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English Country Dance Steps

English country dances hearken back to the days when people made their own fun and music. Danced to fiddle and drum, they were live and lively, and brought a gaiety to social gatherings somewhat lacking today. Some dances trace back as early as the sixteenth century, described in John Playford's "The English Dancing Master," though surely the dances described had their origins much earlier. Recent interest in them has risen due to the 1995 BBC production of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice," which depicted English country life. (Reference 1)
  1. Groups

    • According to English Country Dancing, most dances of this kind require at least four participants. Usually about six or eight is a good number, but some can accommodate as many as twelve or as few as four. They list such dances as "All in a Garden Green," "Cockle Shells," "Staines Morris," "The Faithful Shepherd," "Woman's Work is Never Done," "Dargason," "All in a Hurry," "Three Sheepskins," "The Maid's Morris" and "Buttered Pease." Most are what we would call line dances, with couples facing each other, in a double line.

    All In A Garden Green

    • For instance, "All in a Garden Green" requires three couples, in a double line of women and men, one behind the other and facing the audience. The dance structure is in three figures, of sixteen bars, twenty bars, and again sixteen bars. The first figure is, starting with the outside foot, step-together-step, pointed toe, then backwards step-together-step. The lines end up where they started. Then the partners face each other and repeat the same sequence, passing each other as they move. As they point their toes, the partners bend to look back at each other. They take each other's right hands, tilt toward each other twice, then turn and grasp both of each other's hands. Then the entire figure is repeated.

      For the second figure, the first gentleman takes the lady's right hand, they shake hands for four counts, pointing heel and toe twice. He then passes to her outside and she watches him go. He repeats the process with the second lady. Once again with the third lady, he repeats with each hand. He turns her to the right and kisses her, then to the left and again kisses her. Then they pose with feet pointed.

      For the third figure, the entire first figure is repeated, except now the lines face each other. Then they tilt toward each other again, and turn. The first couple changes places with the second couple, the figure is repeated, and the first couple then changes places with the third couple.

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