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The Round Ceilidhs

The Next Ceilidh

The next Round Ceilidh is on Thursday 21st June 2012: See the Diary page for details of other forthcoming ceilidhs.

Live music and dance to make you sweat

We organise several ceilidhs a year. They're always popular, whether they're to our in-house talent or top outside bands. We provide a caller to explain all the dances, and some of our callers are now in high demand on the national English ceilidh scene!

Most of the ceilidhs are at Emmanuel URC which is opposite Pembroke College, on Trumpington Street. The exception is the May week ceilidh, which is held in Emmanuel College Old Library.

What is a ceilidh?

Ceilidh is a celtic word (pronounced - kaylee) which basically means a party, that often involved dancing. In England the basic forms of dancing have been built upon, and the music has been livened up to produce an awesome experience.

But I can't dance

All the dances are called. This means that there is someone who walks you through the dance beforehand, and will tell you what you should be doing next while you are dancing, until you get the hang of the dance.

There aren't any steps to learn - your partner will appreciate it if your feet are not on top of theirs and it makes it more fun if you bounce around to the music but otherwise, let your imagination run riot.

But I don't have a partner

Don't worry, there is a very strong culture in ceilidhs, that anyone can ask anyone to dance, (to the point that it is sort of bad manners to dance with the same person too much). So either ask a random person, or stand around in the centre of the hall looking slightly lost at the beginning of a dance, and you will probably get asked to dance anyway.

What should I wear?

Ceilidh dancing is definitely energetic, so wear something cool, and wear shoes that you will be happy galloping around a room in for an evening

Do I need to book a ticket in advance?

Our ceilidhs have been growing in popularity in recent years and occasionally the ceilidhs become full. If you want to make absolutely sure that you will get in, you can reserve a ticket in advance by e-mailing soc-round-request@lists.cam.ac.uk beforehand. Tickets will be reserved until 8:10, at which point if the event is full then tickets will be sold to anyone else who is waiting. It is unlikely that we will turn people away on most nights, and you can be reasonably sure you will get in as long as you turn up on time. And the ever growing popularity of our ceilidhs means we can pay for more top-class bands!

What did you say a ceilidh was again?

For more information about an English Ceilidhs see the Webfeet English Ceilidh page.

Contacting us

For details of events organised by the Round, email: soc-round-request@lists.cam.ac.uk.