Mesmerising Outdoor Performance set to bring 30+ Community and Professional Dancers to the Alnwick Garden
Preview: Confluence by Meta4 Dance Company
Images unfolding, gentle and sustained, like wisps of smoke that dissipate and reform as something new. Fingertips trail through long grass, feet balance on smooth pebbles in a stream, a bird of prey hovers on the wind; the movement is calm but my mind races with imagination.
Meta4 Dance Company’s Confluence draws from memories of nature, capturing the beautiful simplicity of connecting with our natural world through playful and pleasantly human movement. Their work is gentle and understated, yet still manages to show athleticism with moments of daring that pull you to the edge of your seat, before offering a soothing breath to relax once more. Their performative state is relaxed, no pretence; they smile when I enter the room (a few minutes late of course) and chuckle when a toddler dashes into the performance space.Â
The dancers maintain a genuine sense of wonder, truly watching, listening, and responding to the ideas that emerge, semi-improvised. Alongside Meta4 directors Lily Horgan and Charlie Dunne, two new dancers have joined the company, and Melissa Heywood and Ashling McCann look immediately at home in the work. Each individual brings a unique energy, creating satisfying changes of pace and adding to the distinctly human feeling of the movement - though at times abstract, the work does not alienate its audience, rather it continually draws us in with its relatable, wholesome spirit.
Seeing this work-in-progress sharing at the gorgeous Ellingham Village Hall, I felt I could have watched each idea for a long time, and I hope that as the development process continues each is given its time to grow. Meta4 Dance Company have succeeded in creating a contemporary dance work that doesn’t compromise its artform but is still accessible and readable to an audience less familiar with dance, or at the very least, is incredibly enjoyable to watch.
Lily Horgan and Charlie Dunne of Meta4 Dance Company, image by Elly Wel Photography.
The final performance of Confluence is free to watch, with a day ticket to the Alnwick Garden on Saturday 24th May at 2pm. It will bring together 30+ community members that Meta4 Dance Company have been working with across Northumberland, as part of their Arts-Council funded project, Desire Lines. A live sound-score will be created in response to the performance by artist Tom White, with costuming to be designed and made by Lucy Minta-Reeves.Â
You will find the performance in front of the Grand Cascade (access info: https://www.alnwickgarden.com/visit-us/accessibility/)Â
The show will last 1 hour and is suitable for all ages. You are encouraged to bring your own blankets/picnic rugs to sit on and enjoy the performance.Â
Book your entry to the Gardens now and enjoy Confluence for free: https://www.alnwickgarden.com/bookingportal/
Meta4 Dance Company are based in rural Northumberland. Set up in 2018 by Charlie Dunne and Lily Horgan, Meta4 is a community-based company with inclusion at its heart.