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Dancing has been an important part of the St Andrew Society’s activities since it’s inception and the society has been lucky to have many excellent and dedicated dance teachers throughout its lifetime. In the past couple of years the number and enthusiasm of newcomers to the class has |
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Scottish Country Dancing is popular the world over. Regional variations do exist but the standardization of the oldest and many of the more well known modern dances by the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society (RSCDS) has meant that 90% of dances learnt in one place can be danced anywhere in the world—it can provide a social connection beyond language, age or culture. Scottish Country Dancing has a long history—at least 300 years ago dances, some of which are still performed today, were being created and enjoyed, and this hasn’t stopped; even now dances (and their music) are being created to celebrate events, people, places and life in general. Unlike many western social dance forms there are only 2 main types of step, and you don’t dance close to your partner (which means that your toes are usually safe!) - the skill is in learning the formations and remembering which way you are going! Some dances are fast and frantic, others are slow and stately — some are easy enough to dance at the first try, others require weeks of hilarious confusion before coming together. Dancing provides exercise both physical and mental, and a sense of achievement without ever being less than great fun. It can take years to learn all there is to learn, but 1/2 an hour to start enjoying it! |
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warranted the resurrection of a ‘beginners class’ and although numbers fluctuate throughout the year there is always a core group perfecting their steps or practicing the ‘figures’ with varying degrees of success! Recent years have seen an increase in interest in Scottish Country Dancing world wide, partly because its health benefits are starting to be recognized. Scottish dancing has been proved to be beneficial in preventing bone density loss, improving memory function, maintaining mental and physical fitness and combating depression—but ask most people why they do it and they’ll say it’s because it’s “brilliant fun!”. Many of the St Andrew Society events involve dancing and dancers are welcome everywhere so whether you have two left feet and were banned from the class at school or have danced all your life we would love to see you. |
