All rights reserved (About Us). Aside from the obvious (costumes, music), the Mummers still perform skits, just like their European forebears did in medieval days. . The Philadelphia Mummers Parade is believed to be one of the oldest folk festivals in America, and a tradition that has been going on since the time of ancient Egyptians. The emphasis for the string bands is music, with great attention paid to the presentation of its theme and costuming. Mummer. Head to the Mummer Museum (1100 S. Second St., Philadelphia). So they got involved, sanctioning and organizing the first official Philadelphia Mummers Parade in 1901. You can expect to hear it by multiple times throughout the parade, as almost every String Band will bust it at at some point. (Video by Julia. We dont march with our legs up high. It starts with the rig-up, where mummers can pull together a costume from a dozen tables piled high with donated clothing and hobby horse heads. I grew up outside Philadelphia and attended college in the City of Brotherly Love, so watching the citys annual Mummers Parade was as much a part of my familys New Years Day festivities as pork and sauerkraut. The outdoor portion of the parade is free with the exception of limited seating in front of the main judges stand at city hall. Love that you post this kind of stuff! http://www.thetelegram.com/News/Local/2010-12-20/article-2055987/Mummers-and-murder/1, SUPER informative article, thanks so much for the link. It all started in the mid-seventeenth century when the first parade was created, infusing dance, music, and costume styles from Swedish, Irish, German, and African cultures and heritages to celebrate art and tradition. They entertain at various feasts and functions performing plays [1] and . There are five Mummer divisions: Comic, Wench Brigades, Fancy Division, Fancy Brigades and String Bands. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. [The judges] might not understand what we do because were not a traditional Mummer group, Mapp told Billy Penn in 2019. It's a tradition on New Year's Day in the City of Brotherly Love. Approximately 60-70 Mummers strut down the parade route in elaborate costumes, and some ride floats called frame suits. In the 1800s, parties of drunken mummers would walk the streets with sticks, or bladders full of rocks tied on, and they would use the cover of their disguises to beat others up. The credit, Martz says, goes to the Swedish immigrants in Philadelphia in the late 17th century. Mummers who play music while strutting down Broad St. Also, you'll note that many a Mummer is rocking golden shoes -- that's a nod to this song. They spend months creating elaborate costumes, performance routines, and movable scenery. (There is, however, a competing theory for the decline of mummering: people started getting carpets in their houses and were not interested in letting drunken masked strangers bring their muddy boots inside.). [7], In the 1980s, mummering experienced a revival, thanks to the locally popular musical duo Simani, who wrote and recorded "Any Mummers Allowed In?" To save this word, you'll need to log in. What are the divisions of the Mummers Parade? Most of the participants hailed from the South Philly neighborhoods Moyamensing and Southwark, according to Patricia Masters book The Philadelphia Mummers: Building Community Through Play. Philadelphia made the Mummers Parade an official, sanctioned event on New Years Day 1901, and its taken place ever since except for weather postponements and the 2020 COVID cancellation. 15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1. Love Philly? If the mummers are welcomed into a house, they often do a variety of informal performances that may include dance, music, jokes, or recitations. Mummers have their roots in the past, tracing as far back as ancient Egypt. For a few hours, at least, you can dance and playand no one will know who you are. In the meantime, enjoy these videos taken from the parade. To make up for the lost funding, Mummers have gotten sponsorships from corporations like Southwest Airlines and Rivers Casino (formerly known as SugarHouse). In Europe these mummers would parade around streets, enter random houses and play dice. Im so happy to hear you say that, Kate! This year, the Fancy Brigades include Shooting Stars, 2nd St. Shooters, Purple Magic, Clevemore, Golden Crown, Avenuers, Downtowners, Jokers, Saturnalian, Satin Slipper, Vikings and Spartans. In Europe these mummers would parade around streets, enter random houses and play dice in silence (because that's not creepy at all). Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com, By Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com. There are jokes, dances and competitions among groups to see who entertains the crowds the most. 2023 Atlas Obscura. St. Johns, the capital, has a similar feel to a historic New England harbor town, where the waters never far away, only here the row houses are painted bright red, blue, teal, yellow, even purple and salmon pink. January 1, 2021. