MOREŠKA – the chivalric dance from Korčula
Moreška is a romantic war dance with swords that spread originally from the Mediterranean countries in the 12th and 13th centuries. It is supposed that Moreška first came to Korčula from Spain in the 16th century across the South Italy and Dubrovnik. Later, through centuries, Moreška disappeared from the Mediterranean and today the traces are discerned only in some parts, while it is still deeply rooted in Korčula, where its today's pattern of an attractive war dance with real swords is unique in the whole world.
Moreška was named after the Moors – Moriski. That explains the origins of the Spanish adjective ˝ morisco ˝ and of the Italian one ˝ moresco ˝, in fact, the war dance with the Moors – Moriski is called MORESCA in Italian.
It is supposed that the first moresca was performed in Spanish Lerida in 1150 as a reminiscence of the expulsion of the Moors.
It can be summarized as the story about the fight for a girl and in that sense it has its roots in the traditional Mediterranean stories and legends, of which perhaps the oldest and the most famous one is the one about the Trojan war, although there are some different characters in Moreška from Korčula.
Moro, the Black King's son takes by force and imprisons the White King's fiancee ( Bula ).
After the short dramatic action which develops through the dialogue between Moro and Bula, and later with the White King as well, the armies of both kings confront.
At the end of the dramatic part, there is the introductory dance SFIDA or a challenge, which precedes the war dance.
Sfida is the dance of Moro – the son of the Black King, in which the Black and the White Kings also take part afterwards. At the end of Sfida, the war dance eventually begins and it develops through the passionate sword combat. Moreška is divided into seven different dancing figures, each one generally known as KOLAP or strokes, although almost all those figures have their own names:
The 1st Kolap: RUGIER ( named after the Norman duke Rigiero I, who led the struggle against the Arabs in Sicily – he died in 1101. )
The 2nd Kolap: MOREŠKA
The 3rd Kolap: FINTA
The 4th Kolap cosists of the two minor figures: The first is MORO IN DENTRO and the second is PARA PIE.
At the end of this figure, Bula tries to intervene and to solve their conflict and so she acts as a peace-maker. However, Moro and the White King reject her suggestion and their fight continues.
The 5th Kolap: KRIŽ ( the cross )
The 6th Kolap : RUGIER DE FUORIVIA
The 7th Kolap: SEDMI KOLAP
This figure ends with the crushing defeat of the black army, the surrender of Moro and the White King sets Bula free. It was introduced in the 20th century as the development of the minor figure of the 4th kolap, MORO IN DENTRO, by Ivo Tedeschi. This figure is one of the slight innovations that Moreška has been experiencing since the ancient times.
Moreška is performed with a music accompaniment and several different musics have been composed throughout history. Today, Moreška is accompanied by the brass band, the score for which was composed by Krsto Odak in 1947.
During the thousand years long tradition of moresca in many Mediterranean countries, it is understandable that centuries have left their traces as each of the different historical periods contributed to it, especially to its dramatical part. That's why certain details are not always easily linked with historical facts, since the oral tradition and historical-political circumstances have implied some considerable alterations of its contents.
In the story of Moreška perhaps the most interesting question is: Why has Moreška preserved its freshness and attractiveness only in the town of Korčula, where, after more than four centuries, it still lives as a part of the present and not the past times?!
It is difficult to give an answer to this question because the whole story doesn´t have its footing in the history of the town of Korčula, since Moreška from Korčula is the battle between the Arabs and Turks.
Throughout history people from Korčula were fighting against the Turks and Arabs and it is even presumed, according to some opinions, that for centuries Moreška was performed as a memory to the Turkish siege in 1571. People from Korčula participated in the struggles against the Turks in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and it makes it even more surprising that in such a Christian environment Moreška was preserved as an imagery of the conflict between the two Moslem rulers.
However, according to the famous historian from Korčula, dr. Vinko Foretić, already in 1571 the presentations of fights between the Turks and the Moors were well known in Split, on the occasion of their victory over the Turks. According to Foretić, it is worth to compare the moreška from Split with the one from Korčula, since it is also a war dance between the Turks and the Moors, although the Moreška from Korčula, unlike the one from Split, does have a dramatic plot. If we take all these aspects into consideration, both moreškas are very alike and different presentations of the war dance between the Turks and the Moors (occasionally to the glory of Venice) were not rare in those days.
