Magic is waiting in the forest

After last year’s success, Faskally Wood in Pitlochry will once again play host to The Enchanted Forest from September 28 to October 29. The event is likely to sell out before opening night

It is the enchanting spectacle in the heart of a Perthshire forest that last year fought off the likes of the Magical Lantern Festival in London and the Diwali Festival of Lights to be crowned Britain’s best cultural event at the UK Event Awards.

Now the popular sound and light show – The Enchanted Forest – is back.

The Perthshire extravaganza, which last year celebrated its 15th anniversary with a record turnout of 70,000 visitors, has grown from a three-night run – bringing some 1,500 visitors – to an event which attracts people and media attention from across the globe.

Each October the show turns Pitlochry’s Faskally Wood into anotherworldly experience, boosting the local economy by more than £2 million.

Proceeds also help fund community groups and projects.

Last year’s show, Shimmer, sold out six days after opening and more than 90% of visitors later cited the Enchanted Forest as their main reason for visiting the Pitlochry area.

This year the theme is “Oir an Uisge” – translated from Gaelic as “edge of the water” – and again a warm welcome is promised at this woodland wonderland.

The dazzling displays of shimmering multi-coloured lights and music combine as visitors follow a marked path through the woodland.

Creative producer Zoe Squair said the stripping of rhododendrons from the site by the Forestry Commission had allowed the layout to get closer to the “edge of the water” as this year’s theme suggests.

“Audience members who have been before will very much notice the

difference,” added Zoe, who said a recent fire on the other side of the forest had no impact on the event.

RJ McConnell and Jon Beales, who create an original music score for the annual event, worked with producer Ben Seal at his Fife studio for what may be their most challenging and impressive sound backdrop yet.

In keeping with the Gaelic name of the show, the composers have brought shades of Scottish folk to this year’s music. They developed a score that brings together traditional and orchestral instruments, synthesizers and digital effects.

The pair brought in more live musicians than ever before, including fiddler Pete Clark, who lives close to Faskally, and Edinburgh-based musician/actor John Sampson on recorder, trumpet and crumhorn.

RJ McConnell said: “This year was definitely more of a challenge for Jon and me, but in a good way. We’ve incorporated elements of Scottish folk music whilst keeping the score contemporary and strongly hinting at the ‘edge of the water’ theme.

“The score brings together traditional instruments such as whistles, recorders and crumhorn with our orchestral instruments – strings, percussion, harp and brass.

“We also used many electronic voices from various synthesizers and digital effects. So the score has quite a mixture of sounds. We think we have created something that will appeal to all ages.”

Ticket sales for this year’s Enchanted Forest have smashed through the 50,000 mark, making Oir an Uisge the fastest selling show in the event’s 16-year history.

Event organisers, The Enchanted Forest Community Trust, released a record 72,000 tickets and fully expect that, for the first year, the event will sell out completely before the opening night.

Oir an Uisge opens to the public on Thursday with proceeds from that night benefiting three charities: Tayside Mountain Rescue, Alzheimer Scotland and Giraffe.

“We think we have created something that will appeal to all ages

Pictures: Angus Forbes. Visitors enjoy some of The Enchanted Forest displays that lit up Faskally Wood last year.