As the year draws to an end and festive cheer starts to build, Dance Base celebrates all things dance by hosting a new showcase, SNOW MOTION: three evenings of live performance back in the glorious Studio 1 space.
This December, Dance Base is delighted to welcome a fantastic array of dance artists from across Scotland to bring their work back to the stage and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Dance Base making its home in the Grassmarket building.
Each artist joining the company has a deep connection to the Company having developed work with Dance Base over the years through residencies, Festival performances and sharings. This new showcase also marks the first major Dance Base project for the company’s new Artistic Director, Tony Mills, which is set to showcase his bold new vision for the organisation.
With a different programme each evening, there is truly something for everyone, from playful takes on office life, to lyrical explorations of an enchanted Hebridean world, to a delightful tale about food (and being eaten!) for younger audiences.
Featuring new and reimagined performances by Bridie Gane, Jen Wren, Kirsten Newell, Mamoru Iriguchi, Taylor Han and Tess Letham, SNOW MOTION celebrates storytelling and connection, showcasing an array of live music, physical theatre, spoken word and contemporary and traditional dance.
Click here for more information on each performance.
SNOW MOTION is a celebration of Dance Base in its 20th year in the Grassmarket. As well as featuring artists connected to the organisation, it will also showcase the organisation’s history, and hugely popular programme of dance classes.
Audiences are encouraged to arrive early and take part in a fun and uplifting dance class suitable for all levels. A bar will be set up so if a class doesn’t appeal, there’s also the chance to chat with friends over some festive drinks and follow Dance Base’s history with a brand-new exhibition display in the building.
SNOW MOTION is an evening for us to come together again, raise a glass to all that has been, get in the Christmas mood, and – most importantly – dance!
This event has been made possible thanks to support from Creative Scotland and funding from Scottish Government through the Performing Arts Venue Relief Fund.
Leith Theatre launches mini-series of digital gigs to showcase breakthrough Scottish artists
A grant from Creative Scotland’s Performing Arts Venue Relief Fund has allowed Leith Theatre to secure a small staff team of expertise, enabling them to produce a mini-series of digital gigs and provide vital incomes for industry professionals and production crew as well as for the musicians and artists themselves.
Shining a light on new music in Scotland has been key to the programme’s conception. Live in Leith aims to nurture fresh talent by providing a harbour – a safe space – for those who are sacrificing their incomes to pursue careers in music at what is always a tender time, no matter what the economic situation or industry climate.
If the funding is the anchor for the whole programme, the theatre itself is certainly the port, a place that has inspired many musicians to return already since the first stage of its revival in 2017: The Snuts for example, played as part of EH6 festival back in November 2018 and Teenage Fanclub featured in EIF’s offering in August 2019. Both bands have since returned to film their latest singles in the theatre’s auditorium in 2020.
Though Leith Theatre’s doors have been closed to the public for almost a full year now, closed sets like these have been able to take place.
In 2020 the theatre was also home to the virtual edition of Scotland’s annual Wide Days music convention, EIF’s My Light ShinesOn recordings featuring Honeyblood and Breabach, and Posable Action Figures’ latest music video for a single in their debut album.
Leith Theatre was once a music machine in the form of legendary gigs of the seventies and eighties and is well on its way to becoming a well-oiled one for today in the new twenties through such productions.
Just as the Port of Leith once fostered connections as a confluence of old and new, production and industry – a stage that was both world-class and local – Live in Leith aims to cultivate all of these elements and bring entertainment home in 2021 (and beyond).
The theatre, where community has always been at the heart of its role as a civic centre, wants to help raise the next generation of musicians, industry professionals and crew right here in Leith, safe in the knowledge that exploring the unfamiliar and investing in what is new and inspiring is always in all of our best interests.
Hosted by Vic Galloway, this programme – Live in Leith – will be streamed over three consecutive Saturdays starting this March via the online platform DICE and will help to showcase and establish up-and-coming young Scottish artists at what is undoubtedly a crucial time in their careers.
All of the artists will be captured playing a 25-minute set in real time, to create a live concert feel and the broadcasts will include introductions and on-stage interviews with host, Vic Galloway.
Each gig will feature two artists, the first duo being Connor Fyfe (youngest musician to sell out at King Tut’s in Glasgow), and Retro Video Club.
Lynn Morrison, Chief Executive of Leith Theatre, said: “It is a dream come true to be producing our very first in-house Live In Leith programme from our grand auditorium!
“This programme has allowed us to see what is possible, brought a greatly missed creative network back into the building and enabled us to showcase incredible live music in a new way.
“Thank you to Creative Scotland and the Performance Arts Venue Relief Fund: the whole production process has been exciting and challenging and we hope that this is just the start of new futures! This launch will mark a new chapter and in doing so the theatre hopes to establish itself as the home for new music in Scotland.”
“I’m delighted to be involved in presenting the ‘Live in Leith’ series for Leith Theatre. As a long-time resident of Leith, it’s so satisfying and inspiring to see this legendary theatre come to life once again”, said presenter Vic Galloway.
“Its history is rich and varied, but ‘Live in Leith’ is also a great opportunity to bring the space into 2021 with three exciting music programmes. We’re not only showcasing some brilliant local talent here, but also shining a spotlight on the building itself as one of Scotland’s best Music and Arts Venues. I hope you enjoy the shows and see the potential of the wonderful Leith Theatre!”
Leith Theatre Programme Co-ordinator Callum Jones added: “Having graduated from my Honours degree in Music Business back in Spring 2020, it was daunting to see that the industry in which I had studied for a career had, in many ways (from a live music perspective) been decimated.
“However, Performance Arts Venue Relief funding via Creative Scotland allowed Leith Theatre to retain me on a full-time basis and in a new role as Programme Coordinator.
“Our intention was then to create a digital programme which would showcase up-and-coming Scottish talent, providing an income stream for artists when there are currently so few alternatives. By doing so, we have been able to provide work for industry professionals across the sector and re-engage with our pre-existing network and supply chain.
“The funding has allowed us to deliver a high quality, digital offering for music fans to enjoy from the safety of their own homes. Our ambition is to establish Leith Theatre as a home for new music in Scotland by supporting the development of artists.
“I hope the broadcasts can provide some much-needed respite until we can welcome visitors back to Leith Theatre.”
Live in Leith:
March 20th: Connor Fyfe and Retro Video Club
March 27th: Ransom FA and Nova Scotia the Truth
April 3rd: The Ninth Wave and Lucia & The Best Boys
Tickets on sale Friday the 12th February at 10am at https://dice.fm (see direct links below) and will cost £11.50
