We are dancing a Curved Feather from PP followed by an Open Impetus Turn in International Foxtrot, and I have a question about the lady's footwork.

The given footwork for lady in the Feather is HT, T, TH, and her first step in the Open Impetus Turn is HT. If the second step of the Curved Feather (a side step) is T (Up), how should lady articulate the foot so that she can come forward, two steps later, with HT (Down)?

Thanks.

The same way you would on the third step of a Whisk followed by a Chasse from PP.

On step 3 of the Curved Feather, you step back on your LF, toe-heel, small step. The right toe remains in front, however, it won't be an extended point because the step shouldn't be big enough to cause such a position.

As the RF moves forward into the first step of the Impetus, the heel will lower, and then the toe will raise shortly thereafter. As with all steps, constant foot contact with the floor is desirable, so make sure you lower the heel before lifting the toe. The intermediate position should be one where the whole foot is in contact (as opposed to the alternative, which is none of the foot).

Regards,
Jonathan

Jonathon,, we have a complete disagreement here ( Foot in CONSTANT contact etc ) .

Scriveners theory on HOW the feet move from point A to point B, emphasises the fact that that foot, at some point, actually LEAVES the floor, going across the top ( you can even see this in some of Hiltons actions in the " swing " dances ).. "skimming" is a word that was often used.

He believed that, an appearance of heaviness in the legs, is created by the insistance of continual floor contact, at the expense of " flite ", was a primary e.g. of the technique, that is often quoted .

I would hasten to add, that if this theory is used in the "hands " of a novice, it may get an undesirable result .

Thank you for the replies, although I am not quite sure what to make of your disagreement.

Is it right that the foot moves forward again, having not lowered, rather as a forward walk coming under the body would, on ball of foot first, then curving to a flat foot skimming the floor, with the foot continuing to move in an arc forwards (and upwards), until the heel is placed for the following step?

"Is it right that the foot moves forward again, having not lowered"

Yes. The right heel would not contact the floor during the curved feather itself, but only during the course of movement towards its placement as a heel lead in the following figure.

There are two things to watch out for here.

One is to not "settle back" on the left foot when lowering at the end of the curved feather. The lower body, meaning the thighs and not just the hips, should say forward, maintaining a feeling of "up" under the partner even as the foot lowers. The left heel should not lower too quickly; in some interpretations it might only lower just when departing the step (a common refinement in the whisk as well).

The second is to be sure and project the body weight into the following movement, and not sit back on the hip while reaching the moving leg out in front. This is an issue to watch out for in any forward step, especially outside partner ones, and even more care is needed when there's been a degree of pause in the travel such as this case or 3-4 of the natural or spin turn, than in the more typical foxtrot case of continued movement. The proper size of the body movement is determined by the amount of movement of the partners body - that is what should be matched, with the foot simply following along under the body. If instead the foot is placed first, then the body will have to either match the foot with disregard for positioning relative to the partner's body (resulting in a bad outside partner position), or the body will not match the foot, resulting in an off-balance dancer who begins the next step at a disadvantage.