So, What Is Morris Dancing?
I’ve had several emails asking "What the heck is Morris Dancing?" and thought no words better capture the thing than those of Ric Goldman from his FAQ at:
http://rgoldman.org/morris/mayday.htm
Ric’s entire website should be perused for best understanding and knowledge of Morris and Molly sides where you live, but here is his rundown on an explanation of the art form:
What IS Morris Dancing?
Morris dancing is a living tradition of English celebratory and ritual dance with live music, with origins shrouded in mystery and the mists of time. Shakespeare used it in his plays and it was old then. The dancers usually wear bells at their knees and often wave hankies (to attract and welcome benevolent spring and summer spirits) or clash sticks (symbolizing the eternal battle between winter and summer), and the dances have traditionally been performed around the time of major celebration or seasonal crosspoints in the calendar. Indeed, dances of comparable form and dancers in similar costumes are found elsewhere in Europe and around the world, and may be thought to be part of the universal urge to influence and honor the unknowable forces which govern our lives.
One of the most colourful descriptions of morris was provided in the 15th century, by Edmund, Duke of Edinburgh, the Black Adder who said, "Morris dancing is the most fatuous, tenth-rate entertainment ever devised by man. Fourty effeminate blacksmiths waving bits of cloth they’ve just wiped their noses on. How it’s still going on in this day and age I’ll never know."
Modern morris includes several different types of dance, all from different regions of England; Cotswold Morris from the south, Border Morris from the west, Molly Dancing from the southeast, and Northwest Morris from the northwest. Other dance styles such as Longsword, Rapper (sword), Clog, and Garland are often included in the term "morris".
There are lots of ways to get more detail about Morris dancing, but the absolutely best way is to find a morris dancer, take them to a pub, offer them refreshment, and ask for the real story. It’s guaranteed good luck, too!
So as I said to Ric when consulting him on edits to the Mayday Morris video, "first pint’s on me". Having a heavy week with the book - stay tuned this week however, when the corrected video will be posted!!
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