Capering & Kickery

Dorothea: a 1912 march figure

"Dorothea" is a full choreographed march taken from H. Layton Walker's Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912).  It combines some standard march figures used in unusual ways with less standard ones and enough mixer elements that it also qualifies as a fun cotillion (dance party game). 

Like many figures in Walker's book, this one probably originated elsewhere.  I don't know where, and I don't know the significance of the name.  But how could I possibly resist a march whose creator fully expected it to devolve into chaos at the end?    

"...when the dancers have become helplessly tangled at the sides of the room, trying to find out where to go next..."

It's comforting to know that if the figure goes terribly wrong the caller can just skip to the end and claim it was planned!  

It is not at all comforting, however, for the first diagram to present a problem.

Polish Dance, 1832

This blandly named "Polish Dance" was published by expatriate English dancing master William George Wells in The danciad, or companion to the modern ball room in Montreal in 1832.  I have my doubts about whether there is anything authentically Polish about it, but the dance itself is...interesting.  Let me start with a transcription.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

POLISH DANCE

    To be danced by an unlimited number of couples, and placed exactly in the same situation as for the Original Gallopade.

WALTZ TIME.

    Fig.— Promenade = = Poussette = = sett and turn partners = ladies’ hands across and back. joining hands to partners’, forming a cross = = all promenade in a cross and turn partners to places = = all the couples now fall into Quadrille parties of four, and perform La Pantalon, still in Waltz time = sauteuse = =.
    [This may be repeated at the pleasure of the party.]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I've previously discussed both Wells' "Original" Gallopade and the possibly-more-original Original Gallopade published by J. S. Pollock.  It's clear that the Polish Dance is performed in a circle of couples.  The reference is also a reminder that Wells was not necessarily the originator of many (any?) of the dances in his book; see here for another example. 

So, the Polish Dance should be done in a circle of couples, specifically, in an even number of couples, since in the second part of the dance, they form half-quadrille sets, couple-facing-couple, to perform the Pantalon figure of the French quadrille.  There are some minor reconstruction problems with the dance, but before going on to those, let's take a look at the basic structure of the dance:

• the couples move around the room, promenading and doing figures as a group
• they do a quadrille figure in pairs
• they end with sauteuse waltz

Does this remind you of anything? 

Lyra Figures, 1912

Image courtesy of The Graphics Fairy

The "Lyra Figures", a fancy march cotillion (dance party game) in which the columns of dancers outline the shape of a lyre within a wreath, were published in Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures, by H. Layton Walker (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912).  I suspect that, like the Winthrop(e), they were copied from some other source, but I do not currently have any idea what it might have been. 

This figure would be somewhat difficult for a ball preceptor to lead "cold", at least without multiple floor managers, but with a lead couple who knew the track, it wouldn't be all that difficult.  After a simple march-around lead-in, the leading lady and gentleman stay on their own sides of the room, leading their lines up and down curving tracks to form the shape of the lyre.  It might even work with only a single knowledgeable dancer, if their partner were good at moving in mirror image and the room not too crowded for them to see each other at opposite sides.  At the end, there is a simple march by platoons to end in facing lines for a waltz or other couple dance.

Chivers' La Grande Polonaise, 1821 (1818?)

La Grande Polonaise was published as an individual work by G. M. S. Chivers, probably early in 1821.  The first trace of its publication I have found is toward the end of an ad from London's Morning Post on Thursday, March 1st, 1821, for an Assembly to be held the following Monday.  The ad is shown at left; click to enlarge.  [see update note below for more information about the dating of this dance] 

La Grande Polonaise is not on the list of dances definitely planned for the assembly, but the author -- presumably Chivers himself -- noted that "several new Species of Dancing" would also be introduced, so it is possible it was danced at that event.  Its price of two shillings is the same at which it would later be advertised in the back of Chivers' third major book, The Dancing Master in Miniature (1825). 

I am not aware of any surviving copy of the original publication, alas, but the figures for La Grande Polonaise were also printed in Chivers' second book, The Modern Dancing Master (1822).  Chivers' description of the dance from that book:

La GRANDE POLONAISE, is generally thought to have originated in Poland, and it is a favorite Dance of the Polish Nobility.

The dance commences with a Tune in March Time, and terminates with a Sauteuse, and will require at least ten or twelve couple to perform it.

Any number of persons can join in the Dance; observing that there is an even number of couples; and no person should join after the Dance has commenced.

The figure given, is the same as was performed when the Allied Sovereigns were at Aix-la-Chappel.

I am extremely skeptical of Chivers' claim that this was danced at the Congress of Aix-la-Chappelle in 1818.  While the average London dancer might not have been familiar with the polonaise, a musical form and dance in 3/4 time, the Continental attendees probably would have been, and are unlikely to have danced a "polonaise" to march (4/4) music.  I expect they danced a polonaise (probably more than one, as the Congress lasted for two months), but I very much doubt it was this "polonaise".

Given Chivers' track record of choreographic creativity and blithe unconcern for accuracy in labeling dances, however, I do find it perfectly plausible that he created this dance himself and, out of ignorance or deliberate choice, used a march tune and an ordinary marching (walking) step rather than a polonaise step.  I thus consider La Grande Polonaise to be a purely English invention, not a Polish or even French dance, and not representative of early nineteenth century polonaise in general.  Nor, as a niche dance by a specific dancing master, would I expect it to have been widely danced outside London or even outside Chivers' own events.  But for a specifically English ball of the early 1820s, it's reasonable and unusual enough to make a pleasant change of pace.

