children's dance I'm not expecting them to be brilliant dancers, but I am expecting them to have a go and put plenty of life into it. If those expectations are met, I enjoy myself. At a Playford Ball I expect the dancers to have a reasonable idea of how to get through the dances; at a workshop I expect the caller to do some teaching on how to dance better. If those expectations are not met, I don't enjoy myself. Of course there are other factors — if I'm dancing with a particularly lovely partner I can forgive the caller and band quite a lot! So what's this about “Enjoy Dancing Better”? I'm afraid some people would see that as contradictory — “I came here to enjoy myself, not to be told how to dance”. But would you say that if you joined a Tennis Club or a Painting Class? Surely you'd expect the coach or teacher to advise you on how to play or paint better — and yet you're still there to enjoy yourself. I believe very strongly that if you dance better you'll enjoy it more — and so will your partner and the whole set you're dancing in. I'm not talking about being flashy, putting in extra twiddles to show people how clever you are, looking superior — a good dancer doesn't do that. I'm talking about: dancing in an appropriate style, knowing where you're going, fitting it to the music, recovering well, and helping other people when necessary. And I'm aiming this session at dancers of all levels: no matter where we are, we can always improve. So let's look at those points in a little more detail, and then we'll try to incorporate some of it into the dances.
Dancing in an appropriate style
There's no one dance style which is right. I see people in England dancing a reel of four in an American contra with a skip-change step, and to me that's totally out of place. Conversely I see people plodding through a Scottish dance which really does need a skip-change step. I see people swinging in hornpipe rhythm — a step-hop — using a ballroom hold, and I think it must be most uncomfortable. If you asked them why they were doing these things they'd look at you blankly — or perhaps angrily — and what would they say? Probably “Mind your own business”. They wouldn't see what you were getting at. No-one's every told them what goes with what; there are so few callers who do any teaching of style or steps these days.
Knowing where you're going
Always useful. People who have been dancing a long time usually do know where they're going, and would be surprised that I consider them not-very-good dancers. But if you're a newcomer to all this, knowing where you're going is the top priority — the style can come later.
Fitting it to the music
This one baffles me — maybe because I was a musician before I was a dancer. I genuinely can't understand why some people do a move which gets them to the right place far too soon and then wait for the band to catch up. I might do it once, but I'd realise it, and next time I'd take smaller steps or use a wider track. The same with a dance where the ones lead down the middle, turn and lead back, then cast around the twos. I know people who will take eight steps to lead down and turn, eight steps to lead back, and then be surprised that there's no music left for the cast. And they do this all seven or nine times through the dance!
Recovering well
A good dancer isn't one who never goes wrong, but one who recovers well. Some people just give up as soon as they've gone wrong — as if they've already failed the exam so what's the point of trying any more. We'll be looking at that.
Helping other people
You're not dancing on your own — you're dancing with a partner, and in a set. Wanting other people to dance better, or even just to do the dance right — this is a much trickier problem. I dance with The Round in Cambridge: it's a university group so they have an influx of new members each academic year. It got back to me that a couple of people had complained about me pushing them around and didn't want me in their set. I was horrified — I'd thought I'd been helping people and obviously I hadn't at all. So maybe I'm not the one to advise you, but the recommended technique (which I have to learn) is to indicate the way to go without touching them or saying anything. Of course if the touching fits into the dance that can be fine — you can hand your partner into a figure eight for instance — but rather than grabbing hold of someone it's much better to point in the right direction or indicate with your eyes. And sometimes they won't get it, and you'll just have to accept that you couldn't help them — better that than getting them through the dance correctly but leaving them feeling that they never want you in their set again.
So let's try dances in various different styles, and I'll see if I can help you to enjoy dancing better.
