THE LIMERICK ORANGE AND GREEN SET
Study Notes Copyright © William Lynch 2007
CORNERS AND CORNER COUPLES
(X = gent O = lady)
1st corner |
X |
O |
2nd corner |
|
couple |
O |
X |
couple |
|
1st corner |
2nd corner |
|||
X O |
||||
Home place |
||||
| First Figure - Pass Through (Slides/Polkas) | 200 bars |
| 1 | Top couples:
Tip in and out twice, partners facing each other with crossed hand hold and dancing - tip1 tip 2 tip123 (2 bars) in each direction. |
8 bars |
| Pass through: couples face each other, drop hands and dance into line, 1st couple outside the 2nd (2 bars), dance in place (2 bars), dance into the opposite position (2 bars) and dance into place, partners passing L to L and the gents turning clockwise and the ladies anti-clockwise to face each other and take crossed hand hold (2 bars). | 8 bars | |
| Tip in and out twice. | 8 bars | |
| Pass through, 1st couple again outside the 2nd. | 8 bars | |
| Ladies chain R hands in the centre, low L to turn the opposite gent, R hands in the centre and back to take their partners in waltz hold. | 8 bars | |
| Swing. | 8 bars | |
| 2 | Side couples now dance 1. (1st couple L of 1st tops). | 48 bars |
| 3 | Top couples now repeat 1. with the 2nd couple outside the 1st when passing through. | 48 bars |
| 4 | Side couples now repeat 1. with the 2nd couple outside. | 48 bars |
| Second Figure - The Back Centre (Slides/Polkas) | 200 bars |
| 1 | Top couples:
1st couple dance in place four steps, facing each other without holding hands and without turning (4 bars). Back to back:1st lady and 2nd gent dance past each other L to L, then back to back each moving L, and fall back to place R to R (4 bars). (See ENDNOTE) |
8 bars |
| 1st couple swing with waltz hold. | 8 bars | |
| 1st couple slide - in 234 and back 234, in 234 and separate, the lady dancing across to join the 2nd couple while her partner slides back to place. | 8 bars | |
| Swing three, 2nd couple and 1st lady, to finish in line, the gent in the centre, with crossed arm hold behind while 1st gent dances in place. | 8 bars | |
| Honour the line: 1st gent advances and bows to the 2nd lady (2 bars), turns and bows to his own partner (2 bars), turns back and bows to the 2nd gent (2 bars) and all four dancers join hands in a circle in the centre of the set (2 bars). | 8 bars | |
| Circle L (4 bars) and R (4 bars), falling back to place on the last 2 bars. | 8 bars | |
| 2 | Top couples repeat 1. with the 2nd couple leading. | 48 bars |
| 3 | Side couples now dance 1. | 48 bars |
| 4 | Side couples repeat 1. with the 2nd couple leading. | 48 bars |
| Third Figure - Turn the Lady (Polkas) | 136 bars |
| 1 | Top couples :
Pass by and turn the lady: couples dance past each other, ladies L to L in the centre, and ¼ turn clockwise (2 bars). Dancers take R hand hold with the opposite lady/gent and dance 1 ¼ turns to face their own place (4 bars), drop hands and dance back to place, partners turning in to face each other (2 bars). |
8 bars |
| Swing. | 8 bars | |
| Pass through: couples separate and dance through each other, ladies passing L to L in the centre and gents on the outside, and ½ turn clockwise in the opposite position (4 bars). They pass back, ladies R to R, and turn inwards in place to take waltz hold (4 bars). | 8 bars | |
| House around each other. | 8 bars | |
| Pass by and turn the lady. | 8 bars | |
| Swing. | 8 bars | |
| Pass through. | 8 bars | |
| House around each other. | 8 bars | |
| 2 | Side couples now dance 1. | 64 bars |
| Fourth Figure - The Gallop (Jigs) | 72 bars |
| 1 | Gallop: couples take waltz hold and top couples change places, the gents passing back-to-back, dancing – 1 23 45 67 (2 bars) then dance 3s in place while side couples change places (2 bars). While sides dance in place, top couples dance back, this time the ladies passing back-to-back (2 bars) and tops dance in place while side couples dance back (2 bars). | 8 bars |
| 2 | Ladies chain: top ladies take R hands in the centre and chain to the opposite gent. As they pass the centre, side ladies begin the same movement. All ladies give low L hand to the opposite gent and turn him anti-clockwise, all turning at the same time. Top ladies, followed by sides, pass back R to R and into waltz hold with their partners. | 8 bars |
| 3 | Swing. | 8 bars |
| 4 | Circle: top couples each face their 1st corner couple and take hands in a circle. They circle L (4 bars) and R (4 bars), falling back to place on the last bar. | 8 bars |
| 5 | Gallop, side couples leading.
