THE OLD BA' GAME or UPPIES AND DOONIES REDUX
32 bar Reel (or Jig?) for 4 couples in a longwise set
1-8 1C and 3C dance fig. 8 down, 1C around 2C and 3 around 4C. Finish side by side in the center of the set, facing down, 1C between 2C and 3C between 4C.
9-16 In lines across the dance, 1C with 2C and 3C with 4C dance down, pull back right shoulder and dance back up. 2C and 4C dance into their original places.
17-20 1C dance up to first place and cast off around 2C, into third place, while 3C dance up the middle and into 1st place. Can dance long or short way into place, depending on how you feel.
21-24 3C with 2C and 1C with 4C dance right hands across. All couples finish in center, in positions where they began the hands across, ready for poussette.
25-3 3C with 2C, and 1C with 4C poussette. Should finish in order 2,3,4,1. Repeat 3 times.
Good music: Duke of Perth encore, Terpsichore, Caledonian Muse
Devised by Ellen Ternes (ellenter [at] comcast.net), after reading a wonderful feature in the Washington Post about the Christmas Ba' game on Kirkwall, Orkney, to evoke the up and down energy of the event. I called it Uppies and Doonies until I found out there was already a dance by that name. So I stole the Post headline, The Old Ba' Game.