Moving Pieces American contra by Dave Colestock
So the style is American, which means basically a walk, but a positive walk rather than a plod. However, it starts with a Rory O'More balance and spin. Callers in the States get to this point and say, “As in the dance Rory O'More…” but I doubt whether many of the people they're talking to have ever danced it. However, the move is used in many new dances. When Americans balance a wave they usually balance right and left (even when the caller says forward and back). They do it with significant eye-contact — in fact it can be quite intimidating! And they don't do an English-style setting movement with a with a “one, two-three and one, two-three”. Instead they come down hard on the leading foot, bring the other foot up to it, and leave out the change of weight on “three”. Try it. The spin in fact is optional — the original dance had a slide across face to face — but most contra dancers do it. In England a fair percentage of people spin the wrong way. It's not a cast, it's the complete opposite; you pull your right shoulder back as you move to the right. It's a travelling turn single if you want to put it in Playford terms. Philippe Callens said recently that virtually all the spinning needs to be done on the first two steps, or you find yourself stepping back on the third step which is not helpful. Get your shoulders turning, lean into it slightly, and just go for it. The balance is preparation for the spin; without that it's harder work. And the second half is a balance left and right, so surely you can see that you need to spin by pulling your left shoulder back this time. And yet some people spin clockwise both times.
You can help other people (and yourselves) by pushing off their hand to start the spin, and by catching them again with the other hand as you finish it. But don't think of turning them — remember the spin replaces a slide face-to-face, not a turn.
The turns come next: you need to give some weight and flow smoothly from one to the other to the swing. Please swing to the end of the music — it doesn't need to be fast, but it needs to fit the music. And this business of helping other people — the man is usually in charge of finishing the swing, at which point he's moving forwards which is fine for him. But the lady is moving out of the set — it's a complete change of direction for her — and the man can help by bringing her to a stop and steadying her with his right hand on her back. Or he might finish the swing with a twirl (if she's willing), but again he needs to stop her momentum so that she can move forwards for the next movement.
Finally, what about enjoyment? I enjoy the spinning, particularly if all four of us are giving weight and catching each other as I've just described. I enjoy a good swing, and I like the energy in this dance. Can I make you enjoy it? No of course I can't, but at least I hope I've given you some pointers.
Miss de Jersey's Memorial — waltz by Pat Shaw
The appropriate style of course is a waltz, three steps per bar, with a lot more drive on the first than the other two (in England anyway). Let's look briefly at the waltz step. Knowing where you're going — the tricky place is coming out of the second reel into position for the circle in B1. It's actually very logical — it's as if the twos were continuing the reel until they reach the side lines, whereas the ones stop on the side lines rather than moving back into the middle. If you fail to get where you should be, this becomes an exercise in recovering well. Don't shuffle around and make it obvious to everybody that you made a mess of it; just adjust your position when you're sure you know where you should be. I don't think I'd risk doing that during the half figure eight or the back-to-back, but I would know that at the end of the circle right we should all be in original place but improper, and I'd get there somehow. Fitting it to the music — there's more time than people think for the 1½ turns, so don't bend your arms and rush round — it's not a contra. The final two-hand turn has a lot of time, so again try not to rush it. Helping other people — mainly working with your partner, and generally being aware of where the other three people are so that you can indicate (delicately) if you think they should be somewhere else! Enjoyment — it's a beautiful tune to dance to, and with a good partner the whole thing can be magic — it's extremely popular in the States. I just love the way it all fits together. And the ones have a great solo, which Ron Coxall also uses in “Turn of the Tide”.
Devil's Elbow — Scottish dance by J Trevor Stephenson
Here's where you do want your best skip-change step, so let's briefly look at that. I'm not an RSCDS Dance Teacher nor ever likely to be, so I won't worry about pointing your toes and turning your feet out — my main concern is that you're dancing with the music and not looking like an out-of-control lorry. Some people have the attitude of “I couldn't possibly dance more than eight bars of skip-change step — I'd collapse or have a heart attack or something”. I don't think that's true. Of course you can dance for longer with practise, but a lot of it is just attitude — or expectation, which is where I started this session. If I expected to be exhausted after a Scottish dance I probably would be, but I don't.
