Page:The nomads of the Balkans, an account of life and customs among the Vlachs of Northern Pindus (1914).djvu/66

 only by the number of rings it is possible to make up in the space available. On such occasions even the leader will refrain from being too elaborate or energetic in his steps, for the village dances are always to some extent of a ceremonial nature. The only occasion on which the two sexes dance together in the same ring is in the solemn dance at a Avedding in which the whole bridal party takes part when the newly married pair come out of the church at the end of the service. This dance which is always performed directly outside the church door is fully described below. The other class of dances are those in vogue at the feasting before and after a wedding and at all other entertainments. Here too there is a formal system to be followed. The bridegroom or host will invite two men to dance, for only men dance with men and women with women, except in the case of brothers and sisters and first cousins, and at weddings when any of the men holding official positions may invite the bride to dance. The two men will stand up in the centre of the company opposite one another and dance a singasto, which like most of the names of Vlach dances is said to be a corruption of a Greek name. At first the two dancers pace solemnly and slowly backwards and forwards in front of one another, then as the music is gradually played faster and faster they begin to twirl round and jump about moving about the room, but always keeping in front of one another. This being over the two hold hands and dance a ring dance together, first one leading and then another the other. Thus each pair that is invited to dance goes in all through three separate dances. When they begin the ring dances the leader can call upon the musicians to play whatever kind of dance he prefers, as a rule the one he thinks he can dance best. The skill of the leader in the ring dances is not shewn by his following the regular steps accurately, but in the number and beauty of the variations he can introduce. Since, as a mocker might say, these variations usually consist in prancing about on one leg or in whirling wildly round, it will be seen that to do this in time with the music demands considerable adroitness. But the local critics do not approve of wild dancing, even prancing and whirling