Apple Wassail & Community Dance

Join us for a magical family event this January at the beautiful Hulbert Outdoor Center in Fairlee, VT. 

An Apple Tree Wassail is a traditional type of wassailing from the Cider orchards of Southern England, and dates back to at least the 1500s. This is a tradition full of song, ritual and dance, to see the dark winter away and to bring about a good crop of apples for the new year! We performed a Wassail on stage in our 2022 Midwinter Revels production, so it will be really exciting to bring this tradition to the Hulbert Outdoor Center to wassail a real live tree! The wassail will be led by Revels North's Artistic Director (and authentic Englishman) Alex Cumming.

Following the wassail at 3:30pm, we will head inside to warm up with some community dancing for all! Alex will lead us in fun barn dances, Ceilidh dances, contra dances and more, suitable for the entire family! 

There will also be an OPEN BAND led by 2023 Midwinter Revels artist Laurel Swift. This means if you play an instrument, you are very welcome to come join the band! We will provide sheet music with chords, but whether you read music or not, all are welcome to play these simple and fun folk tunes.

Timings:
Arrive 3pm onwards.
Wassail: starts at 3:30pm sharp!
Community Dance: from 4pm-5:30pm.

Putting cider-soaked toast into the tree as an offering to the good spirits. Photo from Midwinter Revels 2022.