Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

A Dance She Grac'd

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

A Dance She Grac'd
Maggie and Duncan Keppie Haliburton School Of Arts SCD Book 2: Let's dance
6/8x32 bar strathspey
2-couple dance in 3 or 4-couple longways set

  1-8   GLASGOW HIGHLANDERS SETTING, PETRONELLA AND SET: 1st and 2nd couples set to partner using Glasgow Highlanders setting step, petronella into a line of 4 in the middle, and set (2nd woman ends by pulling right shoulder back to finish facing up);

  9-16 TANDEM REEL OF 3 AND ½ TURN: 1st and 2nd couples dance a reel of 3 along the middle of the dance: 1st man and 2nd woman in tandem (staying close behind one another) start by passing 1st woman by the right shoulder and switching lead at each end of the reel, on Bar 16 turn partner ½ round (1st couple with right hands, and 2nd couple with left hands);

17-24 TANDEM REEL OF 3 AND ½ TURN: 1st and 2nd couples dance a reel of 3 along the middle of the dance: 1st woman and 2nd man in tandem (staying close to one another) start by passing 1st man by the right shoulder and switching lead at each end of the reel, on Bar 24 turn partner ½ round (1st couple with right hands, and 2nd couple with left hands) to end both hands joined with partner along the middle of the dance (men facing up, women facing down);

25-32 HIGHLAND SCHOTTISCHE POUSSETTE: 1st and 2nd couple dance Highland Schottische Poussette ending on own side in progressed places.

Repeat from 2nd place.

(Dance crib compiled by the devisers, Maggie and Duncan Keppie)


Dance Information

The title of this dance, A Dance She Grac'd, comes from the Tam O' Shanter - Poem written by Robert Burns in 1790, while living in Dumfries, Scotland.

Wi' twa pund Scots ('twas a' her riches),
Wad ever grac'd a dance of witches!

Tam O' Shanter Poem - Information Video

Tam O' Shanter And The Witches Print
"Tam O' Shanter And The Witches" John Faed (1819-1902), Print, c. 1892


Image copyright John Faed, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

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