Every now and again the club is approached by a community group to share our love of Scottish Country Dancing.

When we can, we try to accept. It depends on time of year, tutor and club members’ availability, suitability of the venue, and whether we think Scottish Country Dancing is a good fit for a particular event.

In years gone by, the club participated in all sorts of community events, demonstrations as well as occasions involving audience participation.

In more recent years we’ve been involved in the 2015 Neighbours’ Day at Newlands Marae Ngā Hau e Whā o Paparārangi and a 2018 visit to Karori Brownies.

With community groups getting back up and running this year following covid, we were contacted by the leader of the Newlands Brownies about getting together to dance on 25 July.

Brownie badges

The focus of the Karori Brownie experience was on finding out about different cultures, with dance as a part of that. Newlands Brownies were looking at dance as a physical activity, promoting good health through fitness.

They were working on a ‘Keeping Safe’ badge, with one of the clauses being ‘Healthy You’, requiring the brownies as a group to try an energetic activity. They decided it would be fun to choose dance as their activity, and Scottish Country Dancing appealed.

The brownie meeting room in the Newlands Community Centre is quite small, so I gathered a group of six dancers, with Loralee as photographer, plus Aileen Logie – who was kind enough to come along with her accordion and play for us.

Tartan and a tintookie

We all turned out in as much tartan as we could muster. Anne M and husband Ed were the stars, Anne in kilt and sash and Ed in tartan trews, formal jacket and bow tie. The rest of us wore kilts or sashes, and Aileen wore her familiar Black Tartan band tabard.

For a bit of fun and nostalgia, I pinned on my Australian Tintookie (sprite) sixes badge from when I was a Queensland brownie in the 1960s. As it turned out, lots of us had been in brownies (Aileen was also a sprite, in Scotland), guides, cubs or one of the brigades.

Dancing

Once all the brownies had arrived and were settled in, Rod did a warm-up for everyone and a quick introduction to the footwork.

With brownies a-buzz, we danced The Flying Scotsman with its steam train-inspired moves and the challenge of making those steam-train whistle noises at just the right time.

The brownies got a short break while we danced The De’il Amang the Tailors, then were back up to dance The Virginia Reel and Jig to the Music.

It’s always fun to dance with children, they have so much energy and enthusiasm, but a little tricky at times keeping track of all those buzzing brownies with so few of us and so many of them.

And more

Dancing over, Aileen offered the brownies a chance to play the piano keys on her accordion while she pumped. They were very keen, queuing up for a turn on this unfamiliar instrument, and then on to a (very well-supervised) look at the sgian dubh which Rod pulled out of his sock.  

After a very nice thank you speech from one of the brownies, it was time for us all to go home for a well-earned dinner.

See an article and photos about our Brownies visit in the Independent Herald 17 August 2023

Kristin Downey
9 August 2023

Photos: Loralee Hyde