The Stars Are on Our Side

May 2009
Duple proper longways
32 bars of 2/4
Music: Hard Times Come Again No More (Stephen Foster)

A1	Partners side right Right hands across
A2	Neighbors side left Left hands across
B1	Gents pass by left shoulders Corners half-gypsy and two-hand turn.
B2	Ladies pass by left shoulders Partners half-gypsy and two-hand turn.

Siding is into and back from lines (also known as Shaw siding or side-by-side siding).
One of the challenges for beginners is to connect the figures in places where a quarter-turn re-orientation is required. For example, in the A1, the first corners end the siding oriented correctly for the right hands across, but the second corners must turn a bit to the left. Coming out of that star, the second corners are facing correctly for the neighbor siding, but the first corners must swivel a bit to the right. I think that making these accommodations at the end of the previous figure (for example, while letting go of the hands across or while backing up from siding) makes the dance smoother and a bit more interesting.
In B1, "corners" means corner people--who are directly across the line at this point.
The B1 and B2 could be called with respect to positions (as opposed to people) as follows:
On the men's line, pass by left shoulders (up or down);
half-gypsy across the set and two-hand turn
Then the same instructions apply to both B parts.