Command examples
- Do Paso
- Walk Around Your Corner; Partner Left Do Paso
- Circle Left; Do Paso, it’s Partner Left, Corner Right, Partner Left
- Circle Left; Break it on up with a Do Paso
- Ladies Star by the Right 3/4, Do Paso
- Four Ladies Chain, Star them home for a Do Paso
- Square Thru, but on your 4th hand Do Paso (from half sashayed facing lines)
- Do Paso, turn partner left and corner right, Left Dosado your own
- Do Paso, partner left, corner right, Turn Partner Left and Men Star Right
- Put the ladies center back-to-back, men promenade that outside track; Get back home, Do Paso
ARC Decisions
(May 2012)
Q: Is it proper or improper to call the following: From a Static Square (SS) or a circle, “DoPaso, turn partner left…turn corner right, men star left? In other words, break up or fractionalize the call DoPaso?
A: Improper. The call should not be fractionalized and it is one of our traditional calls that should be preserved in its true form.
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Comments
In an Alamo Ring in which the men are facing out, the initial arm turn will be left 3/4 so that everyone can head to their corner.
Do Paso is used primarily with a directional style of calling, in which many of the calls have vague or flexible starting or ending formations, usually in circles, thars, and squares. Dancers are expected to blend smoothly into the next call. The call defines a general pattern, but the specific parts of the call are typically cued (e.g., “Do Paso; It’s partner left, corner right, partner left and hang on tight, make an Allemande Thar with the men in the middle …”). Variations can be cued, but the caller should draw attention to the fact that the typical pattern has been broken (e.g., “Do Paso, turn partner left, turn corner by the right, Don’t Stop Yet! Partner left and corner right, hang on tight, Boys swing in to a Wrong Way Thar”).
The combination Four Ladies Chain, Chain Them Back with a Do Paso is an example of blending. See the section “Part 4: Additional Detail: Blending one call into another”.
While primarily a circle-type figure, Do Paso may also be started from 8 Chain Thru (half sashayed) and Left-Hand Ocean Waves (boys on end).
Do Paso may also be used from circles of 4 and 6 dancers. These applications have received insufficient use in recent years and will probably require a quick walkthru.