Notice that a lot of new sides seem to have a steampunk vibe to them which is absolutely great! Bring in the youngsters and let them do it in their own way. Love it!
I love the energy they use to almost attack the dance. It's a little more free form, a little more loose in the steps, and a lot more joyous. It's a pleasure to watch.
I have to say that this side is fantastic to watch....so much energy, excitement and a lovely loose dancing style. I love the variation in the costumes too. A great inspiration for young people to take up Morris. And they put so much joy into their dancing. Just brilliant!
Who has stopped you from embracing our culture? What hate filled rubbish. We’ve been Morris dancing for years! There is no law and no culture war against us. If you want to see more, go see it. If you want to see more join a Morris Side. Stop spouting rubbish.
@@wodens-hitman1552What rubbish! What PC crowd has stopped you from having a Morris Side? What laws are there that say, “No British heritage dancing allowed!”? What bloody rubbish! Are you in a dance group? Do you support a British Folk Festival with donations? I doubt it. If you fail to see Traditional British culture being embraced it’s your fault. Festivals are everywhere and if you want more, host one! We can always use more. Stop being lazy and stomping on others different.
Morris needs to be a living dance form if it's to survive. I know many sides in my area were having trouble recruiting. Being VERY traditional appeals to some, but this looser style, coupled with the energy and pure joy will attract others. Long may that continue to keep our traditions alive!!
@@MorrisDancersUKit’s definitely having a revival moment in my area (South East England). Thinking it might be good to use more modern vibes to attract teens and pass on the typical traditional dance style as they get older.
Exciting and fun to watch the creativity and enthusiasm of the young dancers. In my time it was how well one could display the traditional choreography of the dance with energy and exactness. Still there was room for novelty if it was done well; ie Mr. Softee, done in the Bledington tradition. It's terrific to see new dancers coming along and work with the tradition to give it new life.
I am sure we did a dance like this in elementary school in either Massachusetts or Ohio as one of our square dances. I remember hitting sticks like that. I guess the old teachers knew their stuff.
9 місяців тому+1
They don't call the North East USA 'New England' for no reason.
I live near there and I am disappointed that I missed this. Must have been around the time of the Ludlow Food Festival. Anyway, very well done to them.
That was for Morris Federation's AGM on Saturday 30 September. Some Morris sides were dancing in Bishop's Castle and some in Ludlow. As Ludlow was nearer I decided to film there. It is a lovely town.
Always be happy friends❤🍺👍 Oh oh, but these women are very dangerous, if someone catches them, they have to wash the dishes. But I'm a Quiet Man, a movie by John Wayne😂❤🤣🤣🤣👍🍺 Friends, it was just a joke. You dance very beautifully and harmoniously. And I wish you to be happy always. I also wish happiness for all the people of the world.❤️🌹💯👍😘
Hi did the traditional stick used for dancing have any other use like an Irish shillelaghs or a more ancient significance or was it purely a percussion instrument
@@MorrisDancersUK The use of sticks appears to be an 18th century development in the West Midlands - there are no references to sticks before 1688. There are a few references to them linked to the 'Bedlam morris'. An account from 1814 describing dancers circa 1774 makes a clear distinction between the morris of bells, handkerchiefs etc and 'Bedlam-morris' - no bells, high peaked caps adorned with ribbons, carrying 2 foot long sticks with which they 'gesticulate during the dance, and, at intervals, struck them against each other'. The sticks were also laid on the ground points meeting in the centre and danced around in a circle (description of late 18th century dance). By the 19th century the term 'Bedlam' had disappeared. Although, folk musician John Kirkpatrick's mid 1970's revival side called themselves 'The Shropshire Bedlams'. See Michael Heaney's history of the dance 'The Ancient English Morris Dance'.
Really liked the dance style,well done all. Can I ask what wood you use for the Batons/ Staffs/ Staves,and what length or diameter if important.Thankyou.
