Extraordinary events in extraordinary places
Cover: Transe Express in Weymouth Credit: Roy Riley Inside cover: Sisyphus, Company Satchok Credit: Elliot Franks
A festival for all Inside Out Dorset is an award-winning international outdoor arts festival that takes place across the county every two years. We bring live performance to unexpected places – town centres, village squares, beaches and hilltops – for everyone to enjoy. It is the only outdoor festival in the UK that works in both urban and rural outdoor locations across a whole county. In September 2023 we presented enchanting installations, spectacular parade shows, awe-inspiring acrobatics and thought-provoking performances. Some of Dorset’s most remarkable urban and rural spots were transformed with experiences that touched hearts and minds like nothing else.
33,000 visits were made to five unique Dorset locations across ten days: Moors Valley Country Park and Forest Poole High Street
Wimborne
Wild Woodbury at Bere Regis Weymouth
At the heart of what we do is our belief that performing arts should be accessible for all – no matter what your experience or background – therefore all of Inside Out Dorset 2023 was free to attend. Themes of landscapes, the climate, and the importance of coming together were our focus.
Our work with artists and 2023 commissions Over 80 artists presented work at Inside Out Dorset 2023. We featured companies from India, New Zealand, France, Italy, Germany and The Netherlands, as well from across the UK and the South West.
For the first time, Artmusic presented Saeflod, a requiem for the Earth. Audiences experienced music at Moors Valley Country Park and Forest where sound boxes played Helen Ottaway's composition performed by the Orchestra for the Earth.
The UK premieres were from French company De Chair et d’Os, German artists Chris Iris and the Italian performers Duo Kaos.
Other artists from the South West included The Working Boys Club, Laura Reid and Alice Stevens. Once again, we encouraged students from Arts University Bournemouth to present site-specific installations responding to one of our festival locations – this time, at Wild Woodbury.
Image: Songs for a Shifting Soil, Collectief Walden. Credit: Jayne Jackson
We proudly commissioned four South West artists for Soup and a Story, part of a project called Flavours with Dorset National Landscape, Dorset Food and Drink and Dorset Race Equality Council. Each artist presented a short performance inspired by the Wild Woodbury landscape and served a specially created soup to the audience. A unique experience for all the senses.
Image: Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band Credit: Elliott Franks
And Collectief Walden’s presentation of Songs for a Shifting Soil was unique in its use of word-for-word anecdotes of interviewees from the local community of Bere Regis. Inside Out Dorset Associate Artist, Lorna Rees, was a collaborator and performer in this piece.
Image: Saeflod, Artmusic Credit: Mike Petitdemange
Two world premieres and five UK premieres took place at Inside Out Dorset 2023.
“It is always a great pleasure for the team to participate in Activate Performing Arts projects… Thank you for your work and the exceptional welcome you gave us. I'd also like to highlight the incredible work you seem to be doing on issues of audience accessibility.” Cécile Durot, from French company Le. G. Bistaki.
Image: Baïna[na], Le. G. Bistaki Credit: Jayne Jackson
Image: Rodney Bell with audience members Credit: Jayne Jackson
Image: Audience members watching Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band in Wimborne Credit: Roy Riley
Image: Audience members watching Transe Express in Weymouth Credit: Sam Rose
Visiting professionals As part of our For Creatives area of work, we hosted two groups of outdoor arts professionals at Inside Out Dorset 2023. Several programmers also attended to see the newly commissioned artworks. Image: Pravaas, Akademi Credit: Jayne Jackson
Activate is a partner in a European Project called LAND and a UK-Dutch partnership called We Live Here. Both include our long-term partner, Oerol Festival from Terschelling in the Netherlands, who are specialists in presenting landscape theatre outdoors. We hosted 24 arts professionals from the UK and the Netherlands comprising of artists, festival directors and environmentalists. We discussed climate justice, diversity and the arts, alongside experiencing the festival programme. OutdoorArtsUK, our sector membership organisation brought a cohort of professionals on one of their ‘Festival Focus’ trips to Inside Out Dorset 2023. The group were interested in the climate emergency and outdoor arts festivals. We hosted their visit whilst they experienced the diversity of the programme at Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Wild Woodbury at Bere Regis and Weymouth.
Image: Five Seasons, De Chair et d'Os Credit: Jayne Jackson
We also hosted theatre director Edward McMillan from The Bridge Theatre in Brussels who hosts a series of podcasts exploring different ways in which theatre is presented. Edward interviewed our co-artistic directors and audience members at the festival.
Image: OutdoorArtsUK Festival Focus group Credit: David Doust
“We wanted to bring an OAUK Festival Focus cohort to Inside Out Dorset because of the unique place the festival holds in the eco-system of outdoor arts festivals in the UK, the high quality of work programmed, and the ethos behind it. Our group enjoyed engaging with themes of access, location, programming different styles, scales, and locations.” David Doust, General Manager, OutdoorArtsUK
Our work with our communities Whenever we create our events we make sure they’re made for and with our communities. We worked with a number of artists to deliver a range of workshops prior to, and during, the 2023 Inside Out Dorset festival. German artists Chris Schlunk and Iris Pelz visited Bournemouth and Poole College and Queen Elizabeth’s School in Wimborne to deliver workshops with performing arts and dance students. Adam Dupree from The Working Boys Club delivered a 3-hour drop-in workshop at the Reef Youth and Community Centre in Colehill, Wimborne, to explore the music made on the Serving Sounds bar. Bharatanatyam dancer Vidya Thirunarayan led a 90-minute workshop integrating clay, music, and storytelling. Participants included adults with learning disabilities from local groups 15 Days in Clay and Allsort’d Dorset. Artist Nicola Davis helped young people from Purbeck Youth and Community Foundation create a 5 metre long silk banner reflecting the wildlife of Bere Regis. This was supported by rangers from Dorset Wildlife Trust. Dorset-based rap artist Isaiah Dreads and street dancer Isaac Farmer reached over 600 year 5 and 6 pupils on their visits to 10 primary schools in the BCP Council area to run rap and street dance workshops. Over 100 children took part in drop-in workshops with puppet-maker Holly Miller in Dorchester and Weymouth. The workshops were part of Dorset Council’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme, offered to children in receipt of free school meals. Businesses in Weymouth then displayed the puppets in their shop windows in the lead up to the festival. 46 participants took part in the Activate Summer School which included a workshop day with dance artists Chloe Loftus and Rodney Bell, who performed as part of Inside Out Dorset. Most participants were from our inclusive performance groups The Premix, The Remix and The Originals – they then went on to perform their own piece ‘Imprints’ at the festival. Local artists Heidi Steller and Rose Perry hosted drop-in ‘make and take’ activities for families at our Poole and Wimborne locations. Wilder Dorset Ranger Seb Elwood, from Dorset Wildlife Trust, delivered talks about Wild Woodbury to audiences in Poole.
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Bournemouth and Poole College
1. Participants at a make and take workshop in Poole. Credit: Jayne Jackson. 2. Participants at a puppet-making workshop in Dorchester. Credit: Caroline Suri. 3. Chloe Loftus and Rodney Bell workshop at the Activate Summer School. Credit: Jayne Jackson. 4. Participants at a puppet-making workshop in Dorchester. Credit: Caroline Suri.
“Thank you for such a brilliant workshop… Our students really enjoyed it, and it was an excellent ice breaker for the start of term.”
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Without our friendly team of Volunteers, Inside Out Dorset couldn't take place. Image: Volunteering in Poole Credit: Jayne Jackson
59
enthusiastic volunteers supported the 2023 festival in a variety of roles including stewarding, supporting audience participation, access, collecting donations, assisting artists and supporting our front of house team.
576
volunteering Approximately hours were completed across the five festival sites.
Mandy Robbins, Volunteer
Image: Volunteering in Bere Regis Credit: Jayne Jackson
“I really enjoyed volunteering… I was made to feel welcome, supported and appreciated by the lovely Activate team. I wouldn’t necessarily have visited on my own, but this way I got to be part of a wonderful event as well.”
33,000 visits were made to five unique Dorset locations across ten days. 97%
85%
of audiences surveyed rated their whole experience of the festival as ‘Very good’ or ‘Good’.
of audiences surveyed would rate the accessibility of the festival as ‘Very good’ or ‘Good’.
79%
60%
of audiences surveyed live in Dorset.
“A joy, blending art and nature.”
Image: Audience members in Weymouth. Credit: Sam Rose
“Lovely to have access to the arts in Dorset which is free.”
of audiences surveyed were visiting Inside Out Dorset for the first time.
Audience member feedback
Image: Audience members in Bere Regis Credit: Jayne Jackson
Image: Audience members in Wimborne Credit: Elliott Franks
Work in the landscape For over twenty years we’ve worked closely with landscape, environment and heritage organisations and in 2021 wrote the first national arts strategy for the National Landscapes Association (formerly The National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty), following years of partnering with Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. For Inside Out Dorset 2023 we worked with Dorset Wildlife Trust (DWT) to bring live performance to Wild Woodbury – their site in Bere Regis. This remarkable location is undergoing a process of rewilding and offered us a unique setting to work alongside DWT and Dorset National Landscape (formerly Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty). Our expertise is in presenting live events in sensitive landscapes, raising awareness of their environmental importance. We highlight the relationship between landscape, artists, land stewards and the climate emergency. The Wild Woodbury programme included Five Seasons from French artists De Chair et d’Os. This was a site-specific piece about rituals and our connection to the earth. A clay oven was built and will remain at Wild Woodbury for the local community to use.
