AT THE FOREST’S EDGE LAUNCHES IN STRATFORD-UPON-AVON
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At The Forest’s Edge is a co-created community engagement project resulting in a sustainable sculpture trail created in the RSC’s Swan Theatre gardens, with a further five sites open to visitors from Monday 22 May
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Created by Gemma Kerr and Miriam Nabarro in partnership with Stratford-upon-Avon community groups; Copernicana, Clopton Connect, New Meaning, Sporting Memories, Sporting Memories, Fred Winters Centre, and Escape Arts
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An afternoon of free family-friendly activities and promenade performance will take place on Saturday 17 June in Avonbank Gardens to share the process the groups have taken and celebrate the opening of the project
Today (Tuesday 24 April), the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), in collaboration with local artists and community groups, announce the launch of; At The Forest’s Edge; a series of sustainable public artworks inspired by the themes of nature, family, healing and loss, created by and for communities of Stratford-upon-Avon.
Since February, the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) Creative Placemaking and Public Programmes team have worked with six community groups local to Stratford-Upon-Avon including Copernicana CIC, Clopton Connect, New Meaning, Sporting Memories, Sporting Memories, Stratford-upon-Avon, Fred Winters Centre, and Escape Arts, to develop a series of beautiful willow structures across six outdoor sites throughout the town.
Inspired by themes of the RSC’s summer productions of Hamnet and As You Like It, Artists Gemma Kerr and Miriam Nabarro have worked in partnership with community practitioner and gardener Emma Waterford, mycelium (the vegetative part of a fungus) artist Lisa Franklin, poet Kurly McGeachie, composer Peter Vilk, choreographers LYNNEBEC and sculptor and puppet artist Alison Duddle to create a series of intricate willow sculptures. Together they celebrate the diversity and uniqueness of the communities who live on the banks of the River Avon and their relationship with the natural world around them.
Rachel Sharpe, Head of Creative Placemaking and Public Programmes at the RSC said;
"At The Forest's Edge is the largest community project the RSC's Creative Placemaking and Public Programmes team have developed to date and a key part of our programme, focused on investing in creativity and wellbeing, working with people across Stratford-upon-Avon.
“This is a unique opportunity for our communities, artists and team to co-create experiences for all to enjoy. It’s been a real privilege listening to the ideas and stories of our collaborators which we look forward to sharing.”
Dionne Sambrook, Creative Programme & Performance Manager at Escape Arts community group said;
“It’s very exciting to come together with such a diverse range of groups and individuals and work together on At The Forest Edge. Although we are all connected with Stratford-upon-Avon and are all part of the same community, we may not otherwise meet each other or hear each other’s stories.
“Our community in Stratford is like a woodland, full of life, some parts old and established, some new, some parts sunny and light, some parts in darkness. From a distance, it might appear that the trees are the same. But if you take the time to explore and look and listen, you will be surprised by the diversity and beauty you find.”
The first sculpture installed in April 2023 in the Swan Theatre gardens, is Twin Willow. Created with Polish community group, Copernicana, the twin willow sculptures have been developed in response to themes in Hamnet, adapted for the stage by Lolita Chakrabarti from the best-selling novel by Maggie O’Farrell.
The twin forms, which look out over the nearby river, exist in conversation with each other and respond to the themes of sibling relationships, life, death, grief and the power of nature and creativity to transform and heal. Throughout the Summer, the sculptures will be animated with creative input from Copernicana and with living mycelium sculptures and wildflowers.
All six installations will be available to visit for free from Monday 22 May. Additional sites include the Fred Winter Centre, Stratford Sports Club Ltd, Southern Lane, Royal Shakespeare Theatre, and Lock 54 Stratford Canal, Clopton.
Inspired by the themes of ‘Great Big Green Week’, the project will culminate in an afternoon of live celebration on Saturday 17 June, featuring a range of free activities for the family including participatory workshops between 2pm and 6pm, the opportunity to plant wildflower seeds and a special promenade performance in the Avonbank Gardens (further details to be confirmed).
A map of the sites can be collected from Susie’s Café Bar at The Other Place from Monday May 22 onwards, or can be found online here. The willow structures will remain in place until the end of August.
For further press information please contact: Lola Stewart, Media Relations Officer, RSC Lola.Stewart@rsc.org.uk, 07436 613200
COPERNICANA CIC
Copernicana strive to create an inclusive, vibrant, and culturally diverse atmosphere that celebrates Polish heritage and encourages participation in their many events. With Copernicana, you can explore and celebrate Polish culture in a safe, warm and welcoming environment, and build a lasting connection with the Polish community.
Clopton Connect meet every Friday from 1 – 3.30pm at the Ken Kennett centre, a community centre in the heart of Clopton, Stratford-upon-Avon. Local residents meet for tea, chat and cake, and everyone is welcome.
