Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
MORRISDANCE
How can England welcome the arrival of spring, harvest, or the 500th
anniversary of the city? With dance of course - and the best of the best is
Morris dance - a traditional folk dance that has survived until today
in a country that is known for its modernity.
MORRIS
English folk dance.First signs of this kind of dance occured in XV century. It nearly
completely perished in the end of XIX century, and was recreated by the enthusiasts in the beginning of XX century. Nowadays, there are many
clubs in the European Union that unite Morris dancers, and Morris
dance contests are organized in the USA.
The name of the dance points to a possible origin of the dance. Dances
with similar names can be found across Europe - Spanish „Morissa”, or German „Moriskentanz”. It is possible that all the figures performed during dancing are based on dance rituals of the Sufi Muslims in the Murcia region of Spain. But it is hard to say whether
it was true.
At the time of Cromwell's protectorate, in the 50s in seventeenth century, the dance was banned by the Puritan government. It is commonly believed
that some elements of the dance have been forgotten over the years, and its present form is a combination of traditional Morris with other folk
dances.Morris dancing became to be danced again mainly
in the countryside in the eighteenth century. Expensive costumes were replaced with simple
white dresses, decorated with colorful ribbons only. The dancers began to organize themselves in the
sides and practiced over and over, showing off their skills several times a year. Steps and
sequences were becoming more complex, and each region developed its own style.
Today the sides can be found not only in villages but in the cities too, especially
during the medieval and folk fairs. Englishmen care for the preservation of
traditional styles, such as Cotswold, Clogs, but they also experiment combining Morris
dance steps and costumes with heavy metal, or breakdance! So if you ever have
the opportunity to watch this dance in England, be ready for anything.
Meanwhile, however, I would like you to watch the show of one of the sides which
you could see at one of the streets in Oxford.
BIBLOGRAPHY
• www.langloo.com/tradycyjny-morris-dance.htmlCached
• http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_%28taniec_ludowy%29
THE END
