Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

A Stroller In Hades

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

A Stroller In Hades (R8x32) A 32 bar reel for three couples in a four couple longwise set. Murrough Landon 2014

1-4 1st and 2nd couples half turn partner by the right hand then dance half right hands across.
5-8 1st and 3rd couples dance complete left hands across with 1st couple retaining left hands.
9-12 1st couple turn left hand one and a quarter times to end on the centre line with 1st woman above 1st man.
13-16 1st woman with 2nd couple and 1st man with 3rd couple dance right hands across. 1st couple end with a wide loop into 2nd place on their own sides.
17-20 1st couple cross giving right hands and cast to their right to end in the centre (1st woman in 1st place, 1st man in 3rd place) while 2nd and 3rd couples set and cross giving right hands, all ending in lines across facing up/down.
21-24 1st couple cross up/down giving left hands and cast to their left to end in 2nd place on their own sides while 2nd and 3rd couples set and change places giving left hands on the sides.
25-28 1st couple cross giving left hands and cast to their left to end in the centre (1st man in 1st place, 1st woman in 3rd place) while 3rd and 2nd couples set and cross giving right hands, all ending in lines across facing up/down.
29-32 1st couple cross up/down giving right hands and cast to their right to end in 2nd place on their own sides while 3rd and 2nd couples set and change places giving left hands on the sides.

(Dance crib compiled by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA May 2014)


Dance Notes

This dance was inspired by "The Australian Ladies" with the aim of having equal amounts of right and left handedness in both the "signature" last 16 bars and also the first 16 which consequently ended up being very different from the original. The word "Stroller" in the title contains the R,L,L,R sequence indicating the handedness of each successive four bars (for 1st couple).

After the second repeat, 1st couple dance bars 1-4 again with 4th couple to end in 4th place (although this does sadly break the otherwise equal amounts of left and right handedness).

For mathematical completeness 3rd and 4th couples could also do this at the start so that all four couples are dancing at the start of the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th times through.

Note that in bars 17-32 2nd and 3rd couples have a R,L,R,L pattern instead of the R,L,L,R sequence for 1st couple. This is to avoid an awkward repetition of right hands for 3rd couple at the start of the next repeat.

(Dance notes by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA May 2014)

Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams


Dance Instruction Videos

A Stroller In Hades - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

This reel, A Stroller In Hades, was devised as a more even handed reworking of The Australian Ladies.

Recommended music: Suggested tune The Australian Ladies by William Fergusson, The Ladies frae Hell by J MacMillan Tait; suitable recording Australian Ladies (Colin Dewar and his Scottish Dance Band)

(Dance information by the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA May 2014)


Published in A Stroller In Hades, reproduced here with the kind permission of the deviser, Murrough Landon, CC BY-SA.

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