THE BALLYCASTLE SET

CORNER COUPLES

(X = gent O = lady)

1st corner	X		O	2nd corner
couple	O		X	couple
		X O
		Home place

First Figure (Polkas)

272 bars

1	Advance and retire twice, with crossed hand hold.	8 bars
2	Swing, with ceili hold	8 bars
3	Top Couples:
	Advance, retire (4 bars), with crossed hand hold, and turn across to the opposite place, gents passing each other L to L behind their partners while the ladies turn 1½ turns clockwise under both arms to face centre (4 bars). The crossed hand hold is returned to R over L and the movement is repeated back to place (8 bars).	16 bars
	Swing	8 bars
4	Side couples now dance 2	24 bars
5	Top couples dance the three-and-one: While the 2^nd couple dance in place the 1^stcouple advance with crossed hand hold (2 bars), drop hands and turn to face each other (2 bars) and swing to leave the lady beside 2^nd top gent (4 bars)	8 bars
	1^st gent takes both ladies' inside hands, the trio crosses to 1^st gent's place (2 bars) and both ladies turn outwards underarm and into line beside him, hands held on outside shoulders (2 bars). The trio advances to meet the 2^ndgent in the centre (2 bars) and form a basket, the gent's hands held, the ladies' arms outside the gents' with hands resting on the gents' shoulders (2 bars).	8 bars
	Swing four, falling back to place on the last 2 bars	8 bars
	Top couples now repeat the movement, 2^nd couple leading	24 bars
6	Side couples now dance 5, 1^st couple (R of 1^st tops) leading.	48 bars
7	Swing	8 bars
8	Circle and change partners: all take hands in a circle and advance and retire twice. As they retire for the 2^nd time the gents drop their partners' hands and turn anti-clockwise to take their corner ladies in open waltz hold.	8 bars
9	Lead around	8 bars
10	Swing	8 bars
11	Circle and change partners Lead around Swing	24 bars
12	Circle and change partners Lead around Swing	24 bars
13	Circle and change partners Lead around Swing	24 bars

Second Figure (Polkas)

128 bars

1	Top couples: Ladies chain R hands in the centre, L to turn under and around the gent as he faces centre and R hands in the centre again.	8 bars
	Sevens across: with the gent's hands on the lady's waist and her hands on his shoulders, couples sidestep, the gents back-to-back, across to the opposite side and half-turn clockwise in place, dancing 12345678,123,223 (4 bars), the weight being carried on the leading foot. The movement is repeated back across the set and into place, gents again passing back-to-back (4 bars).	8 bars
	House around each other, keeping the same hold.	8 bars
2	Side couples now dance 1	24 bars
3	Double diamond:with the same waist and shoulder hold, top couples dance 7s into each place moving clockwise around the set while side couples dance the same movement anti-clockwise, the gents always passing back-to-back. So tops pass inside to the 1^st place, on the outside to the 2^nd, inside to the 3^rd and on the outside back to home. ( NOTE: this movement is best practised in half sets, with tops and sides each dancing their own movement. Top couples quarter-turn anti-clockwise in each place to dance to the next, while side couples quarter-turn clockwise.)	8 bars
4	Short sevens: with the same hold, couples sidestep towards the centre of the set and back (dancing in234567, and back234567) twice, the weight being kept on the leading foot in each direction.	8 bars
5	Corners: keeping the same hold, tops and their 2^nd corner couples house around each other (8 bars) then tops and their 1^st corner couples house around each other (8 bars).	16 bars
6	Crossover: top couples dance sevens across to the opposite place while sides turn once in place (4 bars), sides dance sevens across while tops turn in place (4 bars) and the whole movement is repeated back to place (8 bars)	16 bars
7	Four sevens: all couples dance 7s into the next place on their R, quarter-turn clockwise and dance 7s into the place opposite their own (4 bars) and repeat these movements back to place (4 bars).	8 bars
8	Double house around: still with the same hold, couples house around twice.	16 bars

Third Figure (Polkas)

232 bars

1	Advance, retire and ladies change places: tops and their 2^nd corner couples face each other with crossed hand hold, advance and retire once (4 bars) and the ladies change places, passing R to R and turning inwards (4 bars).	8 bars
	Swing new partners.	8 bars
	Advance, retire and ladies change back: the movement is repeated back to own partners.	8 bars
	Swing.	8 bars
2	All dance 1 again, this time with tops facing their 1^st corner couples.	32 bars
3	Top couples: Back-to-back: 1^st gent and 2^nd lady dance past each other, R to R, and quarter-turn clockwise in the centre (4 bars). They then half-turn anti-clockwise to face each other in the centre, their backs to their 2^nd corner couple (4 bars).	8 bars
	Swing, to finish with their backs to their 1^st corner couples.	8 bars
	Back-to-back: they pass by and turn back-to-back as before to finish in the centre with their backs to their own place.	8 bars
	Swing, falling back to place on the last 2 bars.	8 bars

	The whole movement is then danced by the 2^nd gent and 1^st lady.	32 bars
3	Side couples now dance 2.	64 bars
4	Long quarterhouse: taking waist and shoulder hold again, couples dance short 7s into the set and back (4 bars) and dance 2 turns into the next place on their R (4 bars). This movement is repeated into each place and back home.	32 bars

STEPS Instead of dancing 3s when advancing and retiring as is usually the case in a polka, the step danced here is : 1 2, 1 2 and back 2, 123.

SOURCE
Pat Murphy at his workshop in Castletown in May, 2002. Pat got the set from Mickey Kelly of Newport, Co. Mayo who learned it from the Ballycastle Set Dancers. Contrary to my normal practice, I did not have my cassette recorder with me at this workshop so these Study Notes are derived from Pat's own notes on the set.

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List of Sets 2

Glossary