Idylwild Morris

May morning in High Park, Toronto

Our badges have arrived from the lovely Daniel Moore Gobbitt, accompanied by a lovely letter. Thank you so much Daniel 💜

We are looking forward to wearing them on May morning in Toronto and at Tri-Cities Pride in June.

In Ontario and other parts of North America, the Shivaree or charivari was a custom where people banged pots and pans to “serenade” newlyweds.

In some cases it was because the marriage was disapproved of locally, as happened in Elora in 1836. Other times it was done to encourage a young couple to get married (presumably because they were “living in sin”).

There’s even a Canadian opera called The Shivaree. And a book about Shivarees too. Bob’s Dad was interviewed for the book by Pauline Greenhill.

In memoriam - A tip of the hat to Tom Elmer, who we lost on 4 Oct of this year at age 75. I first met Tom in 2003 as the musician for Cold Barn Morris out of Hamilton, my first Morris side. A wonderful and very patient man who played for Orange Peel, Cold Barn, Green Fiddle, Forest City, and any other side in need of a musician within driving distance of his home in Tottenham, Ontario. When he wasn't playing accordion, he worked at the IT department of York University in Toronto. Check any old photo where there's Morris dancing in Southern Ontario or at big dance events across the Northeastern US and Tom will be somewhere in the background.
The photo below was taken at a pub stop in the New Forest (Hampshire, England) during the Orange Peel tour of the UK in 2017. Cheers to you Tom and thanks for many great memories! 🍻