Wednesday, April 6, 2016

2 March 2016 – Westchester

Another  prep session for the upcoming balls - The New Haven Highland Ball - NJ's Rerr Terr Ball -
 The Kilts and Ghillies Tea Dance.

Driving through Eutaw  - (32 J 3)  -  Leary
Scott Meikle  - (32 R 4)  - Bk 46/3
Sands of Morar  -  (32 S 3)  - Bk 45/6 (Priddey)
Flights of Fancy  -  (32 J 3)  -  Boston 50th (McColl)

Rory O'More  -  (32 J 2)  -  Bk 1/9
Duchess of Atholl's Slipper  -  (32 S 2)  -  Bk 9/3
Countess of Dunmore's Reel  -  (32 R 3)  - Bk 49/12 (D M Bark)
Many Happy Returns  -  (32 S 3)  - Briscoe

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Rory O'More:- 1 star - If I Must. The swap places on the sides is OK. and I love poussette with pas de basque, but what else is there in this dance? If you absolutely can not find another QT poussette anywhere else in the standard repertoire then why not this dance.

Driving Through Eutaw:- Alright already - I admit it, I am prejudiced toward this dance. But it still has a little more substance to it than Rory O' More has IMHO. The first 16 bars a unbalanced and take you out of your box, and that is a good thing. It takes a little bit of thinking. A short video is available - see my earlier post.

Scott Meikle:- on the Kilts and Gillies Tea Dance. And a lovely wee bit of choreography it is. I just love surprise progressions where you look around and ask "how did this happen?"

Sands of Morar:- from one of my favorite divisors, Barry Priddey. He didn't write as many dances as John Drewry did, but as a percentage I think he has more really good dances. Take a look at the Golden Ghillies page and do the counting - and this award comes from the dancers.

This dance is not one of my favorites. It is good, and I will happily dance it. I just believe he has devised better ones, and that said you should not plan a trip to the loo when this one comes up. Far from it. This is a good dance - just not one of his best. And if you like this one what does that mean about his others?

Flights of Fancy:- Yes! Another good one! Thank you Jeanetta and the band and her father who wrote the tune and...
The trick to this dance is handling all the changes in orientation and facing and who is on the proper side or who is not and when. It is a tricky little dance but rewarding when you get it right.

The Duchess of Atholl's Slipper:- This is one dance you either love or hate or love to hate. Have you ever done it it a good sized, maybe even slightly oversize set? Try it. It smooths out all the rough spots. In a cramped ball room I'll of for the loo first. With space - I love it. I also love diversity and these reels are different. Thumbs up to that!

The Countess of Dunmore's Reel:-  Chaperoned chain progression! Yes! This dance dance rocks! As does the original dance Linnea's Strathspey.

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