Dartington Morris welcome new dancers, whether novice or experienced.
Our practice season this year starts on Friday 4 October 2024 and we are keen to encourage anyone interested in this fascinating English tradition to give Morris a go!
Our activities consist of a wide range of Cotswold dances, including our unique ‘Filkins’ tradition from Oxfordshire, as well the North Skelton Longsword Dance from Redcar and Cleveland, and the ‘infamous’ Dartington Mummers Play, the latter normally featured at Christmas and the New Year. We also have a great reputation for music and song, usually in a local pub after practices, or performances.
We extend a warm welcome to any dancer, and musician - from novice to experienced - to join our practice sessions.
We meet every Friday from 8.00pm to 10.00pm, from October to April. We practise in Dartington Primary School, opposite the Dartington Cider Press Centre.
You can park right next to the school in the pay & display car park - which currently is free when parking after 6pm. Practices are held in the school hall - if you look on this Google map, you will see exactly where.
Just come along in comfortable clothing and trainers or similar. The best thing to do is to arrive at about 7:50pm and walk up the path to the left of the drive to the school (there's a barrier to cars) and you'll likely see other members arriving at that time.
Please check our calendar if you plan to come along; although we will be there most Fridays, we occasionally miss one for a special night out.
Morris dancing is a brilliant way to make new friends, learn new skills, improve your fitness, enjoy traditional music and song and all the while keeping a valuable English tradition alive.
You will be made to feel very welcome and it's a great opportunity to meet the side and get to see us practise up close. Whether you're brand new to Morris, or an old hand looking to get back into it, we would love to see you. We usually follow practice with a beer* at a nearby pub (normally the Cott Inn), where we often carry on with some music and song, or just chatting and listening if you prefer.
Contact the Bagman for further details.
[*other refreshments are available!]