Lesson from April 30th - Ball Prep

New Figures: Inverted Triangles, Reel of Four, Set and Link for 3, Diagonal Rights and Lefts

Dances on Ann Arbor Ball: The Nurseryman, Burns Bicentenary Strathspey, Gang the Same Gate, The Irish Rover

THE NURSERYMAN (J8x32) 3C (4C set) S Brown RSCDS Bk 37
1‐8         1s set, cross down below the 2s, cast behind 3s, and
              dance up to 2nd place in the center back to back, facing opposite sides.
9‐16       2nd, 1st, and 3rd couples set as in double triangles.
              Dropping hands, all three couples set advancing and turn about.
              Set again in inverted triangles, and all three couples set advancing.
17‐24     1st couple dances right hands across on opposite sides,
              pass right to dance left hands across on own sides,
              ending 1M between the 3s, 1L between the 2s
              in lines of three facing up and down.
25‐32     All advance and retire. 1st couple turn right 11/4 to 2nd place.

BURNS BICENTENARY STRATHSPEY (S4x32) 4C set 
J Drewry Bankhead Bk 6
3s & 4s begin on opp sides
1- 8        1s+2s also 3s+4s circle 4H to left & Set+Link on sides
9-16       All dance RSh reel of 4 on sides
17-24     1M+4L & 4M+1L dance Ladies Chain (end facing in prom hold)
25-32     1M+4L & 4M+1L Promenade across (Men passing LSh),
              4s dance up between 2s & cast to 2nd places
              while 1s dance down & cast to 3rd places

GANG THE SAME GATE (S8x32) 3C (4C set) M Levy RSCDS Bk 36
1- 8        1s cross RH & cast down to 3rd place,
               cross RH & cast up to 2nd place on own sides
9-16       1s set adv to ptnr & turn 1st crnr 2H, face 2nd crnr & dance 1/2 reel of 4
              ending 1M in the center of a line of 3 across (all men) facing down &
              1L in the center of a line of 3 across (all ladies) facing up
17-24     1s set adv to partner & turn partners 2nd corner pstn 2H,
              face own 1st crnr pstns &
              dance 1/2 reel with crnrs end in 2nd place opp sides
25-32     3s+1s+2s Set+Link for 3, twice

Dance Information:
The title may be a play on words of a more common Scots expression, 'gang the same gait', meaning "go the same way" in both the literal and figurative senses.

THE IRISH ROVER (R8x32) 3C (4C set) J Cosh 22 SCDs+1 & 2
1- 4        1s dance down below 3s & cast up to 2nd place own sides
5- 8        1L dances RH across with 2s while 1M dances RH across with 3s
9-16       1s dance 1/2 diagonal reel of 4 with 1st corners then
              1/2 reel with 2nd corners &
              1/2 turn LH in centre to face 1st corners
17-24     1s dance reels of 3 across giving LSh to 1st corners
               ending in 2nd place own sides
25-32     1s dance diagonal R&L
              (1M crossing diagonally down & 1L crossing diagonally up to start)

Dance Information:
The signature tune for this dance, "The Irish Rover" is an Irish folk song about the fate of a massive, mythical sailing ship, a story told with great exaggeration by its only remaining crew member.

The Pogues and The Dubliners performing "The Irish Rover" on YouTube.

Lesson Plan for April 23 - Beginner Class

No new figures this week. Instead, we will work on conquering Pass+Turn, which we struggled with before.

Dances from the Ann Arbor Ball: The Best Set in the Hall, Lantern of the North

CORNER AFTER CORNER AFTER CORNER (R8x32) 3C (4C set)
J Drewry        Stoneywood Coll
1- 8      1s cross RH, cast 1 place & turn RH 1.1/2 times to face 3rd corners
9-16     1s dance Pass+Turn with 3rd corners, pass RSh &
             dance Pass+Turn with 4th corners & pass RSh to face 1st corners
17-24   1s dance Pass+Turn with 1st corners, pass RSh &
             dance Pass+Turn with 2nd corners & end 2nd place opposite sides
25-32   1s dance reels of 3 on sides (LSh to 1st corner to start) &
             cross RH to 2nd place own sides