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. If you live in the Philadelphia area or plan on spending your holiday there, the Mummers Parade is the place to be, so dont go too wild the night before. On a December afternoon, hundreds of people converged on a gym in St. Johns, ready to march through the streets in their elaborate (and not-so-elaborate) costumes. The most famous Mummers poem reads: The Mummers Museum opened in 1976 as part of Philadelphias celebration of Americas Bicentennial. Protesters march on South 11th Street wearing sweatshirts that say "South Philly Still Struts." (Emma Lee/WHYY) For the first time in decades, the new year has dawned in Philadelphia without a formal Mummers Parade to accompany it. But it was quickly picked up by other neighborhoods in South Philly. As this type of celebration grew more dangerous, the firearms were left at home. [3] Some state that the tradition was brought to Newfoundland by Irish immigrants from County Wexford. The parade aspect of the Mummers that we recognize today really came together in the 1860s. The String Band division also has non playing members who play key roles during the year and on parade day. However the Fancy Brigades will still perform indoors. Although it is unclear precisely when this tradition was brought to Newfoundland by the English and Irish, the earliest record dates back to 1819. This parade is the ultimate place of creative expression. Most of them are men. tickets for those seat can be found at the Philadelphia Visitors Center at 5th and Market Sts. Antoine Mapp is the director of the 28-person Black drill team West Powelton Drummers, which joined the Mummers festivities more than five years ago. the protagonist of the story, christened Crispin, a serf and the illegitimate child. Only towards the end of the 20th century did mummering really start to disappear, as the fisheries collapsed, the economy changed, and migration meant that more of your neighbors might be actual strangers, and people were less likely to let masked strangers in, says Jarvis. "In Philadelphia, it used to be a celebration of rivalry between the neighborhoods," Martz said. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. It often features skits that take on political topics, sometimes garnering national attention and not in a good way. Inside are costumes, oral histories, video and audio archives and even an exhibit to teach anyone how to strut.. . Whats a rig-up and I must visit St. John if for no other reason than this parade, Agreed! Here are 8 of America's strangest New Year's traditions. Aside from the obvious (the costumes, music), the Mummers still perform skits, just like their European forebears did in medieval days. The earliest Mummers were Comics and Fancies. Which travel companies promote harmful wildlife activities? Yeah, Im thinking about it! "Oh! Also, you'll note that many a Mummer is rocking golden shoes -- that's a nod to this song. Dem Golden Slippers." What time does the Mummers Parade start?# The 2023 Mummers Parade will begin at 9 a.m. They use instruments like saxophones, banjos, accordions, violins and various percussion instruments. The 2020 Philadelphia Mummers Parade is the longest-running traditional folk parade in the country -- and the perfect way to celebrate a new year. Photo from the 2017 Philadelphia Mummers Parade. Mummering has its roots in European rituals, but over centuries . Other excellent viewing locations along Broad Street are at Broad and Oregon, Broad and Shunk, in front of Methodist Hospital, at Washington Avenue, in front of the Union League and, of course, at City Hall where tickets for the reviewing stand are available for purchase from the Citys Department of Recreation. Winner will be selected at random on 04/01/2023. Ahaha! More than a thousand people come out to the Mummers Parade each year, to feel what its like to shed their normal identity for at least a few hours. Participants from all backgrounds get to see and learn about one another's creative decisions, as well as respect one another. The whole affair is supposed to be a lively, fun celebrationbut some texts allude to a mischievous side of Mummering in the past as well. As far as the crowd favorite, I would have to say string bands. The 2023 Mummers Parade, slated to return for the 123rd time on Jan. 1, is the start of a new era for the Philadelphia tradition, according to its organizers. A long, long time ago, before there was a United States, Swedish immigrants introduced Mummery to Philadelphia. But when the recession hit in 2008, Philly slashed the Mummers funding, and started contributing just $300,000 to the event. In Mummer terms, the plumes that ruffle feathers must be plucked. More information at mummersmuseum.com. The Mummers Museum opened in 1976 as part of Philadelphia's celebration of America's Bicentennial. Share the Newf love. The city figured with its involvement it could tone down the parade. Happy holidays!! Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Mayor Jim Kenney canceled the parade in July out of concern about the pandemic. For many long years, Newfoundland was a place mostly isolated from the rest of the world, dotted with fishing communities that were mostly isolated from each other. [4] The tradition varied, and continues to vary, from community to community. Absolutely! These are basically the clubs that make up the Mummers. The mummers would also go into people's houses and make a ruckus, playing with blinds and demanding soup or alcohol before they left, according to Martz. They're not permitted to play any brass instruments and only use saxophones, banjos, accordions, violins, percussion instruments (including glockenspiels) and bass violins. 9 things to know about Holi, Indias most colorful festival, Anyone can discover a fossil on this beach. Their faces are obscured behind gruesome disguises, lacy veils, giant horse heads, or beneath ghost-like pillow cases. Go stand somewhere along Broad Street between City Hall and Washington Avenue, and youll catch the action. Back in the 1700s, Christmas was apparently frowned upon by the upper class. The most extravagant costumes can cost up to $10,000, and costumes for 65-person clubs can cost close to $100,000. Dem Golden Slippers and consulted a good ol encyclopedia to find out. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. The mummers devote an entire year to crafting their costumes, writing their skits and rehearsing their performances. Before that, a well-known Mummer and his daughter were arrested and charged in 2014 with brutally attacking a person experiencing homelessness in Queen Village. Some fashion tips: wear a huge, grandmother's bra outside a plaid work jacket; place a lace doily over your face; stuff the ass of your pants with fabric; carry an Ugly Stick; wear a toque. 1. The final performance by all groups will be at Broad and Carpenter streets. You know what it looks like but what is it called? Every weekday we compile our most wondrous stories and deliver them straight to you. For the sellsword company often called the Bloody Mummers, see Brave Companions. The hobby horse is an odd creation, with a horse-like head, beady eyes, crooked hobnail teeth, and a giant hunchback. Even that first year, it worked. Philly plays host to the most impressionist paintings housed in a city outside of Paris. But, Mummery continued and there are no known arrests for violating the ordinance. This year's String Bands are Greater Overbrook, Fralinger, Quaker City, Aqua, Pennsport, Broomall, Ferko, South Philadelphia, Avalon, Polish American, Greater Kensington, Uptown, Hegeman, Durning, Woodland and Duffy. See more. Mummering sounds awesome. In 1860, a fisherman in Bay Roberts was killed with an axe by three masked men. Mummers have had a bad history concerning blackface, which was officially banned in 1964 but has been spotted several times in the years since. In some places, mummers troupes would also go from house to house to raise funds for their celebrations. Mummers . You guys should branch out and go on a mummering tour through North Dakota. There are five divisions of Mummers. The Newfoundland Holiday Tradition Where Disguised Visitors Drink, Dance, and Swing Your Granny", "Mummering, Violence and the Law in Nineteenth-Century Newfoundland", "Celebrate Christmas the old-fashioned way: with drunken mayhem", "The dark side of mummering: What you may not know about a beloved tradition", "Mummers on trial: Mumming, Violence and the Law in Conception Bay and St. John's, Newfoundland, 1831-1863", "11 Canadian winter festivals to check out across the country", "Mummers take ugly sticks and hobby horses to the streets of St. John's for annual parade", "Mummers Parade keeps Newfoundland Christmas tradition alive: organizer", "Hundreds take part in annual Mummers Parade in St. John's", "Doilies, beer cases and Nan's bras disguise mummers at St. John's parade", Annual Mummers Festival, St. John's, Newfoundland, Christmas Traditions on the Memorial University Intangible Cultural Heritage website, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mummering&oldid=1124397849, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 November 2022, at 18:32. Anyone can become a mummer, however, because it is a year-round hobby, the vast majority of mummers live in Philadelphia and its surrounding suburbs. Its a classic set-up for divergent evolution, where seclusion incubates unique traits. Hes seen people wearing lamp shades as masks or using broiler pans and beer bottle caps to make instruments. 