The Mummers Dance

January 1, 1985, Stratford: I have just read an account of a mumming troupe which boarded a Polish ship stranded in the harbour in St. Johns, Newfoundland, on New Years Eve, to entertain the sailors. According to James Frazer in his book The Golden Bough, mumming has its roots in the tree-worshipping of the peoples who inhabited great regions of a forested Europe now long gone.

Mumming usually involves a group of performers dressing up in masks (sometimes of straw) and clothes bedecked with ribbons or rags, and setting out on a procession to neighbouring homes singing songs and carrying branches of greenery. Its primarily associated with springtime and fertility, and it has a cast of stock characters, like the Fool, which recurs in some form or another from Morris dancing to the shadow puppet plays of Turkey and Greece and even the morality plays of the Middle Ages.

September 1995, Palermo, Sicily: Friends have brought me to see one of the last of a long line of puppet-makers by the name of Cuticchio. We were treated to a delightful private performance of the story of Charlemagne in a puppet theatre across the narrow street from the puppet-makers workshop.

October 31, 1996, Inishmore: A friend has told me of an unusual version of Halloween that takes place on the island of Inishmore, off the west coast of Ireland. As no one speaks at all, mum is definitely the word. Characters wander into the local pub, have a pint and sometimes a dance, but these everyday activites are made surreal by the power of their silence. Outside, the roar of the Atlantic provides a suitably dramatic backdrop.

December 4, 1996, Real World Studios, Wiltshire, England: Ive incorporated the chorus of a traditional mumming song into The Mummers Dance. The lines, rich with references to spring, come from a song traditionally sung in Abingdon in Oxfordshire.

May 1, 1997, Padstow, Cornwall: As with many time-honoured events, Padstows May Day festivities begin the night before. Its not surprising to find a celebration like this in one of the most historically Celtic corners of England; it begins with a ritual carol, sung a capella, rich with references to springtime and St. George. May Day mornings rendition of the song adds a full complement of accordions and drums which accompany a procession led by the obby oss, a horse figure costumed in a large hooped skirting and an almost African-looking mask.

May 15, 1997, London: Through a series of coincidences I refer back to Idries Shahs book The Sufis and am fascinated to read about a particular Sufi ritual associated with St. George which incorporates a hobby horse.