23. Brush Twinkle
Fact Sheet
| Official Name: | Brush Twinkle |
| Dance / Level: | Beginning Silver American Style Waltz |
| Aliases: | Twinkle, Silver Twinkle, Passing Twinkle, Continuity Twinkle |
Suggested
Prerequisites: | Closed (Bronze) Twinkle, Open Reverse Turn |
The "Brush Twinkle" is often simply called a Twinkle, the term "brush" being used only when necessary to distingush it from the bronze version of the figure. In this version of the Twinkle, rather than closing the feet and changing weight on step 3, the free foot "brushes" or closes toward the supporting foot without taking weight on step 2, then steps apart on step 3. By default the foot position on the last step is "side & slightly forward", but the exact direction depends on various factors such as the direction and amount of turn.
Like its Bronze cousin, the Silver Twinkle can be taken with the followng varitions of amounts of turn:
- Leader having no turn; Follower turning 1/4 to right (as written in the technique charts)
- Follower having no turn; Leader turning 1/4 to left
- Leader turning 1/8 to left; Follower turning 1/8 to right
Since the Twinkle can begin with leader facing wall, diagonal wall, or line of dance, this results in quite an array of possibilities in terms of beginning and ending alignments. However, with the increased travel resulting from the Continuity foot passing actions in Silver, more care must be taken with direction of travel overall, and it is not recommended that you employ variations of alignment and turn that may cause you to impede the flow of traffic in the room, e.g.:
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Recommended:
- Leader begins facing diagonal to wall
- Leader has no turn, follower turns 1/4 to right
- Following figure moves down the line of dance in promenade position
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Possible, but not recommended:
- Leader begins facing diagonal center
- Leader turns 1/4 to left, follower has no turn
- Following figure moves against line of dance in promenade position
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Twinkle from Left Side Position
The Twinkle can also begin with leader stepping forward outside partner on her left side. This is a common entry following such figures as the Syncopated Underarm Turn to Right. When danced in this way, the leader must take a much smaller second step forward on his right foot (or even close his right foot to his left foot), leading the follower to take a larger step around him on her right foot, as more of a side step. The couple will continue to dance closer together until contact hold is achieved by the end of the last step. Contact hold is not necessary if the leader wishes to end in a more open hold, but the spacing between partners should be reduced to no more than a couple of inches over steps 2-3, in order to allow the follower to easily turn around the leader and end in a comfortable promenade position.
