The quaint and distinctly British custom of Morris dancing will die out within two decades because no-one is taking it up any more, the modern-day custodians of the ancient tradition have warned.
But one Kent man is determined to keep the hanky-waving habit alive.
Youngsters say it is simply too embarrassing to be seen Morris dancing, a style of folk dance that dates back centuries.
The exact origins are clouded in mystery, but the clattering together of tiny sticks by men bouncing back and forth to odd music has delighted village people in Kent and the UK, and baffled tourists in equal amounts.
The Morris Ring, an association for the bell-clad men, said fewer are taking it up, and the average age of those taking part continues to rise, which means in 20 years, it will have died out completely from the current estimate of 14,000 dancers nationally.
Charlie Corcoran, the Ring's bagman, said: "It worries me a great deal. Young people are just too embarrassed to take part. This is a serious situation.
"Once we have lost this part of our culture, it will be almost impossible to revive it."
But however odd and comical it looks, those that do Morris dancing also raise plenty of cash for local charities.
Some £600 was handed over to the Demelza House children's hospice just before Christmas following several displays around east Kent by the Woodchurch Morris Men.
And Malcolm Triggs, 50, said: "That is actually nonsense. We have plenty of youngsters doing the dancing and playing."
His own three sons, Jack, 16, Harry, 11, and Will, nine, are all members of Whitstables’ Dead Horse Morris.
Mr Triggs, who runs a public relations company in Ashford, said: "At Dead Horse we have five or six children dancing with us."
Mr Triggs, who is also the Squire of East Kent Morris Men, added: "If you go to the festivals, you see lots of youngsters dancing in what are called Sides. Some Sides are made up completely of youngsters.
"They tend to be the offspring of existing dancers because that's the way life works.
"Clearly, young children who then become teenagers don't want to dance in their local shopping centres because they might be seen by their mates. But they tend to come back in later years when they are not as bothered about what people think about them.
"You tend to get the young people in the Sides with the aggressive style of dancing with the sticks.
"I think the whole Morris dancing world is alive and well and will keep going forever. More Sides are springing up all the time. I believe it is all perfectly healthy and won't be dying out any time soon."
For more information on dancing with either side, contact Mr Triggs on 07970 968314.
POSTED: 10/01/2009 18:00:00
Bookmark with:
Email to a friend: