DHDS Day 6 - the day of the ball!

Today was another day of learning quadrille footwork. We worked on our ballotes and pas de zephyr.

I'll post pictures and a video when I get home.

The Ballote

Hop and sink on your right foot, extending your left leg behind you, hop again (this time on your left leg) and extend your right leg in front of you. You can do the same with the other leg.

The Pas de Zephyr

Hop and sink on your right leg and extend your left leg behind. Hop again on your RIGHT leg (you don't alternate like the ballote) and extend your left leg out front.

So, we worked those 2 steps into the 2nd solo for the men (sinking on the left foot) and women (sinking on the right foot) in the 1826 Gavottini Quadrille.

In the afternoon we worked on the Twelve Quadrille again. The second figure of the quadrille was lovely and we got to use some steps from the William Tell ballet!

After class, one of the other ladies offered to so my hair and she did such a beautiful job creating and arranging multiple plaits. It was so lovely and intricate.

Then we went to the ball at the Chichester assembly rooms (c. 1782). That evening we danced a cotillion, Paine's 1st set of quadrilles, a reel for 4, several country dances and La Boulanger. It was a lovely evening.

DHDS day 2 - Classes begin

Today I had my first classes with Stuart Marsden, where our class started learning a cotillion called La Comtesse du Nore from c. 1797. The Comtesse du Nord was a pseudonym for the Grand Duchess Maria Feodorovna when she travelled inconspicuously.

As a cotillion, the dance features changes and a chorus. The changes (with a balance and pas de rigadon) include:
1. Grand rond
2. Right and left hand turn partner
3. Ladies right and left moulinet (star)
4. Men do the same
5. Ladies circle left and right
6. Men do the same
7. Grand chain
8. Grand rond

It was quite a lot of dancing with the pas de rigadon and Demi-contretemps. Our group will be performing that tomorrow for the other dancers! Fingers crossed. I will post videos of the footwork when I get home.

We had a bit of a breather with Lady Charlotte Campbell's Waltz, which featured a lovely turn under the arm for the lady before casting into 2nd.

In the afternoon, we did a lively reel called Miss Vickor's Delight and then another waltz called Madame Saqui's Waltz which included slow waltz and sauteuse steps, so we are beginning to work on that! We will be presenting a few dances from Stuart's class tomorrow evening.

Then, for the optional course, I did Irish steps with Anne Daye and I learned to do a back step, single footing, double footing and forwards/sideways travelling steps in 9/8 time. Maybe one could work some steps into Physical Snob? It was really fun to do and I will make some videos for these different steps. We then incorporated them into Lord Grantham's Whim from 1810. It was both invigorating and exhausting!

In the evening after dinner, we had a Regency At Home led by Stuart, where we had silhouette cutting, cards, embroider, dancing, letters (like Emma and the infamous "blunder"), and several people "took a turn" by performing songs, Highland dances and exhibited on the piano. At the end of the evening, we played Snapdragon, which is a game that features a burning bowl of brandy-soaked raisins... You have to quickly snatch them out with your fingers and eat them! I was observing off to the side, when Stuart insisted that I try... And I did it! It was a lot of fun! I am so glad I did it.

That's me, after having eaten the flaming raisins!

Then we played Bullet Pudding, which consists of a pile of flour with jellies (the bullets) hidden inside. Each person took a turn cutting away the flour. If a jelly showed, you had to get the jelly out of the flour with your mouth - no hands! There were quite a few flour-covered faces by the end of the evening.

Well, that's all for now. More to come tomorrow! Happy dancing!

All quiet on the Western front... but not for long!

Hi everyone,

It's been a bit quiet on this site for a while - getting back from Waterloo and preparing for a new adventure!

A few months ago, I was given a bursary from the Dolmetsch Historical Dance Society to attend their 2015 summer school called "Dancing Around 1815" in Chichester! It will be one fantastic (and probably exhausting) week of historical dance in honour of the bicentennial of the battle of Waterloo. There will be dance sessions in the morning and afternoon, as well as some lovely evening entertainments, like a Regency At Home and a ball at the Chichester Assembly Rooms (c. 1782), talks and other evenings of casual social dance. It will be a very full week!

I am very excited to meet the course instructors for the week, including Anne Daye, who appeared on Dr. Lucy Worsley's 2014 documentary called "Dancing Cheek to Cheek" (episode 1 - The Devil's Work). Anne Daye will be teaching country dances, cotillions and Scottish reels from 1780 to 1815.

Stuart Marsden will also be teaching the course for the week. He was the dancing master in Dr. Amanda Vickery's fascinating 2013 social experiment "Pride and Prejudice: Having a Ball", in which the famous Netherfield Ball was recreated! Stuart Marsden is also involved in the new BBC production of Poldark! He will be teaching country dances, quadrilles and waltzes from 1805 to 1836.

So, I've very excited to have the opportunity to learn from these two experts in the field of historical dance! My goal is to post on what I am learning each day, or if I am too exhausted in the evening, to write about my experiences when I get back. Fingers crossed!

My mind is Reeling...

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Today I'll be looking at Thomas Wilson's Reel for 5, which can be found in Wilson's c. 1815 publication "The complete system of English country dancing, containing all the figures ever used in English country dancing, with a variety of new figures, and new reels".

Here's the image and description of the dance:

Similar to the traditional reels for 3 or 4 people (not couples) in the Regency ballroom, this reel for 5 alternates 8 bars of heying and 8 bars of setting.

I have created a diagram that shows the progression of the reel for 5 for each 8 bar strain. 

