Dance Reviews
BUXTON DAY OF DANCE 2026 - Chapel-en-le-Frith Morris
There is a day every year in Buxton, when all around town there is the gentle tinkling of bells on the edge of hearing.
This is Buxton Day of Dance, as Morris dancers and others make their way to and from the various street venues where they perform, for the delight of devotees and drawn-in passers-by.
Convened by Chapel-en-le-Frith Morris, sixteen sides (the name for a Morris group) come this year from all over the country. The furthest-travelled are Somerset’s Knights of King Ina, while others join us from Shrewsbury and Yorkshire.
A dancer tells me they had considered incorporating umbrellas into their routine, after a damp 2025 Day of Dance. This year conditions are perfect, dry and warm, bringing out good crowds to all six venues.
The sides bring a gentle cheerfulness to Buxton in their colourful kits. Some wear white with coloured sashes (called baldrics I learn), others following the ‘border morris’ tradition have eye-catching ‘tatter coats’ - the Powderkegs from Whaley Bridge are mobile fireworks in black, red, orange and yellow.
Lancashire’s Stone the Crows are gothic in black rags and feathers. The routine has a martial feel, with stomping music and clashing sticks. A junior crow, aged 5 or so, watches on wearing brighter, multi-coloured plumage. In a few decades he will be ready to join in.
At each venue, four sides perform one after the other, then move on. Groups watch and support each other. There is some interaction: a Knight of Ina peels away from his routine to tickle the Stone The Crows stave with his rainbow feather duster. All taken in good spirits.
Accompanying musicians play a range of instruments: often melodeon, pipes, fiddles and drums. One side jigs to a melodic piccolo, which I am told is a battlefield instrument, developed to carry over outdoor noise. This serves well at the busy Pavilion Gardens.
Enjoyment is key for the dancers and comes over to the audience. While most routines go impeccably, at one point a dancer diverges from the planned pattern. ‘Oops, I went round the wrong way!’ she laughingly tells us, before stylishly falling back in.
Morris is the main style, but the Day of Dance is inclusive. Shipley’s Fiddle ‘n’ Feet bring uptempo Appalachian style, the crowd clapping along. A tranquil contrast is the Nine Ladies (four of them) from Derbyshire, who clog dance to the Skye Boat Song accompanied by a soulful singer.
For the finale at the Slopes, each side performs their show dance to an enthusiastic crowd of hundreds. An international Buxton visitor asks me what is going on and I explain the Day Of Dance. ‘Aren’t they graceful?’ she says, ‘Aren’t we lucky?’.
Damian Payton
DISCO EXTRAVAGANZA FOR BLYTHE HOUSE HOSPICE - Michael Dennehy
It was great to see the return of DJ Retro Mike with his Disco Extravaganza once again raising money for Blythe House.
Behind a cool cut-out of a bright pink car, the driver of the evening expertly managed his rainbow-coloured turntables, his stylus technique and the perfect condition of his vinyl records ensuring seamless transitions between hit after vintage hit.
As promised, we moved from the Fifties to the Sixties and Seventies, but also beyond with Eighties’ classics including Enola Gay and Abracadabra. It was easy to find oneself remaining on the dance floor for just one more boogie - who could resist the compelling beat of numbers like My Boy Lollipop or The Lion Sleeps Tonight?
The Chatsworth Room at the Palace is a big space and it is fair to say we didn’t fill it but the mainly female crowd thoroughly enjoyed themselves on a night where much of the nation was glued to a certain football match on the TV. There were life-size cut outs of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley as well as a seaside-like photo-board for dancers to poke a head through the hole and take a selfie. The only thing missing for me was some disco-lighting and that cloak of darkness so useful for out-of-practice dancers trying to shed a few inhibitions - something for the organisers to think about, though the room’s brightness did afford the opportunity to admire the ornate ceiling and numerous cherubs looking down at us.
In all, the Extravaganza was a very welcome addition to the Fringe’s still too small Dance category. If you missed it and would like to donate to Blythe House, visit www.blythehousehospice.org.uk/support-us
Stephanie Billen
JAZZ AND TAP DANCE JAM AT ONNEN - Sole Rebel
Following a full-on Carnival Day, Sole Rebel’s intimate tap and jazz jam managed to be both relaxing and invigorating. A free event held at Onnen bar, it drew in casual drinkers and fascinated passers by as well as appealing to jazz lovers and anyone like me who enjoyed tap classes as a child.
When I was learning, it was about all about set routines and following the teacher, but the excitement here was to witness the conversation going on between the jazz musicians - electric guitarist Alex McDowall and Spanish composer and double bassist Pablo Sonnaillon from Liverpool-based collective Grounded Thread - and the individual dancers as they took turns to perform on a tiny stage at the front of the bar. Very often they were looking at the musicians rather than the audience as they let their imaginations fly, interpreting what they were hearing with just the right shuffle, stamp or toe tap. On at least one occasion the music started a few beats later than the dancer, making it feel as if the musicians too were reacting to what they were seeing. Their stimulating music featured original numbers and glorious interpretations of classics such as the Pink Panther theme.
Such was the welcoming atmosphere that audience members could join in if they wanted so I dared to have a go, supported by friendly young dancer Sophie Moseley. To the strains of On the Sunny Side of the Street, we took it in turns to tap along as the mood took us - a new experience for me and a delightful one.
Above all, I found it so fascinating to see each dancer’s personality shine through in their performance styles. There were some very cool, heavy heel taps from one, romantic circular foot sweeps from another. Then in a joyful finale they joined together for the Shim Sham routine often regarded as tap’s national anthem. It is good to know that their enthusiasm is being passed down the generations with this female-led tap and live-jazz performance company also having organised a Jazz Gig for Kids at the Fringe earlier the same day. Let’s hope they return to the Fringe so still more people can discover the joy of dance.
Stephanie Billen
