King Stone - King Stone Mummers

The Winlaton Sword Dance

inlaton is a small mining village on the Durham side of the Tyne, close to Newcastle. A sword dance has been danced there every Christmas within living memory, though of late years the performances have become rather irregular.

“The dance is, perhaps, the most primitive example of its kind now to be seen in the North of England. It would be difficult to exaggerate the force and energy with which it was executed when I saw it in December, 1912. The performers were men well advanced in years, the leader, Mr. William Prudhoe, is sixty-five years old and, although the dance is a short one, they were quite exhausted by their efforts.

Although its figures are few in number, and none of them, technically, of special intricacy compared, at least, with those of the Earsdon and other dances, the dance is by no means an easy one. The great difficulty is to catch its barbaric spirit, to reproduce the breathless speed, the sureness and economy of movement, the vigour and abandonment of the ‘stepping’ displayed by the Winlaton men. The movements must be absolutely continuous, and, from the conclusion of the Calling-on Song to the final exhibition of the Nut, there must be no stop or pause of any kind. ”

There are five dancers, a Betty, and a musician who plays a tin-whistle.

Above: Winlaton, 1926

Notation
The Calling-on Song
Fig 1: Ring-Clash-and-Step
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose and Ring
Fig 8: The Needle
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose, and Ring
Fig 4: The Fiddler
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose, and Ring
Fig 5: Mary Anne
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose, and Ring
Fig 6: The Roll
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose, and Ring
Fig 7: Straight Line
Fig 2: The Nut, Rose, and Ring Exhibition of the Nut in line

Off the Beaten Track

apper is, essentially, a social event -- well, that's how we take it — and as such we generally practice in local hostels. One such public house was, before it closed, Off the Beaten Track. The dance was developed by Mr Peter Bareham, our Number Five Supremo (or so he tells us) to thank the proprietors for their generosity in allowing us to commandeer their old skittle alley to practice in a rather noisy fashion and to drink in an all too similar vein.

If you follow the notation listed on the right you will see that there are a lot of figures following one from the other, generally performed without a pause (and often accompanied by contradictory orders from the dancers!!). This makes for a spectacular display for the audience to wonder how we can get the swords out of the tangled knot that they appear to form, without letting go! The five dancers and musicians press on at a reasonably rapid tempo, recently to the tune of Blaydon Races in an effort to reunite traditional tunes from the north-east to a dance style generated in the mining communities around the Tyne valley.

In a spectacular finale, if there are enough dancers available, the audience can identify the change in the line up at the end when the Nut is cast to the floor.

Above: KSR, 2009

Notation
Calling-on Song
Fig. 1 Ring-Clash-turn 360°-Coach and Horses
Fig. 2 Coach and Horses
Fig. 3 2x Curlies-Curly Whirly-2x Curlies
Fig. 4 Mary Anne
Fig. 2 Coach and Horses
Fig. 5 Basket
Fig. 2 Coach and Horses
Fig. 6 Breast Plate
Fig. 2 Coach and Horses
Fig. 7 Cast-Nut-Exhibit Nut in line

Whirlitzer

amed after the extreme circling motion required throughout this dance. Not one for those prone to motion sickness, this dance was compiled from known dance figures which we have seen fit to adjust as evident through such names as 'Hairy Mary'. We are currently concentrating on this dance in our practice sessions as we've only just started to dance it in public; if you're around when we do give us a bit of room!

The dancers are five in number, and are accompanied usually by a whistle and fiddle player. The dance lasts for about 3'30" to 4'.

Above: KSR, 2009

Notation
Calling on Song
Fig. 1 Ring-Clash-Circle
Fig. 2 Cast, Exhibit Nut, Cast
Fig. 3 Figure of Eight
Fig. 2 Cast, Exhibit Nut, Cast-Single Guard
Fig. 4 Follow-we
Fig. 2 Cast, Exhibit Nut, Cast-All Turn In
Fig. 5 Hairy Mary
Fig. 2 Cast, Exhibit Nut, Cast-Dam Buster.
Fig. 6 Into Line
Fig. 2 Cast, Exhibit Nut in line