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English Country Dance Fun for All

English country dance is as old as a 17th century village and as modern as the girls learning it today.
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English Country Dance Fun for All
The Jane Austen Ball held annually for students in the English Country dance class at St. Mary’s College. Courtesy of Rosalind Clark
Chelsea Scarnegie
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Girls come in from the warm and sticky air, shake off their sandals, and gather on the dance floor.  They giggle excitedly about their weekend plans and practice a few warm-up dance steps, although they feel warm enough already.  There is only one Friday class that these girls don’t seem to mind attending:  Jane Austen Dance.  The instructor—a tall, slender woman named Rosalind Clark—stands at the stereo with a small yellow booklet that contains every dance that the girls may learn.

Dancers often wear early 19th century costumes at the ball. (Courtesy of Rosalind Clark)
Dancers often wear early 19th century costumes at the ball. Courtesy of Rosalind Clark
Chelsea Scarnegie
Chelsea Scarnegie
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Chelsea is a recent graduate of Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, IN. She is a member of the blogging staff for Thistle Magazine, where she expresses her love for film, travel, and the written word. She is also a member of the Sigma Tau Delta International English Honors Society and was part of the editorial board for the Saint Mary’s literary magazine Chimes.
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