Bright & Wild 2023

May 16 2023 | By More

Lyra presents two weekends of fun

The Bright and Wild festival 2023 features four productions, commissioned and performed by the young participants at Lyra, the youth performing arts company in Craigmillar, staged at its Artspace venue.

The festival runs with two productions on Friday 19 and Saturday 20 May and then a further two productions the following weekend, Friday 26 and Saturday 27 may 2023.

Lyra’s young participants invited professional artists to pitch their ideas then shortlisted the proposals before selecting their chosen commissions. They have been creating and devising with their chosen lead artists since October 2022 to bring these new productions to life.

Bright & Wild 2023 Poster designed by Culture Crew

Audiences are invited to ‘embrace the strange’ at this year’s festival. From alien landings to vampire sightings, the four new commissions explore the weird and wonderful worlds of the unknown, the unreal and strangeness. The young artists go a trip to the corners of their dreams and imaginations…

The four productions open with a dance piece, After We Fell, created by Niamh O’Loughlin with Youth Dance and Dream with Music, created by Morgan Njobo with Youth Music, which play three performances as a double bill on the opening weekend.

The second weekend features parody catwalk show What Are You wearing? created by Lewis Sherlock with the Wednesday Young Artists, and real life drama, The Gorbals Vampire created by Daniel Gough with the Thursday Young Artists.

Each double bill will get three performances: on the Friday and Saturday evenings, with a Saturday matinee. The festival events are all produced and hosted in-house by Lyra’s Culture Crew, a group of teens learning backstage and creative producing skills at Lyra.

Culture Crew

Over the last year the Culture Crew has been collaborating with graphic designer Jason Kerley to create the programme design and theatre designer, Katy Wilson to dress the venue. They will also be your presenters and hosts for festival itself.

The two matinee performances on Saturday 20 and 27 May will be followed by two Q&A discussions, aimed at anyone who is interested in learning more about Lyra and the making of the Bright & Wild festival. It is a chance to hear more about Lyra’s unique, child-led approach to commissioning.

Anna Plasberg-Hill, Lyra’s Engagement Producer said: “We’re delighted to be presenting our third annual Bright & Wild festival, giving a platform to the creativity of the children we work with and the fantastic Lead Artists that they’ve commissioned.

“Year on year, the participants continue to inspire the Lyra team and it’s a joy to see them building their skills and self-esteem, whilst making brilliant work”

Listings

All performances take place at Artspace, 11 Harewood Road, EH16 4NT

After We Fell and Dreaming in Music
Fri 19/Sat 20 May 2023
Evenings: 7pm, Sat mat: 3pm.
Tickets and further details: www.lyra.co.uk/bright-and-wild-2023
After We Fell created by Niamh O’Loughlin with Youth Dance, tells the story of a crash landing on Earth. We meet a group of Beings as they figure out what happened and what will happen next. Can they work together to repair what is broken and find what is lost? Can they find joy in their isolation and solace in movement?
Dream with Music created by Morgan Njobo with Youth Music is an upbeat show inspired by the sound of our dreams. Vibrating rhythms complemented by joyous singing will take you on a journey exploring the power of imagination. Djembes and cajons will meet keyboard and bass, to create a unique performance that will make your feet tap and your hands clap!

What Are You wearing? and The Gorbals Vampire
Fri 26/Sat 27 May 2023
Evenings: 7pm, Sat mat: 3pm.
Tickets and further details: www.lyra.co.uk/bright-and-wild-2023
What Are You wearing?, created by Lewis Sherlock with the Wednesday Young Artists, is a parody show about beauty, exclusivity and power. Join the young artists as they explore humanity through the untouchable world of fashion. Expect killer catwalks and green screen trickery. Sit back, relax… and strike a pose.
The Gorbals Vampire, created by Daniel Gough with the Thursday Young Artists, is inspired by a true story and explores the power of make believe, hysteria and the strength of children. In 1950s Glasgow two boys have gone missing in the Gorbals neighbourhood and there have been sightings of a Vampire. Rumours spread like wildfire through the local playgrounds, inciting the children to sneak out of their warm beds at night to hunt this otherworldly beast.

Post-show Q&As
These will take place after the matinee performances on Saturday 20 and Saturday 27 May.
The Q&A is for anyone that’s interested in learning more about Lyra and the making of the Bright & Wild festival. Maybe you’re an Artist that would like to collaborate with the young artists? Come along and find out about Lyra’s unique, child-led approach.

ENDS

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