Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs gets ready to dance. Photo: Rob McDougall
People from across the world have been invited to join in a global ceilidh held over 24 hours next summer, as part of Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games celebrations.
The Royal Scottish Country Dance Society (RSCDS), which has been commissioned by Get Scotland Dancing to create the Commonwealth Ceilidh, will work with dance organisations in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen to create new ‘fusion’ dances which will be performed along with existing dances in a worldwide event on Saturday 21 June 2014.
The Commonwealth Ceilidh will begin with events in New Zealand at 7.30pm local time; the next events will begin two hours later in Australia, then in Japan and onwards, with the dancing beginning at 7.30pm in Scotland, 12 hours after the Ceilidh started.
Along with Commonwealth Ceilidhs in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh it is hoped that Commonwealth Ceilidhs will take place in hundreds of locations across Scotland and the UK. The Commonwealth Ceilidh then continues over to the Americas and organisers are aiming for the final event to take place in Hawaii 24 hours after the first ceilidh call was made.
Each Commonwealth Ceilidh will be unique to its location, with an interval in every event giving the chance for groups to showcase their national or local dance style. Organisers are especially interested at present in hearing from people who would like to organise a Ceilidh in their own community.
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop said:
“The Commonwealth Ceilidh is set to be the biggest celebration of Scottish Country Dancing the world has ever seen – It will be a fantastic way to celebrate, share and showcase our culture during 2014.
“As well as being celebrated throughout the Commonwealth, participants in Scotland will get the opportunity to go to a taster class in their community in the weeks following the Ceilidh. The fact is – Scottish Country Dancing is fun, social and good for our health. I expect that from John O’Groats to Jedburgh – Achiltibuie to Auchmithie – many participants across Scotland will keep dancing through the rest of 2014 and into the years beyond.”
Eileen Gallagher, Independent Director on the Glasgow 2014 Board and Chair of the Ceremonies, Culture and Queen’s Baton Relay Committee, said:
“The Commonwealth Ceilidh will be a vibrant celebration of Scottish culture which everyone can get involved in no matter where they are across the world. The chance to learn the three specially created new dances as part of the Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme will make the Commonwealth Ceilidh a unique and exciting opportunity for so many people who love Scottish country dancing.”
Event planning information will be available in January 2014 and the programme of dances, music and training resources will be available in March 2014. You can register your interest at the Get Scotland Dancing website.