Nadelik Lowen – A Cornish Merry Christmas from us all at Carn to Cove! As we get ready to hang up our stockings and sign off for the holidays, we are taking a look back at some of our highlights of 2021.
And what a year it has been. Over 2021 we have put on nearly 100 events, in village halls, circus big tops, pubs, churches, outdoors, and online.
You, our lovely audience, have supported us and your communities by buying tickets, smiling over the top of face masks, and making donations to help us through a challenging time.
You stayed at home, then came together to share special experiences – so we’d like to say a huge thank you!
We also have another massive thank you to our promoters who have worked extra hard to put shows on for their community, and have kept us all safe whilst doing so. They really are superstars!
2021 saw our 20th year of theatre, dance, music, storytelling and laughter in Cornwall’s wonderful and varied village halls, churches and community spaces. We celebrated with a small gathering of Carn to Cove promoters, friends and supporters at Launceston Town Hall – the first coming together since 2019!
Watch our 20th Anniversary film here.
In the summer of 2021, Carn to Cove worked with performer and choreographer Kesha Raithatha and film maker G Sian on their film Virtual Ghost.
In partnership with the Rural Touring Dance Initiative, we took Kesha and G on a virtual tour of Newlyn and premiered a suite of 8 short films that sees Kesha embedded, superimposed and dancing on iconic architectural buildings in the town.
Being able to present the films to a virtual audience was fascinating, and proved that audiences don’t necessarily need to be in a physical space to share a powerful experience.
Click here to watch the Virtual Ghost films.
‘Street of Voices’ (‘Stret an Levow’ in Cornish) explores layers of time to unlock the people and events that the high street has borne witness to over time. Real voices and stories that honour the extraordinary town that is ‘Pueblo Magico’, Redruth.
The sound walk is available to listen to online. Click here to listen to local stories from young and old and be immersed in the sounds, voices and history of the Redruth high street.
This summer high quality, small-scale, family friendly circus shows toured to village communities in Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Somerset as part of a pilot project, Circus Around and About.
Four companies, Pirates of the Carabina, Simple Cypher, Tilly Lee-Kronick and Company Zid, were paired together in different combinations to present a varied programme of double bills. The shows took place in 30 outdoor settings ranging from a beach to the grounds of a stately home.
The project was delivered by Crying Out Loud and Take Art, 10 regional rural touring schemes (including us!) and a network of local promoters. The aim was to explore the potential for circus artists to tour through rural networks – and the project was a great success.
Watch the Circus Around and About film to get a flavour of the project.
At the beginning of the year we teamed up with Hall For Cornwall and intoBodmin to present Cornwall’s contribution to a music collaboration from Bristol based producers Sound UK. A national music project, Song For Us celebrated the power of music in bringing communities together. The wonderful Gwenno created a unique song, Meur Ras Dhia Gernow, which was performed by a collective of musicians – including our very own Carn to Cove Director, Tim Smithies!
A Song for Us celebrates creativity in everyone; whether performing, composing, or listening. It captures the union and solidarity that was apparent during the clap for the NHS, the extraordinary response to the NHS volunteer army, and the small acts of kindness.
Watch the video for A Song for Cornwall here.
We were saddened and distressed to report a major fire at Krowji, where Carn to Cove is based, on 16th May 2021. The fire devastated 17 artist studios, and severely damaged the Creative Kernow offices where we called home. Our offices were lost, but we found so much comfort in the support we found. Our Krowji Emergency Fund JustGiving page received donations from across Cornwall and beyond, enabling Krowji to help the artists that needed it most. We received offers of temporary work spaces from fellow creative organisations, cups of tea, kind messages and lots of love.
We slathered on our sunscreen (or wrapped up warm, or wore raincoats… sometimes all in one day) and saw Miracle Theatre, David Mynne, Assembleth Theatre, Bec Applebee, Scratchworks Theatre, ‘Owdyado Theatre, Bash Street Theatre and more, all in the great outdoors.
We welcomed back audiences to marvellous music, dance, theatre, spoken word and stories in village halls, pubs, churches and theatres all over Cornwall.
Thank you to all our audiences, promoters, volunteers, supporters and partners for all your support this year. We couldn’t have done it without you!
Carn to Cove will continue to support our Cornish communities to put on amazing events next year, with our Spring season starting in February 2022. Watch this space for details coming soon, or sign up to our newsletter.
