M7 — Pass Thru
Teaching unit M7 of the CALLERLAB (New) Mainstream Suggested Teaching Order, effective
1 September 2026. Prerequisites: Facing Dancers,
Pass Thru
At a glance
| Starting formation | Facing Dancers |
| Ending formation | Back-To-Back Dancers |
| Timing | 2 beats |
| Unit | M7 of 50 |
Animation
▶ Play this call — pause, step and scrub it: Watching the animations.
Dance action
"Dancers move forward, passing right shoulders with each other and end back-to-back."
— CALLERLAB, Mainstream Dance Program Definitions, revised 29 March 2026.
What you do
Stand facing another dancer, about a step and a half apart.
- Walk straight forward. No hands, no turns.
- Pass your partner's right shoulder. Your right shoulder passes their right shoulder, so you slide just past each other rather than bumping. This is the Passing Rule.
- Stop as soon as you are past. You finish back to back — each of you facing the way the other one came from.
- Step to whatever comes next. Very often that is a Wheel Around, a Bend the Line, or another Pass Thru. Pass Thru is a building block; it is rarely the point of the figure.
The whole call is two steps. Walk it, do not run it.
Timing
2 beats — two steps, one for each dancer basically overlapping. It is the shortest call in the programme, and it is timed from a normal facing distance. If dancers start too far apart the call takes longer and the figure loses a beat.
Styling
"Man's right shoulder slightly forward as right shoulders pass. Arms in natural dance position.
Woman works skirt with hands, right hand leading as right shoulders pass."
Hands stay down. Look at your partner as you pass, keep your body upright, and do not lean away. Two dancers passing back-to-back should feel like a doorway opening, not a collision avoided.
Restrictions
The manual is specific about where Pass Thru may start:
- it is proper from a Right-Hand Mini-Wave, because of the Ocean Wave Rule;
- it is improper from a Left-Hand Mini-Wave, because that would be a left-shoulder pass — use Step Thru instead;
- it is improper for dancers who are further apart than directly facing, or who are on a diagonal; the caller must say "Boys on a Diagonal, Pass Thru" to make that work;
- it is proper from a couple facing a single dancer: the single dancer splits the couple, passing one of them on the right and the other on the left.
Common faults
| What happens | Why | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| You pass left shoulders | Mirroring the other dancer | Right shoulder to right shoulder. Both of you do the same thing |
| You turn as you pass | Expecting to end facing each other | Pass Thru ends back to back. Save the turn for the next call |
| You walk too far | Overshooting the spot | Two steps and stop. Your back should be against your partner's back |
| You reach out for a handhold | Habit from other calls | Pass Thru has no hands at all |
Where you meet it
Class 2. Pass Thru is used constantly as a connector — it sets up a Wheel Around, a Bend the Line, a Dive Thru, or a second Pass Thru. It is also one half of a Right and Left Thru.
Related calls
- Dosado — the same two dancers, walking around each other with a sideways slide. See M2.
- Right and Left Thru — a Pass Thru with hands followed by a Courtesy Turn. See M10.
- Square Thru — four pull-bys in a row, each one with the same right-shoulder feeling. See M21.
- Wheel Around — what a couple often does straight after a Pass Thru. See M8.
Also called / formerly
You will hear "Pass Through". Some callers say "Pass Thru, right shoulders" as a reminder. The call has been Pass Thru throughout the modern programme.
Manual source: Mainstream Dance Program Definitions, revised 29 March 2026, page 45. Reproduced under the permission in sources and attribution.