Arlington Northwest Morris

The Team:

A group of women who get together for weekly practices, regular performances, events with other Morris dancers, periodic parades and general good times. Based in Arlington, Virgina and drawing from the entire Washington, DC metropolitan area, we are always looking for new members; email for information .

Spring, 2009

April 25: Southern Maryland Celtic Festival, Prince Frederick, Maryland

May 1 with the fabulous Foggy Bottom Morris Men: dawn at the Takoma Park, MD gazebo, various locations in central Washington DC

May 2: Mayday celebration in Shepherdstown, W. Va.

May 9: in and around Charlottesville, Va with the Albermarle Morris Men

May 31: Washington Folk Festival, Glen Echo Park, Bethesda MD

July 4: Barcroft community parade, Arlington VA

Contact us:

Forman: Laura Parsons

Squire: Suzanne Nealon

General Information

We welcome new dancers. No experience necessary, just a willingness to spend a couple of hours every Monday night learning and practicing the dances and commit to periodic performances.

We practice at the Arlington Unitarian Universalist Church: 4444 Arlington Blvd, Arlington, Virginia 22204

Click here for directions. Practice starts at 7:30 sharp, give or take

The Style:

A style of dancing traditional in the mill towns of Northwestern England -- hence the "Northwest" in our name. We wear clogs, which give the dance a percussive feel. Each dance consists of repeating choruses and different figures in a complex pattern that requires precision, agility and timing.

The Dances:

Our current (September, 2008) dances include:

The Lancaster Processional

Garstang

Colne Royal

Marsten

Godley Hill

The Solstice Processional

The Music

We dance to traditional English tunes -- lively jigs, reels and polkas -- played

on various squeezeboxes, sometimes accompanied by

drums, horns, fiddles and other noisemakers.

Dancing at Thirsty Bernies, Arlington, Va., 10-25-08. Thanks to a very tolerant staff for putting up with several hours of dancing and singing!

A double Colne Royal, with members of the Rock Creek Morris Women and Shepherdstown's Hicks with Sticks joining Arlington Northwest Morris at the Day of Dance feast, 10-25-08

Photo credits: Good pictures - Richard Rodriguez; Mediocre pictures - Jim Besser

Video: Steven Garron (Thanks!)

What is Morris dancing, you ask: This Smithsonian video -- featuring the Arlington Northwest Morris Women and the

Foggy Bottom Morris Men --answers the question