The origins and history of Welsh folk dance is a long and interesting one. The Methodist revival in the 18th Century ensured that mixed folk dance came to an end as it was seen to be sinful. The set folk dances that we practice today are dances that have been pieced together from memory, or recently composed within the same style or manner of those that have been remembered. Mrs Catherine Margretta Thomas is the lady responsible for bringing these dances, in particular the Nantgarw dances, back from the depths of her memory. She was born in 1880 and remembered seeing the dances as a child.
We have used many of the Nantgarw dances as a basis for the inspiration of the movement. It has been our point of reference from which we have diverged and elaborated. Fragments of the memories are woven within the choreography. What is nice about the use of the dances in this way is that it's presence is felt but not imposed. An air of the past is built into the choreography, but we are not trying to re-create it. The past, instead, dwells within the present moment, allowing us as performers to reside within the dichotomy between the two.
{150} marks the anniversary of 150 years since the pioneers set sail for Patagonia with the aim of protecting the Welsh way of life, it is because of their success in this, that we are remembering their incredible story and able to bring it to a wider audience. An interesting parallel to this comes with the inclusion of folk dance. The dances only became written down when it was realised that the Welsh were loosing, or indeed had lost, a vital part of their culture. In 1802 Edward Jones wrote 'Wales, which was formerly one of the merriest and happiest countries in the world, is now one of the dullest'. The documentation of the dances served a tool for preservation of a Welsh way of life that had been lost. In including glimpses of these dances within the choreography, it is almost as if we are giving a nod to the history of Welsh folk dance, knowing that it is there, and it is because of the efforts of those who fought to save it, that we are here, performing (fragments of!) it today.
We have used many of the Nantgarw dances as a basis for the inspiration of the movement. It has been our point of reference from which we have diverged and elaborated. Fragments of the memories are woven within the choreography. What is nice about the use of the dances in this way is that it's presence is felt but not imposed. An air of the past is built into the choreography, but we are not trying to re-create it. The past, instead, dwells within the present moment, allowing us as performers to reside within the dichotomy between the two.
{150} marks the anniversary of 150 years since the pioneers set sail for Patagonia with the aim of protecting the Welsh way of life, it is because of their success in this, that we are remembering their incredible story and able to bring it to a wider audience. An interesting parallel to this comes with the inclusion of folk dance. The dances only became written down when it was realised that the Welsh were loosing, or indeed had lost, a vital part of their culture. In 1802 Edward Jones wrote 'Wales, which was formerly one of the merriest and happiest countries in the world, is now one of the dullest'. The documentation of the dances served a tool for preservation of a Welsh way of life that had been lost. In including glimpses of these dances within the choreography, it is almost as if we are giving a nod to the history of Welsh folk dance, knowing that it is there, and it is because of the efforts of those who fought to save it, that we are here, performing (fragments of!) it today.
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