Time for a quiz! Match the movement to the dance in which it appears:
Ooohhhh, you didn't think it'd be that easy, did you? That's only the starter question. The real question is this: Which is the odd movement out and why? I'll give you a few days before I post the answer. No prizes for guessing, save for bragging rights and a sense of self-satisfaction :)
That's pretty much what I got through last night. Retaught them the first figure of the Four-Hand Reel and then went on a bit of a frenzy with any ceili that can be done in a four. Antrim Reel, Siege of Carrick and the Walls of Limerick were finished within about half an hour, and then we moved onto the Humours of Bandon. I actually love the body to dance. I've always thought the figures were a bit of a mess and my opinion remains the same, but we got them regardless. How I wish I had seven dancers instead of four. If they're going to collapse in giggles at how well the claps in the Siege of Carrick fit with the music, then I'm going to have absolutely no chance at controlling them through the Three Tunes!
Class over and tables replaced, I decided to get the heavy shoes on. Ow, it's been a while. That needs a lot of work but I'm encouraged on a couple of points:
Hit a few clicks, even the hard ones
Nailed my rhythm bits including the double back treble and the toe-over-toe
Didn't miss a treble
Loouuudddd
Pointe work strong
Howeverrrrr...stamina dreadful, turnout abysmal, height on clicks embarrassing. Needs work. Plan? Half-an-hour of heavy practice after every class, and try and find somewhere else to practice some other time during the week.
To finish on a happy note, one of the girls said "why can't we have more than one class a week?" I wish, J. I wish!
The sun is shining - it's absolutely glorious today - so I really didn't fancy exerting myself by learning the rest of the Blackbird. So I've done two ceili dances instead!
The Bridge of Athlone
Jig - any number of couples. Gent in one line, ladies in another, couples facing.
Rising step, advance and retire - down the centre - cast off - the bridge
I kinda like this one - I think it would be fairly easy to teach as well. But I can only find really amateur videos of it on YouTube, so I'll have to wait til I have the DVDs before I can properly check. Any dance that has a bridge is fine by me!
The Siege of Carrick
Jig - danced to Haste to the Wedding. Same formation as Walls, sets of two couples facing one another with lady on the gent's right.
Ring - right and left wheels - down centre and turn - up centre and swing
Down/up centre is a little tricky and when I watched the video, it didn't look at all how I'd imagined when I was reading the book. But it's a lovely dance, apart from the hooking arms which is just a bit Cotton Eyed Joe for my liking. There's clapping though, which I like. Will need to watch this one a few times more:
