Anonymous Morris

Round Corner Round Corner

Smuggling

Smuggling

This is the dance Poaching, by the wonderful Boggart's Breakfast, taken to the seaside. We've changed the first figure, and re-named the others to give them a nautical theme (Poaching's figures are called fish, fox, dog and rabbit).

The Music

Sheet music for the dance Smuggling

Instructions

This is a 4-person dance, starting in a square. The first corners are the Smugglers. The second corners are the Law. Below, the dancers will be referred to as follows:

Up
S1 L2
L3 S4
Figure Music
Chorus A
Waves B
Chorus A
Shipwrecks B
Chorus A
Chase B
Chorus A
Escape B

Chorus (A)
Count Moves
1-2 Smugglers cross over to swap places – S1 keeping their eyes on L3, and S4 keeping their eyes on L2. This means that in the middle of the set the smugglers will pass with their backs to each other. L2 and L3 step on the spot.
3-4 L2 and L3 cross, maintaining the same eye contact. Smugglers step on the spot.
5-6 (No stepping) With the person you’ve been staring at, forehand strike high on 5 and carry on round to backhand strike low on 6.
7-8 (No stepping) Flip stick, quick forehand-backhand strike high.
9 Surge forward into the next place around the set clockwise.
10 Spin on the spot turning 3/4 left (the long left turn looks effective with tatter jackets swishing).
11-12 Move forward into the next place round the set. End these moves facing up and down (1/2 turn right for Smugglers, 1/4 turn right for others).
13-16 (No stepping) Flourish stick left, right, hit the ground, pull the top of the stick up, catch it at the bottom, and quick forehand-backhand strike. See video or ask at practice for timing!
Waves (B)
Count Moves
1 Take a step in to form a line up and down the set, right shoulder to right shoulder with the person who was across from you, i.e.:
S1
L2
L3
S4
2 Turn right 1/4 (ends face middles, middles face ends) and bring your stick down so you are holding it horizontally in both hands.
3-4 Stepping on the spot, swing stick right, swing stick left.
5-12 Zig-zag hey whilst swinging sticks. At the end of the hey you will be in the following formation:
S1
L2 L3
S4
13 S1 and S4 step on the spot while swinging stick right. L2 and L3 step right and forwards a little bit while swinging stick right, to come back into a line of 4 up and down the set.
14 All step on the spot while swinging stick left.
15-16 Bring stick back up to shoulder and step backwards into place.
Chorus (A)
Shipwrecks (B)
Note: this figure has lots of turning left in it. This is because you grab left hands (your right hands are busy holding your sticks) and so the turns continue in the same direction to keep the momentum going. It is very important to get the grab-hands-across on beat 1 (and on beat 13) to get the momentum.
Count Moves
1 Grab left hands across (S1 with L2, L3 with S4) and pull past into each others’ places.
2 Still keeping hold, clash sticks over your heads (above your joined hands).
3 Let go and continue turning the same way (i.e. left) to strike the ground outside the set, i.e. roughly where the xs are in the following diagram:
x L2 S1 x
x S4 L3 x
This is a 1/2 turn for everybody. The smugglers are about to have to do a 3/4 turn so it’s OK if they actually turn a bit further on beat 3 and strike somewhere a bit further round.
4 Continue turning the same way (i.e. left) to come and meet a new person and clash up and down. This is a 3/4 turn for the smugglers and a 1/4 turn for the law.
13 S1 and S4 step on the spot while swinging stick right. L2 and L3 step right and forwards a little bit while swinging stick right, to come back into a line of 4 up and down the set.
5-12 Circle round the set once to come back to these places (This is a long time – don’t go too fast!).
13-16 As steps 1-4, except that you are starting from opposite places. So if you had shorter turns before, you have longer turns now, and vice versa.
Chorus (A)
Chase (B)
Count Moves
1-2 Two ‘setup’ steps. Smugglers take one step into the middle of the set to meet right shoulder to right shoulder, and another step to move forward very slightly and turn 1/8 right so that S1 is facing down and S4 is facing up. MEANWHILE: Law take two steps to go all the way across the set to their right and end up facing inwards on a line across. That is, everybody ends up as in the following diagram (where the xs denote the square set you started in):
x x
L2 S4 S1 L3
x x
L2 is facing S4, S4 is facing up, S1 is facing down, L3 is facing S1.
3-4,
5-6,
7-8,
9-10,
11-12,
13-14 		Every two steps: Move one step straight forward (a long way) in the direction in which you are facing. Then take one step to turn – if you are out on the end of a line, turn 1/2 right to face back in, if you are in the middle of a line, turn 1/4 right to go past the other person in the middle and face out.
Note that throughout this figure the Law are chasing the Smugglers, and everybody is going ‘move, turn, move, turn, move, turn ...’.
15-16 At the end of beat 14 you should be in the following formation:
L2
x S4 x
x S1 x
L3
L2 and L3 take 2 steps to go a little way forward and right to go back to their places. S4 and S1 pass each other in the middle and go back to their places.
13 S1 and S4 step on the spot while swinging stick right. L2 and L3 step right and forwards a little bit while swinging stick right, to come back into a line of 4 up and down the set.
14 All step on the spot while swinging stick left.
15-16 Bring stick back up to shoulder and step backwards into place.
Chorus (A)
Escape (B)
Count Moves
1-4 Facing up and down (which is the way you are facing at the end of the chorus anyway): do a right shoulder back to back. but instead of coming all the way back to place, stop in a line across, and face each other. We want to get into a line of 4 across, middles facing ends and ends facing middles in the following order:
S1 L3 L2 S4
5-6,
7-8,
9-10,
11-12		 Every two steps: Each pair (S1 and L3, L2 and S4) moves as a unit. The end person ‘pushes’ the middle backwards and left, while clashing (forehand, backhand). E.g. after the first two steps, the set will be:
L2
S4
S1
L3
Now there are new people on the ends, and they ‘push’ the new middle people, so after the next 2 beats the set will be:
S4 L2 L3 S1
And so on. This will end with the original line, S1 L3 L2 S4
13 13 Stepping forwards – forehand clash in each pair, L3 and L2 start dancing off
14 S1 and S4 meet and clash (forehand), continue dancing straight forwards
15-16 Continue stepping/running straight forwards, until completely off.
Rules of Thumb
Rules of Thumb

Unless otherwise specified, the following general rules apply:

  1. Always start right foot first.
  2. There are 4 beats to a bar. This works out as two steps.
  3. The top of the set is towards the band. Likewise, the bottom of the set is away from the band.
  4. When resting stick on shoulder, the tip of the stick should be level with the middle of your ear.
  5. Turns on the spot will usually be right-hand turns (clockwise). Common exceptions are when dancers need to turn in or out of a set the shortest way.
  6. When passing shoulders with another dancer, the first pass will be a right-shoulder pass. Many dances will have figures that alternate right and left shoulders.
  7. Where a fast turn on the spot is needed, it will be on the first beat of the bar. E.g. If you need to turn and then move across the set, you can count it as 'turn, two, three, four'.
  8. Swings with a partner will be right-hand (clockwise), with the stick held in the left hand, unless otherwise specified.
  9. Figures are usually in multiples of four beats. If you mentally keep counting 'one, two, three, four', then you'll have a good idea of when to move and change.

It is PRACTICE SEASON and we can be found at our practice hall every week until early June.

We rehearse Thursdays from 7:30 - 9:30pm,
St John's Heatherlands, 378A Ashley Road, Poole, BH14 9DQ

More information on the venue.