You'll recognise the move that Ron Coxall uses in “The Short and the Tall”. It also appears in the Modern Western Square Dance figure “Spin chain and exchange the gears” and in a double contra called “The Devil's Backbone” — there's a lot more overlap between the various dance forms than some people want to admit. And in the final eight bars we have set and Petronella turn — very similar to the Rory O'More balance and spin, though some contra dancers would never admit this!
What about knowing where you're going? Yes, it could be a problem, because it's a busy dance and the ones are constantly moving and changing position. The thing to cling on to is that once the ones have gone to the correct couple for the first star, those people stay together for the snaking movement, the other star and the other snake. So long as you all finish opposite your partner in time for the setting in lines, you should be fine. Fitting it to the music — just go for it — I doubt that you'll get there early! Recovering well — not so easy. If you get lost in the stars and snakes, just get into the order 2, 1, 3 with the ones improper and pretend that you meant to do it that way. Helping other people — it's certainly a team effort, and if you can grab the correct person's hand for the star they'll probably be grateful. Enjoyment — I like Scottish because you're really dancing — surging around the set. I enjoy this one because it's a clever dance and it flows beautifully. You're dancing with people the whole time, sometimes using hands and sometimes not, unlike some modern compositions where you're just walking round in complicated patterns.
That's as far as I got at Chippenham — maybe I'll do the rest some other time.
Hole in the Wall — John Young, 1721
A classic “Playford” dance, though this was actually after The Dancing Master had passed from Henry Playford to John Young. It's in three-time but certainly not a waltz; I'd say the style is elegant without being artificial, with a slight emphasis on the first step of each bar. An easy dance in terms of figures; I don't think you'll have any problem knowing where you're going. The tune is by Purcell, and would have been played briskly in his day; we do it much slower. Fitting it to the music — I don't think you want six steps for the cast and six for the lead, because the lead is a shorter distance and doesn't involve any turning. I'd say about eight and four — but don't let me see you counting under your breath! I'll show you how to do the “Hole in the Wall” cross. And don't rush the final circle: six steps to circle half-way is a lot. Helping other people — just taking your partner's hand at the right time to lead through the other couple is probably enough — and a meaningful look at the person you're about to do the “Hole in the Wall” cross with. Recovering well — surely you won't need to do that. Enjoyment — again it's a great tune, and I just love the moment when after the cast you meet your partner at exactly the right moment to lead home. And the “Hole in the Wall” cross can be an exhilarating move if the person you're doing it with feels the same way about it that you do.
The Devil's Backbone — double contra by William Watson
Yes, it's that move again — or rather half of it. We're back to contra style — you can drop the elegance now! Again, use all the music for the swing, and this will propel the men in for the allemande left: don't dance in stop-start mode. Give some weight here, using an American hold rather than a Playford hand-shake hold, and remember what I said about stopping the lady's momentum after the partner swing, so that she's ready for the lines forward and back rather than still flying backwards. Knowing where you're going — the Scottish dance we did earlier should help you here, even though it's a different number of couples and in a different direction. And that's something to cling to if you're new to all this — there's a lot of crossover of skills. You don't have to learn an entirely new vocabulary for each dance you meet: the same patterns come up again and again. Recovering well — at least be aware that each time through the dance you progress one place and change sides with the couple who stay with you — though if you don't change sides it won't affect anybody. Helping other people — the men can help the ladies from the ladies chain into the star, and by exerting a little pressure on the hand you can remind the leading lady that she needs to break out of the star and into the snake.
So try and remember the aspects of dancing better that I started with: dancing in an appropriate style, knowing where you're going, fitting it to the music, recovering well, and helping other people when necessary. I've tried to explain why I enjoy each of these dances, but you may enjoy different aspects of them — don't forget that that's the reason we dance. I hope you enjoyed all these dances.
