Join us on the beach at Torre Abbey Sands for Dog Ballet, an illuminated performance with dogs and dog-walkers, musicians and a sound landscape.
Artists Nigel and Louse have been meeting with beach users and dog walkers, joining the community of people using the beach to walk, exercise, play and socialise.
The performance begins as the last light fades and the sand is illuminated by exquisite theatrical light. The cast of dogs and their owners, of all sizes and shapes, enter the beach in a beautiful natural choreography, accompanied by live music played by local musicians. The music will be partly composed and partly improvised in response to the joy of the dogs playing on the beach.
As darkness falls the lights slowly dim to blackness and an opera singer sings a hauntingly beautiful aria. The dogs wear light up collars and leads and they run and jump and chase light-up balls all over the beach. It is a canine firework display, a soaring, moving, balletic visual feast of animals playing freely and magnificently in the beautiful natural landscape they love so much.
As they play the soundscape is filled with the pre-recorded voices of local people telling stories about their dogs, their children, the sea, their loves, their losses, their passions and elegies to the place they live and walk their beloved dogs.
The show is a celebration of the place and people where it is performed. For the dogs and owners, it is an amazing experience to have their daily walk transformed into a work of art that they themselves are performing and for the spectators of the town it is a chance to see a place they see every day transformed into a thing of wonder and beauty - a glorious feast of whirling light and heart-breaking music.
Originally developed and tested as a research performance during our (extra)ordinary programme in June, Dog Ballet returns to Torbay as an epic light and sound show in November . We are proud to support its development and hope to see it tour with prospective partners from seaside towns around the UK.
If you and your dogs would like to participate in the performance please contact Nigel and Louise on 07976 634724 or nigel@nigelandlouise.com.
Part of eyeview - A cultural programme - working with artists and communities to offer fresh perspectives on the places and spaces that make Torbay unique.
Time 7pm to 8pm
Cost Free
Email nigel@nigelandlouise.com
Phone 07976 634724
Web https://eye-view.org.uk/wavelength-event-listings/dog-ballet
