Britannia Dance notes:

Bampton

General comments:

Easy, relaxed style belies tight formation

Specific Features:

Flick on beat before the start of phrase (anacrusis) – Anticipating the start of the musical phrase with the half caper.

Left Foot Start!

Snap to place in figures

Discussion of Style.

Basically, we decided to aim to be in position at certain key points in the dance.  The whole was to be done in quite a ‘snappy’ manner, where there is often a sharp turn at a specific point in the music to be facing the right way for the next part of the dance.  Example: at midpoint of Whole Gip, and midpoint of Side Step.  If you can’t snap, for whatever reason, it is up to you to start early enough to be in position.  Don’t get there late instead.

Dance is generally fairly slow, which means a lot of ground can be covered (where available).

Feature dance for National: Side Step (Tune: One for Dan)

Key points:

Half caper in

Foot up and down: Foot up, snap to half caper across is facing partner.

Sidestep: Snap to face up for the first flick, so move BEFORE anacrusis.  Likewise, snap to face down for second half.  This means, if you snap slowly, you start early.  By the flick out the whole set is facing down, and the squire sees the backs of peoples heads perfectly still, rather than moving into face down.

Half Hey: Everyone is heading in different directions to go in to this part of the figure.  Match your partner across the set, but again try to make it snappy.

Half Gip:  Head out about 45° to pass, then face straight out for on the spot.  Retrace path back.  No sideways jumps!  Many of us do this at the midpoint, before we pass left shoulder.  Try to stop doing this.  Half caper on the spot.

Whole Gip:  Some discussion, but in the pub we agreed that the natural Britannia way was maintain eye contact but not face across, then do the second double step across facing.  Snap to turn backwards, quickly, and backstep to place.  Half caper facing, and do it back again.

Rounds: First diagonal head for partner, second diagonal head out from middle position to give the circle shape, third diagonal (middles) go out a little, and pass through top spots.  Watch the diagonal person to keep the shape, but also be aware of front and back to keep the spacing as even as possible

Finish with caper facing up.  Foot off the ground, but if you know yopu’re going to wobble, put the foot down.  Hold for 4 beats.  Down on 5.  This sounds like two bars to me, or two ‘baas’, as in Baa, baa (hold), ba (down).  You have to be there I suppose…

Adderbury

General comments:

Vigorous, with upright sticks or the distinctive ‘two balls and a prick’ hanky movements.

Specific Features:

Sticks held upright

Walk around Singing at start, fast sticking (double speed) at the end.

Foot up and up

Parallel Hey (Right shoulder hey)

Discussion of Style.

Basically, we decided to aim to be in position at certain key points in the dance.  The whole

Feature dance for National: Washing Day – Stick Dance

Rub, rub, scrub, scrub, rub scrub away

The devil’s a bit of peace I get upon my washin’ day (twice)

Key points:

We hope to do this for eight, just for once, which will add some interest to the Process Down and Process Up figures (PU drawn below)

A      A’                                              A      A’       

B      B’               AB     B’A’                 B      B’        A  C  C’  A’

C      C’                CDD'C'                  C      C’        B  D  D’  B’

D     D’                                               D     D’           

Hands Around becomes ‘Stars’ for four, grabbing right wrists then left wrists.

Parallel Hey becomes Hey for four down the lines, centre couple in the lines turns back to back and all do a right shoulder hey. Centre couples need to step it out to get around in time.  Stepping is Double Step, Double Step, Single, Single, Single, Single, Double Step, Double Step, Single, Single, Clash.

Side by side became by default cross over and back, and jump sideways after the clash

We’re doing this at a fairly slow pace, which allows time for a distinct pause on the clash at the end of each sticking pattern.  Freeze for a moment with the sticks crossed.

Workshop dance: The Buffoon

Handclapping dance, degenerating rapidly into insult and disorder.  Story of my life.

Fieldtown

General comments:

If you’re seeking attention, you’ll like Fieldtown.  If you’re not seeking attention, why are you Morris Dancing?  Elegant tradition, except for the galleys.

Specific Features:

Sticks relaxed.  Arms/Hankies Flick down on the beat, distinguishes from Bampton.

Showy jumps and other features (Jumps, Beetlecrushers, galleys, uprights etc…)

Discussion of Style.

We wanted it elegant but showy – it’s more about control than vigour.

Fieldtown rounds – big circle round then close in to small (shoulder to shoulder, hankies up with an Oi!), to back into opposite place at the halfway point.  Repeat back to place.

Feature dance for National: Valentines – Hanky Dance

Key points:

Small ends – in the once to yourself and half way through figures, the arm movements for the jump are up together in front, and down and out to the sides.

Big ends - at the ends of the Figures and choruses, the Arms go up the middle and over the top in large circles to balance down at the sides.

Galleys are with the thigh horizontal, circling from the knee in a large round movement from outside to forward to in.  Galley left (ya’ bastards) is stand on the left leg and move the right in a horizontal circle from the knee.  Didn't think you had a bung knee?  You do now.

Beetlecrushers and Upright capers have essentially the same arm movements.  Over the four slow beats, the arms go balance, gather up, big show round, balance.  This emphasizes the second caper and second jump of the two slow figures.  It is obvious/usual on the uprights, but less so for the beetlecrushers capers – we’re trialling it.

Bleddington

General comments:

Don’t ever confuse this with Fieldtown, especially as they are geographically close and share many dances.  Sides have split over less (what are you laughing at?  Side-splitting is serious).

Specific Features:

Hook Legs – not galleys.  Variously described as two capers on the one leg, or Galleys in Flatland (a single, vertical plane).  Ok, so only I described it as that.  Buttons knew what I meant.  Add to this that you are expected to move on the buggers, and you get a more vigorous tradition.

Discussion of Style.

Hook legs – the foot kicks out low, then comes up in front, back with the thigh above vertical, down behind and repeats.  If returning to place from the half gip or whole gip, use the impetus from the forward part of the movement to shuffle a little further across.

Feature dance for National: Young Collins – Stick Dance

Key points:

Choruses are two normal, one syncopated, one with Stick tossing.  (We decided to skip the Big finish chorus that we have sometimes used, as this meant the spectators only saw normal once, and it became a four chorus dance.)  Normal Sticking is three clashes with the butt of the stick on the ground just forward and outside the right foot, three clashes with tips in the air, three with the butt behind and outside the right foot, three in the air.  Half hey and repeat.

Half and Whole gip style is to double step across, double step on the spot (don’t drift back), facing out for half or facing partner for whole gip, then return to place on the hook leg.  This means planting the leg at least halfway back to place – so make sure you don’t go further across than your partner’s position in the first place.