This is called Morris Dancing today but it was taken up as a dance from the practice of Irish Fighting Sticks (Shillalagh) along with Irish Dancing (Shin Kicking). Both were what we call today Martial Arts but in the time of Oliver Cromwell. When cromwell invaded ireland he banned both forms of fighting but the people trained in secret and it has become what we see today
Oliver Cromwell was born 25 April 1599, 151 years after the earliest confirmation of a performance of morris dancing in England on 19 May 1448, when Moryssh daunsers were paid 7s (35p) for their services.
@@MorrisDancersUK No nothing is as it seems. Stick fighting in Ireland started LONG befor Cromwell was there. You need to calm down. Cromwell banned it
@@MorrisDancersUK The use of armoured infantry in Gaelic Ireland from the 9th century on, came as a counter to the mail-clad Vikings. The arrival of the heavily armoured Norse-Gaelic mercenary Gallowglasses in the early 13th century, was in response to the Norman invasion of Ireland and the Anglo-Normans use of heavily armoured Men-at-arms and Knights. Although the Irish did have knights heavily armored soldiers prior to the gallowglass these were called Ridire in Irish meaning knight as mentioned in the Visio Tnugdali
@@MorrisDancersUK Lest my comment be misconstrued, what I probably should have written was that I admired their dexterity with the sticks; it wasn't a criticism of their dancing skill!
I have to say I prefer the old style of morris dancing with proper steps rather than just skipping about. This is probably fun to do, but rather simplistic.
Accidents will happen even though they rehearse a lot. Dancers have slipped or tripped and it will continue to happen where there are live performances.
Good side, only one blip in the middle pair but she was professional and kept dancing and got the dance back so Joe public would not have spotted it. absolute pleasure to watch.
@@Presto1920 Who said it was supposed to be sophisticated? It's all about having fun and for the enjoyment of those who watch it as well as dance it. The question arises "why the bleep would you be watching it" if it causes you such pain. Best to turn your computer/TV back the the cartoons.
Strangely our very oldest of traditions are becoming recognisable in name only. Rather than Morris this odd troupe reminded my more of British Leyland and all it stood for.
I would imagine that comments similar to yours has echoed through the centuries as people of the previous generation believed that only they danced traditional Morris. Morris dancing like all traditions evolves and changes. The original Morris dance would probably be nothing like the Morris dancing during your time. The original Morris dancers would frown on Cotswold, Border and Northwest Morris but these all came about as traditional Morris evolved. In the two weeks that this video has been public it has generated more views and likes than any other video of Morris videos (over 300) that I have uploaded so if it encourages more people to become interested in Morris dancing, join a side or attend a Day of Dance then that is fantastic.
Your comment says more about your personal feelings than about the Morris itself. We know Morris dancing was well established in the 1600s. In 1618, the entire side and 2 musicians were arrested for Morris dancing on the sabbath in Bradmore, Notts. The written records of the arrests are written in such a way as to assume a general understanding of what "Morris dancing" was, so that means it wasn't new or unusual at that time. We know the names of the Bradmore dancers and musicians, but we do not know what dances they did, what tunes they played, or what they wore. The fact that they were dancing on the sabbath in the time of the puritans is evidence that they were the type of people who were not afraid of breaking social conventions. We know that Sharp encountered the Headington Quarry Morris Dancers in 1899 and we even know the tunes and his description of the dances they did. However, very few sides, not even the current HQMD, do the dances exactly as Sharp wrote them down. Costumes have changed (who whitewashes their work boots boots these days?) and instruments have changed. Kimber played the Anglo concertina, invented in the 1800s, for a "tradition" that went back centuries before. Styles have changed. Attitudes have changed. The demographic has changed: most Morris dancers are not farm labourers, builders, or quarry workers. The location has changed: Cotswold dances performed in Canada, the Netherlands, the USA, and Hong Kong, as well as all over the UK. The context has changed. It has gone from being local dances by local people, once or twice a year, to a weekly hobby. The repertoire has changed enormously. Some of the most popular dances these days were "composed" or "reworked" after WW2. "The Morris" as we now know it was largely invented by Sharp, Neale, and others as they used the collected material as a basis for promoting their own social, political, or religious agendas. (See Dr Matt Simons' research on this.) For most of the 20th century, there were more female dancers than male. Indeed, the (formerly) all-male Morris Ring was set up in 1934 to provide a context for men to dance with other men because male dancers were in the minority. Morris dancing is a unique blend of ritual and street entertainment, and it is no one's job to dictate the style, repertoire, or costumes because it will continue to develop in order to remain relevant. This side int he video, as a new side, does it well. Young people performing the Morris proudly and enjoying it is a wonderful thing.
