Today we continue our look at Twelfth Night traditions from Johnna McEntee’s article through the “Into the History” series at Hidden Dirk Mercantile.
Into the History
by Johnna McEntee
Twelfth Night Traditions – Part II
(continued from Part I)… These actors and dancers, often wearing masks and costumes, would travel the streets and visit homes unannounced and beg for drinks and sweets. It is thought that this tradition started when the early Church absorbed the pagan Saturnalia celebration, when some of the “new” Christian faithful would wear caricatured and grotesque masks that would mock the old Roman gods. This led them to be called “mummers” (from the French “momer,” which means wearing a mask). 18th century mummers’ masks and costumes were of a wide variety, including dressing as animals, and the ever popular “straw man.” While traveling the streets begging for holiday goodies, the mummers might spontaneously break into an impromptu play, performed in the street to whoever would listen.
Raucous singing and group dancing were other popular pastimes for mummers during the Twelve Days. Morris Dancing, Sword Dancing, Step Dancing and other folk dances from the “old country” could make an appearance during the mummer’s outing. One of the popular Twelfth Night dancing traditions were “Molly dancers.” Molly troupes were made up entirely of men, with many of their members dressed in women’s clothing. Often, their performances ended with the men asking for coins…or beer.
As could be guessed, the well-to-do weren’t all that impressed by the rowdy – and often bawdy – antics of the village mummers. One of the Pennsylvania gentry wrote that the mummers in his town “were a set of the lowest blackguards, who, disguised in filthy clothes and ofttimes with masked faces, went from house to house in large companies, …obtruding themselves everywhere, particularly into the rooms occupied by parties of ladies and gentlemen, (and) would demean themselves with great insolence.”
Photo Caption: Mummers at a barn party. As you can see, some of the guests in attendance are thoroughly enjoying the show, while others are clearly not amused.
Though “mumming” through the streets in early January isn’t a popular (or should I say “sanctioned”) activity today, you can see all aspects of the 18th century mummers during our modern celebration of Mardi Gras in New Orleans – complete with masks, costumes, dancing, singing, parades, and general tom-foolery.
Tomorrow, in part three of the four-part series, we’ll look at how Twelfth Night and New Years celebrations entwined and the food and festivities that went with them.
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