Crossroads dance

The crossroads dance was a type of social event popular in Ireland up to the mid-20th century, in which people would congregate at the large cleared space of a crossroads to dance.[1] In contrast to the later ceili styles, crossroad dances were generally set dancing or solo dancing. The crossroads dance declined in popularity in the mid-20th century, due to rural depopulation, musical recordings, and pressure of the Catholic clergy which resulted in the Public Dance Halls Act of 1935 which restricted all dancing to licensed establishments.[2] In the early 1930s the wooden platforms at crossroads became the focus of standoffs and faction fights between Fianna Fáil and the Blueshirts, with some destroyed by arson.[3] The phrase "comely maidens dancing at the crossroads", a misquotation attributed to Éamon De Valera's 1943 Patrick's Day radio broadcast, has become shorthand for a maudlin yearning for a vanished Irish rural idyll.[3]

References

  1. ↑ Sean Williams (26 April 2010). Focus: Irish Traditional Music. Routledge. pp. 36–. ISBN 978-1-135-20413-6. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  2. ↑ Simon Broughton; Mark Ellingham; Richard Trillo (1999). World music: the rough guide. Africa, Europe and the Middle East. Rough Guides. pp. 171–. ISBN 978-1-85828-635-8. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Arson at the Crossroads!". RTÉ.ie. RTÉ Radio 1. 13 October 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
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