Becket Reel

Formation: Couples facing couples, lady on partner’s right, in long lines down the hall. An even number of couples is desirable, if there is an odd number see note at the bottom.
Music: Any well-phrased reel.

Download RTF file: Becket Reel

Prompts:
Intro or
57-64   – – – -; With your corner Allemande Left;
    1-8   – – – -; Everybody Swing your own;
  9-16   – – – -; Two Ladies Chain across;
17-24   – – – -; – – Chain back;

25-32   – – Those who can; slant left for a Right and Left Thru;
33-40   – – – -; Straight across Right and Left Thru;
41-48   – – – -; Same four Star Left;
49-56   – – – -; – – Star Right;
57-64   – – – -; With your corner Allemande Left;

Description:
    1-8   Gents should look to their left and Ladies should look to their right to find their corners. All corner pairs do an Allemande Left (left arm turn once around).
  9-16   Partners Swing and finish facing across the set with the lady on the gent’s right.
17-24   Two Ladies Chain across (ladies right pull by and Courtesy Turn with the opposite gent).
25-32   Same Two Ladies Chain back across to their original partner.

33-40   Couples face diagonally to the left and do a Right and Left Thru with the facing couple (Right pull by and Courtesy Turn with partner). Two couples, one on each end of the set, will have no couple diagonally to the left. They face across the set and wait in place for 8 beats of music.
41-48   With the new couple directly across the set do a Right and Left Thru. The two couples left idle during the previous call, will change sides of the set during the Right and Left Thru and this line will be their new home line.
49-56   As dancers finish the Courtesy Turn at the end of the Right and Left Thru, they maintain the Lady’s left hand in the Gent’s left hand and reach out to make a Left-hand Star with the opposite couple. Turn the star for 8 beats.
57-64   The same four dancers individually turn around a make a Right-hand Star. Turn the star for 8 beats back to their home lines. At the end of the Star, look for the same corner ready to begin again.

Notes: If there are an odd number of couples, place the extra couple at the far end of the line on the caller’s right. Explain to all that they must not move from that spot except to participate in the Slant Left Right and Left Thru.
Variations: (See Slaunch to Donegal which uses the same calls in a different order.)

Choreography by: Herbie Gaudreau, written during a dance camp in Becket, Massachusetts.
This was the first use of the couples facing couples formation.
Source: Printed in American Square Magazine, April 2012, page 41
Usage: This is the original Becket contra. It has lots of action in a beautiful smooth flow. It includes both “Ladies Chain” and “Right and Left Thru” so it is most successful when the dancers are comfortable with both of these calls.

This page from http://dances.callerlab.org (CALLERLAB Dance Resource)