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TEACHING HINTS
Tim Fromm writes:
24. ALL AROUND THE LEFT HAND LADY: Starting formation -square or circle.
All dancers face their corners. Walking forward and around each other while keeping right shoulders adjacent, dancers return to face their partner.

STYLING: Men's arms in natural dance position. Ladies use both hands on skirt, moving skirt forward and back to avoid opposite dancer. TIMING: 8 steps.

When I get ready to teach this move, I do so from a SS. I will read them the definition. I will have them standing in a SS, and walk over to their corner, right shoulder to right shoulder. I will tell them to touch shoulders, and use the shoulders as a pivot point, and walk in a circle around each other. (It gets a lot of funny looks and laughs, when a tall dancer has a short corner.) Now walk over and face your partner. I tell them, this is where the move ends. After the first time, I tell them they don't have to touch shoulders, but that I wanted to point out the pivot point. I'll walk them through a couple times, and simply have them square the set back at home. After we have that part down, I will tell them different ways they might here the call. In that I mean, "walk around the corner" or "walk out around your corner".
Then I will have them start in a SS, and walk All Around The Left Hand Lady. (I'll cue right shoulder, right shoulder a few times as needed.) Turn your partner by the left hand, men star right, "look for your corner" Allemande Left.
I will then present it from a moving circle. I will use the above sequence from a moving circle also. I will vary the calls I follow it with, to make sure I don't set any patterns. A real good thing to follow up with is Do Paso.
Dan Koft writes:
I often start the same way Tom describes and then add Make eye contact and flirt like mad! If some still have difficulties (usually having learned how to Do Sa Do they don't want to walk forward around someone) I then say, Gents I want you to stand perfectly still, Ladies face your corner, Passing right shoulder walk around your corner and then face your partner.
Now Ldies face the center and stand perfectly still, Gents face your corner, Passing right shoulder walk around your corner and then face your partner.
Now everybody face your corner. Passing right shoulders walk around your corner and then face your partner.
Walter Smulson writes:
When I teach this, I contrast it with do sa do. On do sa do, you lose sight of your corner when you are back to back. On a walk around, you never take your eyes off of the corner until you can see your partner approaching you, at which time you look at your partner.
I usually make a joke about winking at your corner as you walk around and then looking at your jealous partner at the end.

Mail to Jim Penrod