OF RIDERS & RUNNING HORSES “One of the most radiant shows you will ever see. HHHHH” The Fix Magazine “This is a piece that captures the joy of moving to music, of sharing a rhythm, and it makes you want to dance too. HHHH” Evening Standard About Of Riders and Running Horses Of Riders and Running Horses is a major new dance work piece – with a score created and played live by acclaimed from Still House, a trail blazing performance company musicians/composers Sam Halmarack and Typesun (real making work across dance/theatre and film, led by name Luke Harney). theatre-maker and choreographer Dan Canham. “Of Riders and Running Horses is the best fun I’ve had In 2014, Dan was the successful recipient of a Jerwood dancing while not actually dancing. It is nothing that Choreographic Research Award: an initiative from I think it is and everything you think it is. One thing, the Jerwood Foundation designed to stimulate new definitely: it is a thing of total joy. ” Maddy Costa choreographic ideas and thinking to benefit the arts and cultural ecology in Britain. The piece is conceived for urban outdoor spaces, such as car-parks and public squares. But really what’s important This investment funded two weeks of research and is that we find the right space in each place we go. This development on Of Riders and Running Horses which should be somewhere an audience can encounter the city was consequently funded by Arts Council England to tour in a new way, uncluttered by its own purpose or agenda. extensively across the UK in 2015 and 2016. We work in collaboration with promoters and festival directors to find the best context for the most exciting Of Riders and Running Horses is an outdoor dance- invitation. event which takes the raw ingredients of a folk event; public space, the night, live-music, and ritual and imbues Of Riders and Running Horses is wild and beautiful, them with the ‘modern,’ progressive sensibilities and experimental in endeavour and accessible in reach. More choreographic vocabulary so distinctive in Dan’s work. than a ‘show’ this is an event that consistently disarms and delights and importantly makes you want to join in. Fundamental to the heart of this project is an original, exhilarating audience experience that disrupts the Have a look here: everyday; a generous and ambitious animation of http://vimeo.com/100119654 for the trailer for the show urban public space; a focus on ritual that is seductive to Full length documentation of the show is here: https:// audiences from beyond a theatre context. vimeo.com/130133636 (password: riders) The movement material draws inspiration from current “We have aimed to create an opportunity for people to styles that could be considered a kind of modern folk come together, for strangers to look each other in the eye, dance: jumpstyle, free step and house dancing among for the vigour and power of a group of women dancing others. Fundamentally Of Riders and Running Horses is for themselves and for others to allow itself to be seen. a thrilling and thorough excavation of the relationship And in spite of the state of the world, in spite of continual between movement and music whereby each informs the personal and global existential threats, in spite of it all, other. And it’s a call to arms – to dance, in the moment, we’ve aimed to give rise to “the chance, which we need together. much more of on this crowded planet, to acknowledge the miracle of our simultaneous existence with some sort of Part gig, part dance - live music is a major component of celebration”. “ Dan Canham, Director. The company and the team Still House / Dan Canham throughout the UK in both urban and rural contexts. Through his company Still House, Dan Canham makes Alongside his own practice Dan regularly works as visually poetic work within a variety of forms that includes movement director, devisor and choreographic dramaturg dance, theatre and film. for the National Theatre and across a range of different projects and is a New Work Associate Artist at the National Primarily engaged with live performance as a Theatre. choreographer/dancer; what lies at the heart of the work is an exploration that puts the felt experience and See the website for further info on all projects (including presence of the performer(s) at its core. Still House creates those in development) and partners opportunities in which performers and audience can join as a www.stillhouse.co.uk temporary community for the duration of the event and uses performance as an attempt to make sense and meaning of MAYK (producers): the world; to discover the people with whom we share it; to MAYK is a producing organisation based in Bristol and facilitate the meeting of strangers in the live moment. And to led by Kate Yedigaroff and Matthew Austin. MAYK works do that with joy. It is performance that is at once exploratory collaboratively with artists and audiences to make and immediately felt. extraordinary projects happen in unusual ways, including It is performance as an attempt to make sense and meaning Mayfest, Bristol’s annual festival of contemporary theatre. of the world; to discover the people with whom we share it; MAYK also works long term with a number of visionary artists to facilitate the meeting of strangers in the live moment. It to develop, produce and tour inspiring new work. is performance that is at once exploratory and immediately MAYK has worked with Dan on all of his projects through felt. Still House and are producers for Of Riders and Running “One of the most original talents around” Independent Horses. mayk.org.uk Of Riders and Running Horses is the company’s first foray The creative team into a larger-scale exploration of what these choreographic instincts conjure. It has been met with considerable critical Director: Dan Canham; Associate Director: Laura Dannequin; and audience acclaim, touring throughout the UK to Music: Sam Halmarack & Luke Harney a.k.a Typesun; audiences from all walks of life. Performers: Anna Kazsuba (Fabulous Beast), Robia Milliner Brown, Odilia Egyiawan (Major Lazer), Tilly Webber, Tanya Dan’s first piece 30 Cecil Street (a solo work) continues to Richam-Odoi (DV8, Phoenix), Stephanie McMann (tilted); tour internationally, having previously toured throughout Costume Designer: Bianca Ward; Production Manager and Europe and to Canada and Australia. His verbatim dance Lighting Designer: Greg Mickelborough & Ethan Hudson; work Ours Was The Fen Country has also delighted Tour Producer: Helen Edwards. audiences and critics alike and has toured extensively Touring Of Riders and Running Horses is available for available for international touring from January 2017 and we are looking for presenting partners to come on the journey with us. The piece is conceived for urban outdoor spaces and will work well in a variety of contexts, across dance, music and performance events, for festivals or year-round programmes. We are particularly interested in working with partners who have a desire to place work that reaches directly into communities that are not necessarily already engaged with arts activity and can offer associated participation projects and workshops If you would like to discuss showing the work or would like to hear more about any of this activity please contact Kate Yedigaroff at MAYK on [email protected] Touring so far has included: British Dance Edition, Dance Umbrella, Brighton Festival, Caravan, LIFT, Pavillion Dance South West, Mayfest, Salisbury International Festival, Strike a Light, Riverstage at the National Theatre, Winchester Hat Fair, Tanec Praha, Cambridge Junction, Fierce, The Point. Of Riders and Running Horses is commissioned by Dance Umbrella, Pavilion Dance South West and Theatre Bristol. Supported using public funding through Arts Council England. Research and Development was supported by the Jerwood Choreographic Research Project, with funds from The Jerwood Charitable Foundation, Appetite, Birmingham Hippodrome, Dance Umbrella, DanceEast, DanceXchange, Greenwich Dance, Greenwich+Docklands International Festival, Independent Dance, Pavilion Dance South West, and The Place. Additional research and development support from Bristol Old Vic Ferment and Trinity Community Arts. The Jerwood Choreographic Research Project is a National Dance Network initiative, supported by the Jerwood Charitable Foundation and delivered by DanceXchange. To date Still House touring projects have been supported by Arts Council England, Bristol Old Vic Ferment, New Wolsey Theatre, Jerwood Charitable Foundation, Pavilion Dance, DanceXchange, Dance Umbrella, Forest Fringe, Sadler’s Wells and National Theatre Studio amongst others. mayk.