Shoot the Owl ~ Kentucky Square Dances

Shoot the Owl ~ Kentucky Square Dances Shoot the Owl ~ The Running Set

Ida Levin describes an early form of "square dancing" which is actually danced in a large circle. This bears some similarities to the dance which Cecil Sharp called The Running Set 10 years before.

Every "change" of a dance begins win an introduction, first Ida gives the calls for this:

1. Join hands, circle left all the way around.
2. Swing home
3. Corners, too.
4. Don't forget your partner

And then she explains what the calls mean:

1. All couples join hands in a circle and walk to the left completely around.
2. Partners join both hands and swing once around.
3. Each gentleman joins both hands with the lady on his left and swings her once around.
4. Each gentleman joins left hands with his partner and swings her once around

(At this time "Swing" was a generic term which meant roughly: "turn in a circle", it did not mean the modern partner swing.)

One essential figure for this style of dance is the do-si-do. This is not the standard back to back figure we all know. I will call it simply "do-si" so as to avoid confusion with the better known variant. Sharp, Levin and Shaw all give descriptions of the do-si-do and all of them are different. The following is how Levin says it should be called:

1. First couple shoot the owl, gent lead off, swing three once around.
2. Shoot the owl.
3. Shoot partner on the left.
4. Partner follows.
5. Shoot home.
6. Next gentleman out to the right.
7. Swing home, corners too.

Which means...

1. First gentleman walks to the couple on the right. All three join hands in a circle and walk to the left once and a half around.
2. Second gentleman and his partner raise their joined hands and the first gentleman goes under their arms..
3. First gentleman joins left hands with his partner and swings her completely around.
4. First gentleman then goes to the next couple on the right and repeats 1 and 2. Simultaneously the first lady goes to the couple on her right and repeats 1 and 2.
5. Repeat 3.
   First couple continues in this manner, the lady being one couple behind the gentleman, until it has danced with all save the last couple, with whom it dances Do si do (No. 1)
6. When the first lady moves on to the fourth couple the second gentleman simultaneously walks to the couple on his right and repeats 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
   Repeat this figure until all the couples have danced.
7. Each gentleman, joining both hands with his partner swings her once around, then joining both hands with the corner, that is, the lady on his left, swings her once around.

After the introduction a "change" is performed. The first couple leads to the right and dances a particular figure with the second couple. Then the first couple moves right again to dance the same figure with the third couple. As they move on to the fourth couple the second couple moves right to dance with the third couple (at the same time). Both 1s&2s then move on to the 5s&4s. When they move on to the 6s&5s the third couple will start up with the 4th. And so on until everyone is dancing.

Quoted from Ida Levin:

A figure danced by all couples in the circle is called a Change. In each Change the first couple walks to the couple on the right, dances with this couple, then with the next couple on the right, and so on until it has danced with all the couples in the circle. In leading the lady to the next couple the gentleman takes her left hand in his right.

In the majority of these Changes, when the leading couple has danced with all but the last couple in the circle it does the Do si do (No 1) with this couple (...)

When the first couple moves on to the fourth couple, the second couple simultaneously walks to the couple on its right and begins dancing with this third couple (a couple must be careful not to lead off to the couple on the right too soon, and in order to avoid confusion the prompter may call "Next"). As each couple completes the trip around the circle it takes its own place in the circle and remains there, dancing with the other couples as they coume along.

When all the couples have danced the Change, the prompter calls "Swing home, corners too" (...)

...

Three Changes are called while the same couples are on the floor.

This example shows only one Change, not three. I have chosen the figure "Shoot the Owl". Cecil Sharp also has a version of this in his Running Set. It's a little different from most figures in that the couples split up, the 1st man dancing with the 2s before the 1st lady starts. When the 1st man gets to the 3s his partner starts with the 2s. When the 1st lady gets to the 4s the 2nd man starts with the 3s. And so forth.

Again Ida gives calls:

1. First couple shoot the owl, gent leads off, swing three once around.
2. Shoot the owl.
3. Shoot partner on the left.
4. Partner follows.
5. Shoot home.
6. Next gentleman out to the right.
7. Swing home, corners too.

and meaning...

1. First gentleman walks to the coup[le on the right. All three join hands in a circle and walk to the left once and a half around.
2. Second gentleman and his partner raise their joined hands and the first gentleman goes under their arms.
3. First gentleman joins left hans with his partner and swings her completely around.
4. First gentleman then goes to the next couple on the right and repeats 1 and 2. Simultaneously the first lady goes to the couple on her right and repeats 1 and 2.
5. First couple continues in this manner, the lady being one couple behind the gentleman, until it has danced with all save the last couple, with whom it dances Do si do (No. 1).
6. When the first lady moves on to the fourth couple the second gentleman simultaneously walks to the couple on his right and repeats 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
   Repeat this figure until all the couples have danced
7. Each gentleman, joining both hands with his partner swings her once around, then joining both hands with the corner, that is, the lady on his left, swings her once around.

This looks rather like Pop Goes the Weasel.

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