The Somerton Morris Fringe 2010

Morris at The Somerton Summer Arts Festival

Each year since 1988 the small (but perfectly formed) Somerset town of Somerton has held its Summer Arts Festival, lasting for just over a week in July, with a wide variety of events at locations all over the town. Over the last twenty years the Somerton Summer Festival has become one of the major events in the Somerset calendar.

Morris dancing has often occurred during the Festival, sometimes simply at one of the local pubs one evening during Festival Week, and other times as part of the entertainment in the Square on one of the Saturdays; but a new happening in 2008 was the "Morris Fringe" when a large number of visiting morris sides were invited by Dr Turberville's Morris to take over the town centre on the Thursday evening.

This was such a success for both the visiting teams and the Festival public that it was repeated in 2009 and is now set to become a permanent feature.

The weather on the Morris Fringe day in 2009 was dreadful, with driving rain all day but the dancing was relocated undercover and the event, although cramped, was again hugely enjoyed and a great success for all concerned.

Free workshop sessions were held in 2009 in the Junior School, with Kim Woodward (a well known morris dance tutor) and Jenny Davey of Silver Flame Rapper and Sweet Coppin North West Morris Dancers, and open workshops in the Unicorn Skittle Alley, with Jed Hulme and Andrew Knight, and these attracted and entertained a number of interested learners and some experienced dancers both local and from as far away as the New Forest and Bristol.

You can read what some of them thought about it here: Testimonial for the 2009 event

The Morris Invasion 2010

The Morris Fringe, or “Invasion” as it is becoming known, will be held again in 2010 – this time moving to the second Saturday of Festival Week and extended into an all-day event so that more teams can come and the dancing can carry on for longer.

The day will feature opportunities to dance around the town, plus a chance to get together with other Morris sides and have a chinwag, swap dances or swap tunes.

The style of the day will be the same as previous years [but without the rain of 2009 we hope!]; the main thing to note is that this is a fringe event - not a formal part of the Festival - so there is no pre-defined dance programme and no pre-defined set of venues. Morris sides are invited to come along when you like, dance where you can, with whoever you want to, or on your own if you prefer. We’d like to get away from the deatiled planning and frenetic racing from one site to another that characterises some other festivals, with limited opportunity for meeting and spending time with other Morris folk. But rest assured, if there is a large uptake of sides wishing to dance and it looks as though there won't be enough spaces or opportunities to dance we will make arrangements for sides to be welcomed at venues further afield such as pubs in the surrounding villages.

No committment, no charge, no payment - it is intended to be a fun day.

The overall plan for the day is as follows:

• Arrive from 10am, meet at the Unicorn Skittle Alley where light refreshments will be available and kit can be left (but note although it will be supervised there is no "lock up")
• Dance from 11am in the town - suggested spots include outside the pubs, outside the library, in the covered shopping arcade, in the square, in the car parks etc.
• Lunch where you will - Somerton is well supplied with cafes, pubs and take-aways
• More dancing in the afternoon - the town is available to you for as long as you wish
• There will be a workshop from 2pm-4pm, open to anyone
• Mass dance in the early evening
• Folk music session in The White Hart, hosted by Glastonbury Folk Club from 8pm, and scratch sessions in The Unicorn. The themes of the sessions will be different to allow for differing tastes in folk music.

Date

The "invasion" this year will be on Saturday 17th July

List of sides appearing this year

It is too early to say exactly who will be coming this year. Last year (2009) the sides attending and dancing in the main evening event were:

• Chalice Morris Men (Highbridge - Costwold)
• Priston Jubilee Morris Men (Priston, Nr. Bath - Cotswold)
• Wyvern Jubilee Morris Men (Yeovil - Cotswold)
• Treacle Eater Clog (Yeovil - North West (Clog) Morris)
• No Mean Feet (West Chinnock - Appalachian stepping)
• Sweet Coppin (Taunton - North West and stepping)
• Dr Turberville's Morris (Crewkerne - Cotswold and some Border)

With the move to Saturday, and more time for dancing, the fringe has been expanded in 2010 with more teams being invited, whether for the whole day or just part.

The following are confirmed:

• Dr Turberville's Morris (Crewkerne - Cotswold and some Border)
• Beetlecrushers (Binegar Nr. Shepton Mallett - Clog and Step Dance)
• Borderline Morris (Barnstaple, North Devon - Border Morris)
• Pigsty Morris(Bishopston, Bristol - Cotswold Morris)
• The Girls With The Bells (Purley, Surrey - Modern Cotswold)
• Priston Jubilee Morris (Priston Nr. Bath - Cotswold Morris)
• No Mean Feet (West Chinnock Nr. Yeovil - Appalachian dancing)

Others still to be confirmed include:

• Sweet Coppin (Taunton - North West and stepping)
• Avalon Crow (Glastonbury - Border Morris)
• Ashley’s Rise (Horfield, Bristol - Border Morris and Cotswold)

... and many others, we hope! For more details, contact Drew (details below). For those who are undecided, who previously declined the offer or who will be dancing somewhere else, if you wish to come for any part of the day or evening - you will be most welcome!

If you want to form scratch sides for the day – please do so!

Jigs welcome – come and showcase your skills

We are hoping for kinder weather than last year but whatever the weather, we are assured of a fantastic day of socialising, with some morris dancing and music thrown in.

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Where Will It Happen?

Dancing will take place at various locations in and around the centre of Somerton. The entire town centre is available (and has been covered by the appropriate licences) and there are no "no go areas" but no locations have been set aside.

In previous years the dancing was:

• near the pubs,
• in the Square (Market Place),
• in The Unicorn car park,
• outside Tony's fish and chips (The Triangle)
• and anywhere else the teams wanted to go.

This year it will be daytime, so the following might also be good spots:

• outside the library,
• in the covered shopping arcade (The Brunel Centre),
• etc.

Once it gets dark, the action will move back to the pubs for music. Glastonbury Folk Club will be hosting an open music session in the White Hart, and other sessions will be based at the Unicorn (and the Globe if there are enough distinct musical tastes to warrant it!). All three pubs are within easy reach, close to the Square.

Those who still haven't done enough dancing will be able to carry on in the Unicorn Skittle Alley until no-one is left standing.

All the action will be co-ordinated from the Unicorn Skittle Alley which is conveniently located in West Street, just leading off The Square see map .

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Workshop Details

There will be a Morris Workshop with the theme: "Morris to a Modern Tune" between 2pm and 4pm, in the Unicorn skittle alley. This will be about adapting "traditional" (i.e. Bacon - style if you will!) Cotswold Morris to the demands made through the use of modern popular music, and will involve learning a dance which is long and energetic. The session, which will be practical, has been designed for and aimed at the youth side which is attending, but is open to everyone.

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Folk Club Session

Glastonbury folk club will host an “On the Road” club session in the White Hart, in The Square from 8pm. Further details from (contact TBA).