Braid Dancing

Braid dancing, also sometimes called knot dancing, is a popular form of traditional Kitham folk dance. It was created by working people as a way to celebrate events and festivals as a community. Although there are texts and documents which record noble courts practicing braid dancing it has always predominantly belonged to lower classes as it is inexpensive and requires little to mo formal training. There are multiple forms of the braid dance some of which require handkerchiefs or scarves and some of which have set choreography, some have no music other than percussive stomping. But by far the most common is the Gandian braid dance which has no set choreography and is typically accompanied by a small band of musicians playing lively music.   Braid dancing requires a set area where the knotted bounds are drawn, the knotted bounds are a typically circular area that is cordoned off in intricately marked zones, each zone holds a couple, the knotted bounds are rarely intended to be permanent and are often drawn in the dirt with sticks or mapped out in chalk, ash or coloured flour, a knotted bounds can vary greatly in size depending on the event and it's population. Some festivals like that of the Marcestra Du Deir festival in .[Rakside] feature a large bounds which takes up a large section of the upper town square.   Braid dancing is not only a source of merriment, it is a competition in which only one dancer is crowned as winner. Throughout the dance session dancers are eliminated until one dancer remains, in rare cases the winner is granted a monetary prize but it is more common to be rewarded with surplus's trade goods like eggs, sugar, paper and ink, or the customary prize of a flower crown, made from Verbane flowers. Depending on the size and duration of the event multiple dances may be held over the course of the day.  

Rounds

There are multiple rounds of the braid dance, the round begins when each couple is paired up inside of a zone and the band starts to play. The couples begin moving clockwise through the zones swapping partners and changing up the coreopgraphy as they go, mindful not to step on the drawn lines. The band plays faster and faster as the dancer pick up momentum changing partners. The round ends when a dancer steps on a of the knotted bounds. That dancer is eliminated from the game and the round ends. Dancers partner up with the person closest to them and stands in a respective zone. The round begins again. If there's an odd number of people the odd person out starts alone before joining the next partner. 

Goal

The goal is to be the last dancer remaining through a process of dancing your partner onto the lines to eliminate them without stepping on them yourself. Surviving each round until you are the last one. 

Rules

You can use any choreography or movement to trick you partner into stepping on the lines including spinning, feinting and pulling them. But you cannot trip or push your partner doing so results in immediate disqualification. If your partner falls to the ground you are also eliminated. Stepping out of the knotted bounds is permitted up to three steps more is instant disqualification for both dancers. 

Other Traditions

  In some regional areas the braid dance is treated as a wedding custom where all guests attending and who are invited to participate in this instance the winner is said to be blessed with good luck in the coming year, beginning in the month of Prosperity. This version typically sees dancers tie a colourful sash around their waist, the goal here is to dance clockwise, whilst stealing the other dancers sash and not losing your own.