THE BEST SET IN THE HALL (32J3C) Bk 46
1‐8        1s set, 1L followed by partner cast off below 3s.
             1L dances across and up behind 3M
             while 1M dances up the middle to face 1st corners.
9‐16      1s set to 1st corners.
             Corners dance into the middle and turn to face their original position
             while 1s cast over their right shoulder into partner’s 1st corner’s place.
             Set to partner’s 1st corner.
             1s dance into the middle and turn about to face 2nd corners
             while 1st corners cast over their right shoulder
             into the other 1st corner’s place.
17‐24   1s repeat bars 9‐16 with second corners,
             ending in second place on opposite sides.
25‐32   All chase clockwise halfway around and turn by the right.

Depending on turn-out, we will dance one of the following two strathspeys:

ALBATROSSES & SHEARWATERS (S3x32) 3C set M Veranth
1- 8      1s+2s+3s circle 6H round & back
9-16     2s dance up 1 place, cast & dance down between 3s &
             cast to face 1st corners
17-24   1s dance Pass+Turn with 1st corners, pass RSh to
             dance Pass+Turn with 2nd corners
25-32   1s+2s+3s dance the Knot with 3s+2s dancing 1/2 LH across to end 2 3 1

Dance Information:
Albatrosses and shearwaters are both large-winged seabirds that soar for long distances with a minimum amount of wing movement.

Southern Royal Albatross
Photo by Angus Wilson, from Ross Sea Info

The albatross is among the largest of flying birds, and the great albatrosses have the largest wingspans of any extant birds.  They feature as the main poetic symbol in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner (Samuel Taylor Coleridge, 1798), which was a seminal work signaling the shift to modern poetry and the beginning of British Romantic Literature.

Great Shearwater
Photo from Wikipedia

With their efficient soaring flight, some shearwater species cover as much as 14,000 km one-way in migration.  They are also extremely long lived. A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult (at least 5 years old) in July 1953, was retrapped in July 2003, at least 55 years old, making it the oldest known wild bird in the world.

THE FALKIRK LASS (S8x32) 3C (4C set) E Brunken Merse Coll
1- 8       1s turn RH, cast 1 place, cross LH & cast round 2nd corners to
              Man between 2s facing down & Lady between 3s facing up
9-16       All Adv+Ret (1 step), change places with opposite person RH,
              Advance+Retire again & 2s+3s change places RH
              while 1s turn to face 1st crnrs
17-24    1s Pass+Turn with 1st corners & Pass+Turn with 2nd corners
25-32    2s+1s+3s circle 6H round & back

Dance Information:

Falkirk Wheel,
Image from Wikipedia

I do not know the intent of the dance deviser, but the figure pass+turn is in many ways reminiscent of the operation of the Falkirk Wheel boat lift, which allows boats to transfer between the Forth and Clyde Canal to the Union Canal, connecting the two systems using a surprisingly efficient system.  It is considered a landmark of Scottish engineering and uses only 30.2 hp to power the electric motors, which consume just 1.5 kilowatt-hours of energy in the four minutes that constitutes the main part of the rotation, roughly the same as boiling eight kettles of water.

COLWYN'S RUBY REEL (R4x32) 4C set J Rhodes
1- 8       1s dance reflection reels of 3 on opposite sides
9-16      1s lead down for 2 & back, cross to own sides & cast to face 1st corners
17-24    1s dance Pass+Turn with 1st corners & Pass+Turn with 2nd corners
25-32    All circle 6H round & back

THE LANTERN OF THE NORTH (J8x32) 3C (4C set) J Drewry Canadian Bk
1- 8        1s+2s+3s set, cross RH, set & 1/2 turn LH into prom hold
9-16       1s+2s+3s Promenade & end with 1s casting to 2nd place
17-24     1s dance reels of 3 on opposite sides (1s cross RH down to start) &
              1s end facing 2nd corners
25-32     1s dance Pass+Turn with 2nd corners, turn RH &
               repeat with 1st corners, ending in 2nd place

Lesson Plan for April 16 - Beginner Class

New Figures: Set to & Turn Corners

Dances from the Ann Arbor Ball: Clydebank Strathspey, Mrs. MacLeod

Since we didn't get to all of last week's dances, we'll be re-using some of them this week.