@@mikefule I would like to thank you for taking the time to write and post this response. You have obviously studied Morris for some time and you opened my eyes to some of the history. I enjoy filming the Morris sides but I know very little of the history. Many thanks.
@@MorrisDancersUK Thank you. I have been a Cotswold dancer 40 years and am Foreman of my side. The side shown in the video is not Cotswold, of course, but the principles are the same. In 1898 there was no such thing as "The Morris". There was only "morris dancing" which was an old custom that was dying out. Since the revival (post 1899) enthusiasts have tended to group historical styles together. The dances collected from the Cotswolds are all called "Cotswold" even though there are substantial differences between, say, Headington and Fieldtown. The dances from the English/Welsh borders are all grouped together as "Border", and so on. It's a bit like Neanderthal man being named after the place where a few bones were found, even though the species had been widespread in its time. Historically, these groupings of dances would not have been recognised. Each village side just did "morris dancing" with little thought for what happened in other villages, or regions. We know Morris dancing in one form or another was once widespread. We have the record I mentioned from Bradmore, Notts, and there are surviving traditions at Winster, and Hayfield, both in Derbyshire. Rattlejag Morris have reconstructed/devised some very unusual dances based on records of traditional dancing in their area of Nottinghamshire. Whether it is a performance or a ritual or somewhere in between is a matter of personal perspective. I see the side in the video dancing with enthusiasm and some attention to detail, and working as a team, and that makes it Morris to me.
Tradition means the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of them being passed on in this way (OED). When radical variation is introduced making it starkly different from what might have been passed on from the previous generation, severing custom in the process, any true traditional aspect becomes very tenuous indeed.
Notice that a lot of new sides seem to have a steampunk vibe to them which is absolutely great! Bring in the youngsters and let them do it in their own way. Love it!
Yes , old fat and grey need replacing, they are awesome
I'm an American so this form of dance is new too me but i love waching it the music and the costumes i hope it continues too grow and never dies 😊
@@ganndeber1621I love the traditional and the steampunk vibes
I love the energy they use to almost attack the dance. It's a little more free form, a little more loose in the steps, and a lot more joyous. It's a pleasure to watch.
I am sure they will be really pleased with your comment. It was great to film them on their first outing with other teams.
It's BS
Excellent, great to see traditions being renewed rather than just preserved.
A really good, youthful, lively and energetic take on Border Morris. Look forward to seeing more of this side.
I like the woodland fairy outfits. The dance was so joyful. Magical!
Is that what they are? I thought they were New Model Army fans.
I have to say that this side is fantastic to watch....so much energy, excitement and a lovely loose dancing style. I love the variation in the costumes too. A great inspiration for young people to take up Morris. And they put so much joy into their dancing. Just brilliant!
Thank you for your comment, I was lucky to see and film them in Ludlow and I hope they inspire more more young people to get involved.
Hopefully, young men as well as young women.
Love Morris dancing et al…time we Brits embraced our heritage!
And stop bowing down to the pc brigade
Who has stopped you from embracing our culture? What hate filled rubbish. We’ve been Morris dancing for years! There is no law and no culture war against us. If you want to see more, go see it. If you want to see more join a Morris Side. Stop spouting rubbish.
