Ungainly C2

[bjarvis]

Our C2 class continues to chug along. A month ago, I extrapolated that our current pace would allow us to wrap up the class by July 1 but another guy in the class asked John directly last week and was told we wouldn't be done in time for a particular dance weekend coming up at the end of July. When I ask John directly, he just says we'll be done when we get through it: he's not keen on hard deadlines for a class like this.

No matter the end date, our Mondays will be booked for the foreseeable future.

We seem to be working our way through the ugly & awkward portions of the C2 list these days. Most calls are danceable with practice, although (IMHO) there are a handful which one can only hope to move successfully in a variable number of beats with some thought and a lot of prayer. I still hate "grand chain eight." I'm not fond of "chain the square" although I think I can achieve a degree of détente if necessary. New to my list of most-hated calls is last night's gem: "stack the line."

Someone please tell me there's something salvageable in some variation of this call. At the moment, it seems like the ugly kid added to the group to make everyone else look beautiful by comparison.

Despite the occasional ugly duckling, I'm still enjoying the class and the mental stretch which accompanies it. I should be trying my hand at composing C2 sequences to become more comfortable with the class and investigate what other evil creative things we can do with it.

Comments

[lggriffiths.livejournal.com]

I think both Chain The Square and Grand Chain Eight are elegant, smoothly flowing and nice to dance. However, everyone needs to know them well for it to go that way.

I'd always thought of Stack The Line as icky, until dancing the Winchester Singing Calls (we went to watch, the C4 dancers insisted we join in as "there's almost nothing you don't know"). That session was sublime dancing - everyone knew their definitions well, and it just flowed (FAST!)... during that, I saw Stack The Line shake off its duckling feathers and become a swan. But again, because everyone knew it well.

re: stack the line

[cuyahogarvr.livejournal.com]

especially because it appears to have nothing to do with a "line" per se..... we started in columns and ended in waves. What's that all about???

[deege.livejournal.com]

There is a cheat for Grand Chain Eight that stormecho taught us, which makes the call more sensible and easier to do.

I don't mind Stack the Line that much, although it is one of those calls -- like Cross and Turn -- where people seem to need to freeze for a moment before doing it.

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

There's one Grand Chain 8 position I'm still not keen on, but I know the definition and muddle through it as a dancer.

Stack the Line was only clunky at first. It flows fine now for me since it's gotten automatic knowing Leader/Follower positions.

For whatever dance weekend in July that someone is thinking about, certainly there is self-learning v class-learning. We've had several dancers here recently that assimilated the calls without actual class time, just needing some floor time.

All that being said, there are plenty of opportunities some callers give you at C2 for "stand and discuss" calls v "wind in your hair" dancing.

[canseefour.livejournal.com]

Aren't the Winchester Singing Calls fun? It was great to dance them during the day when I was awake. At the old Challenge Convention in the 90s we used to dance them at midnight - after a full day of dancing.

[allanh.livejournal.com]

Well?

Don't just mention the cheat in passing ... share it, please!

[kent4str.livejournal.com]

Exactly - as I pointed out last night, just because our teacher said the class wouldn't be ready by late July doesn't mean individuals in it might not be.

And personally I like Chain the Square, and Grand Chain 8 is getting easier.

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

Yeah, both calls are getting easier. It's kind of like driving on the beltway: it's insane and a crappy way to travel but with enough practice, one doesn't notice the pain quite as much.

[beldamon.livejournal.com]

:) C2 is fun.

Stack the Line is probably the least elegant call on the list, at least from a beginning or completed DPT formation. Almost impossible to actually make it flow. (I like it, nonetheless) After a few hundred times most people can dance it with minimal disruption -- so it *seems* to flow.

Grand Chain 8 and Chain the Squre caused a bit of confusion for me this convention (I don't remember having that problem last year) but only because they sound so similar. Fortunately, the typical response for Chain the Square is 'Oh, *that* Chain the Square!' (obviously it's not just me!) so no problems developed.

[apparentparadox]

Do you do the right pull by, move along, left touch 1/4 like a couple-up?

[deege.livejournal.com]

Well, yes, except that I'm [nominally] a C2 dancer so we don't say "like a couple up", we just say left touch 1/4 and the lead u-turn back.

I find this much easier to deal with than all that incomplete courtesy turn nonsense.

[deege.livejournal.com]

If that certain July dance is the Midsummer's Dream Festival then I demand you three finish the list so that I can dance C2 with you.