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Dancing About
Reprinted from 'Monaro Musings' the magazine of the Monaro
Folk Society
It was cool summer's Sunday evening in Tubercurry and the first ceili
of the South Sligo Summer School was about to get underway.
 There were folk from
Canberra and around Australia who had said they would be there, but
where were they? There we were, in the company of about 120 strangers
crammed into St Bridget's Hall off the town square in Tubercurry,
near the West coast of Ireland just below the border with Northern
Ireland. They were friendly looking strangers, but there was not one
familiar face to be seen.
"Clare Lancers" the word came from the stage and we joined the rush
to form up sets. "We know this one" we said and went on the side
anyway. Paul and Kate and Martin and Nora had taught us well, because
we recognised all the dances that night except one, and we managed to
get through them all. The only calling on that first night was the
name of the set, once. It focused the mind, like being thrown in the
deep end and having to swim, and it was exhilarating keeping up with
the pace of the night.
Our new friends were helpful and tolerant, and with so many good role
models and a few hilarious cries of "Aussie variation" we made it and
had a wonderful night. What we noticed most was that all the dances
were from the core repertoire of favourite set dances, and we weren't
the only ones throwing in the odd "variation" but noone cared, they
were there to enjoy the music and the dancing.
 Then came our first
dance class on Monday morning. Our old friends from Australia
arrived, having come straight from the Willie Clancy Summer School in
Miltown Malbay, County Clare, and we settled in to the summer school
routine of classes with Pat Murphy and Betty McCoy in the morning,
sightseeing in the afternoon, and ceilis at night. The ceilis became
a little less frenetic with some prompting and the practicing of the
dances learned in the classes.
There was Sean Nos dancing and lectures and recitals, but we spent
our time Set dancing and sight-seeing around Counties Sligo and Mayo,
and all too quickly our week was over and we were off to Budapest for
a cruise up the Danube and down the Rhine. A relaxing 16 days of
walking miles over cobblestoned streets through Roman and Medieval
towns, with wild Viennese waltzes and fast Hungarian Polkas in the
evenings to help us relax. We certainly slept well.
Cheers Barbara and Lance
Steak and Guinness Pie |
Hungarian dancing on the River Princess 23 July 2007 |
Please click for Barbara & Lance Travel Pics
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