The Ken Kennett Centre is a community centre located in the Clopton Ward of Stratford-upon-Avon, on Justins Avenue. It is operated by the Clopton Community Action Group, a Community Interest Company that relies on local volunteers to maintain the centre and make it available for use by local residents, community groups, and businesses.
New Meaning are based in Stratford-upon-Avon, but their work reaches out across Warwickshire, Coventry and the West Midlands. New Meaning Training has been providing opportunities to hundreds of young people since it launched in 2015 and provide further education in Warwickshire for post sixteens, as well as training and work experience for people with an EHCP. Their aim is to help young people to make progress with their learning and feel inspired about their future, becoming either work-ready or taking their learning journey onto the next step.
SPORTING MEMORIES, STRATFORD-UPON-AVON SPORTS CLUB
Stratford Sports Club hosts a weekly Sporting Memories Club supported by a mix of donations and Stratford Town Trust. It is open to everyone who is passionate about sport and it focuses on reminiscing about past sporting events and increasing activity using our games such as indoor curling and boccia. The sessions are inclusive and look to welcome those with social isolation and cognitive issues in a fun and safe environment within the Club House.
Escape Arts is a Stratford-based charity which brings people together through creativity and culture to support wellbeing and inspire strong, inclusive and happy communities. We run projects, groups and attend events, sharing activities and creative projects with young people and adults across Stratford Upon Avon. Two of our regular weekly groups are involved in the project, our weekly creative group for adults in Stratford (Stratford Escape) and our senior youth group.
As a multi-disciplinary community hub, the centre tackles hardship by providing a range of services to help people improve their health and wellbeing, overcome financial problems, secure job opportunities and sustain tenancies in local affordable homes. The Fred Winter Centre also provides access to self-contained affordable apartments within the same building. A community cafe and bakery is being developed within the centre, creating onsite training and employment.
Gemma is a freelance theatre-maker and director with a background in new writing, site-responsive performance and socially engaged theatre. She is Associate Artist at The Point in Eastleigh where she is developing Quiet Girls, a new piece of work created with local communities.
She ran High Hearted Theatre with writer Marcelo dos Santos, creating original work for non-conventional theatre spaces, with productions including Lovers Walk (Brighton Fringe Festival and Southwark Playhouse), Cheer up, this is only the Beginning (Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse), and The End of History (in association with Soho Theatre). Other directing work includes To Have to Shoot Irishmen by Lizzie Nunnery (Liverpool Everyman and national tour), Macbeth (Omnibus Clapham); Scarberia by Evan Placey (York Theatre Royal).
She is a PhD student at Guildford School of Acting at the University of Surrey exploring spatial practice and politics in theatre for social change, through the co-creation of work with communities using narratives of home.
LEAD ARTIST: MIRIAM NABARRO
Miriam is a visual artist, scenographer and theatre maker with a background in co creation and socially engaged projects. She has designed over 30 productions with companies including the Royal Court, the Royal Exchange, and the National Theatre. Recent projects include Stars (ICA/ Tamasha), The Bone Sparrow (Pilot/ Theatre Royal York), The Little Prince (Fuel), Socially engaged and co-created projects include Processions (Clean Break/ 1418NOW), I am a Theatre and Catch (Clean Break) and Digital Shadows, a co-created series of cyanotypes relating to displacement and transit, made with Art Refuge in Northern France, now held at Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris.
Miriam is artist in residence at SOAS and creative associate with Liverpool based 20 Stories High, currently creating High Times, Dirty Monsters with Graeae/ Liverpool Everyman. She is passionate about collaboration, community engagement, interdisciplinary making and sustainability.
COMMUNITY ASSOCIATE ARTIST: EMMA WATERFORD
Emma is a creative practitioner that uses a combined arts practice integrating art, craft, theatre and horticulture. She takes inspiration from the natural world and the healing power of green space. As a facilitator she has created workshops for Southbank Centre, Royal Albert Hall, Albany Theatre and is currently running the Northfield Community Garden with Northfield Arts Forum. She is Co Artistic Director of Crows Nest Theatre Company, an Associate Artist of White Rabbit and one third of The Bluestocking Society. As a performer she had toured the UK and Europe in plays, dance shows and cabarets.
COMMUNITY ASSOCIATE ARTIST: LISA FRANKLIN
Lisa Franklin is an artist & ethnobotanist based in the Midlands. Her practice is rooted in play and investigates the natural world, the language of growing, connection, individualism & the everyday ordinary with a focus on the more than human as collaborator and connecting people through creativity. Recent works include Art For the People [Talking Birds], becoming fungi, becoming forest [sirenscrossing] and Tappin’ In [Steph Ridings and Lou Lomas].
Pete Vilk is an award-winning musician, sound designer, community music practitioner & trainer and music producer (sometimes all at the same time!).
He has over 25 years of professional experience on a wide variety of international music projects having worked with organisations like War Child, UNHCR, ECHO & Hope & Homes for Children intensively across Republic of Georgia, Iran, Turkey, Bosnia Herzegovina, Israel/Palestine and most recently with Ukrainian refugees in Moldova.
