(rabbits by Jeff Bigler)
(Click on the rabbits for our official homepage)
Middlesex Morris has now merged with Lemon and Capers, another mixed adult team in the area.
Okay, so what is this?...
Middlesex Morris is a dance team, part of a living tradition of English folk dancing, known as "Morris Dancing". It is energetic and interactive with the audience. Morris dancers use either handkerchiefs or sticks in their hands, and all of them wear bells on pads tied to their shins. The dances are loud and are usually accompanied by fiddle, accordian, recorder, or other portable instruments that can manage a fast tempo and still stay loud enough to be heard over the bells.
Middlesex uses the tradition of the Cotswold hills of England, most specifically those derived form a town formerly known as Fieldtown, which is now Leefield. The details of how traditions differ can be found at Jeff's Page, since he is both the Foreman and the web person.
(Picture by Sarah)
Who's that rabbit?...
That rabbit at the top of the page is our hobby, or mascot. Have you ever heard of a hobby horse? Same idea, but every team has their own animal or version, since everyone wants to be unique. Each Cotswold team also has its own colors, which its members usually wear over white, but other traditions require different styles of clothing. Middlesex's colors are teal, cranberry, and purple.
Each team also has their own Fool. A Fool is a dancer who dresses up oddly- perhaps playing off of the original costume and hobby, or perhaps doing something completely new- and dances around the other dancers. She is not actually part of the dance itself, but she weaves herself into it in ways that make the audience laugh or gasp in worry that she will be hit by flying sticks, or some such. The Fool is the liason to the crowd; she keeps the dance on a participatory level. Morris dancing, unlike many other types of performance, does not discourage hagglers, clapping along with the music, or other musicians joining in. A gig (a show) is a social event and is usually held outdoors and often on any random piece of grass or bare space available.
(Picture by Sarah)
Is it hard? Is it fun?...
Not terribly, and definitely. I got dragged in by a couple of friends, Bina (the one leap-frogging over Sue on the left) and Anne (the one with the rabbit ears up above), and I got to know the rest of the team pretty quickly (for only seeing them once a week). The points of Morris dancing seem to be, in this order: 1) have fun, 2) look good, and 3) make a lot of noise. Yes, this is energetic dancing which requires one to be in a reasonable fascimile of shape, and people with knee injuries should avoid it, but the excercise isn't impossible. And you get lots of time to catch your breath between dances.
Basically, you start with 6 dancers, 3 to a side, and a musician or two. Most dances consist of some set sequences (known as figures) and a sequence peculiar to the dance (known as a chorus). Anyone who has done other forms of traditional English dancing will quickly see the similarities. The music often comes from traditional folk songs, and some of the dances are known as traditional because their origins are too old to trace. However, this is a living tradition, so we also invent new dances. Members of our team have written dances, some specifically for weddings.
If you're interested in Morris in general, you should see if there is a team near you. If you live in the Boston area, we'd love to have you (high school age or older, please). We practice on Tuesday nights in Arlington, right near Mass Ave. Email me, or click on the rabbits at the top to take a look at Jeff's page for more info.
(Picture by Sarah)
This page owned by: Raven
Questions? Comments? Smart Remarks?
Email me at
meikundayo@yahoo.com
Last Updated: November 26, 1999
(Main)
(Raven)
(Family)
(Photography)
(Writing)
(Resume)
(Mei-chan's Anime Addiction)
(Raven's Reviews)
(Credits)
(Middlesex Morris)
(Wellesley College)
(My Hometown)
(Friends)
(The Den)
(The Stuffy Conspiracy)
