Editor: Doug Bradshaw

Published: Winter 2009

Number: 60

Download: Newsletter Winter 2009 (1Mb)

Editorial

So that’s it then my last edition now complete and wrapped up. Good to see that Colin Andrews is already getting into the task with his piece featuring Mike Boston of Great Western Morris. Next year is the 40th anniversary for Great Western as a side and it’s wonderful to see a side that is proving the doomsayers wrong with a healthy number of younger dancers carrying the tradition forward.

The brief report on “Dinosaurs Not Allowed” in this edition mentions the efforts of Great Western in interacting with the crowd. Which is a vital part of the performance. With a slight tautology my mantra for performance is “Inform, entertain and educate”. If the crowd leave a performance entertained but not knowing what they have been watching or who was performing, then on several levels the performance has failed.

I believe that the more people know of the history and traditions of their own country the more likely they are to support and even participate in them. This summer I attended several events where the general consensus seemed to be that the day was an opportunity for a cosy chat and a beer rather than a chance to reach out to the audience. A couple of times I watched in amazement as groups of dancers stood, blocking the view of the audience. Which was bad enough, but worse was the fact that they were deep in conversation rather than watching the performing side. If we can’t be bothered why should the crowd

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