Morris Dance attraction

Duvet

Member
I seem to know a number of bellydancers who either have a partner who Morris dances, or who actually Morris dance themselves.

Is there some sort of commonality between Morris and belly dance that anyone would like to comment on - the comradeship, the costumes, the public exhibition, the connection to a 'folk' tradition, etc?

I know that someone who dances one type of form will also be attracted to another, but it's the apparent attraction to partners who Morris dance that seems to stand out.
 
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BeatriceC

Member
Well there is a school of thought that the word Morris derives from "Moorish". I'm sure that's pure fakelore, though.

I can vaguely see a similarity between the more grunty testosterone-fuelled Border Morris and Sa'aidi/Tahtib, not sure about the hanky-waving though.

And I will hold my hands up to finding men who dance (in that gruny testosterone-fuelled way - sorry but I'm a heterosexual woman, and I like manly men) attractive- you know they have a sense of style and rhythm, which are both appealing qualities in a partner.
 

Daimona

Moderator
I would guess it isn't about Morris dance in particular, but maybe people interested in various folk dances in general are more open to other folk dance afficionadas - as well as the style and rhythm aspect previously mentioned? The Morris connection could be simply because you live in the UK.


During the years I've been active I've had bellydancing friends being passionate about Argentinian Tango, greek and Balkan folk dances and a tiny bit of flamenco, but not Morris dancing (most people around here wouldn't even know what it is).
 

Shanazel

Moderator
Kharmine, who used to come to OD, is married to a Morris Dancer, now retired. I am married to a man with two left feet who has not been to one of my dance performances since 1981. Not His Thing, but I love him anyway. Oh, wait. A couple of my students and I danced at a Music and Reading program that he and I put on several years ago; he saw that but only because he had to be there anyway. ;)
 

Roshanna

New member
I'm a morris dancer (and currently very excited in the run up to May Morning, which is a big deal for morris dancers in these parts!).

Well there is a school of thought that the word Morris derives from "Moorish". I'm sure that's pure fakelore, though.

I think there is some genuine reason to believe this, actually - it's certainly far more plausible than the idea that it's some kind of ancient pagan survival, which was put about by 19th century folklorists to try to make the customs of working people seem more worthy of attention and preservation (sound familiar?).

There's written evidence that morris dancing was originally a court entertainment in the 15th/16th centuries, and described as 'mauresque' or similar, though whether it ever actually bore any resemblances to real dances of the maghreb/andalusia I have no idea. The hankies apparently evolved from costumes with long flowing sleeves in the 'moorish' style, when the dance was taken up by common people who couldn't afford fancy costumes with long flowing sleeves ;) I have a massive book at home about the early history of the dance, complete with meticulous analysis of primary sources, but haven't got round to fully reading it yet...

I can vaguely see a similarity between the more grunty testosterone-fuelled Border Morris and Sa'aidi/Tahtib, not sure about the hanky-waving though.

And I will hold my hands up to finding men who dance (in that gruny testosterone-fuelled way - sorry but I'm a heterosexual woman, and I like manly men) attractive- you know they have a sense of style and rhythm, which are both appealing qualities in a partner.

To me, morris of any flavour usually doesn't have that sense of flowing, controlled power that tahtib has - it feels much more exuberant. Morris seems to have a different emphasis than any of the middle Eastern folk dances I've encountered, which required some unlearning of movement habits for me (I also had to unlearn my habitual way of handling a stick! For the first few weeks, I kept getting corrected for holding it like a tahtib and putting my free hand on my hip...). I'm used to keeping time with a downward movement or a heel bounce in things like saiidi and dabke, whereas in morris it's generally more about leaving the ground (and in theory, creating the illusion of not quite obeying gravity, to which the timing of the hanky movements can also contribute).

