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60th Anniversary

Welcome !

The 2025/26 dance season marks the 60th anniversary of the RSCDS Ottawa Branch!  We’re thrilled to announce a full year dedicated to celebrating six decades of Scottish country dancing!
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On this page you will find details of all the anniversary activities.  Come back often to check for updates!

Upcoming Events

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April 7 and 9

Ball practices at Parkdale:

Tues 7:00-9:00, complex dances

Thur 6:30-9:30, easier dances

 

April 11

Anniversary Ball

We are honoured to have received this congratulatory message on our 60th Anniversary from Her Excellency the Governor General.

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RSCDS Ottawa
60th Anniversary

Diamond Ball
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On April 11, 2026 the RSCDS Ottawa Branch will be holding their annual spring ball at the Nepean Sportsplex.  This year we are having a Diamond Ball to honour our 60th Anniversary. Please join us for a sparkling evening of dining and dancing to the live music of Atlantic Firth.

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See below for all the details and links to the registration and seating forms. We look forward to sharing the fun and the memories of our past 60 years with you!

BALL NEWS
Registration is now CLOSED.  Look forward to seeing you at the Ball!
Ball practices will be on April 7 (complex) and April 9 (easy) at Parkdale United Church during regular class times.
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Where and When

Nepean Sportsplex

1701 Woodroffe Avenue,  Ottawa

The ball will be held in Halls A/B at the Nepean Sportsplex.  It has a large dancing space and ample free parking. Follow the signs around the building for Entrance 3.

Coming from out of town? Some of our members have kindly offered accommodations for visitors. Please indicate on your registration form if  you are interested.

Order of Events

5:00 Doors Open
5:30 Reception
6:00 Dinner
8:00 Grand March
8:15 Dancing  begins
11:30 Auld Lang Syne

The Dinner

The event starts with a reception with punch and a cash bar.  This will be followed by a formal  dinner catered by Tulips and Maple, one of Ottawa's premier caterers. There will be salad plus your selection of one of three entrees. There will also be a special surprise for dessert!

Menu

Salad

Shaved Fennel & Citrus Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette 

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Entrees

Select one of the following in registration:

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Lemon-Thyme Grilled Chicken Breast 

Served over roasted fingerling potatoes, summer squash ribbons, and a charred corn and herb relish. Finished with a pan jus.

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Pan-Seared Arctic Char

On a bed of herbed farro with cherry tomato confit, wilted spinach, and a lemon beurre blanc.

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Ricotta Ravioli with Summer Vegetables 

Hand-rolled ricotta ravioli with grilled zucchini, peas, blistered cherry tomatoes, and a basil cream sauce. Finished with Parmesan and lemon zest

 

Coffee / Tea / Dessert

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The Dance

Atlantic Firth will provide the lively music for an evening of dancing.  The programme will include some new dances from our 60th Anniversary Book of Dances (*). Whether you are dancing or just enjoying the show, we promise an entertaining evening!

Programme

  1. A Wee Nothin’

  2. The Flirtation Hornpipe* 

  3. The Jubilee Greeting

  4. Rest and be Thankful

  5. Wisp of Thistle

  6. Juniper Island Square* video

  7. The Jubilee Jig

  8. Friends Across the Border* video 

  9. Diamond Reflections

  10. Best Set in the Hall

  11. The Triumph

  12. The Yorkshire Rose

  13. Jones Falls Hornpipe

  14. Langholm Fair

  15. Pelorus Jack

  16. The De’il Amang the Tailors

Programme details:
Online cribs and videos:  myStrathspey
Printable cribs:  cribs

Questions? Contact us at events.rscdsottawa@gmail

Shop

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Thank You!

Our second round of orders is now complete. Orders will be distributed in classes during April.

History

An anniversary like this reminds us to look back and see how far we have come. In this section we are highlighting our history through a series of articles that will unfold a decade at a time.  Click on the picture to see the story for that decade.

Dance Book

To celebrate our Anniversary, we are creating a book of dances devised by and for the Branch. See below for updates on our progress throughout the year. 
Submissions
Branch members channeled their creative energy into devising dances throughout the spring and summer leading up to our anniversary year. We are a creative group—34 dances by 18 different devisors were submitted for possible inclusion in the book. And so much variety! Reels, jigs and strathspeys, and 3-, 4-, and 5-couple dances in longwise sets, square sets and even a triangular set. If you do the math, you can see that some folks got the dance-writing bug and devised more than one! 

Dance Selection Complete
Following four successful testing sessions and much discussion and deliberation, the final selection of dances has been made. We are now working on assembling the book and look forward to sharing three of the dances with you at our Diamond Ball where you'll have an opportunity to dance them as part of the programme. 
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