In the UK, Pete has worked with music extensively with young people from disadvantaged communities & additional support needs groups in long term developmental music projects with the likes of Drake Music, Youth Music Initiative & Scottish Chamber Orchestra
As a sound designer, Pete has composed music and sound design for award-winning film, theatre & immersive installation projects including Lung Ha’s Theatre Company, Al Jazeera English, We The Curious Bristol, Squidsoup, British Council, British Film Institute, Scottish Poetry Library & Lullabies Project Bristol
As a performer, Pete currently plays with Bristol based Vilk Collective touring the UK with their immersive music, sound & light show ‘Circle’ made in collaboration with installation artists Squidsoup, funded by Arts Council England.
For this RSC project, Pete is collaborating to make a site specific sound design installation that will weave together voices from all the community groups involved.
SCULPTOR AND PUPPET ARTIST: ALISON DUDDLE
She initially developed her passion for puppet and mask theatre through working with and learning from artists at In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre in Minneapolis, MN USA, and then continued this in the UK, working for 17 years a maker and joint artistic director with Horse + Bamboo Theatre. Shows included Moominland Midwinter, Little Leap Forward, The Nightingale, Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Company of Angels),
Alison currently works as a freelance artist, creating puppets and masks for theatre (Pilot Theatre, The Dukes Oldham Coliseum, 20 Stories High) for film (the Electrical Life of Louis Wain, Firebrand), and parades (Manchester Day Parade, Handmade Parade). Alison is also part of artist collective Insideoutsidehouse
LYNNEBEC are a multidisciplinary performance company making work for outdoor and unusual spaces. They are interested in creating spaces and experiences that are joyful, that empower, that share stories and ideas clearly and unpretentiously.
LYNNEBEC was co-founded by Cat Butler and Jessica Barber in 2018. It was formed on a shared love of movement, physical theatre, devising, and collaboration. They are consistently curious about the ways dance and movement can connect us, challenge our inhibitions and celebrate self expression.
The RSC is supported using public funding by Arts Council England
The work of the RSC is supported by the Culture Recovery Fund
The RSC is generously supported by RSC America
Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a theatre and learning charity that creates world class theatre, made in Stratford-upon-Avon and shared around the world, performing plays by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, as well as commissioning an exceptionally wide range of original work from contemporary writers. Our purpose is to ensure that Shakespeare is for everyone, and we do that by unlocking the power of his plays and of live performance and our learning and education work throughout the UK and across the world.
We believe everybody’s life is enriched by culture and creativity. We have trained generations of the very best theatre makers and we continue to nurture the talent of the future. Our transformative Learning programmes reach over half a million young people and adults each year, and through our Creative Placemaking and Public Programme we create projects with and for communities who have not historically engaged with our work. We are a leader in creative immersive technologies and digital development.
We have a proud record of innovation, diversity and excellence on stage and are determined to grasp the opportunity to become an even more inclusive, progressive, relevant and ambitious organisation.
We have one of the UK’s largest arts learning programmes, working with over 1,000 schools each year to broaden access to high quality arts learning and transform experiences of Shakespeare in schools. Through our national partnership programme with schools and regional theatres we target areas of structural disadvantage, including 26 areas of multiple deprivation across the country, from Cornwall to Middlesbrough. Research shows that our approaches to teaching Shakespeare support the development of reading and writing skills, accelerate language acquisition and development, raise aspirations and improve student attitudes to school and learning in general. They also foster well-being, self-esteem, empathy, resilience and tolerance and promote critical-thinking, creative, analytical, communication and problem-solving skills.
We are committed to being a teaching and learning theatre and we are the only arts organisation to have been awarded Independent Research Organisation status. We create world class theatre for, with and by audiences and theatre makers of all ages. We provide training for emerging and established theatre makers and arts professionals, for teachers and for young people. We share learning formally and informally. We embed training and research across our company, work and processes.
We recognise the climate emergency and work hard to embed environmental sustainability into our operations, creative work and business practice, making a commitment to continually reduce our carbon footprint.
Keep Your RSC supports our mission to create theatre at its best, unlocking Shakespeare and transforming lives. Thousands of generous audience members, trusts and foundations and partners supported Keep Your RSC since 2020, alongside a £19.4 million loan from the Culture Recovery Fund, we are thrilled to be welcoming audiences back. It will take time to recover, to reopen all our theatres, and many years to repay the loan and the support and generosity of our audiences is more important than ever. Please donate at rsc.org.uk/donate
Arts Council England is the national development body for arts and culture across England, working to enrich people’s lives. We support a range of activities across the arts, museums and libraries – from theatre to visual art, reading to dance, music to literature, and crafts to collections. Great art and culture inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about ourselves and the world around us. In short, it makes life better. Between 2018 and 2022, we will invest £1.45 billion of public money from government and an estimated £860 million from the National Lottery to help create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country.www.artscouncil.org.uk
