The Other View

In his collection An Armagh Miscellany, former curator of Armagh County Museum T.G.F. Paterson refers to the 'Drumcree Mummers' who for many years roamed the rural hinterland around Portadown/Moy dressed in reed or straw masks, disguised in hessian costumes and performing the mummers play and playing various traditional musical instruments.

The Mummers tradition is also recorded in south Armagh by Michael J Murphy in his book At The Foot of Slieve Gullion. Among the younger generations little is known about this ancient tradition whose origins stem back to Pagan times. Variants of the mummers tradition are performed in Wexford and Kerry where they are know as Wrenboys. The Mummers play is still performed in various forms throughout Ireland, Britain and Europe. The play incorporates the universal themes of death and resurrection, good triumphing over evil, nature and the cycle of life.

But the play is only one aspect of the Armagh Rhymers broad repertoire. Undoubtedly they are one of the most colourful traditions group in Ireland and have performed to national and international audiences. Versatility and vitality are prime features of their act. They combine music, song, story telling, dancing, and interactive drama involving audiences of all ages. They are flexible, vibrant, hilarious, educational and every performance is packed with a variety of unforgettable entertainment.

This is folk-style theatre at its best which reaches out to all people of all ages and abilities in theatres, streets, schools, community halls, folk museums, hospitals, old peoples homes, traditional weddings, festivals, carnivals and historical sites. Audiences also include students and children from disadvantaged communities in rural and urban areas. The Armagh Rhymers have also delighted audiences in United States, South Korea, and the International Children's Festival in Canada where according to the Toronto Times "The audience could have sung and stomped their feet all day".

In the north the Rhymers work primarily in theatres, schools and community halls in conjunction with the Education for Mutual Understanding Programme in cross community and cross border settings. They perform on special occasions such as the pagan feasts of Lunasa, Bealtain and Samhain which mark the summer and winter solstices. On St Stephen's Day they go 'hunting the wren' and invite other local musicians to join them on an itinerary or 'ceili-ing' which takes in various ceili houses, pubs and ancient or symbolic sites. A sing along or come-all-ye with the Rhymers is an experience not to be forgotten. But besides keeping such traditions alive there is also a munificent aspect to their work.

Peter Shortall explains: "On Saint Stephen's Day we go out and perform at various venues and collect money for charities. This gets us out to meet people and invariably many more join us whether they play, sing, perform or not. Many of them are women so it's not a single gender thing".

The Armagh Rhymers were established in 1978 and formed as a co-operative a decade later. In February they will be a quarter of century in existence. Armagh man Dara Vallely and Brendan Bailey from Portadown make up the triumvirate. They are accomplished musicians who play a range of instruments including concertina, flute, whistles, uileann pipes, guitar, bones and bodhran.

Professor John Gleeson, Director of Irish Studies in Wisconsin University comments on the uniqueness of their act: "This show is the real thing - a glorious example of Irish heritage, a heritage under threat from modern trivialities …I know that visitors want to escape the garish pop culture and find a real Ireland of tradition and gentle folkways. In times in what is increasingly difficult to engage the genuine, the Armagh Rhymers are a rarity and must be treasured and fostered and encouraged".

The work of Irish poets and writers is an integral and significant element of their performances. Their literary and poetic repertoire includes Seamus Heaney, Brendan Kennelly W.R. Rodgers, Derek Mahon John Montague, Patrick Kavanagh, John Hewitt and Michael Longley. Song melodies includes 'The Wee Falurie Man', 'I'll Tell My Ma' all of which induce audience participation.

But here is also the more formal or serious side. The Rhymers portray real and mythical characters via the medium of the folk theatre and preserve aspects and central themes of Irish culture, myth, sagas, place and traditions that form the tapestry of our diverse backgrounds. Material used by them dates back to the nature poetry of the monasteries in the early Christian period. They conduct workshops on mumming, poetry, mask making and costumes making. The costume, known as the 'rig' has special significance being made of straw and hessian cloth. The conical and animal shaped masks made from willow are woven by James Mulholland from Aghagallen near Lurgan. A strong mumming tradition also survives in Fermanagh but the Armagh Rhymers are the only one have made it popular with audiences throughout Ireland and abroad.

Says Dara Vallely: "We have essentially inherited these customs. It's of our generation. In the past there was a need in mid-winter to travel from house to house other than just for entertainment. But essentially the Rhymers, Mummers and Wrenboy traditions are house-visiting traditions, therefore, disguise was important. You had to disguise yourself in every way so no one would know you.

It meant disguising your voice, your physique and even your walk. But if the tradition has enemies they are academics …the curse of any performances. They told the people for years that this tradition came from England but research has proven it's found all over England, Wales, Scotland, in Europe, France, Germany, Siberia, North Africa and Newfoundland. All that worship of the wren is found all over the world".

Brendan Bailey compared the mummers celebrations in other countries to the Mardi Gras in Rio de Janeiro and described celebrations in Philadelphia: "In Philadelphia there is actually a Mummers museum, a massive museum and thousands of people take part in the Mummers parade every St Stephen's Day. They plan and prepare all year for it. It's one of the big events in their calendar".

The Rhymers have performed on TV and radio on numerous occasions. They highlight causes such as preservation of other customs, conservation of trees and woods, respect for nature and the countryside. No one is into tree hugging (at the moment) but indigenous species of trees figure in their selection of poetry.

"But what disturbs me most of the leafy wood is the to and fro of the oak rod. The yew tree in its churchyard wraps night into its dark hood, the ivy is the genius of the wood".

Finally a word about Melissa. An American of Scots-Irish decent she is married to Peter Shortall and is the odd one out in that she's the only woman in, so to say. She takes part in performances besides fulfilling her administrative duties at the Rhymers office in the Old Mill in Keady, Co Armagh. She has a lot to contend with but her organisational and P.R. abilities are the mainstay that keeps this ship afloat.

 Contents

 Home Page