Border style has become very popular in Britain with young folk in their scary steampunk outfits dancing vigorously and wowing the crowd at “dance-outs” and festivals. Border is not in the least namby-pamby hanky-waving.
Morris Dancing is quintessentially British and as much a part of British life as joining the local tennis or rugby club is here in New Zealand.
What makes Morris special is that it combines both traditional folk dance with live music. The musos keep alive the folk tunes of old.
The home of Morris dancing in Britain is the Cotswolds and the Welsh border
To learn more about Public Nuisance, and Border Morris, read on....
DANCING WITH ATTITUDE by Errol Dawson
I am a nuisance. And proud of it. We are an increasing number of Morris Dancers and musicians.
When I was approached to help build a new Morris dancing side, I relished the opportunity to do things a bit differently.
I had always envisioned a heightened sense of drama; that you just don’t get whilst standing in formation waiting for the
intro music to catch up. I wanted to surprise the audience and make them linger, not knowing what we would come up
with next.
As a result, we have opted for running onto our dance arena screaming! Or we might employ the opening strains of
Beethoven’s 5 th Symphony, before pounding the earth with the primitive dance ‘She Wolf’.
Sometimes we end a dance with disdain, throwing our sticks up in the air and letting them fall where they may, as we
turn away. Other times we are counted in with a few heart-stopping drumbeats.
A major feature of this new approach was to incorporate the drum more fully; to enhance and support both musicians
and dancers alike. Our drummer truly emphasises the rhythm. It makes a difference to the dancers too; I can tell you. There is nothing quite like surging forward whilst being urged on by the strength of the beat. The other musicians too, thus encouraged, play with gusto and accent. Or is it the other way around?
The dances we perform are from the Welsh Border region between England and Wales. The style is known as Border
Morris.
We have a lot of fun during rehearsals. There is friendly rivalry between dancers and musicians and banter a plenty. And
there is that endorphin rush that one gets, culminating in the final instant, with a simultaneous bang, stomp and
resounding last note.
We wear tatters which flail about us as we spin, weave and follow the contours of the dance. But we also have T shirts
as summer kit. We have had one dance out so far, in Mt.Albert, but we are ready for many more and have a burgeoning
repertoire. We practise weekly and are looking at dancing out once a month. Our hall is the Baptist Church Hall in Remuera.
A well-respected doyen of the Morris (Roy Dommett) once opined that ‘Morris Dancing should be disrespectful but not
disreputable’. Words to dance by. Above all, we aim to please.
We are Public Nuisance Border Morris.
Dancing With Attitude
Public Nuisance Border Morris gratefully acknowledge the generous support of