This is how I think of the dance:

• Dancer B heys with A & C, then "thanks" both of them (in the same order) for dancing with him/her by setting to them.
• In the 1st repetition, dancer B is the only dancer who gets to do 2 heys (1st with AC, 2nd with FD), but does an extra loop in the 2nd hey with F to change places.
• Facing B, F then "thanks" B for putting him/her in the middle by setting, and then D for dancing with them, also with setting.
• **NOTE: F's left shoulder is facing the person he/she heys with next (C). This is the same for every dancer in the middle! 
• This pattern repeats until the dance is over.

This figure can be danced to Morpeth's Rant or Fisher's Hornpipe, as listed in Wilson's description. Other tunes available on CD include Bonny Highland Laddie or Lady Mary Ramsay on "The Regency Ballroom" CD by Spare Parts.

I hope this helps everyone who wants to try this interesting dance form. I will post a video later this evening, after a dance practice, demonstrating the reel for 5 - so be sure to check this page for the update! If anything still seems unclear, please let me know and I will try to help in any way I can! 

UPDATE: Here's the video I filmed at today's dance practice. I hope it makes the pattern clearer!

That's all for now - until next time... Happy dancing!

Wilson's Opera Reel

As I have finished looking at Paine's 4th Set of Quadrilles, I will return to some more of the English Country Dances on the dance list for the Duchess of Richmond's Ball... specifically Thomas Wilson's Opera Reel from 1816.

However, Wilson published a couple of dance manuals in 1816, which both included the Opera Reel: a 2nd edition of The Treasures of Terpsichore; or, a companion for the ball-room. Being a collection of all the most popular English Country Dances..., as well as A Companion to the Ball Room, containing a choice collection of the most original and admired Country Dances, Reels, Hornpipes, Waltzes etc. Since there are a few options regarding figures (for some reason Wilson's figures did not match between publications from the same year), I will provide figures for each.

Opera Reel #1 (Treasures of Terpsichore)

A: 1st couple cast off two couple (4 bars) and back again (4 bars).

B: Couples set and change sides (4 bars), and back again (4 bars).

C: 1st couple lead down the middle, up again (4 bars) and allemande (4 bars).

• The lead down and back is a short one, completed in 4 bars, so don't go for a long walk down the middle of the set! There isn't much music to complete this figure.
• 1st couple leads back to 2nd place (2s move up) to progress.
• The allemande, according to Wilson, is a back-to-back. This figure features 2 dancers rotating around each other, first crossing right shoulders, taking a step to the right and then a step backwards. To perform this figure correctly, always face the same direction - there are no extra turns. 

** Wilson's chassé is a skip change. I call the forwards skip a skip change to differentiate between the sideways chassé (or slipping step). If you do the back-to-back with a skip change and jeté assemblé, I would recommend starting the skip change forward with the left foot.

Here's a little video demonstrating a back-to-back:

D: Hands 6 round and back (8 bars).

Opera Reel #2 (Treasure of Terpsichore) - this one was animated on Regencydances.org.

A: 1st couple cross over two couple and lead up one (8 bars).

• 1st couple crosses the set by right shoulders and casts into 2nd (2s move up), cross by right shoulders again and cast below the 3rd couple.
• Take inside hands and lead up to 2nd place.

B: Set 3 across and 3 in your places (8 bars).

• Regencydances.org recommends 1^st couple turns 1/4 by right hand into lines across the set and all set, then 1st couple turns 1/4 by the left hand back to place and all set.

C: 1st couple lead through bottom and top (8 bars).

D: 1st couple swing corners (8 bars).

• 1st couple turns partner partway by right hand, then turns right-hand corner by left hand; turns partner partway by right hand, turn left-hand corner by left hand. This motion is similar to the ladies chain in Paine's 4th Set (Le Pantalon).

Opera Reel #3 (Companion to the Ballroom)

A: 1st and 2nd couples set and change sides (4 bars), and back again (4 bars).

B: 1st couple lead down the middle, up again (4 bars) and allemande (4 bars).

C: Set contrary corners (8 bars).

D: Hands 6 round and back again (8 bars).



Opera Reel #4 (Companion to the Ballroom)

A: 1st lady leads down 2nd man (4 bars); 1st man leads down 2nd lady (4 bars).

• This is a short lead down for each couple, not a long walk down the middle of the set.

B: 1st couple leads down the middle, up again to 2nd (4 bars) and allemande (4 bars).

C: Set 3 across and 3 in your places (8 bars).

D: Double Triangle (8 bars).

• This double triangle figure may seem odd at first, but maybe it will help to think of it this way: 1st couple crosses the set between the top and bottom couples (man going down the set, woman going up the set) and doing a figure 8 on the opposite side, but instead of ending on the man's side, you cross back to your place after going around the 2nd person. 
• The woman goes in between top and bottom men, up around the top man, through the middle on the man's side and down around the bottom man, and then back to place.
• The man goes in between top and bottom ladies, down around the bottom woman, through the middle on the ladies' side and up around the top woman, and then back to place.

Opera Reel #5 (Companion to the Ballroom)

A: Hands 3 on the ladies' side (4 bars); hands 3 on the man's side (4 bars).

B: Whole pousette 1.5x to progress to 2nd (8 bars).

• 1st man pulls, 2nd man pushes.

C: 1st couple swing corners (8 bars).

D: 1st couple lead outsides (8 bars).

• Susan de Guardiola at Capering and Kickery has written a post on reconstructing this figure.
• 1st couple take both hands and move to E, then D (almost like a pousette) in 4 bars, then does a 2-hand turn to place in 4 bars.

I know there are a lot of different versions listed here. Once Mr. Baert releases the figures, one of these should be among them, and I will update this page to let you know which set of figures from 1816 he will be using. If any of these other reconstructions appeal, maybe you could try them out with an English Country Dance/Regency dance group for fun! 

That's all for now - until next time... Happy dancing!