General News
5 January, 2023
Dancers share spotlight during Highland Gathering
One of the highlight acts of the Highland Gathering was noticeably missing from the 160th event, with no Girl on the Drum taking centre stage — however, it opened the door for other Highland dancers to share the spotlight. The Girl on the Drum has...
One of the highlight acts of the Highland Gathering was noticeably missing from the 160th event, with no Girl on the Drum taking centre stage — however, it opened the door for other Highland dancers to share the spotlight.
The Girl on the Drum has been a mainstay of the Highland Gathering for decades, featuring a Highland dancer performing on top of a drum held in the air.
Ordinarily performed in front of a packed crowd in the grandstand, this year’s performance was a little different, with massed bands and Highland dancers performing together.
Travelling from Melbourne to the Highland Gathering for as long as she can remember, Highland dancer Cailey Finlayson said while the Girl on the Drum might have been expected, the performance was a special one.
“I think a lot of people expected to see the Girl on the Drum,” she said.
“The Girl on the Drum normally does one dance on the drum and then everyone else joins in so it was nice for everyone to be on the oval together dancing at the same time.”
A Highland dancer since she was little, Cailey said it was great to see the Highland Gathering return after two years.
“Highland dancing definitely runs in the family, my mum still dances as well as my brother and my grandma used to dance too,” she said.
“It was really good to get everyone back together after not having the Highland Gathering for a few years.
“It was also good for me to practice some new dancing and get into it at the Highland Gathering because I’ve got some competitions coming up interstate.”
Fellow Highland dancer Sarah Lambert said the Gathering was a family affair for her.
“I’ve been Highland dancing for nearly three years and I got into it because my sister wanted to do either Highland or Irish dancing and got me into it as well,” she said.
“I’m 12 and she’s nine and it’s good we’re in different categories now, it was always us competing against each other in the past.
“I’m really enjoying it, it’s not something I’d ever really thought about doing.
“It was really interesting coming to Maryborough for the event and I had a lot of fun, it was really nice to be able to walk around and see parts of the town.”