Tudor dance troupe wins top award

A Tudor dance troupe, based at Cadw’s Plas Mawr house, has won a prestigious award for their work in bringing museum learning to life.

The UK-wide award from the British Museum and the Marsh Charitable Trust recognises volunteers who help museums to better engage with their visitors.

The Plas Mawr group, who formed before Covid and are aged between 50 and 84, have been named as this year’s Welsh winners.

The award-winning troupe demonstrate their Tudor dance moves at the grand house four times each season during special performances at Plas Mawr’s “Meet the Household” events.

They can also be spotted dancing at their weekly rehearsal session at the monument and their handmade costumes are exhibited as part of the visitor experience.

Schools

During the past 18 months the volunteers have begun to take their Henry VIII-era pavanes and gavottes out into the community – visiting schools and local groups to perform and to share their knowledge of Plas Mawr and its heritage.

Angela Francis Morris, one of the troupe members, said: “I absolutely love our Tudor Dancing. We have such fun in our classes and of course, get to dress up in our beautiful, handmade costumes. I feel so lucky.

“I have been a volunteer at Plas Mawr for seven years and have loved every minute of it. It is a real privilege to volunteer in such a wonderful old building. I’m always learning something new from custodians, other volunteers or indeed from members of the public. It’s so lovely to meet people from all over the world from different cultures and backgrounds.”

Congratulating the dancers, Minister for Culture, Jack Sargeant, said: “Llongyfarchiadau! I’m so grateful to Plas Mawr’s Tudor dancers, and volunteers like them across the country, for willingly giving their time and energy to inspire others and help them appreciate and understand our heritage.”

Elizabethan town house

Plas Mawr, or Great Hall, is one of the best surviving examples of an Elizabethan town house in the UK today.

Dating from the 16^th century, the property was built by Robert Wynn, a member of the local gentry in Conwy, following his marriage to his first wife, Dorothy Griffith.

The house was built in three phases between 1576 and 1585 at a total cost of around £800.

After 1683 Plas Mawr passed into the hands of the Mostyn family and ceased to be used as a family home. It was rented out for various purposes during the 18th and 19th centuries, including for use as a school, cheap lodgings and finally as the headquarters of the Royal Cambrian Academy of Art.

The condition of the house deteriorated considerably in the 20th century as maintenance costs grew and the Welsh heritage agency Cadw took over management of the property in 1993 and carried out an extensive, 42-month-long restoration project, costing £3.3 million.

The attraction, set in the centre of Conwy town, attracts around 18,000 visitors annually.