Morris Dancers come to town

NORFOLK — Six groups of Morris dancers visited the area and the Norfolk Library on Saturday, June 11.

The library hosted one stop for the Bouwerie Boys Morris Dancers from Manhattan and the Pokingbrook Morris Men from the Albany area. 

“Morris dancing is a great tradition which comes from England and it is meant to celebrate spring and the Earth coming back to life,” Lawrence Eger, who has been performing with the Pokingbrook group for 25 years, said about the dancers, “The dance is thought to bring good health to crops, families, and even communities. It’s also exciting and fun! There are hundreds of groups all over the country.”

Each group had unique costumes, which included colorful ribbons, sashes, hats and bells. The dancers also carried props with one group favoring white scarves, the other wooden swords. The dancers all had musicians to accompany them. Despite the rain that started about halfway through their performance, each group performed two or three dances before they moved on to their next location. All six groups then met up later in the day in front of the Town Hall in Falls Village for a Grand Procession and Show.

Devin Pierce of the Bouwerie Boys has been with the group for seven years. 

“I don’t know of any other community like it with people from all different age groups and backgrounds,” Pierce said. “While we usually only perform in the spring and summer, we have regular weekly practices throughout the year. This stop is just one in what we call an ‘ale’ where we dance all day and then we feast.”

For more information, go to www.facebook.com/bouwerieboys.