The Dashing White Sergeant is the great wedding mixer. It’s the dance that breaks down the little social groups that form at every reception and gets people laughing with strangers within minutes. I love calling it because you can see the room open up as it progresses — by the end, guests who hadn’t spoken all evening are grinning at each other like old friends.

Why the Dashing White Sergeant is perfect for weddings

What makes the Dashing White Sergeant special is the progressive format. You dance in groups of three — one person standing between two partners — and at the end of each set your group of three moves on to meet a completely new group coming from the other direction. Over the course of the dance, guests will interact with a huge number of people they might never have spoken to otherwise.

That’s exactly what a wedding ceilidh should do. It brings the families together, gets the friend groups mixing, and creates a shared experience that nobody planned. I’d almost always include it in a wedding ceilidh for that reason alone — the social effect it has on the room is genuinely remarkable.

How the Dashing White Sergeant works

The dance is formed in groups of three — ideally one person between two of the opposite sex, though at a wedding you work with whatever you’ve got. These groups of three face another group of three around the room, so you’re dancing in sets of six throughout.

The basic pattern

• All six join hands in a circle and circle round to the left for a count of eight, then back to the right for fa count of eight.
• Standing in straight lines of three facing three, he middle person turns to the partner on their right, sets to them (a little step side-to-side), then turns them once round with the right hand.
• The middle person repeats with the partner on their left with their left hand.
• The middle person then links elbows and turns the right partner, then the left partner, then the right, then the left — working through each one in quick succession.
• Both lines of three, holding hands, advance toward each other for two steps, stamp stamp stamp feet, then retire back, clap clap clap.
• Both lines advance again, one line raises hands to form an arch and the other ducks underneath, and each group of three moves on to meet the next group coming from the other direction.

Then it all repeats with the new group of three you’ve just met. The dance continues until the music ends.

Tips for guests

The middle person has the most to do — they’re the one doing the setting and turning in the middle section. If you find yourself in the middle, just remember: right partner first, then left partner, and keep going back and forth. The two partners on either side simply stand still and wait their turn, then join in for the elbow turns.

The arch-and-duck at the end of each set is the moment people sometimes hesitate — just watch which line is going under and commit to it. One line goes high, one line goes low, and you move forward to meet whoever is coming toward you. It happens fast but it’s straightforward once you’ve done it once.

What the Dashing White Sergeant feels like on the night

Joyful and sociable. The turning section in the middle has a real sense of occasion to it, and the advancing and retiring at the end builds anticipation before you move on to the next group. Because you’re constantly meeting new people there’s a lovely feeling of the whole room being connected — everyone is part of the same dance rather than stuck in their own little section of the floor.

It’s also one of the most reliably successful dances for mixed guest lists. The instructions are clear, the pattern is short enough to remember after one run-through, and the format means nobody gets left standing on the sidelines. It’s one I’ll always recommend for weddings where the two families haven’t spent much time together before the day.

The Dashing White Sergeant is one of five dances in the ceilidh dance guide. For everything you need to know about including a ceilidh at your wedding, read the guide to DJ ceilidh calling at Scottish weddings or find out more about the ceilidh calling service.