Sue asked a question in her comment yesterday: "What is Morris dancing?" I'd mentioned that my brother was a morris dancer and had just come from practice when we met up with him; I meant to provide a link to more information because I am sure the term is not familiar to many of you, although our British friends can probably provide much more information than I can (and I hope they do chime in).
Morris dance is a form of folk dance associated with Britain. The dancers often wear bells and sticks are sometimes used in the dancing as are swords, handkerchiefs, and other items. There are a variety of different kinds of morris dancers; my brother is part of a group that dances in the Border style, using sticks as part of their routines. This is a photo from his group's webpage (they're called Hicks with Sticks), of my brother performing in London with his group:
I hope this helps. I must admit to knowing very little about this kind of dance, and I have yet to see my brother dancing in person; I intend to change that this year. This just looks like too much fun!
Copyright 2012 Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
Great fun. Have you seen the form of Morris dancing called Molly Dancing? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT2Kwd_uZYY
ReplyDeletePlenty of stuff on YouTube for anyone interested, just search for Morris dancing, border morris or indeed molly dancing. All of these forms of dancing would have probably died out if it were not for a man called Cecil Sharp having Morris men dancing outside his house in 1900. The first style to attract attention was Cotswold Morris but recently other forms of traditional dance have been resurrected.
ReplyDeleteMmmmm. Great way to start a rain soaked morning. We need more bells in our lives. Dancing, too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the video, Sue! I've never seen Tom dancing, but it looks like a lot of fun. Love their outfits!
ReplyDeleteMorris Dancing goes back to the Middle Ages at least and they are mentioned in Shakespeare's plays.There are lots of Morris groups around now, we usually have them in the village at least once a year. This is an interesting website that will tell you a bit more about the Morris - http://www.rattlejagmorris.org.uk/history-of-morris-dancing
ReplyDeleteSeen it in Wales and England. My wife wanted me to learn, but I've got two left feet so I just watch.
ReplyDeleteHow cool is that? Thanks for answering my question!!
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