@@wodens-hitman1552What rubbish! What PC crowd has stopped you from having a Morris Side? What laws are there that say, “No British heritage dancing allowed!”? What bloody rubbish! Are you in a dance group? Do you support a British Folk Festival with donations? I doubt it. If you fail to see Traditional British culture being embraced it’s your fault. Festivals are everywhere and if you want more, host one! We can always use more. Stop being lazy and stomping on others different.
@@StoptheHateJustDebateEver heard of the black faced Morris being attacked for blacking up when it was nothing to do with race. That’s what he means.
@@vanmanwales1590 thoughts and prayers for you at this difficult time 🙄
Morris needs to be a living dance form if it's to survive. I know many sides in my area were having trouble recruiting. Being VERY traditional appeals to some, but this looser style, coupled with the energy and pure joy will attract others. Long may that continue to keep our traditions alive!!
They were having a good time and I hope they continue to attract new members with the same attitude.
@@MorrisDancersUKHear hear!
@@MorrisDancersUKit’s definitely having a revival moment in my area (South East England). Thinking it might be good to use more modern vibes to attract teens and pass on the typical traditional dance style as they get older.
Well this is refreshing and fun :) cheers from a fellow Morris :)
What a brilliant side! Excellent.
👏👏👏👏👏 Brilliant ! Such a pleasure to watch this dance !
This was Great, thank you for this look into a Dance that's New to me. Great rhythm.😊
Wow, speechless! I want to join the group! 😊
Loved watching this. Great music and great dancers. A big cheer for you from South coast Massachusetts USA
Thank you, I am sure the dancers will love your comments.
Exciting and fun to watch the creativity and enthusiasm of the young dancers. In my time it was how well one could display the traditional choreography of the dance with energy and exactness. Still there was room for novelty if it was done well; ie Mr. Softee, done in the Bledington tradition. It's terrific to see new dancers coming along and work with the tradition to give it new life.
Many thanks for your comments.
They will be in demand for future events.
Mr. Softee dance, breaking tradition in 1980. ua-cam.com/video/ykTycOYI_DE/v-deo.html
How wonderful to see young women keeping our ancient traditions alive!
Oh sorry, younger men too. LOL!
That looks like so much fun 😀 ❤from Brisbane Australia 🇦🇺
Hi to Brisbane.
Ciao to Brisbane from Rome, Italy😍 un'abbraccio❤
@30306 Ciao back to Rome from Brisbane. Thank you for making me smile 😃 Rome is such a beautiful city ❤️
Always celebrate being alive - because you can
It's very pleasing to see people keeping traditions like these alive. There's so many who can't see this as important these days.
Britain's got talent c1528 👍
Great. It’s good to see this excellent new side.
Certainly no shortage of energy and dynamism there. Good video, thanks.
This is great, thanks for posting!
Thank you.
What great fun and music is excellent!
Watching this in Dec 23 , loving how these kind of dances are still going around. Brilliant ❤☺️👏👏
Excellent
FAB !!!
Wonderful! ❤
I am sure we did a dance like this in elementary school in either Massachusetts or Ohio as one of our square dances. I remember hitting sticks like that. I guess the old teachers knew their stuff.
They don't call the North East USA 'New England' for no reason.
Greetings from Greece 🇬🇷
And a Happy Christmas to Greece.
Most excellent
Keep up our traditions.
Blessed beautiful 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🙏
I love it ❤❤❤
Very good to see!
Awesome! LOVE IT!
I live near there and I am disappointed that I missed this. Must have been around the time of the Ludlow Food Festival. Anyway, very well done to them.
That was for Morris Federation's AGM on Saturday 30 September. Some Morris sides were dancing in Bishop's Castle and some in Ludlow. As Ludlow was nearer I decided to film there. It is a lovely town.
@@MorrisDancersUK It is indeed - most of it at least!
❤❤❤
Thanks! 😎
I like this and the highlight is the red phone booth in the background!
Oh, you are easily pleased. 😀😀
Excellent stuff! 🙂
👍👍👍
Brilliant! 🎉
Great to see an old tradition being given a new lease of life.
more!
