Hi Tina,
 
In A Sizzlin Seattle, I gave the B1 as 
B1  Gents AL 1 1/2
       Swing Partner
 In this dance the AL means Allemande Left, and that is the gents free hand.
 
In Men in Plain, the Gents Chain is a mirror of the Ladies Chain.  Gents give Left Hand to each other, pull by, gents then give a right hand to their partner, ladies then put their left arm around the gents waist and give the gent a courtesy turn as the ladies pivot around.  The forward momentum sends the gents back into the center for the AL (allemande left) twice (if they want to - that makes it more zesty).  The reason many people dont know the move is because it is not in a lot of dances - ladies chains are in many many dances, so people are accustomed to doing them.  I like gents chains - after all, why should the ladies be the only ones who can chain?  Equal opportunity dancing (my catch phrase) means gents can chain also.  This dance has been very well received wherever I have called it, though not all gents try the AL twice around.  I might add that there is a dance I have written that has the gents chain from the right side (as if they
 were a lady).  Its on my website and is titled "Dutch Apple Reel".  It goes like this:

Dutch Apple Reel - Dave Colestock - 1/12/2006
Improper   
A1  LL F&B
       Gentlemen Chain to Partner (from right side of Neighbor, like a ladies chain)

A2  Gents AR Once Around (AR meaning Allemande Right)
       Swing Partner

B1  Right and Left Thru
       Ladies AR 1 1/2

B2  Balance and Swing Neighbor

Dance written at the Dutch Apple Dinner Theater in Lancaster, PA at the dinner show of "Forever Plaid".  Written same day/place as Men in Plaid.
 
Thanks for clarifying Tina, and hope you all enjoy the dances.
 
Dave Colestock
Harrisburg, PA
www.davecolestock.com 
www.frolicinthefall.freeservers.com
www.harrisburgcontra.org


 
 
 

From: Tina Fields <tfields8 at yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Callers] emerging artists / Dave Colestock dances
To: callers at sharedweight.net
Date: Tuesday, August 25, 2009, 11:46 PM


Two questions for Dave Colestock's dances, which look like fun:

A Sizzlin' Seattle has the Gents Allemande 1-1/2 - with which hand? Left?

Men in Plaid has a Gent's Chain. With which hand is this typically done? Gents pull by R as ladies do, or by L?  I just called a dance this weekend with this move, and a discussion with the male dancers about this both ahead of time and afterwards yielded mostly that they're unaccustomed to the move. The dance I called had this chain followed by a 1/2 hey, and one thing that is clear is that they have to be congruent (e.g., gents chain by L --> gents pass by L to start the hey). 

Thanks, folks!
Tina
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