The biennial festival of international outdoor arts, produced by Activate Performing Arts, saw five uniquely different locations transformed by artists working with community groups and local people.
Kate Wood and Bill Gee, co-artistic directors of the festival, which returns in 2027 to celebrate its 20th anniversary, were really pleased with the reactions they had received: “We were so moved by the audience feedback to the performances and installations. Seeing the exceptional results of the work that many artists have made with hundreds of people from Dorset, Yeovil and the New Forest presented across these stunning sites over the past two weeks has been extraordinary.
“We want to thank everyone who has made it possible – all the groups that participated, the artists, funders, volunteers, partners, team and everyone who came out and joined us.”
Funders Catalan Arts said: “What a wonderful joy.”
Meg Ferris, Careers and Work Placement Co-Ordinator (Progression Pathways) at Yeovil College, added: "I just wanted to pass on my thanks again for including Yeovil College learners in your Consequences Giant project. I loved attending your parade on Saturday. The atmosphere was great with the singing, banners, and ribbon stick waving. I’m looking forward to working with you again in the future."
The festival saw the culmination of three national projects each harnessing the power of the arts to address global issues. It opened in Christchurch where River of Hope transformed the Quay with an installation of some 80 flags and sails soundtracked by the music of Dorset-based rapper/producer Isaiah Dreads. Artwork created by students from Gillingham School, QE School in Wimborne, Twynham and The Grange Schools in Christchurch, The Burgate School in Fordingbridge and Ringwood School, working with artist Heidi Steller and poet Matt West, were shown alongside works made for the Totally Thames festival in partnership with young people from Leeds, London, Tees Valley, Norfolk and Plymouth, as well as in France and Ethiopia.
Dorset Youth Dance performed We Rise, a powerful contemporary dance piece created with choreographer Robyn Holder from Feet Off The Ground Dance; while artist Heidi Steller was on hand to talk about the installation.
A new giant for Dorset revealed in time for Inside Out Dorset, Consequences was a huge temporary artwork created by artist Becca Gill’s Radical Ritual company with the input of local groups for the completion of Nature Calling, an inspirational nationwide arts project to connect people with their local natural landscapes. After its unveiling in Cerne Abbas, it moved to Summerhouse Hill in Yeovil – where it was the focus of a community parade and a full programme of activities connecting place, myth and memory – and then to Corfe Castle where it oversaw a weekend of performances by Catalan artists.
In the village hall car park, world champion spinning top juggler Guillem Vizcaíno explored his art in Cie D’es Tro’s Poi, demonstrating his beautifully-made baldufas (tops). Toc de Fusta brought its family-friendly participatory installation Arrels to the grounds of St Edward’s Church where visitors were able to engage with interactive games and structures that reinterpreted cultural traditions from around the world.
Artists Eva Marichalar-Freixa and Jordi Duran i Roldós worked with Rohan Gotobed from acclaimed local theatre company Dorsetborn and local musician Glenn Ross to create We Fear, a dynamic, site specific promenade piece for Sandy Hill Arts; and in Idiòfona artist Joan Català enlisted the help of visitors to the National Trust-managed Castle to create an idiophone, a large sound installation/musical instrument that plays by vibration in an ode to the pleasure of shared experience.
Last weekend, thousands of people packed the streets of Weymouth to witness the finale not only of Inside Out Dorset, but of the nationwide coastal arts festival Beach of Dreams, exploring the unique heritage, cultures and climate futures of our coastlines. An artwork in motion, the spectacular promenade performance Sonnet of Samsara created by Jayachandran Palazhy of Attakkalari Centre For Movement Arts, choreographer Charlene Low, and Ali Pretty of Kinetika, sponsored by We Are Weymouth as part of the annual Dusk Til Dark event, saw a professional cast joined by 75 community performers, to wend their way through Weymouth from the town centre to the beach as a living artwork in motion. And even though the second night’s performance was lost to the weather, it provided a breathtaking, immersive end to the festival.
Throughout the festival, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest had played host to Canopy: – 24 Ideas About Trees, the latest installation by artist Lorna Rees in which 24 listening pods formed a woodland adventure trail. Each pod housed a unique sound world created from the stories and sounds Lorna collected in a series of community workshops with local schools and groups in which participants were invited to respond to the woods.