Nice full of energy
I like Morrisdance because it's so funny and powerful and i like the Sound of the sticks🥁
Rocking!
Super❤
Differemt indeed!
Mais pourquoi ça vient tellement me chercher?
Not bad. Not bad at all. Lots of energy, which many sides lack.
They have a breugalesque way about them,lively peasants having a laugh,love it.
So nice of them to let Chrissie Hynde join in at the last minute
when i twirl that much i cant even hit a stationary pinata let alone a stick wielding Morris dancer. awsome stuff keep tradition/culture alive.❤🖤❤
1 guy, 5 gals, what could go wrong :p
Great dancing, and excellent music. What was the lead instrument?
Hi, I have been told that it would be the melodeon. But you can hear the oboe more clearly!
@@MorrisDancersUK For sure - I like the melodeon, but that oboe carries really well, and adds a mysterious feel to the tune!
Always be happy friends❤🍺👍
Oh oh, but these women are very dangerous, if someone catches them, they have to wash the dishes. But I'm a Quiet Man, a movie by John Wayne😂❤🤣🤣🤣👍🍺
Friends, it was just a joke. You dance very beautifully and harmoniously. And I wish you to be happy always. I also wish happiness for all the people of the world.❤️🌹💯👍😘
Cheers 🥂🌹❤️
Merry Christmas✨️
Очень хорошее и замечательное выступление, поднимает настроение. Молодцы!!!
Many thanks.
Nice.
No bells?
A different morris tradition.
Heyyyyyyy, what's going on there?😂
Belllllissimo!❤❤❤❤ saluti da Roma😚😍🤗🤘
This is the best thing I've seen in ages. A pity there wasn't a more equal representation of the sexes.
I just hope they continue to dance in the same way in the future because it is so entertaining.
I'm not playing with them, bit tough with those sticks! Great to watch though!
I hope they continue as a side, they are very entertaining.
👏👏👏👏👏
Hi did the traditional stick used for dancing have any other use like an Irish shillelaghs or a more ancient significance or was it purely a percussion instrument
Hopefully a Morris dancer will respond because I do not know the history of the sticks.
@@MorrisDancersUK
The use of sticks appears to be an 18th century development in the West Midlands - there are no references to sticks before 1688.
There are a few references to them linked to the 'Bedlam morris'.
An account from 1814 describing dancers circa 1774 makes a clear distinction between the morris of bells, handkerchiefs etc and 'Bedlam-morris' - no bells, high peaked caps adorned with ribbons, carrying 2 foot long sticks with which they 'gesticulate during the dance, and, at intervals, struck them against each other'. The sticks were also laid on the ground points meeting in the centre and danced around in a circle (description of late 18th century dance).
By the 19th century the term 'Bedlam' had disappeared. Although, folk musician John Kirkpatrick's mid 1970's revival side called themselves 'The Shropshire Bedlams'.
See Michael Heaney's history of the dance 'The Ancient English Morris Dance'.
@@Wotsitorlabart Many thanks
Really liked the dance style,well done all.
Can I ask what wood you use for the Batons/ Staffs/ Staves,and what length or diameter if important.Thankyou.
Hi, I have emailed your question to Gidderskins.
The lovely girls competition 😅
The money was only resting in the account lol
This is called Morris Dancing today but it was taken up as a dance from the practice of Irish Fighting Sticks (Shillalagh) along with Irish Dancing (Shin Kicking). Both were what we call today Martial Arts but in the time of Oliver Cromwell. When cromwell invaded ireland he banned both forms of fighting but the people trained in secret and it has become what we see today
Oliver Cromwell was born 25 April 1599, 151 years after the earliest confirmation of a performance of morris dancing in England on 19 May 1448, when Moryssh daunsers were paid 7s (35p) for their services.
@@MorrisDancersUK No nothing is as it seems. Stick fighting in Ireland started LONG befor Cromwell was there. You need to calm down. Cromwell banned it
@@MorrisDancersUK oh the 19th of may?
