Village Hall, Resolis, 5 April 2012, and touring

ANOTHER tour from the North by North East consortium’s Touring Scottish Talent scheme, which last year saw the excellent ‘Macbeth’ from Open Book amongst other gems, Dannsa’s ‘Connections’ was another step in their long running campaign to get Scotland up on its feet, dancing.

USING moves from both Highland and country dancing, returning step-dancing to the mix, and blurring the boundaries between dancer, musician and singer (nearly everyone in the show performed all three roles), Sandra Robertson, Caroline Reagh and Fin Moore created a gently enticing evening celebrating the heart of our culture.

The Dannsa dancers (photo Maria Falconer)The Dannsa dancers (photo Maria Falconer)

They’d recruited a solidly talented bunch of conspirators – Dannsa co-founder Frank McConnell, rising star of the music scene Matheu Watson, Cape Breton stepdancer and pianist Mac Morin and Mod gold medallist singer Catriona Watt. Watt opened with a waulking song, showing off her fine, rich voice and the effortless precision of Morin’s footwork. It was, as mentioned more than once by the participants, their first night and there was some understandable nervousness in the first half, which was densely packed with some complex new dances. A rare glimpse of Hebridean dancing (not, as they explained, a lazy form of Highland dancing) left this reviewer keen for more.

Though all the dancers were seasoned performers, again and again the eye was drawn to Morin whose dancing has that air of relaxation and always having something in reserve that exemplified the late Fred Astaire and only comes from hours of dedicated practice on a base of pure, natural talent. There was much to enjoy in the exuberant feel of many of the pieces in which the dancers ran or skipped lightly around the Hall as though in a school playground. Their enjoyment was infectious and it probably would not have taken much encouragement for the audience to join in.

The musicians took over now and then to give the dancers a rest and allow an appreciation of some simply dazzling musicianship in traditional tunes ancient and modern, with a brief trip over the border for some Northumbrian airs including ‘Over the Dyke and Tell Her, Laddie’, which evoked spontaneous foot percussion from the audience. Throughout, Watt’s voice, whether in puirt a beul or the doleful Gaelic laments, was a constant joy, rich and true, and one to watch as it develops.

Connections was a thoroughly enjoyable night out which also made a persuasive argument for the regular inclusion of dance as an integral part of Gaelic culture.

© Jennie Macfie, 2012

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