Transcript

File: corbetttrudy06-oh-dancinginschools_M.mp3

Speakers:

TC – Trudy Corbett

FC – Fulton Corbett (husband of Trudy Corbett)

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

MS – Mary Pineau Smith

FC: But she started in school; I went to school with her. She started at school with a comb and a piece of paper. We danced to it. (laughter)

TC: A comb and a piece of paper, that's true.

KP: You used to dance at school? Tell me about that.

TC: Oh yeah, we had a little porch, and dusty! We'd get out there with the PEI mud that you'd bring in on the porch.

MS: That’s when we used to have all the young fellows cornered. (laughter)

TC: So if we didn't didn't play Pussy in the Corner, (laughter) we played dancing. Just the games you played at recess, when you get out of school and you didn't have much to do. All of a sudden you'd say “Pussy in the Corner” (laughter) and everybody would have to jump and run from the corner and get another corner, and whoever got left out was “It” then or something.

KP: Tell me more about these dances in the schools

TC: There wasn't any music; it was whoever could sing a little bit. They usually nominated me to sing through the comb with a piece of paper over it. And you could make enough noise – We used to do that and the kids would dance, and I'd get stuck singin'.