@@MorrisDancersUK The use of armoured infantry in Gaelic Ireland from the 9th century on, came as a counter to the mail-clad Vikings. The arrival of the heavily armoured Norse-Gaelic mercenary Gallowglasses in the early 13th century, was in response to the Norman invasion of Ireland and the Anglo-Normans use of heavily armoured Men-at-arms and Knights. Although the Irish did have knights heavily armored soldiers prior to the gallowglass these were called Ridire in Irish meaning knight as mentioned in the Visio Tnugdali
@@MorrisDancersUK you know what you know but it isn't much
Really cool! Do you know the name of the dance and tune?
Hi, Gidderskins have told me that they composed the dance but it has no name. The tune is The RSB (Raunchy Star Bird) by Andy Cutting.
Great performance! What is the song that was being played?
I have been told that the tune is The RSB (Raunchy Star Bird) by Andy Cutting.
@@MorrisDancersUK thx!
Very dangerous to have strong women taught to have fun with sticks! I love this!
Funny.
Rememver to Subscribe
😂😂😂😂😂😂
Samurai practice has gotten really weird in Britain.
Black Friday Sale Shopping Training? Or, Boxing Day Sales?
Low self-esteem can be a major reason for putting others down.
Is a “side” a dance club or grouping?
For some reason the different teams of Morris dancers are called sides.
SOME talent required; hand-eye-foot coordination especially important! Fun to watch!
The description does state they are a new side and this was their first dance out so they would be aware that they have to get better over time.
@@MorrisDancersUK Notta criticism . . . just an admiring comment on the foot-slapping and stick handling! NOT for the faint of heart!
@@MorrisDancersUK Lest my comment be misconstrued, what I probably should have written was that I admired their dexterity with the sticks; it wasn't a criticism of their dancing skill!
@@richardcleveland8549 Hi, All good and many thanks for taking the time to explain.
Nice take on Welsh Border Morris. Why not?
I have to say I prefer the old style of morris dancing with proper steps rather than just skipping about. This is probably fun to do, but rather simplistic.
Здорово! А если промахнётся мимо палки, и 🤕?
Accidents will happen even though they rehearse a lot. Dancers have slipped or tripped and it will continue to happen where there are live performances.
Thank You! /Submariner 🇷🇺/
didn't want to smile.tried hard not to...
What? 👀 ♀️Women & Sticks? 🧹😁 Without bristles?🤣👍🏽👌🏽👋🏽
Good side, only one blip in the middle pair but she was professional and kept dancing and got the dance back so Joe public would not have spotted it. absolute pleasure to watch.
Five women and a blouse?
Oh boy, what an attractive outfit. Couldn’t see past him to see the dance
You were so attracted to him you could not take your eyes off him, that's fair enough.
Women dancing the Morris?? Apoplexy!
Isn't Morris dancing traditionally a man thing?
Women have been dancing Morris for over a hundred years possibly longer.
It's a wonder the pc brigade don't brand it far right
You ok hun? 🙄
Cuckoo!
It's more like watching primitive tribes in Amazonia or so...
The desire to feel superior to others can be a common reason for some individuals to put others down.
@@MorrisDancersUK I don't feel superior to any one. It's just my opinion.
I suppose you're one those cancel culture do gooders?
@@wodens-hitman1552 Not at all. I just find this 'dance' not very sophisticated and I'm not British after all.
@@Presto1920 Who said it was supposed to be sophisticated? It's all about having fun and for the enjoyment of those who watch it as well as dance it. The question arises "why the bleep would you be watching it" if it causes you such pain. Best to turn your computer/TV back the the cartoons.
Strangely our very oldest of traditions are becoming recognisable in name only. Rather than Morris this odd troupe reminded my more of British Leyland and all it stood for.
I would imagine that comments similar to yours has echoed through the centuries as people of the previous generation believed that only they danced traditional Morris.
Morris dancing like all traditions evolves and changes. The original Morris dance would probably be nothing like the Morris dancing during your time. The original Morris dancers would frown on Cotswold, Border and Northwest Morris but these all came about as traditional Morris evolved.
