A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all the staff at 12 Coates Crescent in Edinburgh!
As we approach the end of another great year of Scottish country dancing, we would like to thank you all for your continued support and we look forward to many great events and activities in the New Year!
Please note that the office will be closed from Friday 20 December 2019 and will
re-open on Monday 6 January 2020. We hope everyone has an enjoyable break and we look forward to working with you all in the New Year.
Celebrate the New Year with Scottish country dancing!
There are many opportunities to celebrate Christmas, Hogmanay and Burns’ Night with Scottish country dancing at Branch locations across the world. A selection of these include:
Remember to check Branch websites for dances and other events that are closer to you.
Scottish country dancing features in the Castle of Light
It was fantastic to see some of our dancers from the Edinburgh Branch featuring in the Castle of Light display at Edinburgh Castle, running from 12-22 December 2019.
This amazing sound and light journey exhibited many different dance and art displays. The short clip above shows dancers from the Edinburgh Branch performing alongside other dance styles.
Take the Floor, BBC Radio Scotland
Membership Services Committee member Angela Young was recently interviewed on Take the Floor on Saturday 14 December and tells more about the recently published book and CDs of Thirty Popular Dances, Vol 2.
Click here to listen to the interview and hear some great Scottish music from the Charlie Kirkpatrick Scottish Dance Band.
Flashback to Filming at Summer School 2019
BBC Antiques Road Trip
During our Summer School event this year, the BBC’s Celebrity Antiques Roadtrip visited us with Judy Murray (renowned tennis coach and mother of the tennis world champion Sir Andy Murray).
The programme featured some of our fabulous Dem team members dancing with Judy Murray. For anyone who was not able to view the programme when it first aired in October, you can now enjoy watching the highlights!
The dancing starts at around 11.50 minutes in!
Global Youth Week 2019
We are grateful to all the members, dancers and musicians who participated in the recent Global Youth Week between 23-30 November 2019.
A big congratulations to the Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles Branch for winning the Facebook competition as their photos of the Borders Ceilidh in Galashiels attracted the most likes during the week. Congratulations to the Aberdeen Branch and the Lyon Branch whose posts were close behind.
You can find out more about all the exciting activities that took place during Global Youth Week in our website blog and we hope you enjoy watching this beautiful festive video from the Deer O'Dale Dance School in Russia, submitted as part of GYW.
(Dances shown are The Happy Meeting and The Braes of Mellinish.)
Winter School 2020 16-21 February, Pitlochry, Scotland
We still have a few places left for Winter School in February 2020, so please join us in celebrating the 21st anniversary of this wonderful event!
As well as great dancing and music, there are lots of fantastic talks and activities planned including:
Whisky tasting
Talk from John Muir Trust on Wild Scotland
A guided walk around Pitlochry
Archaeological visit to the Scottish Crannog Centre
Talk from Alan MacPherson, Society Archivist
Feedback from last year's event included: “All the teachers were very welcoming and inclusive as well as excellent teachers. I especially appreciated the way they mixed in with everyone at the social dances.”
“Good choice of dances; beautiful venue and super band! Wonderful to be able to dance in such an historical setting.”
Spring Fling and Fringe 2020
Many of us will be looking forward to Spring Fling and Fringe in 2020!
There are two exciting locations to choose from in 2020… will you dance in Toronto or St. Petersburg? Booking is open for both.
Remember to take advantage of the Scholarships available for Spring Fling – the Scholarship Application form is available here and the deadline for applying is 15 February 2020.
Read more about the programme of activities for each Spring Fling and Fringe here.
Good news - you can now book for Summer School 2020! Take advantage of the
10% early bird discount that is available until the end of February 2020.
You can also apply for a Scholarship, the deadline for applying is Friday 10 January 2020. Summer School Scholarships
Younger Hall Restoration
As many of you may be aware, the Younger Hall venue in St Andrews is currently being refurbished and will not be available for Summer School next year. However, a suitable alternative dancing venue has been arranged for 2020 Summer School dancing.
St Andrews University has set up a dedicated page for any RSCDS members wishing to donate to the restoration and Lizzie Conder, one of our members, has written an appeal which you can read here.
RSCDS Summary of Activities
We have produced a short version of RSCDS activities between 2018-2019 which we hope you will enjoy browsing for a summary of the Society's news and updates.
Thank you to everyone who participated in the Marketing and Communications surveys.
The surveys closed on Tuesday 17 December 2019.
Do not worry if you have not had a chance to fill in the survey, you can always send feedback about marketing throughout the year for the Marketing Working Group to discuss. Please get in touch if you have any further feedback.
2019 Autumn Gathering Open Forum Feedback
Lorna Ogilvie, Chair-Elect, wishes to thank those who attended the Open Forum at the Autumn Gathering in Perth in November. Their very helpful, and perceptive, feedback will greatly assist in the next stages of planning towards the celebrations linked to the RSCDS Centenary in 2023.
30 Popular Dances Vol.2
Thirty Popular Dances, Vol.2
Our recently launched book and CDs of Thirty Popular Dances Vol.2 is proving very popular!
You can purchase your copies from: https://www.rscds.org/shop/category/30pop/
and enjoy some classic Scottish country dances.
Website Updates
The website is continuing to undergo improvements, with refreshed images and content being added on a frequent basis.
Discover up to date news articles and longer, feature pieces on our blog – these are posted regularly, so bookmark this page to easily check back for recent content.