Cotswold Notes: Bampton: Three Drunken Maidens

Form

Except for the first & last verses (Foot Up & Rounds), set is arranged (with D1 at P1 etc. at the beginning of the first chorus & people changing places after each half chorus)

                   P2    P6
         top    P1    P4        bottom
                   P3    P5

Phrasing

(A+Bx2)x3+A because of missing last Ch.

Verses

Like a corner dance, it only has 3 choruses & ends on Rounds [because 3 choruses puts everybody in every position once].

Whole Gyp

This are not in pairs but in threes. Pap1, Pap2 & Pap3 do it together with all three dancers doing the first half of the [whole or half] gyp around the next position [not person] cw from their start position back to place and the second half around the next position acw from their start position back to place. The other three dancers do likewise at the same time.

Half Gyps

These are done in the same groupings as the whole gyps. The first quarter is done forwards to the next position cw. Then turn 180 deg and dance backwards to the subsequent position cw for the second quarter. Then rest is the same thing back to place acw.

Chorus

((Start with the Pap2 facing Pap3, Pap1 facing Pap4 and the others facing up. Pap1 sidesteps L then R around P2 to P4 then does 2 single steps in place then turns 180 deg cw and does 2 more single steps in place [total of 4 bars]. Hanky action on the first beat of each bar: salute Lh on first, salute Rh on second, raise Lh vertically upwards in front body [& fairly close to body] on 3rd [down on turn] & ditto but both hands on fourth. Pap4 does the same motions as Pap1 to go around P3 to P1.) x 2 but on the second time replace the in place bit with everyone moving to the next place in the cyclic order P1 to P2 to P6 to P4 to P5 to P3 to P1 using 3 capers & a show.) x 2 .

Show

Done with both feet on the ground.

Ending

It ends with Rounds becoming three capers & a show but the capers are done starting facing inwards and turn 360 deg acw during them.

Variation 1

The above ending is how Lagabag do it. The original non-Lagabag ending had all dancers with arms on each other's shoulders instead of the show but this tended to look a mess unless in a perfect circle.

Variation 2

Instead of raising both h together in the 3rd & 4th bars of both halves of Ch, raise only Lh vertically in 3rd & only Rh in fourth.

Origin

This is not a traditional Bampton dance but has been made [almost] in the tradition. I don’t know which side invented it.

Source of Information

Learnt as part of Lagabag Morris’s dance repertoire.

Further Information

This page only contains features specific to this dance. Where not specified, the features of this dance are in common with other dances in this tradition.


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