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We do not know much about dance in England. There is nothing like the Irish nd scottish trafitions which seem to be commected with Celtic tradituins. The only specifically English dance we know of is Morris dancing. But Morris dncing has nothing like the cultural cachet that Irish and Scottish dancing have. English boys of course participate in a wide variety of other dance forms, except for social dancing, mostly through school. We note daning as part of town and village celebrations in the erly 20th cntury. we suspect this was awell estblohed traditionin the 19th century with much earlier roots. Some of this looks like May Poll celebrations. This is a cultural tradition with ancient roots. We have very little informtion on these trewnds with the exception of May Day. These dance traditions seems to have significbtly declined since World war II, especially for boys. The increasingly popularity of sports here emay be a factor. Schools fostered a dance and motion program in the mid-20th century, but we are unsure about modern trends.
We do not know much about dance in England. There is nothing like the Irish nd scottish trafitions which seem to be commected with Celtic tradituins. The only specifically English dance we know of is Morris dancing. But Morris dncing
has nothing like the cultural cachet that Irish and Scottish dancing have.
English boys of course participate in a wide variety of other dance forms, except for social dancing, mostly through school. Schools fostered a dance and motion program in the mid-20th century, but we are unsure about modern trends. There was alsp some country dance programs. Some younger children during the 1950s abd 60s participated in a primary dance program emphasizing motion. Schools also assisted with coomunity actibities such as May Day celebrations.
We note photographs of boys taking dancing lessons for social dancing. This seems to have been boys from affluent families. We note younger boys smarly dressed up for the lessons. The clothing is a little different than what American children may have worn. We do not know if boys received dance lessons at school. This was basic dances such as the box step used in standard social dances. This was common in American schools, often in gym class. We note private schools in England provided social dance classes. We have less information on state schools. An English mewspaper reported in 2009, "Children are taking up dance lessons with such enthusiasm that the activity is now second in popularity only to football in Britain's schools. The number of pupils choosing dance has risen 83 percent in four years, according to research by the Arts Council. A third of those are boys. Spurred on by role models such as Darren Gough, the England cricketer who was the first male winner of BBC1's show Strictly Come Dancing, they have been getting involved in a range of genres from ballroom to hip hop and jazz. The National Dance Teachers Association says the nature of school sport is changing to meet the target of five hours a week of required physical activity announced by Gordon Brown in July 2007. 'The latest survey shows that 96% of schools are offering dance, which is a massive change over the last few years," said Carolyn Woolridge, the acting chair. "Dance has benefited by being promoted by specialist schools in both arts and sports categories and by counting towards both the Artsmark and Sportsmark awards.'" [Lightfoot] This trend is notomething we have pbserved, bit our British readers will no doubt have more information.
We see some images of pary dancing. We do not knoe much abouty hrm. All we have are the snapshots, motly from the post EWorld War II period. We donot know if this is when the party dancing began or when indoor photography became easoer. Probabky the best know dance is Conga-line dancing. The dancers form a long, holding on to the person in front, usually turning into a circle. There are three shuffle steps on the beat, followed by a kick just before the fourth beat. Traditional Caribbean Carnival dances include the Conga and Chancletas (sandals). Conga suggests the Congom has a source, but there is no evidence of this. They are Latin American dances that originated in the colonial period. The Conga is an upbeat walking dance that accents the fourth beat of the measure as the dancers (solo or in groups) wind through the streets. In formal parade units, simple conga choreographies are an impressive, festive site. Britain of course had Caribbvean colonies. We are not sure when thr tradition was adopted in Britain as a popular party dance. Some sources claim that the Conga-line was more specifically related to Cuba, presumably implanted in the Caribbean by the enslaved people working on sugar plantations. It became especially popular in Cuba where it became a popular street dance. Politicians after the establishment of the Republic to attract popular appeal (1900s). Cuba of coirse was a Soanish colony, liberated by the Amricans (1898). Britain had little to do with Cuba exceot occasional attacks during era of the Spanish Main and wars with Spain. So the Conga line may have arrived via America. We know that it became popular in America (1930s).
We note daning as part of town and village celebrations in the erly 20th cntury. we suspect this was a well-establihed tradition in the 19th century with much earlier roots. These dance traditions seems to have significantly declines since World war II, especially for boys. The uncreasingly popularity od sports here may be a factor. Before the War we notice images of many of these village events throughout England. Which cildren dressed up for the events. Boys commonly wear school clothes, the girls often wear white dresses. The younger boys were also sometimes done upmin white. The children participation was often organized through the schools. We have not yet found much imnformation about the dancing, but we have found quite a few exa,p.les in the photograohic record.
Some of this looks like May Poll celebrations. This is a cultural tradition with ancient roots. We have very little informtion on these trewnds with the exception ofMay Day. May Day involves two very different celebrations, a traditional event and a day honoring labor. There is a connection, but the celebrations are destinct. Traditinal May Day is aother important holiday is May which commonly included school celebrations. The traditional May Day rites and celebrations in England involve include Morris dancing, crowning a May Queen, and children decorating May polls. Child dancers commonly circle with ribbons. The English traditions developed from various pagan roots. The Old English language name for the month of May meant 'Month of Three Milkings'. Earlier Celtic traditions were incorportdinto the Anglo-Saxon celebratins. May Day festivities have been delebrated through the centuries. May Day celebrations contnue to be most important in agricultural towns and villages celebrating the springtime fertility of the soil, livestock, and people. The traditional revelry with village fetes and community gatherings has been toned down a bit in recent years. Important farm tasks like seeding hadnormally been accomplishged in April. Thus May Day was a convenient to give farm workers a day off. This tradition was the basis for May Day as a day to honor labor. Another connection was St Joseph's Day. (Here the Catholic calendar has varied over time.) St. Joseph was a carpeter and became the patron saint of worker. Most workers at the time were farm workers, but in the 19th century with the Industrial Revolution. industrial workers became the dominant work force. Thus in the 20th century, May Day was chosen as International Workers' Day. In London and other cities, the labor celebration has largely replaced the more trditional May Day celebrations. London May Day Committee (South East Region Trades Councils) oganize a massive parade. They gather at Clerkenwell Green near the Karl Marx Memorial Library before marching to Trafalgar Square for a huge rally. Representatives of local, national and international trades unions and campaigning organisations deliver impassioned speeches. The labor May Day always takes place on May 1st regardless of what day it falls on meaning that workrs oftn do not get a day off.
Lightfoot, Liz. "Huge rise in boys taking dance lessons," The Observer (March 14, 2009).
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