In the two weeks that this video has been public it has generated more views and likes than any other video of Morris videos (over 300) that I have uploaded so if it encourages more people to become interested in Morris dancing, join a side or attend a Day of Dance then that is fantastic.
Your comment says more about your personal feelings than about the Morris itself. We know Morris dancing was well established in the 1600s. In 1618, the entire side and 2 musicians were arrested for Morris dancing on the sabbath in Bradmore, Notts. The written records of the arrests are written in such a way as to assume a general understanding of what "Morris dancing" was, so that means it wasn't new or unusual at that time. We know the names of the Bradmore dancers and musicians, but we do not know what dances they did, what tunes they played, or what they wore. The fact that they were dancing on the sabbath in the time of the puritans is evidence that they were the type of people who were not afraid of breaking social conventions. We know that Sharp encountered the Headington Quarry Morris Dancers in 1899 and we even know the tunes and his description of the dances they did. However, very few sides, not even the current HQMD, do the dances exactly as Sharp wrote them down. Costumes have changed (who whitewashes their work boots boots these days?) and instruments have changed. Kimber played the Anglo concertina, invented in the 1800s, for a "tradition" that went back centuries before. Styles have changed. Attitudes have changed. The demographic has changed: most Morris dancers are not farm labourers, builders, or quarry workers. The location has changed: Cotswold dances performed in Canada, the Netherlands, the USA, and Hong Kong, as well as all over the UK. The context has changed. It has gone from being local dances by local people, once or twice a year, to a weekly hobby. The repertoire has changed enormously. Some of the most popular dances these days were "composed" or "reworked" after WW2. "The Morris" as we now know it was largely invented by Sharp, Neale, and others as they used the collected material as a basis for promoting their own social, political, or religious agendas. (See Dr Matt Simons' research on this.) For most of the 20th century, there were more female dancers than male. Indeed, the (formerly) all-male Morris Ring was set up in 1934 to provide a context for men to dance with other men because male dancers were in the minority. Morris dancing is a unique blend of ritual and street entertainment, and it is no one's job to dictate the style, repertoire, or costumes because it will continue to develop in order to remain relevant. This side int he video, as a new side, does it well. Young people performing the Morris proudly and enjoying it is a wonderful thing.
@@mikefule I would like to thank you for taking the time to write and post this response. You have obviously studied Morris for some time and you opened my eyes to some of the history. I enjoy filming the Morris sides but I know very little of the history. Many thanks.
@@MorrisDancersUK Thank you. I have been a Cotswold dancer 40 years and am Foreman of my side. The side shown in the video is not Cotswold, of course, but the principles are the same. In 1898 there was no such thing as "The Morris". There was only "morris dancing" which was an old custom that was dying out. Since the revival (post 1899) enthusiasts have tended to group historical styles together. The dances collected from the Cotswolds are all called "Cotswold" even though there are substantial differences between, say, Headington and Fieldtown. The dances from the English/Welsh borders are all grouped together as "Border", and so on. It's a bit like Neanderthal man being named after the place where a few bones were found, even though the species had been widespread in its time. Historically, these groupings of dances would not have been recognised. Each village side just did "morris dancing" with little thought for what happened in other villages, or regions. We know Morris dancing in one form or another was once widespread. We have the record I mentioned from Bradmore, Notts, and there are surviving traditions at Winster, and Hayfield, both in Derbyshire. Rattlejag Morris have reconstructed/devised some very unusual dances based on records of traditional dancing in their area of Nottinghamshire. Whether it is a performance or a ritual or somewhere in between is a matter of personal perspective. I see the side in the video dancing with enthusiasm and some attention to detail, and working as a team, and that makes it Morris to me.
Tradition means the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of them being passed on in this way (OED). When radical variation is introduced making it starkly different from what might have been passed on from the previous generation, severing custom in the process, any true traditional aspect becomes very tenuous indeed.