> In that vein, what 'no walk thru' squares do people have? I realize that 
> the list of 'NWT' squares is proscribed by the fact that in some 
> communities dancers avoid squares and are not conversant with certain 
> figures, transitions, traditions. On the other hand, the number of standard 
> and regularly used contra figures grows.

A lot of the simple visiting couple figures can be done with little or 
no walk-through, and experienced dancers are often astonished how much 
fun they are having as long as the music is REALLY fast. Rip 'n Snort is 
a good one.

Another possibility for a no walkthough main figure might be 'Push Ma, 
Shove Pa,' which I've seen/danced several times but never actually 
collected. I suspect someone else on the list has it up their sleeve.

Most folks replying to this were mentioning main figures -- I thought 
I'd throw in some breaks that could be done with very limited walkthroughs:

1. Ladies in the middle back to back and gents go 'round the railroad 
track - Ladies stand in ctr and gents walk counterclockwise around. Left 
elbow turn ptnr, Regular sw w/ next lady in direction gents were 
heading. Repeat 3 more times with gents elbow turning the one they just 
swung [via Beth Molaro]

2. Gents LH star, pick up ptnr for star promenade, ladies roll back and 
swing gent behind them. Repeat 3 more times with gents picking up lady 
they just swung. Can also be done with ladies leading figure (RH star) 
or even going back and forth btw gents and ladies. [by Gene Hubert, 
probably reinventing something that already existed elsewhere]

3. All L corner, ptnr box gnat, ladies LH star, ptnr box gnat, gents LH 
star, ptnr box gnat, all L corner, sw ptnr (or grand R&L) (possible 
without any walkthrough for somewhat more experienced crowds)

4. Allemande L corner, dosido ptnr, allemande left ptnr, dosido "2 
people" (for gents, that would mean pass right shoulder w/ptnr, going 
back to back with RH lady, then backing up to place). That does sort of 
have to be walked, but it's very quick. Then make sure you call at least 
four breaks -- do it straight the first time, then the next time do "2 
people" followed by "3 people", then the next time 2, 3, & 4, and the 
last time 2, 3, 4, & 5! [via Larry Edelman]

5. And if you don't have it yet, get Cis Hinkle to teach you the break 
she uses which has everyone chanting 1-2-3-unh! on a series of 
allemandes. It doesn't fit your criteria because it's got to be taught, 
but it's the kind of sequence where people have so much fun that all the 
folks on the sidelines are just kicking themselves that they sat that 
one out.

Another approach might be to carefully study exactly how the heck Ron 
Buchanan manages to teach all of his complicated dances while the music 
is playing and somehow persuade people that they've actually been 
dancing all that time and not taking part in a 15-minute teach of a 
square dance. (If you ever figure it out, let me know.)

P.S. I called a contra dance last week with a Petronella figure in it 
and heard not a single clap. Decorah, IA, has apparently been bypassed 
by this bit of cultural imperialism -- for now...

David
dekirchner@gmail.com


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