The modern day Winster Morris Dancers are a flourishing mixed traditional side, which means we dance only those dances in the Winster tradition, of which there are now fifteen. Winster Morris Dancers date from 1863, or possibly earlier. The noted collector of English Folk Music, Cecil Sharp, visited in 1908 and noted five dances, including The Processional and The Gallop. In those days it was an all-male side.
Winster Morris Dancers can always be seen performing on Winster’s Carnival Day, as part of Winster Wakes Week , but we have a full programme throughout the summer months, which can be found on our google diary (link to follow). We dance mainly around Derbyshire at a variety of events, including festivalsand weddings, and also run school workshops. We have strong links with other Morris teams around the UK, andalso with the Trachtengruppe Ungstein in Germany, our twin town of Monterubbiano’s flagwaving team in Italy, and the French folk dance team in Onzain. Performances in Winster are noted on the Winster Events Diary and in the Village Magazine
There is more information about Winster Morris Dancers in our publicity leaflet, our website www.winstermorrisdancers.org, and there is much more on our Facebook page. We welcome new members, and there is no upper or lower age limit for anyone wishing to join us either as a dancer or musician, so if interested please contact Richard Powley on 01629 636994, or email winstermorris@winster.org