Who we are - What we do

 

White Hart Morris Men

We are a revival side formed in The 1970’s.  We dance Traditional Cotswold Morris from a number of traditions Fieldtown Bampton Bleddington Addlebury Lichfield    “Headless Cross” our very own distinctive style of dance.

What is Morris Dancing? (adapted  from History on Morris Ring site) Where does the name come from?  One theory is that it is a corruption of Moorish,  and that the dance original came from North Africa. The true origins are lost in  the mists of time. It has been part of English life for at least six hundred years and many scholars would argue that it is much older. While the style is peculiar to the English mainland, the dances are thought to be part of the world-wide family of ritual ceremonial dances since they share the common features of disguise, colour, vigour, predominantly male performers, and a dance form based on circles and processions. By Elizabethan times the Morris was already regarded as an ancient custom. Several references to the dance appear in the works of Shakespeare - an actor from Shakespeare's company, Will Kemp danced from London to Norwich in 1599 (he called this exploit his ' Nine Daies' Wonder '). However, following the Civil War many ancient customs were outlawed by the Puritans and, although the Restoration saw some revivals, the gradual drift of the population from countryside to town saw many communities abandon their Morris dances.

We meet to practice at the