1970 Bring in the Women For the first time, women are officially allowed to participate in the parade and bring with them various new tools, capabilities, and performance opportunities. mumming play, also called mummers' play, traditional dramatic entertainment, still performed in a few villages in England and Northern Ireland, in which a champion is killed in a fight and is then brought to life by a doctor. Comics are known for satire, Wench Brigades are the traditional comic in wench dresses, Fancy Costume known for frame suits and back pieces, String Bands are the sound of the parade and Fancy Brigades are known for high energy Broadway style shows with large props and scenery. In Newfoundland, mummering has usually meant, in its most basic form, wearing a costume that disguises your identity and going from house to house, visiting your neighbors. In a matter of days, thousands of people decked out in colorful costumes will strut down Broad Street in Philadelphia for thelongest-running traditional folk parade in the country. Dressed as mummers, strangers feel an unusual freedom to talk and tease. Start a trend in Seattle, Joshy! The National Christmas Tree Board was supposed to protect American tree growers, until one man intervened. The parade will not air on PHL17, ending a more than 30-year tradition, and will broadcast on WDPN-TV (MeTV2) instead. The first formal, city-sponsored parade dates to 1901. Theyre pretty much men dressed like women and though theyre named after medieval women they trace their origins back to 19th century-era plantation women. And theyve popped up in America before. And how did this all come about? To get around the anti-Christmas attitude, members of the lower class in Boston would celebrate by essentially performing mummery going door to door in elaborate costumes asking for money. In 1996, it was considered a big deal when about 10 percent of all string band performers were women. Asta. Please be respectful of copyright . The different clubs and divisions of Mummers dance, strut, perform and, in the case of the String Band division, play instruments. Also, the String Bands have their own distinctive sound. Nothing goes better together than alcohol and anonymity. Nobody should be able to guess your gender. However, the word Mummer can be traced back to ancient Greece. Your neighbors would know the clothes you owned, the way you talked and walked, says Dale Jarvis, an Intangible Cultural Heritage Development Officer at the Heritage Foundation of Newfoundland and Labrador, and author of Any Mummers Lowed In? The Mummers perform their acts and get judged near City Hall. Ten thousand participants and hundreds of thousands of parade viewers take to the streets and sidewalks or view on television on New Years Day. TheFancy Brigade, Wenches, Comics and Fancy divisions will also perform at Broad and Pine streets. That reveling, by the way, including lots of gun fire (why not?). Mummers have their roots in the past, tracing as far back as ancient Egypt. Thats why the Museum is officially called the New Years Shooters and Mummers Museum. In addition to sexism, the Mummers have been guilty of racism in their performances. Mummers also have to disguise their faces, and they worked with what was availablean old lace curtain or tablecloth, a pillowcase or flower sack with eyes cut out and, perhaps, a face painted on it. The mummering gone wrong thing comes from a long time ago. 2023. In 1964, it took a court order to get them to stop doing it during their performances. Why wetlands are so critical for life on Earth, Rest in compost? You can become a Mummer by contacting any Mummer organization and asking about their individual membership process. Participation in the parade is dropping. Thats why events like the Mummers Parade in Philly are so important. In 2020, Mayor Jim Kenney ordered the Mummers to finally cut out the blackface or else hed cancel the parade altogether. The parade has diversified since then. Learn how to do the Mummers Strut NJ.com 352K subscribers Subscribe Share 26K views 7 years ago Anthony from Cherry Hill, NJ demonstrates how to do the Mummers strut before the 2016 Mummers. It was also loosely based on the British and Irish Mummers plays, which were folk plays performed by troupes of amateur actors, almost like pantomimes, but with more of a mythical narrative. Delivered to your inbox! Maria Pulcinella. The parade steps off on Marketand 15th streets at 9 a.m. on Jan. 1It then works its way south and east until it hits Broad, at which point it goes down that thoroughfare until it reaches Washington Ave. That's the conclusion of the parade. Father Quinel. These are Newfoundlands mummers, the latest iteration of a centuries-old tradition that has its roots in Europe but is entirely unique to this Canadian island. Sometimes, they poke fun of the parade itself, as was the case by the Rabble Rousers group, part of the Landi Comic Club. Hahaha, worldwide mummering. Thats why I was dismayed to learn from Joel Rose on NPRs Morning Edition that the parade may be threatened by the citys budget woes. Follow us on social media to add even more wonder to your day. 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