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Once a year, at sunset on October 31st, Recently Traditional Fictional Morris (RTFM) dances the AntiMorris, to mark the turning of the year and help make the frost flowers bloom.We are pleased to invite you to join us, both to observe this important ritual and to help celebrate with pre-sunset singing. As the event falls on a weekend day this year, we'll be starting a little earlier than usual, with some "regular" morris dancing (featuring Whistlepig Morris and possibly Mystic Valley Morris) from 4 to 4:30pm.
But we are still in a pandemic, and there are immunocompromised, elderly, and other elevated risk folks among us, so our event is not quite as it was in the Before Times.
Read on for details of parking, event flow, community health guidelines, and community singing guidelines...
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PARKING
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Sadly, parking on Vinal Ave is permit-only. You can park without a permit on Highland Ave and walk down. There are also metered spaces in Union Square, but the meters are probably active until 8 PM.
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EVENT FLOW
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From 4:00 PM to shortly after 5:30 PM, people will gather, greet, watch "regular" morris dancing, and sing autumnal songs, many of them from a provided songbook.
Yes, that's 4 PM, an hour earlier than our usual 5 PM. The date is a Saturday this year, which allows us to expand our pre-sunset festivities.
Our songbook is available online as both a PDF (http://rtfm.arberth.com/pubs/autumnsongbook.pdf) and a Google Doc (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LI2yGjbNCHej54cyhZCc7qnj0G9ef8eKGXIt6KCQxB4/). You are also invited to sing seasonally appropriate songs not in this songbook.
RTFM will appear and start dancing shortly before the scheduled local sunset time (5:38 PM this year), to ensure that the sun sets at the agreed-upon time.
After the AntiMorris, you are invited to follow the dancers in a silent procession around the Growing Center grounds. Please note that there are 8 steps up and 8 steps down. The procession will end in a circle on the green, after which attendees should quietly leave the grounds, so that we can close up the Growing Center.
Finally, those who are interested will gather on nearby Oxford Street for the annual Paper Bag Mummers Oxford Street Souling Tour (OSS). More on this at https://www.facebook.com/events/1427011975465811/
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COMMUNITY HEALTH GUIDELINES
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Because singing is a relatively high-risk activity, we ask that people attend only if both symptom-free and up to date on vaccinations. Masks are welcome, but not required.
To allow the more Covid-vulnerable people to steer clear of areas where high amounts of aerosols are being produced, we also ask that singers stay in the paved area.
And because Covid isn't the only nasty thing out there, please do not attend if you have any symptoms that might be related to any communicable illness. If you have symptoms that you think are probably due to allergies or other non-communicable causes, please take an instant test before coming.
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COMMUNITY SINGING GUIDELINES
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We ask that you Be mindful of and accountable for your own song and lyric choices.
Avoid singing songs that could be hurtful or offensive to others — including songs that refer to humans by their race with terms like brown, yellow, or red; songs glorifying genocide or colonization; songs that parody a marginalized group; songs that use racial slurs; songs that normalize or romanticize rape; and songs that mock the LGBTQ+ community. Finally, although this is a spooky Halloween sing, please avoid singing songs with excessive gore or songs that glorify murder. If you’re not sure about singing something, ask us!
If part of a song is harmful, you can change it! Some of our favorite songs have been changed, to preserve the song while removing hurtful lyrics. You can be part of that process! You can replace a line or word, or leave out a verse. If you need help, ask!
If a particularly harmful song comes up, the hosts will ask the singer to stop and choose something else. Otherwise, if you notice a difficult lyric or element, consider starting a conversation with the singer afterward. You can help people understand more about the context of what they’re singing, but don’t put them on the spot mid-session. Likewise, if someone points out something you didn’t know about your song, listen to them! We’re all learning from each other.
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For more information about RTFM, visit the RTFM website, at http://rtfm.arberth.com/
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Event venue
The Somerville Community Growing Center, 8 Vinal Ave, Somerville, MA 02143-1801, United States
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