18 February 202

In February, we welcomed Charlie Corcoran, who told us about the ‘History of Morris Dancing’.  Charlie is the Bagman (Treasurer/secretary) of Leicester Morris, one of Leicestershire‘s best known dance groups.  He arrived, dressed for the occasion, in white trousers and shirt, sporting a flower-decorated hat, and carrying two hefty sticks, a fiddle, a concertina and a harmonica (plus many informative books and leaflets).  Over the next hour, we examined questions as to where Morris dancing started, what it represented and which groups of society practised it over time.  Unfortunately, there were no clear answers, but Charlie shared lots of possibilities.

No one knows how old Morris Dancing is, nor really why it is done.  Nothing was written down many years ago when ordinary people were often illiterate.  In the Middle Ages, Morris dancing was popular in European courts, as part of masques, with elaborate entertainment, outlandish costumes and special effects.

In Leicester, in 1599 six Morrismen were taken to court for performing at Whitsuntide.  Others were prosecuted for erecting a maypole in the town centre and dancing around it.  There was growing tension between the church and the state as to what activities should be allowed, especially on Sundays.  Finally, it was decided that Morris dancing could be permitted provided that there was ‘no impediment or neglect of divine service’!

William Shakespeare referred to Morris dancing in three of his plays and it is known that his contemporary, William Kemp, danced a Morris jig from London to Norwich, and a wood cut of this event is probably the earliest picture we have of Morris dancer.  Morris dancers entertained the rich and apparently it was only later that ordinary working men became involved and then dancing took place on public holidays, in parks and outside pubs in village centres.

When the rural population moved into towns during the industrial revolution, traditions were lost and Morris dancing almost ceased to be a village activity.  Fortunately, old dances were remembered and adapted creating new steps and styles.  Today there are groups of Morris dancers in many parts of the world.

Charlie mentioned the names of many famous people who have revived the Morris dancing tradition in the early 20th century among them was Cecil Sharpe who collected folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music.  In addition, Mary Neal, who provided a dance club for young working-class women in the London slums in the belief that it would improve their lives.  These young female dancers played a key role in keeping Morris dancing alive after the first world war when many male dancers lost their lives.

Was Morris Dancing pagan?  A fertility rite?  Moorish?  No one knows.

The history of Leicester Morris is apparently better known.  Charlie mentioned an early photo from 1938 and also told us that the current ‘Side’ was started in 1953 by Stephen George, a prominent Leicester city architect.  Records kept over time, suggest that they have danced in every town and village in Leicestershire at least once.  (See www.leicestermorris.co.uk for the list and photos).

Two types of dances are performed by Leicester Morris (although Charlie mentioned many other groups).  In summer they dance Cotswold Dances; in the winter they perform Border Morris. These dances originated in the counties of Shropshire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire which all border Wales.  In the 19th century, border teams were small and the music which accompanied the dancing featured a lot of percussion, including triangles and drums.  Contrary to belief, the dancers do not blacken their faces (although they do paint them red in the winter).  The only other form of Morris dance that Leicester perform is the Mumming Play.  These happen all over England, Scotland and Ireland and are a type of drama which was historically performed by local men (not professional actors) at specific times of the year, such as Boxing Day, Easter or Halloween.

A talk on Morris dancing would not have been complete without a bit of fiddle playing, a demonstration of stick dancing, and a display of very complicated dance steps, accompanied by the flicking of white handkerchiefs and the jingling of bells.  Charlie provided all of these and we enjoyed his talk and his demonstrations very much.