Newfoundland square dance - first figure
This is the first figure of a square dance set from the Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland. Woody Wilson is the caller; the fiddler is Jim Sadlish and the guitar player is Kevin Gardner, with Newfoundland tunes. The occasion was a dance party showcasing many styles of dance and song, part of a meeting by the CDSS Executive Committee in Victoria, British Columbia. Wilson is quick to state that he is by no means an expert or an authority on Newfoundland dance, so he encourages those interested to seek out such dances from knowledgeable sources. He adds this information:
===
I think most communities just called it 'the square dance', but as I have a number of variations of the dance from different communities, I differentiate by naming the community. This dance is from the Northern Peninsula (Daniel's Harbour area). There are usually about 6 figures to these dances and they progress in interconnection.
• Figure One is usually a Couples Cross Over in some form.
• Figure Two a form of Dance Up where the couples cross by diving through (which is more interconnected than passing shoulders as couples).
• Figure Three is normally the Form-a-Line where a wavy line is somehow created and the active man swings the opposite lady (first occurrence of changing partners) and there is a step dance portion to this figure.
• Figure Four is usually the Take Two, where one man forms a line of three with his partner and the opposite lady. Often the lone man will be required to do some fancy stepdancing to woo his partner back.
• Figure Five is the First Close In and it usually recapitulates one of the former moves along with some circling.
• Figure Six is the Last Close In or Last Bar and again recapitulates former moves but closes (closes in) with a House Round or Sweep the Floor. This is most often a promenade figure where the men promenade each lady in succession to wrap up or close in the dance and in doing this the interconnection or exchange becomes complete as each man has danced with each lady. There are quite a few variations of this, some more complicated than others.
Subjects: Northern / Maritime
Tags: Jim Sadlish, Kevin Gardner, Newfoundland, Woody Wilson
Item Relations
| This Item | is related to | Item: Runnin' the Goat - Newfoundland |
| This Item | is related to | Item: Newfoundland square dance - second figure |
| Item: Newfoundland square dance - an introduction | is related to | This Item |
Citation
Dublin Core
Title
Subject
Description
===
I think most communities just called it 'the square dance', but as I have a number of variations of the dance from different communities, I differentiate by naming the community. This dance is from the Northern Peninsula (Daniel's Harbour area). There are usually about 6 figures to these dances and they progress in interconnection.
• Figure One is usually a Couples Cross Over in some form.
• Figure Two a form of Dance Up where the couples cross by diving through (which is more interconnected than passing shoulders as couples).
• Figure Three is normally the Form-a-Line where a wavy line is somehow created and the active man swings the opposite lady (first occurrence of changing partners) and there is a step dance portion to this figure.
• Figure Four is usually the Take Two, where one man forms a line of three with his partner and the opposite lady. Often the lone man will be required to do some fancy stepdancing to woo his partner back.
• Figure Five is the First Close In and it usually recapitulates one of the former moves along with some circling.
• Figure Six is the Last Close In or Last Bar and again recapitulates former moves but closes (closes in) with a House Round or Sweep the Floor. This is most often a promenade figure where the men promenade each lady in succession to wrap up or close in the dance and in doing this the interconnection or exchange becomes complete as each man has danced with each lady. There are quite a few variations of this, some more complicated than others.