Border morris certainly has that manly stomping and hitting things quality, at least when it's done well (border morris done hesitantly or with insufficient welly is a bit painful to watch). Cotswold dances (the ones with the hankies are Cotswold, though we also do cotswold stick dances) can be quite athletic and potentially quite manly in a 'showing off feats of strength and agility' kind of way - especially in certain traditions where there are special steps called 'slows' where the music slows down and you do various combinations of tricky footwork and jumps, which can include things like doing the splits in midair (or not, as the case may be) or jumping into deep lunges. In practise, the effect often tends to be lost because so many dancers are 'of a certain age' and are not as bouncy as they once were, but when you see a team of fit and technically competent dancers doing these traditions, they really come into their own.
 
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Roshanna

New member
And to illustrate what I mean about cotswold morris being rather athletic when done with a suitable amount of vigour... This chap is very impressive.
Jigs are the solo version of morris. They use the same repertoire of steps, but are more show-offy, and because you have to be a pretty good dancer to even think of entering a jig competition, it is easier to find video footage of them being done well!

[video=youtube_share;SQs64xEBCkY]https://youtu.be/SQs64xEBCkY[/video]

PS, it's worth watching this one to the end :)
 

Roshanna

New member
Is there some sort of commonality between Morris and belly dance that anyone would like to comment on - the comradeship, the costumes, the public exhibition, the connection to a 'folk' tradition, etc?

Hmm...
Both involve wearing jingly things! And I partially became interested in morris because I was interested in Egyptian folklore and that naturally got me thinking about British folklore, and how it was a bit odd that I was studying folk dances from thousands of miles away but didn't know the ones that were from the county I lived in.

As a primarily Egyptian-style bellydancer and cotswold morris dancer, I don't find very much commonality in the nature of the performance, or the social side, or the costuming.

Morris is inherently really sociable, whilst learning bellydance can easily not be a social activity at all, unless the dancers in your community go out of their way to make it so. This is different if you're in a troupe, of course, in which case there's probably more in common, although my experience of being in bellydance troupes and dance companies is that it's still less sociable than being in a morris side because the social element is very ad-hoc or optional, whereas in morris it's institutionalised as something everyone does every week unless they have some reason to need to leave early.

As far as performance goes, bellydance is spontaneous and interactive, and as a performer I have to engage with the audience... In contrast, morris has set dances, and the dancers themselves don't really interact with the audience at all (although some sides have a fool or a beast - kind of like a jester - who will interact with the audience as well as coming in and out of the dance and goading the dancers), or even necessarily acknowledge them much, even though it is a 'display dance' - most dances are done in two lines facing each other and your focus when performing is usually on the other dancers to stay in tight formation with them.

Finally, on the costuming front... well, both tend to have jingly bits! And in my case, both have AB crystals here and there... Apart from that they are quite different though. For morris I only have one costume and it's always the same - and the costume is somewhat unique to the dancer. We make our own baldrics and bell pads in the side's design, personalise them gradually with badges and stuff, and then wear them every time we dance until they fall apart (and sometimes after they fall apart - some of our chaps have magnificently deconstructed straw hats...). In some ways it has more in common with a sports team kit, except with more bells. For bellydance, of course, I have many costumes and they are super blingy ;)

I do, however see more similarities with ATS - and a lot of the morris/bellydance overlap actually seems to be with ATS/ITS dancers. They are used to being in cohesive groups, having a performance dynamic that's more focused on each other than the audience, and having a costuming style based on gradual accretion of more shiny bits rather than many different 'looks'. When I started morris dancing, when people found out I was a bellydancer they kept asking me if I danced with a bellydance 'side', and I was really confused by this until I realised they had mainly encountered ATS dancers...
 
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Roshanna

New member
Wow, Roshanna, what a great bunch of information! Thanks for taking the time to share it.

Oh, when it comes to morris dancing or bellydance I can happily go on until I bore people to tears, so the combination of both in one topic is irresistable ;)
 

Duvet

Member
Thanks Roshanna for your mine of information.

The bellydancers I actually know with Morris connections are Egyptian style performers, and ones following the more ghawazee and fellahin techniques. Buts its interesting what you have experienced with Tribal dancers, and how Morris dancers are more aware of the Tribal dance style than the others. Perhaps Tribal lends itself more to the 'pagan' feel that event organisers or participants might be looking for at events that also include Morris sides? - (And I hasten to add, before anyone objects, that being a Tribal dancer, or a Morris dancer, is no indication of one's spiritual path).
 

