Contemporary X Morris: A folk collaboration
To celebrate the Harvest Moon and the lead up to this year's Harvest Festival, we're teaming up with Brighton Morris to bring contemporary dancers the magic of Morris.
Aimed at artists with a contemporary practice, this practical workshop with live musicians will explore Morris as a dance form and teach the key concepts of the Morris vocabulary.
After the workshop, participants are invited to watch and/or join in with Brighton Morris at their last performance of the season outside the Sir Charles Napier pub on Southover Street (up the hill from The Dance Space), where there will be singing, drinking and dancing.
Haven’t tried Morris? Now’s your chance!
Free of its costuming and pageantry, this workshop encourages participants to take elements from Morris and make them their own. You will learn more about dynamics and structure and the way Morris dancers control movement and perception. It will inform the practice and vocabulary of dance practitioners and artists in training. It’s open level and gender non-specific and you can take part in bare feet or clean (not outdoor) white soled trainers or similar. We have come across a few auditions which specify Morris as an essential skill so it’s great to have in your toolkit.
Payment via food donation
In true Harvest Festival style, instead of payment for this workshop, we ask that participants bring a contribution for our local foodbank (canned and dried goods only, please)
Dance leaders:
All the tutors are members of Brighton Morris and have taught workshops at folk festivals around the country, including:
Anthony (AJ) Allen (he, him)
AJ was project director for Stepback and devised the workshop programme. He has danced the Cotswold Morris for 50 years but is retired from performance. He has been involved in several funded dance research projects including a week's joint residency at Cecil Sharp House with Kate Flatt. He taught Brighton Morris in its formative years as Sussex University Morris, and most recently danced with Shepherds Crown Morris, The Stepback Morris and Broken Ankles Appalachian. He still helps teach Brighton Morris.
Ben Schwausch (he, him)
Ben has danced the Cotswold Morris since he was 10. He dances and teaches Morris, Appalachian and French Canadian step. He has performed with many dance companies, including The Stepback Project, and Broken Ankles Appalachian. He currently teaches and dances with Brighton Morris and Crooked Moon Appalachian.
Bryony Rudd (she/her)
Bryony plays the violin for Cotswold Morris sides Hastings RX and Sussex Junction. Known for traditional and driving rhythmic style Bryony is a multiple winner of the John Gasson Jig competition and has gone on to judge the competition giving constructive feedback to participants on the music of Morris. Bryony has co-tutored Morris music workshop days with John Kirkpatrick and taught Morris music and dance at a variety of festival workshops.
This workshop was originally developed some years ago as part of The Stepback Project, a three-year project funded by Arts Council England that taught Morris to practitioners and university dance students, and created stage shows using Morris, Appalachian and English Clog dance. Stepback also explored cross cultural dance and percussive links as well as collaborations between Traditional and Contemporary dancers.