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A morris dance is a form of English Folk Dance usually accompanied by music. It is based on rhythmic stepping and the execution of choreographed figures by a group of dancers. Implements such as sticks, swords, tobacco pipes, and handkerchiefs may also be wielded by the dancers. There are claimed to be English records mentioning the morris dance dating back to 1448, but these are open to dispute. There is no mention of "morris" dancing earlier than the late 15th century, although early records such as Bishops' "Visitation Articles" mention sword dancing, guising and other dancing activities as well as mumming plays. Furthermore, the earliest records invariably mention "Morys" in a court setting, and both men and women are mentioned as dancing, and a little later in the Lord Mayors' Processions in London. It is only later that it begins to be mentioned as something performed in the parishes. There is certainly no evidence whatsoever that it is in anyway a pre-Christian ritual, as is often claimed. While there is still some dispute the origin of the term "Morris", the most widely accepted theory is that the term was "moorish dance," "morisques" (in France), "moriskentanz" (in Germany), "moreška" (in Croatia), and "moresco" (in Italy and Spain), which eventually became "morris dance". Dances with similar names and some similar features are mentioned in Renaissance documents in France, Italy, Germany, Croatia, and Spain, throughout, in fact, Catholic Europe. This is hardly surprising. By 1492 Ferdinand and Isabella of Castille and Aragon succeeded in driving the Moors out of Spain and unifying the country. In celebration of this a pageant known as a "Moresca" was devised and performed. This can still be seen performed in places such as Ainsa, Aragon. Incorporated into this pageant was the local dance - the Peloteao. This too can still be seen performed in the villages of Aragon. The similarity to what became known as the English "Morris" is undoubted. Early court records state that the "Moresque" was performed at court in her honour, including the dance - the "moresque" or "morisce" or "morys" dance. In the modern day, it is commonly thought of as a uniquely English activity, although there are around 150 morris sides (or teams) in the United States. British expatriates form a larger part of the morris tradition in Australia , Canada , New Zealand , and Hong Kong , and there are isolated groups in other countries, for example that in Utrecht , Netherlands. HISTORY IN ENGLAND morris dancing from London to Norfolk in 1600]] : detail of ''Thames at Richmond, with the Old Royal Palace'', c.1620]] Before the English Civil War , the working Peasant ry took part in Morris dances, especially at Whitsun . In 1600 the Shakespearean actor William Kempe morris danced from London to Norwich , an event chronicled in his ''Nine Days Wonder'' (1600). The Puritan government of Oliver Cromwell , however, suppressed Whitsun Ales and other such festivities. When the crown was restored by Charles II , the springtime festivals were restored. In particular, Whitsun Ales came to be celebrated on Whitsunday , as the date coincided with the birthday of Charles II. Morris dancing continued in popularity until the , Headington Quarry and Chipping Campden {Link without Title} . Other villages have revived their own traditions, and hundreds of other teams across the globe have adopted (and adapted) these traditions, or have created their own styles from the basic building blocks of morris stepping and figures. Several English folklorists were responsible for recording and reviving the tradition in the early 20th century, often from a bare handful of surviving members of mid-19th-century village sides. Among these, the most notable are Cecil Sharp , Maud Karpeles , and Mary Neal . Boxing Day 1899 is widely regarded as the starting point for the morris revival. Cecil Sharp was visiting at a friend's house in Headington, near Oxford , when the Headington Quarry morris side arrived to perform. Sharp was intrigued by the music and collected several tunes from the side's musician, William Kimber ; not until about a decade later, however, did he begin collecting the dances, spurred and at first assisted by Mary Neal , a founder of the Espérance Club (a dressmaking cooperative and club for young working women in London ), and Herbert MacIlwaine , musical director of the Esperance Club. Neal was looking for dances for her girls to perform, and so the first revival performance was by young women in London. In the first few decades of the 20th century, several men's sides were formed, and in 1934 the Morris Ring was founded by six revival sides. In the 1960s and especially the 1970s, there was an explosion of new dance teams, some of them women's or mixed sides. At the time, there was often heated debate over the propriety and even legitimacy of women dancing the morris, even though there is evidence as far back as the 16th century that there were female morris dancers. There are now male, female and mixed sides to be found. Partly because women's and mixed sides are not eligible for full membership of the Morris Ring, two other national (and international) bodies were formed, the Morris Federation and Open Morris . All three bodies provide communication, advice, insurance, instructionals (teaching sessions) and social and dancing opportunities to their members. The three bodies cooperate on some issues, while maintaining their distinct identities. STYLES Today, there are six predominant styles of morris dancing, and different dances or Traditions within each style named after their region of origin.
Cotswold Lionel Bacon records Cotswold morris traditions from these villages: Abingdon , Adderbury , Ascot-under-Wychwood , Badby , Bampton , Bidford , Bledington , Brackley , Bucknell , Chipping Campden , Ducklington , Eynsham , Headington Quarry , Hinton-in-the-Hedges , Ilmington , Kirtlington , Leafield ("Field Town"), Longborough , Oddington , Sherbourne , Stanton Harcourt , and Wheatley Bacon, Lionel 1974 ''A Handbook of Morris Dances''. Published by The morris Ring. Bacon also lists the tradition from Lichfield , which is Cotswold-like despite that city's distance from the Cotswold morris area; the authenticity of this tradition has been questioned. In 2006 a small number of dances from a previously-unknown tradition was discovered by Barry Care of Moulton Morris Men (Ravensthorpe, Northants) - two of them danceable. Other dances listed by Bacon include border morris dances from and the Adderbury Village Morris . North West The North West tradition is very different, and has always featured mixed and female sides — at least as far back as the eighteenth century. There is a picture of Eccles Wakes (painted in the 1820s, judging by the style of dress of some of the participants and spectators) that shows both male and female dancers. The dancers always wore clogs and were often associated with Rushcarts at the local Wakes or holidays. The dances themselves were often called 'maze' or 'garland dances' as they involved a very intricate set of movements in which the dances wove in and out of each other. Some dances were performed with a wicker hoop (decorated with garlands of flowers) held above the dancer's head. Some dancers were also associated with a tradition of Mumming , holding a Pace Egging Play in their area. The Britannia Coco-nut Dancers , named after a mill not far from Bacup , are unique in the tradition, in that they used sawn bobbins to make a noise, and perform to the accompaniment of a brass ensemble. They are one of the few North West morris groups that still black up their faces. It is said that the dance found its way to the area through Cornishmen who migrated to work in the Rossendale quarries. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, the Lancashire tradition was taken up by sides associated with mills and nonconformist chapels, usually composed of young girls. These lasted until the First World War , after which many mutated into 'jazz dancers.' (A Bolton troupe can be seen in a pre-war documentary by Humphrey Jennings ) They later evolved into 'pom pom' dancers (still called 'morris dancers' by older people). During the folk revival in the 1960s, many of the old steps to dances such as 'Stubbins Lane Garland' were often passed on by old people. Border |
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