Duvet

Member
Morris is inherently really sociable, whilst learning bellydance can easily not be a social activity at all, unless the dancers in your community go out of their way to make it so. This is different if you're in a troupe, of course, in which case there's probably more in common, although my experience of being in bellydance troupes and dance companies is that it's still less sociable than being in a morris side because the social element is very ad-hoc or optional, whereas in morris it's institutionalised as something everyone does every week unless they have some reason to need to leave early.

My bellydance classes have always been social activities, with people hanging on to chat afterwards, swapping engagement details, or introducing new people. Without the social side you don't get the haflas or other events that go on. Are the teachers and performers in your area so focused on the business aspect that they see everyone as either 'cash income' or 'potential rival'? Perhaps bellydance needs to take a leaf out of the Morris book.
 

Roshanna

New member
Buts its interesting what you have experienced with Tribal dancers, and how Morris dancers are more aware of the Tribal dance style than the others. Perhaps Tribal lends itself more to the 'pagan' feel that event organisers or participants might be looking for at events that also include Morris sides? - (And I hasten to add, before anyone objects, that being a Tribal dancer, or a Morris dancer, is no indication of one's spiritual path).

I think it's because tribal groups tend to go for, and be well suited to, the same types of performance opportunities as morris sides, i.e. outdoor, daytime events without a formal stage space - and where you have enough dance time that you need a large repertoire of dances, which is easier for ATS/ITS dancers than for troupes relying on choreography. ATS/ITS groups also sometimes dance at folk festivals (usually as the only non-English dance group except for maybe some Appalachian cloggers...!), where they are seen by a lot of morris dancers.

And because ATS dancers come in groups and like to dance in the same kinds of environments, they can easily slot into the folk dance ecosystem as a sort of honorary morris side, and be invited as a 'side' to morris dance outs and ales.
 
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Roshanna

New member
My bellydance classes have always been social activities, with people hanging on to chat afterwards, swapping engagement details, or introducing new people. Without the social side you don't get the haflas or other events that go on. Are the teachers and performers in your area so focused on the business aspect that they see everyone as either 'cash income' or 'potential rival'? Perhaps bellydance needs to take a leaf out of the Morris book.

I think it's more everyone, including the teachers, being busy and overcommitted, to be honest. People do chat a bit before/after classes, and there are haflas and occasional organised social outings, but there isn't the same culture of everyone getting to know everyone else and all regularly going out together after class. It's the difference between going for a coffee with people a few times a year, and going to the pub with them every week...
 

Shanazel

Moderator
Perhaps we're the exception that proves the rule but most of my dancers go out for dinner every Wednesday after class plus participate in the two informal end of semester haflas I throw at my house. The others come to dinner as they are able: one gal lives thirty miles from here so has to leave promptly after class to get her son home and to bed; another teaches dance classes before attending mine and she is usually pretty whacked by 8:00. I'm pretty whacked, too, but it's important to hang out with students who have also become my friends. ;)
 

Farasha Hanem

New member
The troupe I used to belong to would go out together 2 to 3 times a month, either to Checkers or Big Truck Tacos. We also found excuses for haflas every chance we could, and at the end of every month, everyone brought a bottle of alcohol and a box of cookies for after class (my friend and I brought sparkling grape juice, since we were the only two non-drinkers in class).
 

Roshanna

New member
The troupe I used to belong to would go out together 2 to 3 times a month, either to Checkers or Big Truck Tacos. We also found excuses for haflas every chance we could, and at the end of every month, everyone brought a bottle of alcohol and a box of cookies for after class (my friend and I brought sparkling grape juice, since we were the only two non-drinkers in class).

That sounds lovely :) that's how I'd like it to be socially if I ever start teaching again!
 

Shanazel

Moderator
From the beginning of my teaching career, I've made a point of teaching belly dance as a social dance. Even the soloists have their do-wops, on stage or off in the wings- no one performs alone. :)
 
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