The Dutch company Collectief Walden presented Songs for a Shifting Soil which used word-for-word accounts of people’s experiences of the Dorset soil. Artist and Arts University Bournemouth Academic, Alice Stevens, presented Imagine-Better: Welly Walks which encouraged visitors to try on specially equipped wellies that played pre-recorded poetry relating to the weather. And composer Laura Reid created an audio walk / song cycle that utilised GPS technology to play music at certain points around the Wild Woodbury festival site. For the second time, we worked with Forestry England and Dorset Council to present an artistic programme at Moors Valley Country Park and Forest. This took the form of an enchanting art trail consisting of four sound installations.
Image: Five Seasons, De Chair et d'Os Credit: Sam Rose
“It was a lovely evening celebrating what forests can be if we cultivate partnerships to blossom.” Forestry England spokesperson
Image: Lachrymae Credit: Mike Petitdemange
Our commitment to the environment With the current climate crisis, we consciously work in greener ways, understanding that we all need to be part of the solution in protecting our planet. Some of the things we did at Inside Out Dorset 2023: Created no negative environmental impact through our rigorous event planning and management Provided drinking water points where visitors could fill up their own bottle Encouraged our artists to travel in more environmentally-friendly ways Printed our festival brochure on 100% recycled paper Printed our outdoor information boards on 100% recyclable Triaprint ffered a free bus service from Poole and Dorchester to the festival site O at Bere Regis Promoted travelling to Inside Out Dorset by public transport, car share, cycling or walking
Image: Seaflod, Artmusic Credit: Mike Petitdemange
This year was strongly themed around the environment and climate change. As producers of the festival, Activate Performing Arts joined the Culture Declares Emergency movement in 2020 and we continue to work with land stewards and other partners to raise awareness about protecting our planet.
Image: Lachrymae, Artmusic Credit: Mike Petitdemange
The Inside Out Dorset 2023 Artistic Programme
Funders and Partners Activate is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation and is core funded by Dorset Council and BCP Council. We seek other funding opportunities on a project-by-project basis, including for Inside Out Dorset. We work with many partners including DTPC, LAND, Green Carpet, Flavours (with Dorset AONB and Dorset Race Equality Council), We Live Here, Cultural Hub and the National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. For Inside Out Dorset 2023, we worked with many partner organisations and funders and thank them for their continued support.
Core Festival funders 2023
Headline Sponsors 2023
Individual site/co-commissioning funders 2023
Caroline Cooban, CEO of Talbot Village Trust
Image: Poupées géantes, Transe Express Credit: Roy Riley
“Providing essential funding to Activate Performing Arts has helped the festival reach broader audiences and expand its offering, so we've been incredibly pleased to support the team and Inside Out Dorset this year."
OVER 80
33k VISITS
10 DAYS
ARTISTS
5
947
FESTIVAL LOCATIONS
75
KEY STAGE 1 & 2 PUPILS
59
VOLUNTEERS
KEY STAGE 3-5 PUPILS
27
STAFF & CREW
“My son is neurodiverse, ASC, and this is the first festival he has been fully engaged in since lockdown. Very positive festival for families, and has had a positive effect on his mental wellbeing." Audience member
The oven built by De Chair et d'Os and community members will remain at Wild Woodbury for future use by community groups.
Increased access provision including BSL interpreted performances, audio description and Changing Places toilets.
'This Woven O' by disabled artist Oliver Macdonald will remain at Wild Woodbury.
Press coverage in: The Times, BBC South Today, BBC Radio Solent, Dorset Magazine, Dorset Echo, Stage Audience, West Dorset Magazine, Great British Life, BBC News Online.
Image: Audience members in Wimborne Credit: Elliott Franks
“The best performance I have ever seen.” Audience member
"Events like this in Weymouth mean locals and visitors experience our town in a really special way." Dawn Rondeau, Chief Operations Officer, We Are Weymouth
"Inside Out Dorset offers a diverse range of awe-inspiring spectacles that captivate audiences across our region." Caroline Cooban, CEO of Talbot Village Trust
"Thank you so very much for a wonderful workshop and spectacular event, we all had a great time." 15 Days in Clay
"I really enjoyed this experience so much it reminds me so much of how much fun I was missing while being stuck on devices." Workshop participant at The Waverley Club
Image: The Air Between Us, Chloe Loftus and Rodney Bell Credit: Elliott Franks
7-9 The Little Keep Barrack Road, Dorchester Dorset, DT1 1SQ
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01305 260954 info@activateperformingarts.org.uk
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ServingElliott Credit: Sounds. Franks Credit: Mike Petitdemange
Activate Performing Arts