Everything is brilliant in Leeds

[venta]

Long-term readers will know that around this time of year DERT happens. DERT - the Dancing England Rapper Tournament - is the annual competition for the style of folk dancing that I do. This year it's in Leeds.

This year it is also an unexpectedly big deal for Mabel Gubbins. Firstly, we're in Premier.

Competition is divided into three classes: Premier (the top-notch teams), Open (the beginner or part-time teams) and Championship (everyone who doesn't fit into either of the others).

There are always a few quirks, of course. This year Medlock Rapper are in the Open because they're a new team; this despite the fact that pretty much every individual has danced with a Premier team in recent years.

Anyway, last year we won the Championship. This means promotion, and we have to go and play with the big boys (and girls). We are so very not a Premier team :-)

We are, in fact, a "safe" team. We don't usually attempt the very ambitious figures, we do the easier ones well. I think our victory last year was because our nearest rivals (Mons Meg, from Edinburgh) put in some riskier figures and then cocked them up in one or two dances. The dances they pulled off scored higher than ours, but we were more consistent. Consistent competence ain't going to cut it this year. I'll be extremely surprised if we come anything other than last.

We had our final practice with all combatants this weekend, near Brighton. We've been trying to up our game, which in a lot of cases means "do it faster" or "do it more" (and, of course "do it better", though that's harder to quantify). I have the sort of bruises all up my left arm that might lead to people speculating whether everything's all right at home, and a frankly mysterious set of pulled muscles.

Mind you, we also found a pub in Brighton that not only let us dance, but had 43 different kinds of gin.

Secondly, as of this moment there are no takers to run DERT next year.

Each year, a different dance team as as hosts, and organises the whole shebang. Mabel, my team, did it in 2011 and we're definitely not quite ready to think about doing it again yet. It's a lot of work. As far as I'm aware - which is since 2000 - there's never been a year where the following year's hosts were not decided by the time of the competition (even if details are vague).

This year it's organised by Black Swan Rapper. They last did it, according to the t-shirt I had on the other day, in 2006.

I'm not sure if there's a plan; I don't know whether the competition will happen next year.

Anyway, if you're in or around the Leeds area, there will a range of opportunities for watching sword dancing in pubs a week on Saturday. You can watch the finest teams in the land, nay, the world! Or, of course, you could watch us (but only if you cheer violently and help increase our buzz score).

Which also brings me to my other question: I shall be free of swords and other such things by Sunday lunchtime, does anyone Leeds-based fancy meeting up for a pub lunch, beer, coffee, or other social engagement? strange_complex, maviscruet, nalsa, any others?

Comments

[sammason.livejournal.com]

If Susan has other plans, it's worth asking whether my Watson (alleged human) will be available. Most weekends she is, and she has a car that's her pride and joy.

I know what you mean about not recognising dancers. 'Didn't recognise you with clothes on!' I don't think I've ever chatted up the same person in 2 different guises (were you chatting up that bloke and his doppleganger in Darlington?) but I once got spotted when not in kit. While walking the long version of the Ridgeway (Lyme Regis to the Thames) I set up for sleep on a campsite, then was approached by people from the next tent. 'Rogue Morris, aren't you?' they said. Yes I danced with Rogue. 'But no thank you, I don't want to walk into the village tonight for a beer. My feet have walked many miles already today.'

[venta.livejournal.com]

OK, will bear Watson's wheels in mind for the future.

I wasn't chatting him up :-) In fact, his wife laughed like a drain about the whole thing.

I have a terrible habit of referring to someone from team X as "an X" - so had I been on the Ridgeway, I'd have asked "are you a Rogue?". This goes quite badly wrong quite often. For example the person I accosted in Whittlesey to ask if she was a pig dyke... fortunately she did dance with Pig Dyke Molly (http://www.pigdyke.co.uk/) and thus interpreted the question in the spirit in which it was intended.

[sammason.livejournal.com]

That's the idea, isn't it? Sure it seemed to be the idea for Rogue. But the time we danced out alongside Nancy Butterfly http://www.nancybutterfly.co.uk/ it would have backfired if I'd told them that I was disappointed to see frumpy women. I'd hoped for a team of gay brothers. I never met the Pig Dykes which is perhaps a good thing, seeing as I've known some very piggy-looking dykes.

After a while, as you know, I got fed up of seeming to be the only gay Morris dancer. So I asked on an online forum, 'Am I the only one?' Pete Humble of Red Leicester replied, 'There is also me.' Soon I left Rogue, met Pete and a few others, and founded Miss Demeanour's where we were proud to call ourselves the UK's best gay Morris team. It lasted a few years until our best dancer left his male partner to marry a woman, Pete suddenly died (cancer?) and I left Southern England to move in with my Watson. But our concertina player and our mandolin player, both female, fell into each other's arms. They're still together.

Folk dancers! You can't take your eyes off them for a minute. Any couples formed in your rapper team?

[venta.livejournal.com]

I don't think we've had any couples in Mabel while I've been a member. As an all-female side with (currently) a female musician and (as far as I know) only one gay member options are limited :)

Actually, from observation, rapper sides seem much less prone to outbreaks of romance than morris teams. I'd guess it's because they tend to be much smaller groups, so fewer available permutations!