WELCOME TO AN ENTERTAINMENT SITE FOR SCOTTISH COUNTRY DANCERS!
Enjoy this curated selection of theme-related dances for celebrations and holidays, or find a dance associated with a special calendar day, or EVEN your own birthday!
Midsummer Bonfire, 1879
Jun 21
Summer Solstice & Midnight Sun Day
Midsummer Madness
Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day
Today's Musings, History & Folklore
"This is very midsummer madness."
~Twelfth Night, or What You Will, William Shakespeare (1595-96)
Magical mischief-makers and dancers! 'Tis the season of madness, surely. Mind the bonfires—and perhaps keep a little oatmeal in your sporran or pocket, just in case!
Devised by John Drewry for the "Day of Dance" held at Causewayhead, Stirling, this lively 32-bar jig for three couples in a four-couple set features easy-to-remember hands across figures and reels of three danced both across the set and on the sidelines. Before long you'll be weaving about the hall like glowing fireflies—or perhaps fairies—darting through the twilight on Midsummer's Eve!
Midsummer has long been one of the most anticipated nights of the year. Traditionally celebrated with bonfires, feasting, music, and dancing, the summer solstice was considered a liminal time when the boundary between the human world and the realm of fairies, spirits, and other supernatural beings grew thin.
According to folklore across much of Europe, this was a night when mortals might glimpse the Otherworld—or even encounter its inhabitants—but such meetings rarely came without a price. Fairies in traditional tales were not the tiny, friendly creatures of modern storybooks. More often they were clever, unpredictable, fond of tricks, and occasionally downright dangerous!
The enchantment of Midsummer has inspired writers for centuries. Shakespeare famously filled A Midsummer Night's Dream with fairy pranks and supernatural confusion, while echoes of Midsummer lore can also be found in Macbeth and The Tempest, where witches, spirits, enchantments, and otherworldly forces meddle in mortal affairs.
For protection against fairy tricks, folklore offers a surprising assortment of remedies. St. John's wort, rowan, mugwort, and other plants were thought to ward off supernatural interference. One of the simplest charms was even more humble: oatmeal. According to some traditions, carrying a little oatmeal in your pocket—or sprinkling a few flakes on your clothing—could discourage unwanted fairy attention.
Whether or not it works, it certainly can't hurt on a night when other realms seem a little closer than usual! Just remember to sweep the dance floor afterwards should the anti-fairy oatmeal deployment become a little too enthusiastic. 🕺 💃 💜 💛 💚 💜 🌞 🧚 🧚♂️ 🧚♀️ ✨✨ ✨
Midsummer Madness
Happy Summer Solstice!
Today marks the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year.
Though midsummer celebrations are also historically associated with St. John's Eve, June 23rd, the actual solstice (longest day of the year) occurs around June 20 or 21st. Traditionally celebrated with bonfires, the solstice has long been associate with times of strange and unusual occurrences.
Whether your summer celebrations and revels fall on the solstice or a little later on St. John's Eve, you might want to protect yourself from mischievous fairy folk, just in case, by traditional methods such as carrying a bit of iron.
An iron nail in your pocket will prevent you from being carried away by the fairy folk. A pair of iron shears hung on the wall near a baby’s bed was said to prevent the child from being swapped for an ugly fairy baby, a changeling. Horseshoes were also traditionally nailed over doorposts as protection.
Happy Summer Solstice!
And for more on midsummer traditions from the Highlands and Scottish Isles, click the 1882 engraving of dancing on St. John's Eve.
Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!