All these presumptions do not have a reliable answer and moresca, as a phenomenon that has been lasting in the Mediterranean for almost one thousand years, demands more research, so that it could be possible to answer properly all the questions relating Moreška from Korčula.
Written documents inform us of the existence of moresca already before the time when the prince, whose surname was Riva, ruled (there were two of them: Marco 1683. i Zuane 1743.), since moresca was then performed in the honour of his wife Paulina. By analysing these documents, it is worth to point out that at that time the translation of the dramatic part of moresca was written for the prince's wife Paulina, which proves that moresca was performed in Croatian among the common people of Korčula (Traduzione Per Sua Eccelenza La Nobil Donna Paulina Capello da Riva).
Despite all the questions and presumptions that could be put in connection with Moreška, its general cultural value is enormous. This acquisition of the Mediterranean and European culture with its cosmopolitan character is still preserved in Korčula, but here, beside its general characteristics, it has achieved its own, special character. Korčula is certainly one of the few places in the world, and today the only one, where Moreška, both its dramatic and the war part, is performed in an original, antique way, in the spirit and pattern of the ancient Mediterranean models, inspite of many layers that have been brought upon it by centuries.
The first written document on Moreška in Korčula, written by a certain Paul Paskvalig on the 7th of March 1966, is interesting ( beside other things such as its year ) for its contents. It speaks about the incident which happened during the time of the carnival and in which ˝moreškanti˝, meaning young men performing the dance, were participating. Certain improprieties were done by the jovial group of young men , ˝moreškanti˝, at the time of the carnival and by doing so they insulted the three men from Korčula – Marin and Isep Milovčić and Augustin Vidošević. The prince of Korčula, who had enough understanding for those young ˝moreškanti˝ accepted their apologies and did nothing to punish them. It brings us to the conclusion that certain sympathies, partialities were expressed and a deep respect was paid for the young men who were playing Moreška.
There is a record, which dates from the same period, of an incident that happened in 1685, once again during or after the time of the carnival. The witness says that it happened after Moreška had been over (˝ doppo finiva la moresca ˝). Both examples undoubtedly prove that already at that time there was a specially trained group of men who were performing Moreška. But they also prove that Moreška was performed during the carnival time and that these men were a rather playful group of youth in Korčula. We can even say that they were of ˝a special ethical status.˝
Later on, until the Second world war, Moreška was performed in Korčula once a year, that is on the 29th of July, as the part of the celebrations for the local patron saint, for Saint Todor´s day, or exceptionally, on the occasion when a particularly eminent guest paid a visit to Korčula (higher state officers, royal families, warships from friendly countries etc.). On the other hand, there were years when Moreška was not performed at all and the reasons are still unknown. When Korčula was under the enemy occupation in the Second world war, Moreška was not performed and it was re-introduced after the liberaton in 1944. As a separate section it became the part of the cultural artistic society ˝ Moreška ˝ which was founded in 1950. Ever since Moreška is often performed for the tourists who visit the island of Korčula, and the most solemn performances used to be given on the 27th of July, the day of Resistance of the Peoples of Croatia against the aggressor in the Second world war. It is obvious from the above that Moreška has always been performed with love and passion and on very special occasions, so it is no wonder that it was not performed during the period of the occupation and enslavement. The first revision of Moreška and its first renewed performance took place in Hvar, on the 15th of October, 1944.
As the part of the ˝ Moreška ˝ society after the Second world war, Moreška saw its big revival when it came back to Europe and visited many European towns ( Paris, London, Venice, Stockholm, Prague, Bratislava etc.) as a unique Mediterranean attraction filled with the southern temperament and the romantic spirit of the Middle Ages. Throughout these years the people of Korčula have won wide recognition for their performances of Moreška, at home and abroad. They can be really proud of these achievements, since Moreška, with its history, today´s exclusiveness and reputation outside the borders of Croatia, has undoubtedly become Korčula´s sanctity, tightly woven into the way of life and the way of thinking of the people of Korčula, from the moment of their birth till the day they die.
