The New Side Step Polka

"There are some variations which may be introduced with advantage.  Of these the so-called 'Ostend Polka' and 'American' or 'Side-step Polka' are among the best."  -- Lilly Grove Frazer, Dancing (London, 1907), p. 421.

I'm not actually certain that Lady Frazer was referring to the New Side Step Polka given by M. B. Gilbert in Round Dancing (Portland, Maine, 1890) and, more-or-less, in G. W. Lopp's  La Danse (Paris, 1903) as the Nouvelle Polka Dansée de Côté.  I don't see anything in this variation that warrants that level of praise; if anything, I find it slightly annoying.  But the way in which it is annoying is interesting, so I'll take a quick look at it just to be thorough.

The New Side Step Polka is attributed to J. G. Hoffman of Waverly, New York.  Working from Gilbert, the reconstruction is fairly straightforward, allowing for Gilbert's typical omissions.  The steps given below are the gentleman's; the lady dances opposite.

New Side Step Polka (8 measures of 2/4 time)
1       Point left foot to 2nd position
2       Hop on right and bring left to 3rd position raised
&1   Slide left to side and close right [with weight]
&2   Slide left to side and close right [without weight], making a half-turn

2b    Repeat all of the above starting on the right foot

4b   Polka

The description does not actually mention what happens to the right foot at the end of the first two measures, nor does it mention a half-turn.  But Gilbert often fails to mention half-turns; often "repeat beginning with the right foot" is the only clue.  I think it unlikely that the dancers are supposed to move directly against line of dance, so I have assumed the half-turn.

Lopp's description is problematic, as discussed below, but he does give some additional detail.  He specifies that on the hop on the second beat, the left foot goes to third position raised and on the final movement of the first two measures the foot is in first position.  I find that a bit awkward if making a half-turn, so I would use a raised third instead unless doing the hypothetical version below. 

Lopp also adds a recommended tempo of 116 beats per minute, and it should be noted that he calls for the "Polka Simple", which is a simple slide-close-slide, with no upbeat hop or cut-leap styling, for the final four measures.

The problematic part: Lopp's description omits the repeat on the right foot, which presents three possibilities: (1) he simply forgot to include it, (2) he intended to close with weight at the end of the first two bars and repeat it all on the left foot, or (3) he intended to create a six-bar version.  I doubt that he intended it to be a six-bar variation, but the second possibility is intriguing.  It's less symmetrical, but more, err, sideways, in keeping with the name of the variation. I actually like it better, but I can't say for certain that it's what Lopp intended.

What annoys me about the New Side Step Polka in general, however, is the rhythm of it.  It's so, so close to the Bohemian (heel and toe) sequence, and the foot pattern is very similar -- it's the later "point, tuck" rather than the old "heel, toe", but either way it's "foot out, foot in" -- that it's hard to override muscle memory to omit the first hop of the Bohemian and do the slightly altered rhythm of the third and fourth bars.  For comparison:

Bohemian:   hop/heel (1)   hop/toe (2)       (hop)slide-close-leap ((hop)1&2)
Side Step:    point (1)         hop/tuck (2)     slide-close-slide-close  (&1&2)

No hop on one; arggh!  Sliding on the weak final beat of the second measure instead of on the strong first beat of the second, double arrgh!  If I don't concentrate, I end up doing the Bohemian followed by a standard galop rhythm (1&2& instead of &1&2).

I'm all in favor of interesting variations for the polka, but in my opinion this one doesn't offer enough variety to make it worth the real hassle of the altered rhythm.  For anyone who disagrees, well, here it is; enjoy!