Ellie's Pumpkin Show     Bill Olson    Becket
 
A1 Cir L 3/4 (W step in to wave of women down the center of the set), Bal wave, Women "walk around partner", passing r sh to start (Men step in) - to reform circle
A2 Cir L 3/4 (M step in to wave of Men down center), Bal wave, Men walk around partner (W step in)
B1 Hey (straight across with same N's) (M start L sh)
B2 Partner B&S (slide left to meet new neighbors)

A1/A2 is a really cool figure when it's done right and very cool to watch.. It's neutral too so after it's all done dancers are right back where they started.  It's really important for the "person being walked around" to step forward a little in both A's to make it flow nicely. The alternate A part (below) was suggested to me by Will Mentor. He was calling for dancers "the original way" (as above) and many of them suggested the gypsy 3/4.

alternate A part:
A1 Cir L 3/4 (W step in to wave of women down the center of the set), Bal wave, Partner gypsy 3/4 (start R sh) and reform circle
A2 Cir L 3/4 (M step in to wave of Men down center), Bal wave, Partner gypsy 3/4 (R sh)

I've written several B parts, but THIS B part is from Will Mentor who started reinventing the B part before the 2014 Downeast Country Dance Fest in Maine. The dance met with great success at that time, and has been tweaked since, sort of by him AND me, I guess. The alt B part (below) is one of my originals.

alternate B part:
B1 slide L to meet new N's, Cir L 3/4, W do sa do x 1.5
B2 Partner B&S (face across)

Ellie's Farm Stand is located on State Route 12 near Northfield, VT,.. south of Montpelier and the Capitol City Grange, where the Montpelier contradance is held on 1st, 3rd and 5th saturdays. Every year around Halloween, Ellie's has a display of thousands of lit up jack o' lanterns on the hillside next to the farm stand. It's quite a sight to see, even at midnight after the dance!!!! Will wants to dance the dance in the parking lot there at night.. I will try to make tht happen. The dance is dedicated to Tim Swartz and Merry Shernock..



Cap Chat    Bill Olson     Improper

A1 W allem R x 1.5, Pt allem L x 1.5
A2 Hey (M start R sh)
B1 Pt B&S
B2 LLF&B, W 1/2 ch (W look R for *next* W)

This is a simple litttle dance. All the figures go ACROSS the set. T-Acadie recorded the tune Cap Chat, an Acadian tune on our first album (Guy Bouchard informed us it's pronounced "Cap Cho") . We learned it from a La Bottine Souriante recording and first played it at a late night jam session (with Guy and Laura et al) at Maine Fiddle Camp several years ago. Quite a few musicians "picked it up" that night! Cap Chat is a town located on the Ste Lawrence River on the Gaspe Peninsula with windmills galore, including the word's largest verticsal axis wind turbine.. The dance fits the tune, at least the way WE play it!



The Loon Dance  Bill Olson    longways, "whole set" dance

A1 Allem R partner, Allem L partner
A2 DSD partner, SeeSaw ("backwards DSD") partner
B1 Head couple sashay to bottom of set, NEW head couple make arch with 2 hands, remaining couples face UP the set
B2+ couples (who are separated) walk up the set single file, go past the arch (one line on each side), couples meet and dive through arch with partner (moving down the set as they go through the arch(s)), immediately making new arch when they pop out to form long "tunnel"
C+ as last couple passes through arch, partners swing and swing til dance begins again.

The inspiration for this dance came form a YouTube video which showed a school cafeteria space FULL of high school kids in Quebec having a really great time!! A little analysis showed me the dance actually didn't progress, so i sort of modified it and "fixed it"!! The dance takes more than 32 bars, and depending on the length of the set often more than 40 bars. I always wait until the beginning of the musical phrase to start the dance again.



WarmUp  Bill Olson, leader WITH: Jerry Blum, Patti Gutwein, John Lenarduzz, Kathryn C. Millis, Josh Moses, Dave Notman, Kate Power, Cary Ravitz...   Double improper contra (4 facing 4)

A1  - Lines of four go forward and back (8).   Up and down in sets of four, ladies pass right to start a 1/2 hey (8).   
A2  - In the set of eight, ladies star right 1/2 (6).   First neighbors swing and end facing across (10).   
B1  - Across in sets of four, men allemande left 1+1/2 (8).   Second neighbors swing and end facing up and down (8).   
B2  - Up and down in sets of four, circle left 3/4 (8).   Partners swing and end facing your original direction (8). 

Composed in a dance chreography workshop led by Bill Olson at Winter WarmUp, Columbus, OH   December, 2010 
Concept belonged to Cary: 4 facing 4 where  you got to swing partner AND each neighbor..

Homework   Bill Olson  Square set  Mixer, HHSS

A1: Heads pass thru to a wave (4) bal (4) walk forward (to sides) to form a temporary wave and allem R with R/H lady (L/H gent) x 1.5 (8)
A2: Hey (up and down set) M start L sh (16)
B1: B&S with same R/H Lady (L/H gent) (16)
B2: all promenade half way around (8) Sides R&L thru (8)

Repeat once for heads, then twice for sides.

This dance was a "homework assignment" given to me by Lisa Greenleaf after a long conversation about how I could (or should) get back into the "choreography game". Never having composed a square dance before, Lisa thought I should give it a try. The following notes are Lisa's.. She actually CALLED the dance and took all the heat that comes with that "first time".. I was never much for homework when I was in school, but this assignment was welcome. I also never *thanked* the teacher before.. Thanks seems a bit inadequate, but thanks Lisa!!..

notes:
In A1 When the Heads extend forward to the sides, hold that temporary wave so dancers see which way the hey will go. Have the 2 gents ID each other (look to the other end of the wave) because they start the hey.

In the B2, say “Prom half way around (it's actually about 5/8 of the way around), square your set, sides  R&L through…” The active gents are promenading to their home spot, but the inactives aren't there until after the R&L thru.

Music needs to be played at a moderate tempo.


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