Scottish Country Dancing Dictionary

The Whitret Reel

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

THE WHITRET REEL (R8x32) 3C (4C set) Samantha Schad, 2010

1- 8 1s set and cast (2s step up); 2C and 3C Petronella turn to form a line up/down the middle, all set with 1s pulling back RSh to face clockwise
9-16 2s+1s+3s dance Weasel reels:
 2s+3s dance part reel of 4 up/down middle but when reaching either end they dance clockwise to top/bottom to re-enter reel while 1s dance clockwise to replace dancer leaving the reel and all end where they started, 2s and 3s on midline, 1s facing across set
17-24 Promenade (Chaperoned) Chain progression:
17-18 2s and 3s ½ turn partner RH in middle while 1s dance clockwise ¼ round the set picking up 2L/3M...
19-22 who promenade ½ way clockwise while middle people (2M + 3L) turn LH 1½
23-24 2s and 3s turn partner RH ¾ to own sides while 1s dance clockwise ¼ round to end in 2nd place. 312
25-32 3s+1s+2s dance Allemande. 213

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)


Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams


Dance Instruction Videos

The Whitret Reel - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

"Whitret" is a Scots term referring to a weasel or a small carnivorous mammal belonging to the Mustelidae family.

The name Whitret (also futret, whitterick, whitrack, or whittret) may have been derived from white and‎ rat.


A weasel is a mammal of the genus Mustela of the family Mustelidae. The genus Mustela includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and mink.

Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodies and short legs. The family Mustelidae (which also includes badgers, otters, and wolverines) is often referred to as the "weasel family". In the UK, the term "weasel" usually refers to the smallest species, the least weasel (M. Nivalis).

Weasels exhibit a size range of 173 to 217 mm (6.8 to 8.5 in), with females generally smaller than males. Characterized by red or brown upper coats and white bellies, certain species undergo seasonal moulting, adopting a wholly white winter coat. Possessing elongated and slender bodies, these mammals can navigate burrows in pursuit of prey. The length of their tails spans from 34 to 52 mm (1.3 to 2.0 in).

Weasels feed on small mammals and have from time to time been considered vermin because some species took poultry from farms or rabbits from commercial warrens. They do, on the other hand, eat large numbers of rodents.

They can be found all across the world except for Australia, Antarctica, and the neighbouring islands.

Weasel - Information Video

Weasel
Least Weasel - Mustela Nivalis


Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Weasel article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Keven Law Creative Commons Licence 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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