Young Morris Dancers

[watervole]

They say morris is a dying art, that all dancers are in their sixties and there is no interest among the young.

I'm out to prove this to wrong.  Not just wrong, but totally wrong.

Move over Gareth Malone!

The mission is to create a local, Border Morris side for the 18-28 year old age group.  (Or possibly a rapper sword group, but we're focusing on Border at present)

We know it's possible.  Boggart's Breakfast is a perfect (if rare) example of a highly successful young people's team.

I found a couple of interested people at Wimborne Folk Festival, but was too busy collecting (results now back. Henry won the annual competition with over £700, I came second, and Richard came in third.  Family total - a bit over £1,700).  Today, the Quayside Cloggies, my usual side, were dancing for Harry Payne day (our local pirate) on Poole Quay, so I chatted to more young people and got contact details for four interested parties (and gave cards to a few others).  Would have got more, but was busy dancing.

Next thing to try is to see if I can get posters in local pubs that hold folk events, to contact the local paper to get an article in there, and to contact Bournemouth University to see if they'll allow me to email or leaflet the Performing Arts Students.  (and I need to think of local marching bands who may have good brass players)

I'm looking for the works: dancers, musicians, someone to design a costume and someone to design/run the web page.  Philosophy at present is that dancers must be 18-28, but I'm allowing a bit more stretch age-wise for musicians.

Let's see how it goes.

I know there's a couple of morris dancers reading this journal, so consider this your own challenge as well.  Don't try and get young dancers for your own side.  If morris is to live and continue, then it needs dancers who are roughly the same age and will form a cohesive social group.  Form a new side.  If you work hard enough, it can be done.  I set out today with a handful of business cards designed and printed over breakfast.  I came back with four interested dancers. 

Now, some of those, possibly half,  will be lost when we decide on a practice night, but I've now got a total of six interested dancers in a single week of trying.

Morris isn't dead yet.  It has the potential to be alive and kicking for another six hundred years!

Comments

[sammason.livejournal.com]

I so very much hope that you'll succeed. And I think there's every reason why you can succeed. There are lots of young people who want to do things differently from the 'cool' mainstream, people who don't want to listen to Radio 1 and go 'clubbing' at the weekends. I was such a young person and I see them around now. We visited a National Trust property this weekend which is a Youth Hostel, frequented I think by Venture Scouts. At the agricultural shows we see thriving Young Farmers' Clubs and thriving youth branches of Brass Bands. Just to pick 3 examples of 'uncool' things that plenty of young people want to do. And in my Morris days I saw many young people dancing in youth-oriented sides or in sides of mixed age groups. I look foward to watching the progress of your new side! :-)