From: "Gary Knox" To: Subject: RE: Le bourette... Laborat... Labouratte?!?!? Date: Sat, 28 Aug 2004 18:21:28 -0700 This is from Anselm's draft: La Baratte (The Churn) This figure uses six bars of music and commonly follows setting. It occurred in the Quadrilles in Canada but is now falling into disuse. Bars of Music: Six Dancers: A man and woman facing each other Progression: The dancers change places Bars 1-2 M turns W opposite half-way round with the right hand. They retain hands but pass each other so that their arms are nearly fully extended. 3-4 W pulls her right shoulder back to dance under M's right arm, travelling back along the line covered during the first 2 steps and turning her back towards him, while M moves back towards his original place. When W is directly in front of M, they join left hands as well (M should extend his left hand to the front and left with the edge opposite the thumb pointing down, so W can bend her fingers and sort-of hook her fingertips from the outside around the edge of M's index finger. This is a lot harder to explain than to do but saves people from spraining their wrists. The thumbs are not used!) They release right hands and W dances under M's left arm, again pulling her right shoulder back, retaining left hands. 5-6 The dancers change places once more giving left hands, finishing on the sidelines in opposite place. Source: John Drewry, from John Moss (New Brunswick) Dances: The Sunlit Square (Strathspey), Acadian Jig