Pittsburgh Star, 1912

Like the Winthrop(e), the Pittsburgh Star is a cotillion (dance party game) figure in the guise of a march sequence which was published in H. Layton Walker's Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912).  It was most likely copied from some other source; based on the apparent origin of the Winthrop, the original might have appeared in a publication of the National Association of Dancing Masters after a meeting in Pittsburgh. 

The Pittsburgh Star differs from the Winthrop, however, in incorporating the mixer element into the march sequence, which I find more interesting as a figure, rather than by having the dancers seek new partners before beginning the march.

Here are the original instructions for the figure followed by the two diagrams.  Note when reading the directions that "up" is toward the bottom of the diagrams.

PITTSBURGH STAR.
All two-step.  Signal, all march up centre of hall.  All mark time when in middle.  First couple forward in line of direction.  Second couple turn to right; second [third] couple turn to left.  Repeat this until four couples are in front, four on right side, four on left side, and four in back.  This forms the cross.  The four couples in back now wheel round and face other way, thus: [diagram on left]  Now, in single file, [ladies] march to right, gentlemen to left, meeting and going to centre, forming thus: [diagram on right] and all two-step with that person.

I corrected "second" with [third] where it was needed and interpolated [ladies] where it was obvious from the diagrams that it had been left out.

Winthrope (a March figure, 1912)

"Winthrope" is a cotillion (dance party game) figure found in Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures, by H. Layton Walker (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912).  It's not much of a game, however, though it includes the basic cotillion elements: a group of couples dancing, separating, selecting new partners, and bestowing favors.  The figure itself, however, is simply an interesting way to transition from a typical grand march into a circle of couples for couple dancing.  And that is actually useful. 

I have no idea why it's called Winthrope.  [see note at the bottom of the post for new information]

Here are the four diagrams (click to enlarge), followed by a transcription of the instructions:

WINTHROPE
Sixteen couples up and dance.  Favor, thirty-two couples now on the floor.  March down the centre of hall, etc.  Continue to march around hall then down the centre in fours.  First four to right, second four to left; around hall again, down in eights; halt; second and fourth line of ladies about face and march, as in figure 1.  Lead to the lower end of gentlemen and follow lines of figure No. 2.  Which when you have completed, will leave you in position as figure 3.    Now the second and fourth line of gentlemen about face; march as in figure 3, finishing as per figure 4, which will bring you opposite your original partners.  Face your partner and all dance.

A Valentine Cotillion

I return once more, in honor of Valentine's Day, to H. Layton Walker's delightful Twentieth Century Cotillion Figures (Two Step Publishing Company, Buffalo, New York, 1912), which is always guaranteed to provide me some interesting figures for imaginative dancers.  Christmas was a bit disappointing, as holiday cotillion themes go.  Valentine's Day seems much more promising, since both cotillions and valentines have the goal of matching up people and thus ought to combine nicely!  

Starting from the top of an evening's program, Walker does provide a couple of useful suggestions for the grand march.  I noted a few years ago that good leaders could get their marching dancers into formations such as the letters of the alphabet, or other geometric figures.  Hearts, for example, lend themselves easily to being both created and escaped from by lines of dancers.  Walker provided the diagrams at left for what he called a "Heart March Cotillion", though the shape is so basic that one hardly needs the help.  

More usefully, he noted that the dancers are left on the wrong side of their partners (men on the right rather than the left) when marching out of the figure.  That can be fixed by a standard kludge like having the partners cross each other when they meet, but Walker had a more elegant suggestion: simply repeat the figure going the opposite way up and down the room.  I find the symmetry of that appealing, though I also foresee a problem with dancers overthinking things and deciding to change places with their partners anyway, just because they are uneasy at marching in reversed positions.

Your marching dancers will, of course, be improved by silly headgear:

Ending a Grand March

In almost seven years of writing Kickery (has it really been that long?) I think I've only once said anything at all detailed about the Grand March, which was generally performed as the opening dance at American balls in the latter part of the nineteenth century and well into the twentieth, though occasionally it appears later on the program.  Clearly an overview is overdue!

This isn't it.

While working recently on the ball program for a pair of Civil War-era balls to be held in Gettysburg in November, I started wondering idly how many ways there were to end a Grand March.  So I made a little list.  I won't be using most of these, alas; the Gettysburg balls are insanely crowded and thus do not lend themselves to really interesting Marches.  But I thought it might be fun to share some of the possibilities.

A is for April

One of the delightful eccentricities of ballrooms of the late nineteenth century was the addition of fanciful figures to the usual geometric perambulations of the Grand March.  Having spent three years in the flag team of a competitive marching band with a flair for interesting formations, I love making shapes out of lines of people and have duly led dancers into number formations at balls ("05" for a 1905 event).  But I have never made letters of the alphabet.  So I was pleased and amused to come across a strong recommendation to form letters, complete with some basic instructions for doing so, in George E. Wilson's The Little Dancing Master (New York, 1898).  

Wilson recommends starting the Grand March with a counter-clockwise promenade around the room to top-center (B), from whence the couples march down the center of the room to bottom-center (C), where they split, the ladies turning right and the gentlemen turning left.  The two lines process around the edges of the room back to B, where they meet to begin forming the first letter.  For a choice of letters, Wilson mentions the initials of the host or of the name of the ball.  By way of example, he uses the letter A, the diagram for which may be seen at left (click to enlarge).