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  Contra Syncretist
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Having My Cake & Eating It Too

9/18/2012

 
Picture
Mmm...cake.
Recently I was talking to someone whose views are very much on the "traditional music, dance-as-written" side of things, and who wondered why flourishers would bother with the contra dance part of it, if they were then going to add dips/aerials/flourishes/what-have-you.

Since this gets to why the heck my partner and I would be teaching flourishes every week, I think it's relevant to this blog, so I'll speak for myself here (and I won't presume to speak for anyone else, not even Steve):

For me, contra dance lets me enjoy music without having to be crazily self-conscious as I would find myself in a club, or a more free-form partner-oriented dance genre (or a more closed-off social scene), and I don't have to worry about it. The choreography is there and taught right before (and during) when I have to do it to stay with the group, and everyone else is doing more or less the same thing at the same time (so at least if I look like a goof, it's likely others do too, and that makes it okay). I can dance contra straight up, as written, with various different people through an evening, and I have a wonderful time.

On the other hand, if I have a bit of extra energy and a willing partner (or neighbor), we can do the dramatic dips or the dizzying twirls -- and as long as we're back where we need to be when we need to be there, we can pop back in and dance with the other folks in our set, regardless of whether they decided to embellish the dance on the previous move or not. And I also have a wonderful, albeit differently-energized, time.

But if for whatever reason I decide that I'm not up for flourishing, there's still a rewarding experience waiting for me in the choreography as written. That baseline does't exist as much (at all?) in other scenes.

I adore that flexibility and the ability to dance with the group, too, even if I take a moment (or phrase) just with my partner. That doesn't exist as much in other dance genres and venues, and while I may love the occasional dramatic dip in the space of a swing (assuming the room's not crowded) and share that connection with my partner, I also really like that I can pop back up from it and flow into a star with my neighbors and share that connection with them, right on time.*

That's why I do it, anyway. I know there are lots of other reasons. Flourishers, what are yours?

* After the fact, it occurs to me that this is related to why I like changing up the music from time to time, too. Being able to enjoy the music with familiar choreography as a touchstone and a relatively safe (and intergenerational, at least in my community!) environment has a lot of appeal.


Sally
9/18/2012 09:38:26 pm

What you say about sums it up. I love the friendliness of contra dancers generally. The few times I've actually gone swing dancing-- with music I love, it was super hard to find a partner, and I'm decent at it. I'd ask a guy, and he's say, 'Uh, I have a girlfriend.' I just asked to dance with him!

So the intergenerational, and welcoming aspect of contra is great! I love to dance with beginners, and advanced dancers and good friends. I love that I can invite old friends or new friends to contra, and it's a great gateway dance. Contra is easier to learn than many other dance forms, especially for leads.

But if I had to follow low-energy leads (regardless of age) with no flourishes, it would be a low-energy event. I do like to break a sweat, and be surprised and trade dance roles and all that, or it would be mundane. I love how in contra you are always learning something new. Well, after 6 years, I still am learning new things.


Now if they'd just play some swing tunes at the break, that would be awesome.

Perry
9/20/2012 10:54:51 am

Ryan - this is a nice column, as we were talking about flourishes on Facebook in relation to your weekly flourishes. I'm glad to hear you say too that you do have fun in doing contra dances "as written" as well as adding flourishes. It was curious to hear how many people actually consider contra dancing boring unless they add flourishes. I'm like you - I love contra dancing. The flourishes, no matter how much we love them, are not really part of contra dancing - as it was put on FB, the contra dances as written are the main course and flourishes are dessert. I think people should never lose sight of that. There are nights where I want to dance and don't want to twirl, and there are nights I just want to let loose and do all sorts of funky stuff. And of course that always depends on the partner. BTW - Techno Friday in Harrisburg tomorrow night!!!

dest/jess(ie)/etc.
9/22/2012 12:58:51 pm

I don't think it's so much that flourishes are dessert and the figures the main course; rather, i'd say that for me the flourishes are the icing and the figures are the cake. If i did nothing but the figures i'd be happy and satisfied at first but get bored over time. If i only do the flourishes and ignore the figures, i have fun for a while but ultimately get the dance equivalent of a belly ache. Both together is where i find my joy.
As for the original question, i agree with Ryan's assessment, though it's more than that for me. Because of the figures and the structure of the form, i can feel fully included from the first time i start dancing (well, ok, not quite so included if i'm amongst a bunch of "hip cool dancers"). I never have to feel like i'm letting someone down if i'm too tired for a lot of flourishes or no longer strong enough to dance hard (i'm sure i will be someday), because there's still enough joy in the dance itself to satisfy. And if i'm dancing with a beginner, i can balance out the process of taking care of them with swings when i play with my neighbors. Swing and blues and tango and all the other strictly partnered dances can't give me that.
At the same time, i do love me some flourishes. I love the surprise, and the opportunity to try new ones as much, or as little, as i want. I love the adventure. I love having a practice ground for flirting without worrying so much about consequences, and i love the way we get to set our insecurities aside and let ourselves be wonderful and sexy, just for that moment. I don't think i could get any of that if i only ever danced traditional dances as written. And i love that the only thing i need to know about a potential partner is that they have feet and a brain.
For me, contra is the perfect union of partnered and communal dance. Being communal it welcomes everyone in at the ground floor without asking us to prove ourselves, and it allows all of us to dance together and meet each other through dancing, and it lets us start dancing well with only a small amount of training. Being partnered, it offers opportunities for play, for surprise, for special moments with particular people, for creativity and unstructured interaction, for me to never stop learning.
I happen to be one of those girls who likes her cake with lots of icing, but i can enjoy un-iced cake too, sometimes. And i have no problem with others scraping off the icing before they eat the cake. And if you don't like my cake the same way i do, *you don't have to eat it*.


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    Author

    I dance with abandon. I play with glowsticks. I look for music that is conducive to one or both. I play behind cameras.  I write about all of the above. I'm based in Glen Echo's contra dance community outside of Washington, D.C., but I'm happy to go dance afield when I can. Lather, rinse, repeat. Always repeat.

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