Guise dancing facts for kids
Guise dancing is a fun, old tradition from West Cornwall, England. People often call it "goose" or "geese" dancing too. It's a type of community performance where people dress up in costumes. This tradition usually happens during the twelve days of Christmas, from Christmas Day until Twelfth Night. Sometimes, it's also done at other special celebrations throughout the year.
Guise dancers wear disguises to hide who they are. This lets them act in a playful or even a bit mischievous way. They hope to receive food or money for their performances. Over time, the activities involved in guise dancing have changed. In the past, they might have performed Christmas plays like Duffy and the Devil or St George and the Turkish Knight. They also performed traditional Cornish dances, music, and songs.
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A Look Back: Guise Dancing History
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In the late 1800s, a Cornish historian named Margaret Ann Courtney studied guise dancing. She noted that by 1890, it had mostly stopped in Penzance. This was because the traditional way of celebrating was fading, and some people were causing trouble. However, the tradition continued in places like St Ives, Newlyn, and Mousehole. St Ives finally stopped the practice in the 1970s.
Many people think that Mummer's Day in Padstow is the last remaining form of traditional guise dancing. But it's a bit different. They use different music and don't wear masks. Instead, they blacken their faces.
Masks are a very important part of guise dancing, both long ago and today. Fancy "Bal masqué" style masks were common. Animal masks and simpler masks were also used.
William Bottrell wrote about guise dancers in Penzance in his books from the 1870s and 1880s. He described their traditional costumes in detail:
In the early 1800s, guise dancers often wore amazing old clothes. The men especially loved their cocked hats, which had feathers, streamers, and ribbons. The girls looked just as grand with tall, pointed hats, stiff dresses, big skirts, and ruffles on their sleeves.
Guise Dancing Today: A Revival
Recently, there's been a growing interest in guise dancing in Cornwall. New groups are starting to bring this tradition back. Some well-known groups include the Turkey Rhubarb band in Penzance, The St Ives Guisers, and Pyba.
The Turkey Rhubarb band and Pyba often perform with special hobby horses. These are called 'Obby 'Osses, like Penglaz and Pengyn. Penglaz is very famous for appearing at the Golowan festival in late June, with the Golowan band.
Modern guise dancing happens in a few different ways:
- Big Parades: Large "carnival" parades where hundreds or even thousands of people take part.
- Smaller Shows: More personal performances in places like pubs.
- Christmas Plays: Groups of performers who act out the old Christmas plays.
Many of the songs and dances used in guise dancing today come from traditional Cornish tunes. These were collected in the 1970s and 1980s by Merv and Alison Davy and others.
Most modern guisers dress in "mock posh" costumes or old clothes decorated with ribbons. All kinds of masks are common, except for modern fancy dress masks.
Guise dancing is also part of the St Ives feast celebrations. It's a main part of the Montol Festival in Penzance.
BBC Recordings of Guise Dancing
On January 5, 1935, the Madron Guise Dancers performed for the BBC's Regional Programme Western. The program mentioned that Twelfth Night was the last day to see guise dancers. They expected a visit from the Madron dancers near Penzance.
In December 1937, the BBC made another recording. This was at Landithy Hall in Madron. It featured the plays and music linked to guise dancing, performed by the Madron Guise Dancers. Sadly, this recording has since been lost. Performances included 'St George and the Turkish Knight' and 'Duffy and Devil'. Each performance supposedly ended with the 'Turkey Rhubarb' dance. No one knows for sure where the name of this dance comes from. It might be related to the plant of the same name.
See also
- Mummers play
- Montol Festival
- Tom Bawcock's Eve
- Golowan
- Furry Dance
- Allantide
- West Cornwall May Day celebrations
