| Carried over from the "Dips" thread...
What are your favorite ways to get in and out of picture lines?
I like to do a twinkle/hover telemark to a challenge line (you can do this from any step that ends in promenade, really). From the challenge line, you can go into a right side lunge or an oversway (drop or throwaway). To get out, just collect yourself...straighten up and hover out. |
|  OK, remind me what that Challenge Line is. It's one of the things I have in my workshop notes on the Oversway and Throwaway Oversway. Basically that's the precede for them. I can't really remember what it is though; I should have written it down. If you want my really awful workshop notes on these two figures, from the man's/leader's perspective, here they are: "Entry: Challenge Line, RF back, LF pointing side along LOD, for Throwaway get a little rise and turn hips. (LF could go back then swivel into position.)" My notes on the Same Foot Lunge weren't much better: "Entry: Curved Three Step and Foot Change, lead lady to ~90 degrees to man's body with her LS to man's RS at line with ~inside of his pocket, RF side sl. fwd, flex knee and shape, recover by changing angle of center back to left." As of now, the only picture lines I really tend to do are a Contra Check and sometimes a Drop Oversway in tango. They're syllabus and I've learned them, so I work them in now and then. I've tried the Left Whisk before, but I find that harder to lead. It tends to work much better if I fully commit to doing it, but if I second guess myself when starting it or something it ends up being pretty weak. Of course, I never really practice either, so I'm sure that contributes to the problem. I was taught a RF Lunge at some point, but no exit for it. There might have been a few others we did in group classes, but if so I can't seem to remember them off hand. -- James Marshall marshall@astro.umd.edu http://www.astro.umd.edu/~marshall |
| Tourist, a picture line is basically a pose...a good time to take a picture!
Dronak, a challenge line is basically where you step forward together in promenade and stop there. (man is standing on his left foot, lady on her left, both are looking forward.) To get in one from, say, a hover telemark: you're hovering out on your left foot at the end of the telemark and lowering. Staying in promenade, step through (forward) on your right foot, then one more step forward on your left (still in promenade), leaving your right toe where it is. Your weight is on your left foot, with your right foot kind of stretched behind you (but keep some flex in the knee). You can then drop into an oversway, rotate her to a throwaway, or shift back to your right foot (stepping slightly into her) for a right side lunge (she would stay in promenade as she steps back to her left, then shape back over to her left when she gets there).
Does that help? |
| Can you help out the newbie keeners and tell us what a picture line is? |
| Yup, picture lines are basically just what twnkltoz said -- some sort of nice looking pose where you're basically still making it a great photo opportunity. I did remember that the Challenge Line wasn't anything too complicated, but I didn't remember exactly what it was. Thanks for clearing it up, it sounds simple enough. A little clarification though, when you say that there's still some flex in the knee, do you mean the standing leg? I'm pretty sure Popular Variations covers a few picture lines, like Oversway not in tango, probably the Throwaway, too, among others. I should check that again for how they enter and exit those lines. Sure, Laura, I'd say a Contra Check counts as a line. It's one of the very few lines I do with any regularity. It looks nice and it's not all that difficult to do. I like the same combination, too, but I often try to do two Double Reverse Spins before the Contra Check. If I've controlled it well enough, too, I'll let the Contra Check take two bars instead of one; it doesn't feel quite as rushed that way since you have about three beats to come out of the line instead of one. I do sometimes do it in one bar, but I tend to prefer two bars so that I don't feel like I'm rushing to get out on time. I think the Big Top is in some book I have, probably Popular Variations. Never done it. As I recall, it seemed to resemble a latin Reverse Top or the opposite of a quickstep Rumba Cross. I'm sure that's not a particularly accurate description, but I was trying to get a sense of what it looked like in order to recognize it if I saw it danced. I tried that for a number of figures and can tell you what I wrote down, but I might have done that here a while back already. I have a limited knowledge of open level figures. I've been taught some but rarely use them. Generally, any non-syllabus stuff I dance is for floorcraft purposes or because I goofed (e.g., dancing foxtrot and using a waltz follow to a figure that's in both dances). -- James Marshall marshall@astro.umd.edu http://www.astro.umd.edu/~marshall |
| Ahh, picture lines. I often feel dorky doing them, but they've been getting better over time. Does the contra check count as one? I like doing a double reverse spin into a contra check. |
| I love contra checks! Laura, have you done the Big Top yet? Try a big top into a contra check. |
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