Dawn performance draws crowd
Poetry, language and song on college roof
More than 100 people welcomed the rise of a new day together last Saturday morning, August 25, with a sunrise performance by the internationally-renowned Norwegian artist, writer and performer Caroline Bergvall.
Performed on the roof terrace of Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, overlooking the Sound of Sleat towards the Knoydart Peninsula and the lights of Mallaig, Ragadawn (An t-Eilean Sgitheanach, 57.5˚T) was brought to Skye by visual arts organisation ATLAS Arts.
In collaboration with Gaelic speakers on the island, Caroline devised a powerful piece which took the audience on a sonic journey as the sun rose. Her spoken word composition was complemented by the soprano voice of Peyee Chen and languages from across Europe, including Gaelic recorded on Skye.
Following the performance, the audience meandered to the college dining hall for a breakfast of porridge and kedgeree, seaweed bread and warming tea and coffee – using locally-sourced ingredients and Scottish suppliers.
Caroline said: ‘I will remember the remoteness, the weather, the extraordinary landscape and changing skies, the physical demands setting up the work in these conditions, the audience who made it for 5am, the bond I felt between the work and the landscape and the strong connection with ATLAS Arts throughout our two years’ work to make this happen.
‘This is so far the first performance of Ragadawn where so many ‘at risk’ languages were featured and where Gaelic speakers could be heard prominently throughout the work. It was very moving to be in a place where Gaelic is actively spoken.’
The performance made quite an impression on the audience with one person describing it as an ‘inspirational event’.
ATLAS director Emma Nicolson was impressed by how the work drew people together: ‘We were thrilled to see so many people get up early to welcome the dawn together and we couldn’t have asked for a more unique setting than the rooftop of Sabhal Mòr Ostaig (SMO).
‘Watching the sky transition from dark to light, combined with Caroline’s mix of poetry, language and song created an extremely atmospheric way to waken the mind and body. The event took a lot of planning and we are extremely grateful to the many people who helped, especially staff at SMO.’