North East Dance Company offers exciting opportunity for 2 Children and 2 Adults to help bring the story of the Pitman Painters to life through dance!
ESC, the Newcastle based contemporary dance company,
could hardly have expected the public reaction to
their latest Spring Tour which included PITMAN. Choreographed by the Company’s
Artistic Director and Dance City’s Associate Artist,
Eliot Smith, it tells the story of the miners and their community through dance
interpretations of six of the paintings of the Pitmen Painters that are on
permanent exhibition at Woodhorn Museum.
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Performing Jazz Band Parade at Northumberland
Miners Picnic 2017 at Woodhorn Museum.
Photo credit: Rich Kenworthy.
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PITMAN was premièred
at Newbiggin Maritime Centre in November 2016.
It played to a sell-out audience, and the same happened the following
evening when the performances moved to the Laing Gallery in Newcastle. Earlier this year, in April and May 2017,
PITMAN toured successfully across the North-East as part of the Company’s
Double Bill.
What was particularly
moving was the reaction of relatives of miners, who found the work emotionally
charged, and there were tears. The work
of the Pitmen Painters has been the subject of a successful play by Lee Hall, a
definitive academic study by William Feaver, and is featured in Bill Bryson’s Notes from a Small Island, but this is
the first time that a dance company has offered their interpretation of the
paintings.
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The Xmas Tree by Harry Wilson. 1950.
The Ashington Group Trustees.
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Following on from what
has been a particularly eventful year for the Company, Eliot Smith is to
choreograph three new sections for PITMAN in Autumn 2017 – supported and funded
by Arts Council England, Northumberland Arts Development and with support from Woodhorn Museum.
And there will be a
unique opportunity for two children and two adults who live in Newcastle upon
Tyne (or the surrounding areas) to take part in one of the new sections, ‘The Xmas Tree’, dancing their own
contribution to the story as they join ESC dancers in this
affectionate tribute to the Ashington Group.
The lucky four
participants will rehearse alongside Eliot Smith and his dancers and be
supported by the Company’s Education
and Beyond Co-ordinator April Martin.
Those involved will receive an appropriate food and travel allowance.
No stage or dance
experience is required, but prospective participants must be comfortable
performing in front of an audience. The
role will involve some physical effort, and Eliot Smith and April Martin will
work with everyone’s individual needs and abilities.
Anyone interested in
finding out more about the production and the involvement needed should apply
to attend a “taster” session on Saturday 2nd September from 2.00 pm to 3.00 pm at The
Barre Studios, Newcastle Quayside. This
session will provide an opportunity to meet Eliot Smith and April Martin, find
out more about the production, ask questions and discuss some ideas for the
show. Following the session two children (one male and one female) and two
adults (one male and one female) will be selected to take part in the première
performance on 15th, 16th & 17th November 2017 at The Holy Biscuit, Newcastle upon Tyne.
This is an opportunity not to be missed!
If you require any further information, or wish to register
interest in a taster session, please e-mail or call:
April Martin
Education and Beyond Co-ordinator
Call: 07974 582 973
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