Step Stately

Step Stately ~ Old Style Progression, 7 Couple Step Stately ~ Hume Step Stately ~ Palmer Step Stately ~ Part 3, Quadruple 7 Couple Step Stately ~ Part 3, Triple 7 Couple Step Stately ~ Part 3, Whole Set 7 Couple Step Stately

This dance appeared first in the Lovelace Manuscript, but the instructions for it are incomplete.

This dance needs more room between sets than most.

Playford (and Sharp) say this can be done for 3, 5, 7 or 9 couples. This is a 3 couple version. Colin Hume recommends 5 couples. Personally I worry that with 7 or more couples the first part will involve too much travel to finish in the limited amount of time.

Lovelace writes:

Leade up, and downe agayne then the man and woeman slip between each other, the man above the woeman then the first man shall leade soe round about to the bottome holding the other man by the hand and his woeman doeing the like at the same time, then they all shall leade upwards, in the shape of an halfe moone, and downe againe then the 3 woemen quitting of the 3 men shall slide upwards towards the right hand, and the men towards the left, and soe they are all in their places;

The first couple shall leade upwards, and the second downwards, the last couple standing still, and then turne about, and leade each to other, and then take hands, and goe rounde — (the dance's instructions are terminated by the bottom of the page and do not resume on the next)

Playford writes:

Lead up all a D. change places each with his own, keeping your races still to the Presence, the men slipping behind the we. and the we before the ment, face all to the wall Men hands, and we. hands, 1 man and 2. wo. lead all the rest round to the bottom facing all to the Presence	The first man and wo. being in the middle, lead up all abreast a D. and back We. slip before the men to the right, and men behind the we. to the left going a compass to their places as at first
The first cu. lead up a D. change hands and lead down a D. Take hands with the 2. cu. and all four half round, 1. man and 2. wo. change places	The 2 we lead up between the 2 men, then crossing over, the 1. wo. go behind the 2. man, and the 2. behind the 1. Men change over by the right hands, then giving left hands to their own we. turn the 1. cu. into the 2. place, and the 2. into the 1.
First cu. cross over, meet in the 2. place, change places The three uppermost men and the three we. hands, fall a D. back, 2. and 3. cu. change each with his own while the 1. cu. meet, then fall a D. back again three and three	Now standing as in Greenwood, the 1 man between the 2 and 3. wo. and the 1. wo. between the 2. and 3. man, the 1 cu. lead up, cast off and meet below whilst the 2. and 3. we and the 2. and 3. men change places The 1. cu. being in the 3. place, arms, whilst the other four take hands and go half round to the left

The version in The Playford Ball is slightly different from what Sharp wrote. In part 2 B 1-4, the Ball has the women lead up left hand in left with W2 passing W1 in front of her, while Sharp simply says they lead up and cross (and to Sharp, "lead up" usually meant right hand in right).

Then in Part 3, the first four bars of B are different interpretations.

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