Moreška today
The four centuries long tradition of Moreška in the town of Korčula must have left its mark on the spirit of its town. There is almost no family in Korčula today that does not have at least one of its members dancing in Moreška or Bula. From the day they are born children in Korčula dream of the day when they will have enough strength and stamina to hold the steel sword or when girls will come of the age when they will have the chance to be chosen as Bula, among many other girls. Today, both are accepted as a great honour and joy for those young people, their families and friends.
Inspite of the long tradition and the extremely tight connection between the town and Moreška, at the end of the 20th century Moreška found itself on the dividing line, confronted with the challenges of its time, the time that had lasted for one thousand years since the idea of Moreška first emerged. In its long story it is most certain that each time was a giver and a taker for Moreška. Different layers have been drifted by centuries, as we have already talked about them. Moreška, as opposed to some other similar phenomena ( Alka, f.e., is more a matter of the present power-holders ), has never become the part of the image of the present politics, although there were some attempts to achieve that. For the four tumultuous centuries Moreška has managed to remain the part of Korčula, quietly and self-denyingly, but in fact, inseparably.
The independence of Moreška had its price because its existence has never been a burden to the society. On the other hand, with the development of tourism, the need for the Moreška performances were bigger and bigger and tourism became the source of income for its maintenance
A richer programme, with many other dancing and singing folklore items beside Moreška, improved the repertoire for the benefit of many tourists and enlarged the incomes, but the philosophy of Moreška was damaged. It is true that Moreška was still the crown of all the performances and it was giving us the unique experience because of its attractiveness and dynamism that cannot be compared with any other war dance, but, as the time went by, it lost the part of its soul. Moreška was performed too many times which caused its separation, in a cruel, rude and uncommon way, from the man of Korčula. The old customs were lost, that had been connected with Moreška, and that, undoubtedly, were the source of its special, Korčula spirit, or they were completely simplified and became formal to the point of non-recognizability. This over-production of the Moreška dancers and of the number of performances decreased the feeling of solemnity and honour so that only few of the Moreška dancers still accepted Moreška as the part of the philosophy of their own living in the thousand years-old island Town.
At the beginning of the 90s tumultuous events in these areas intensified the negative pressure on Moreška even more.
Wishing to surround themselves with the splendour of the past, political structures wanted to transform Moreška into ˝ the historical Croatian formation ˝ - that is the military formation for the needs of the state ceremonies. That completely changed the meaning of the Moreška phenomenon. Moreška became the historical forgery and that uncritical and incompetent decision did not take into account that, for the people of Korčula, Moreška was not the past but the present. Another severe blow to Korčula and Moreška came in 1966, when
the national ensemble ˝ Lado ˝ from Zagreb copied Korčula´s Moreška, sustained ( once
again ) by the political decision, the state self-will and the state money, and it became a part of their repertoire. Despite the vehement opposition of the people of Korčula, this unbelievably uncultural idea, realized with the support of the Croatian Ministry of Culture, literally represents the precedent, the example of the destructive impact of the authority upon the tradition of its own people, all in the name of ˝ the state interests ˝.
Luckily, the fake Moreška will not survive because the legend says that the curse of the people of Korčula is for those who would sell Moreška and who would try to take it by force. Thanks to all the above mentioned temptations and attacks, today's generation of
˝ moreškanti ˝ is energetically decisive to give it back its soul and that lost part of its dignity.
Through their chivalric society, today's dancers try to prevent any kind of political influence on Moreška, since it has never brought them any good. Without the political influence, Moreška will most certainly remain the glittering symbol of the town of Korčula and the favourite place of gathering of the best Korčula´s youth. Perhaps all these misfortunes inflicted on Moreška during the latest times have contributed to the today's warm atmosphere among our Moreška dancers. Contemporary Moreška dancers, completely understanding the phenomenon of Moreška and their role in it, are more tolerant among themselves, they associate no matter what their generation, religious or political differences are, their families are closely bound and, more than ever before, strong friendships are formed. And, when the fighting dance begins, the swords flash radiantly and in the ardour of the combat even injuries are not rare.
The contrast between the friendship in life and the animosity on the dance floor is precisely what makes contemporary Moreška so real and great, noble and unique. And what´s going on ˝ after Moreška has been finished ˝ does not differ too much from the events of the year 1666.
Source: www.moreska.hr