Morris Dancing

Ely Folk Festival has a tradition of showcasing some of the best morris dancing sides from around the country. The 2010 festival continues this tradition with 16 dance sides performing over the weekend, exemplifying the variety and richness of English traditional dancing including border, north west clog, rapper, long sword, cotswold and molly.
 
Again this year, the morris dancing element of the festival will start with a procession on Saturday morning. Starting from Palace Green at 11.00, the procession will bring colour, spectacle and noise to the city centre streets as it wends its way to the market place.  

Full Programme Download Here (pdf format)

Morris dance displays will take place at various spots around Ely city centre and on the festival site over the weekend. A schedule of when and where the different sides will be dancing will be available from the Information tent on the festival site.
 
Three morris dance workshops have been programmed over the weekend. All ages and welcome, and no previous dance experience is necessary.
On Saturday afternoon, xxx will lead a border morris workshop between 12.30 – 1.30.
On Sunday, xxxx will lead a xxxx workshop between 10.45 – 11.45, and back by popular demand, the Witchmen will teach their brand of border morris between 1.00 – 2.00.

Ely & Littleport Riot

The local women’s morris side dance in a light border style (although the fens are a long way from the Welsh border!). Their kit is emblematic of the fens with black skirts symbolising the darkness of the fen soil while the multi-coloured waistcoats represent fenland individuality. Most of their dances are made up or ‘borrowed’ and adapted, and named after local environmental features or industrial estates.

Witchmen

The Witchmen dance Morris from the Daarkside where pagan ritual dance meets street entertainment. All Witchmen dances are written and choreographed by Terry Dix, with the exception of 'Maiden's Prayer' which is an adaptation. Obscure minor tunes are used to give the dances a shadowy, moody feel. It’s easy to spot the Witchmen in their black and amber rag waistcoats, amber socks, and everything else the blackest black.

Sompting Village Morris

This is SVM’s first visit to the festival. SVM was formed in 1978 and performs various English morris dance traditions that include Cotswold, North-West, Sussex and Border Morris. The side comprises a men’s team, a women’s team and a band of versatile musicians.   Black, yellow and red are the predominant colours of their kit.

Ouse Washes

Hailing from Norfolk, Ouse Washes has become one of the most distinctive & best known molly sides in the country. Poise, humour, great music, real performers and stirring dances characterise this molly side as they bring the stories of Mucky Porter, Strange Tiddy-Mun, Black Sheet and other fenny experiences to life. Their black faces and brightly coloured kit ensure they stand out in the crowd.  

Maenads

The Maenads are a women's Border Morris side, based in Kent. They paint webs on their faces, and wear red and green, the colours of life and rebirth. They dance with sticks, wild yells and wild passion!

The Rumworth Morris of Bolton

The Rumworth Morris of Bolton was founded in 1976 to dance the North West style of Morris as closely as possible to traditional style. Their kit is based on earlier morris teams of the North West and comprises white bowler hats decorated with flowers, jewellery and six strands of blue ribbon, navy corduroy breeches, a gold cummerbund and a red sash. Their style of dance is distinctive in that the side dances at a strictly measured pace, and ‘less fast’ than most North West sides.

Gog Magog Molly

Molly dancing is an ancient tradition from the depths of East Anglia, practised by the locals and passed on from generation to generation by word of mouth alone. Gog Magog Molly was formed in 1996 to celebrate Cyril Papworth's 80th birthday. Disregarded by Cecil Sharp as "primitive", the original dances form the basis for Gog Magog's repertoire, which also includes their own compositions (and one or two dances borrowed from other sides). Gogs are easily spotted by their youth, verve, colourful attire and carefully un-coordinating faces. 

Rockingham Rapper

Formed in November 2004 Rockingham performs a wide range of traditional Appalachian step dances and rapper sword dances based on the North East traditions. They take their name from the nearby Rockingham Forest which covers most of the east side of Northamptonshire. Their kit consists of black trousers, black shirt and a double sided green and purple sash.

Coton Morris Men

Coton Morris Men is a Cotswold morris side based in the Cambridge and South Fens area. Their kit is simple: white trousers, white shirts, black shoes, black waistcoats. Self-styled ‘greatest Morris side to grace the Fens’, Coton’s repertoire includes Bucknell, Adderbury and Lichfield.

Young Miscellany

Young Miscellany Folk Dance Group is from Hertfordshire and exists to encourage the younger generation to enjoy all aspects of traditional English folk dance. The group was formed in 1992 and the current group is made up mostly of children whose ages range from 7 to 20. The side has a wide repertoire including Stave Dances, Broom Dances, Maypole, English Country, Step-Clog, Border Morris and North-West Morris. Their kit is in cheerful blue, red and white colours.

The King's Morris

The morris dancing team of King’s Lynn, the King’s Morris was formed in 1978 and is a men’s Cotswold team that perform jigs and dances mainly from the Bledington, Fieldtown, Bampton, Badby, Bucknell and Adderbury traditions. The King’s Morris wear grey top hats, and their white shirts and trousers are adorned with baldrics and bell pads in the teams' colours of royal blue and golden yellow. The shields which the teams wear on their livery are the ancient coat of arms of King's Lynn and are presented to a dancer when he is considered to be competent.

Westrefelda Morris

'Westrefelda' is the Latin name for Westerfield village on the outskirts of Ipswich in Suffolk from which Westrefelda Morris hail. This mixed Cotswold side also tries their hand at a spot of rapper from time to time. Their kit is all white with blue and green baldricks with the emblem of a swan on front.
Manor Mill
Manor Mill is a Cambridge based women’s side which has been going almost as long as Ely Folk Festival. They dance in the North West Clog Morris style and wear traditional Lancashire clogs. Their dances are often named after the towns or villages in which they originated or were first collected: names like Runcorn, Blackrod, Horwich, Grenoside, Saddleworth. Their kit consists of red tabards over black dresses.

Sir Harry’s Sword

Sir Harry’s Sword is a junior longsword side hailing from the Whittlesey / Peterborough area. They danced out for the first time in 2005 and since then have won the Cecil Sharpe EFDSS trophy for the best youth team for three successive years. The side’s kit consists of black trousers, white shirts and red neckerchiefs. .