Trad Dance Cast is a brand new podcast about traditional dance artists, ideas and trends from across Scotland and beyond. Produced by Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland, Trad Dance Cast is hosted by Eleanor Sinclair, a trad dance artist, instructor and climate activist.
The first episode is to be released on Earth Day 22 April 2023 inspired by the Mother Earth stories discussed by all five guests whilst shedding light on their involvement in the creative process of our new screen dance production To Begin the Dance Once More. Mother Earth Stories from Egypt and Scotland.
The conversation also explores how screen dance – an exciting and powerful genre of filmmaking predominantly employed in contemporary dance – could also bring world traditional dance to wider audiences and practitioners.
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The studio guests for Trad Dance Cast inaugural episode are our screen dance curators and producers Wendy Timmons and Iliyana Nedkova, choreographer Vincent Hantam, storyteller extraordinaire Donald Smith and film director Marlene Millar.
Trad Dance Cast music theme Mason’s Apron Reel is by Scottish fiddle player, dance caller and theatre maker Mairi Campbell.
Trad Dance Cast was recorded and edited by sound engineer Jonathon Duncan through the in-kind support of our Pomegranates festival partner Edinburgh Tradfest.
Trad Dance Cast visual identity features a portrait of our screen dance choreographer Vincent Hantam by the established Scottish photographer Barrie Spence.
LISTEN TO TRAD DANCE CAST EPISODE APRIL 2023
EPISODE NOTES
- THE STORY To Begin the Dance Once More highlights the plight for climate justice globally through the medium of dance. In the film we see climate refugees Isis, Beira and Bride, whose lineage stretches back to their namesakes, the Egyptian and Celtic goddesses of Earth navigate through a world of migration, displacement and uncertainty created by the global injustice of climate change. Read more
- THE TEASER We launched To Begin the Dance Once More teaser on Global Day of Climate Action 12 November 2022 reaching out thousands of viewers on all our platforms. Ensure that you follow and subscribe to our Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland YouTube Channel. Watch To Begin the Dance Once More teaser here
- THE PREMIERE Our screen dance production To Begin the Dance Once More is set to make its big screen debut, including a live dance performance entitled Dances with Ouds and Fiddles and a post-show Q&A with the creative team as part of our Pomegranates festival weekend celebrating international traditional dance on Saturday, 29 April 2023 7pm at the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Book now.
- THE SCORE The new music we commissioned to underscore the choreography and cinematography of To Begin the Dance Once More is by the Scottish fiddle player and composer Jon Bews. To find out more about the creative process of scoring the film read Jon’s essay which was published by our friends at Traditional Music Forum Scotland.
- THE POEM We launched our newly commissioned poem Beira and Bride by Donald Smith on #NationalPoetryDay 7 October 2022 as part of Scotland’s Year of Stories celebrating the bonds between traditional dance and poetry. Donald’s epic poem became the starting point for our new screen dance reimagining the mythological worlds inhabited by the Celtic and Egyptian mothers of Earth, including Beira and Bride. Read the poem now.
- THE FUNDING Our screen dance To Begin the Dance Once More is part of Creative Commissions for Climate Action Egypt funded by the British Council’s Climate Connection Cultural programme accompanying COP27 – the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties held at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
