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Saturday, February 17, 2024
3:30 – 4:30 PM
Jefferson Market Library
425 6th Ave.
New York, NY 10011
For more information on the larger festival.
Bring the family for an exciting mid-winter celebration all the way from the heart of England! The 38th annual New York Sword Dance Festival features dances based on customs from the farming and coal-mining regions of northern England, where the annual visit of the local sword dancers to the village homes was thought to guarantee good luck for the year.
The Festival will feature both mystical, stately long sword and vigorous rapper sword dancing, with live music on fiddle, accordion, and other instruments. In both types of sword dance, the dancers are linked in a ring by the “swords” they hold in their hands while they work as a team to weave intricate figures and patterns without breaking the circle. The dances are thought to have roots in ancient rituals, traces of which can still be seen in these present-day displays of skill. For more information, visit halfmoonsword.org
PARTICIPATING TEAMS
Bouwerie Boys Morris Dancers; New York, NY
Charles River Rapper; Boston, MA
Cutting Edge Sword; Washington, DC
Great Meadows Morris and Sword; Sudbury, MA
Half Moon Sword; New York, NY
Harbour Steel; Boston, MA
Just in Time Step Dancers; Washington, DC
Marlboro Morris and Sword; Marlboro, VT
Orion Longsword; Boston, MA
Sligo Creek Sword; Washington, DC
Half Moon Stands With #BLM
Half Moon Sword denounces the recent attempt by white nationalists in the UK to co-opt English ritual dance to further their racist agenda. The members of Half Moon Sword are committed to confronting racism and opposing white supremacy, including in our own traditions and community. We must all do the work necessary to dismantle structural racism, and be accountable for making today’s ritual dance and music community anti-racist and inclusive. We stand with Black Lives Matter and the continuing struggle for racial justice and equity. #blacklivesmatter #blm