A one-day conference to share effective practice in how to inspire the next generation of morris dancers will be held at Cecil Sharp House in London on Sunday 2 November 2014.
'More Morris, Better Morris, in schools and beyond' is being organised by the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) with the Joint Morris Organisations.
Sessions will be across a range of morris and sword dance traditions including Cotswold, Molly, North West and Border morris, as well as rapper and longsword.
Workshop leaders, presenters and speakers will include practitioners from across England who are experienced in teaching morris to young people, including:
- Damien Barber, Bobak Walker, Will Hampson and Bryony Griffith (from The Demon Barbers XL and The Lock In dance show)
- John Bacon and Ann Bacon (from Plumpton School's Black Brook Morris)
- Laurel Swift and Ben Moss (from Morris Offspring)
- Sue Bousfield, (Champion Clog Step dancer and Singleton Cloggers North West Morris)
- Gordon Phillips and Nicky Stockman (from Our World Festivals)
- Liam Robinson (from The Mini Morris Company)
- Dave Leverton (from the National Youth Folklore Troupe of England)
- Kim Woodward and John Clifford (from The Great Caper).
More names will be confirmed soon and will be updated online.
The day will include topics such as:
- Delivery in primary and secondary education and links to the curriculum
- Setting up and running groups in out-of-school settings
- What an inspiring morris dance workshop looks like for children and young people and current best practice in dance education
- Safe practice – looking after the bodies of young dancers at different stages of their development
- Kitbag – ideas, information and resources on planning, structuring sessions, writing a CV, insurance and safeguarding issues
Rachel Elliott, EFDSS’ Education Director, said: “This conference offers a fantastic opportunity to learn more about teaching morris dancing to young people, whether you are an experienced morris dancer, a teacher or in a morris side, or just starting out and keen to pass on the morris traditions. EFDSS is delighted to presenting this landmark event in partnership with the Joint Morris Organisations.
“The aim of the day is to inspire people, connect them and feed them ideas for the delivery of great morris dancing sessions with young people!”
Downloads
More Morris, Better Morris, in schools and beyond draft programme
A more detailed programme with session and speaker information will be available in the near future - check back in again soon!
Conference fee: £20 including refreshments and light lunch
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This event is promoted by EFDSS and the Joint Morris Organisations (The Morris Federation, Open Morris and The Morris Ring).