Connemara
Reel Footwork Pattern for Set Dancers
Men & Women

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Here's a simple breakdown of a Footwork Pattern for the Connemara Set Dance ( Reel Figure). This is danced to a reel, so that's a 4/4
timing pattern I've broken it down into mini lessons -
practice each individual lesson until the onscreen graphic is
PAINFULLY slow and this is 2nd nature to you . When you can
easily say and dance the pattern without looking at this
screen then feel free to jump ahead and learn the next part.
Take your time ! If you try to zoom ahead too
quickly, it'll be a rough n rocky trip. |
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1) First Lesson : "AND A ONE" |
and - is a quick left heel lift up & thump
back down ( left toe stays on the floor) |
a - is a quick tap of the floor with the right
heel |
one - is a whole right foot step down |
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practice "and a one"
"and a one" "and a
one"
until you are very comfortable with this before you jump on and
learn more of the pattern
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2) Add on to the Basic Lesson:
"AND A ONE THEN TWO"
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starts off the same pattern "and a
one" as you learned above but now we add to it |
then - is a quick tap of the floor with
the left heel |
two - is a whole left foot step down |
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practice: and a one then
two
until you are very comfortable with it and then jump to the next
graphic
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3)
Let's finish up that side:
"AND A ONE THEN TWO STEP" |
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starts off the same pattern "and a
one then two" as you learned above but now we add to it |
step - is a whole foot step down with
your right |
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practice: "and a one then
two step"
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4) Step it off in reverse: "AND A ONE THEN TWO STEP"
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The next part of this Connemara Reel Footwork Pattern
is just a reverse of what you've learned above. So make sure you
have mastered the lesson above before you
proceed.
Start the reverse by lifting the heel of your right foot and
just repeat the sequence. |
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practice the reverse: "and a one then
two step"
5) Put it all together for the full Connemara Footwork Reel Step
"AND A ONE THEN TWO STEP, AND A ONE THEN TWO STEP"
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Say it out loud if that helps
! "and a one then two step, and a one then
two step"
Repeat that entire sequence over n over until this footwork pattern is
2nd nature to you. That's the best I
can do with simple graphics. Ladies lead off by lifting the left heel
and men lead off on the opposite foot so they lift their right
heel. Their are multiple variations on the footwork, pick one
that suits your ability.
Hope that gets your feet moving in the right direction.
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