Ladies chain, side ladies leading. Swing. Circle, sides facing their 1st corner couples. |
64 bars |
| Fifth Figure - Turn across (Polkas/Slides) | 232 bars |
| 1 | Tip and turn across: top couples, partners facing each other with crossed hand hold, slide in and back twice, dancing – tip1 tip2 tip123 in each direction (8 bars), and dance across into each others’ places, gents dancing behind their partners who turn once clockwise under both raised arms (4 bars). Partners finish facing each other, hands still held. | 12 bars |
| 2 | Tip and turn back home: top couples slide in and back twice and dance across into their own places, ladies turning once anti-clockwise under both raised arms. | 12 bars |
| 3 | Ladies wheel L and R: all four ladies take R hands in the centre, wheel round, turn inwards to take L hands (4 bars), wheel back and fall back to place (4 bars). | 8 bars |
| 4 | Swing, top couples only. | 8 bars |
| 5 | Quarterhouse: with partners in waltz hold, all couples dance 2 bars in place then turn 2 bars on to the next place on their R. They repeat this 4 bar movement into each place and back home. | 16 bars |
| 6 | Tip and turn across, side couples.
Tip and turn back home. Ladies wheel L and R. Swing, side couples. |
40 bars |
| 7 | Quarterhouse. | 16 bars |
| 8 | Tip and turn across, top couples.
Tip and turn back home. Ladies wheel L and R. Swing, top couples. |
40 bars |
| 9 | Quarterhouse. | 16 bars |
| 10 | Tip and turn across, side couples.
Tip and turn back home. Ladies wheel L and R. Swing, side couples. |
40 bars |
| 11 | Quarterhouse. | 16 bars |
| Sixth Figure - Round the Well (Reels) | 248 bars |
| 1 | Lead around and back: with crossed hand hold, couples lead around anti-clockwise (6 bars). Partners turn towards each other, hands still held, to reverse direction (2 bars) and couples lead back to place and into waltz hold (8 bars). | 16 bars |
| 2 | Swing. | 8 bars |
| 3 | Circle: all take hands in a circle and advance and retire twice. | 8 bars |
| 4 | Swing. | 8 bars |
| 5 | Ladies circle: ladies take hands in a circle and advance and retire twice. | 8 bars |
| 6 | Gents circle: gents take hands in a circle and advance and retire twice. As they advance for the 2nd time the ladies move on to turn in and face the next gent on the R. | 8 bars |
| 7 | Lead around and back, new couples.
Swing. Circle. Swing. Ladies circle. Gents circle and ladies move on. |
56 bars |
| 8 | Lead around and back, new couples.
Swing. Circle. Swing. Ladies circle. Gents circle and ladies move on. |
56 bars |
| 9 | Lead around and back, new couples.
Swing. Circle. Swing. Ladies circle. Gents circle and ladies move on. |
56 bars |
| 10 | Lead around and back with own partners. | 16 bars |
| STEPS The ‘down’ jig step/polka step is used throughout the first 5 figures, except where indicated. A flat reel step is used for the reel figure. When dancing Tip in and out in the First Figure and Tip and turn across/back in the Fifth Figure the step used is a brushed polka step, in which the toe of the foot briefly brushes the floor and is raised again before the weight is transferred to it on the count for that step. |
| SOURCE Mick Mulkerrin at Priddy, Somerset, November 1994 and at the University Chaplaincy, Liverpool in March 1995. |
| ENDNOTE The set is described exactly as Mick taught it with one slight exception. In the Second Figure – The Back Centre – Mick had the dancing couples dance the Back to back with their own partners, as does Pat Murphy in ‘Toss the Feathers’ (first edition) and the writers of two other sets of notes I have on file from forgotten sources. Eileen O’Doherty records the set in ‘The Walking Polka’ as taught by Connie Ryan and checked by the Slievenamon Set Dancers and in that version the Back to back is danced, not with own partners, but by the lady of the leading couple with the opposite gent. So the movement is danced in the centre of the set and thus makes sense of the traditional name given to this figure. The same cannot be said of a movement danced in place and so, with apologies to Mick, I have adopted Connie’s version in these notes. |