[SCA-Dance] Suggestions Wanted

[Scot and Michelle Henry]

Greetings all, 

I have recently begun attending a group that primarily does contra dance,
but also does ECD one Saturday a month.  They have asked if I'd like to help
call one evening.  So far, I've attended two of their ECD nights.  The
second half of the first night was called by someone who used to be in the
SCA.  On both nights, I noticed that many people struggled with some of the
dances despite being great contra dancers.  I also know some people left
tonight because the dancing wasn't holding their interest and because some
people seemed to be yelling at them if they made a mistake.  Also, the
general atmosphere at the ECD nights doesn't seem to be as lively or
entertaining as the contra nights.  So, I'm seeking the greater wisdom on
how to improve things when I get the opportunity to call (hopefully, really
teach not just call).  For those of you who are also cross-over dancers,
which ECD dances in our repertoire would fit best with the contra dance
culture?  I know contra dances are typically duple-minor progressives, so
I'm not just asking which of our dances fit that pattern ( I know that
info.), but really which dances do you think would be the easiest to pick up
and provide the best experience to help ECD night be as fun as the contra
nights?  Also, I'm terrible at counting music with which I'm not truly
familiar, so are there any major differences in the count (or other
elements) that might be throwing some of these people off?  

Thanks for any input.

 

Capricia/Michelle