Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Dancing Circle

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

The Dancing Circle
Maggie and Duncan Keppie Gaelic College SCD Book 12: Corrie Dances
40 bar reel
One big circle woman on right of partner This dance can be done with WALKING STEPS

  1-8   CIRCLE AND BACK: Nearer hands joined, circle and back;

  9-16 TURN PARTNER AND CORNER: Turn partner with right hand once round, then turn corner with the left hand once round;

17-24 PASS AND TURN: pass partner by the right shoulder and turn the next with the right hand once round, pass partner by the right shoulder and turn corner with the right hand once round, ending facing partner;

25-32 CIRCULAR REEL OF 4: dance a reel of 4 starting by passing partner by the right shoulder, pass partner right, next by the left, and the next by the right, then pulling right shoulder back return home in the reel of 4 passing right, left, and right (end facing partner);

33-40 GRAND CHAIN: dance a Grand Chain, two steps with each hand, starting with partner.

Repeat.

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


Dancing Circle
Dancing Circle
"Playing Children" Federico Oliva (Spain, Late 19th century), Oil On Canvas, 19th Century


Image copyright Federico Oliva, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Back to the top of this Scottish Country Dancing Instructions 'The Dancing Circle' page