THE CRAVEN REEL (R8x32) 3C (4C set) D Haynes Carnforth Coll 5
1- 8         1L followed by partner cast off 2 places & dance RH across with 3s
9-16        1L followed by partner dance up behind men to original places &
                dance RH across with 2s
17-24      1s+2s+3s dance RSh reels of 3 on own side (1s & 2s start)
25-32      1L followed by partner cast off 1 place, dance up between 2s
                cast down round 2M to end 2nd place own side

BLUE BONNETS (J8x32) 2C (4C set) RSCDS Bk 3
1- 8         1L+2M Advance+Retire & dance BtoB
9-16        1M+2L Advance+Retire & dance BtoB
17-24      1s lead down the middle & back
25-32      1s+2s dance Poussette

CLYDEBANK STRATHSPEY (S8x32) 2C (4C set) R Goldring G & S Dances 2
1- 8         1s dance 1/2 fig of 8 round 2s, 1L+2M turn 11/2 times RH
                while 1M+2L turn 11/2 times LH. 1s end 2nd place facing out
9-16        1s dance 1/2 fig of 8 round 2s (1s casting to start),
                2L+1L turn 11/2 times LH
                while 2M+1M turn 11/2 times RH back to original places
17-24      1s lead down the middle & back
25-32      1s+2s dance Allemande

THE BAWK (J8x32) 3C (4C set) A Bowman RSCDS Bk 30
1- 8         1M sets advancing to 2L & turns partner LH,
               1L sets advancing to 2M & turns partner RH
9-16        1s cross RH, cast 1 place, cross LH, cast round 3s &
                lead up to face 1st corners
17-24      1s set & turn 1st corners, set & turn 2nd corners to
                end in centre facing Ladies side
25-32      1s dance out between 2L & 3L, cast (Lady up & Man down),
                meet in centre & dance out between 2M & 3M &
                cast ending in 2nd places

MRS MACLEOD (R8x32) 3C (4C set) RSCDS Bk 6
1- 8         1s+2s dance RH across & LH back
9-16        1s lead down the middle & up to face 1st corners
17-24      1s set to 1st corners & turn 2H, set & turn 2nd corners
25-32      1s dance reels of 3 on opposite sides giving LSh to 1st corners &
                cross to 2nd place own sides

Lesson Plan for April 9 - Beginner Class

New Figures: Pass & Turn

Dances from the Ann Arbor Ball: Lantern of the North, Manhattan

THE LANTERN OF THE NORTH (J8x32) 3C (4C set) J Drewry Canadian Bk
1- 8       1s+2s+3s set, cross RH, set & 1/2 turn LH into prom hold
9-16      1s+2s+3s Promenade & end with 1s casting to 2nd place
17-24    1s dance reels of 3 on opposite sides (1s cross RH down to start) &
             1s end facing 2nd corners
25-32    1s dance Pass+Turn with 2nd corners, turn RH &
              repeat with 1st corners, ending in 2nd place

Dance Information:

Elgin Cathedral, consecrated in 1224, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was sometimes referred to as The Lantern of the North and is an historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, north-east Scotland.




MANHATTAN (R8x32) 3C (4C Set) D Blim
1‐8          1s dance down below 3s, cast up one place, dance up to the top, and
               cast off to face 1st corners.
9‐16        Turn corner, partner, corner, partner,
                ending in the middle on opposite sides.
17‐24      1s set right for one bar, then slip individually left for one bar,
                ending 1M between the 3s, 1L between the 2s.
                Dance six bar right shoulder reels of three across the dance,
                ending with 1s in 2nd place on opposite sides.
25‐32       Dance six bar right shoulder reels of three on the sides.
                1s cross RH to place.

Dance Information:

NY Subway Map from the MTA website.

The dance mimics the experience of a ride on the New York subway, from the trip down the stairs, to slipping between the train doors, to changing subway lines.

Edited to remove the dances we didn't get to on the 9th, due to extensive technique practice on Manhattan. We will be trying them on the 16th.