Originating in Greenwich, on the Prime Meridian, its 4th year, Solstice Shorts went nationwide.
Dusk, that time between day and night when everything changes.
On 21st December 2017 Dusk started in the UK in the far NE (Shetland) at 16:53 and finished in the far SW (Cornwall) at 18:21, taking between 40 and 50 minutes depending where you were.
We had twelve sites across the UK all reading/singing different material (chosen by us, read by actors/ sung by musicians) starting In Ellon, Aberdeenshire and ending In Redruth, Cornwall, taking in key spots in between.
follow these links for the videos and more info.
Ellon 17:07-17:54 Inverness 17:15-18:02 Greenwich 17:16-17:57 Nottingham 17:17-17:59 Carlisle 17:18-18:02 Rossendale 17:19-18:02 Lancaster 17:20-18:03 Birmingham 17:21-18:03 Bristol 17:27-18:07 Holyhead, 17:30-18:12 Warkleigh 17:33-18:14 Redruth 17:40-18:20
The performances matched the timing of (Astronomical) Dusk exactly, with a live stream to Facebook. Redruth didn’t start reading until Aberdeen had almost finished and all the other performances overlapped, so that somewhere in the ether we were all reading/singing together, like a murmuration of starlings.
We had much discussion about what we mean by Dusk -We are went with astronomical dusk (as in to do with stars, not enormous!) which is the last ‘official’ segment, when the sun is down, but there’s still a lingering light in the sky, through to out and out night. Useful website here for those of you who are interested:
Ellon (Aberdeenshire, Intuitive Music Aberdeen, at Better Read Books), Inverness (Inverness Playwrights at Eden Court), Carlisle (Carlisle Patchwork Opera at Foxes Cafe), Lancaster (North West Literary Salon at the Print Room at the Storey), Holyhead (Anglesey/Ynys Mon Cybi Poets at Ucheldre Centre), Rossendale (The Whitaker), Birmingham (Unbroken Cocoon at The Goose Selly Oak), Nottingham (Nottingham Writers’ Studio), Greenwich (That would be us at West Greenwich Library), Bristol (Bare Bones Collective at Kelston Roundhill), Warkleigh (near Barnstaple) (Courage Copse Creatives) Redruth (Kernow Education Arts Partnership)
Thank you to our FUNDERS: ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND, plus FEAST and CORNWALL COUNCIL FOR REDRUTH, NOTTINGHAM CITY COUNCIL for NOTTINGHAM, and KELSTON RECORDS for BRISTOL.
We would also like to acknowledge in-kind support from Better Libraries, Royal Borough of Greenwich, The Whittaker, and all of our organisers in particular Phil & Sherry in Inverness.
Dusk:
The Complete Programme
Ellon, Aberdeenshire 17:07-17:54
Better Read Books,
Hosts: Euan Kelly and Bill Kelly
Performers: Haworth Hodgkinson and Catriona Yule
BSL Interpreter: Bruce Cameron
Stories
Alex Reece Abbott, MacFarquhar’s Bed
Patrick Gale, Sleep Tight
Music
Intuitive Music Aberdeen: Intuitive music based upon the Winter Solstice mode from Haworth Hodgkinson’s Dundee Ambient
Poems
Mandy Macdonald, Gloaming
Joy Howard, Factory
Jane Aldous, After the Sun, Before the Stars
Eileen Carney Hulme, Blue Hour
Alice Tarbuck, Decoration of a Fermented Season
Alison Lock, Crow Haibun
Sue Johnson, The Shortest Day
Michelle Penn, End of Ramadan
Inverness 17:15-18:02
Eden Court
Hosts: Phil Baarda and Sherry Morris
Performers: Amy Hasson and Alexander Donaldson
Poems
Jane Aldous, After the Sun, Before the Stars
Eileen Carney Hulme, Blue Hour
Alice Tarbuck, Decoration Of A Fermented Season
Stories
Pippa Gladhill, In-Between Dog
Sherry Morris, Granda’s Plan
Alex Reece Abbott, MacFarquhar’s Bed
Lucy Grace, Breadcrumbs
Music
James Bryce, Dusk Song
Ed Bentley, Dusk In The Gers
Greenwich 17:16-17:57
West Greenwich Library
Host : Silas Hawkins
Performers: Math Jones, Grace Cookey-Gam
Stories
Kirsty Fox, They Said there were Pirates
Math Jones, Yes, Twilight
Poems
K Wise, Tempus Erat
John Richardson, all this
Laila Sumpton, Starling Time
Lisa Kelly, Match Girl
Martyn Crucefix, Summers Ended in Sweetness
Music
3 Bucket Jones, Light Another Candle for You
Caroline Watsham, Sundown
Nottingham 17:17-17:59
Nottingham Writers’ Studio
Online: https://www.facebook.com/NottmWritersStudio/
Performers: Susie Hennessy, Jay Bradley
BSL Interpreter: Elvire Roberts
Poems
Sue Birchenough, Roost
Kelly Davis, Calling Them In
Katy Lee, Red Coat, Wolf, etc
Stevie Krayer, Sleeping Out
Stories
David Mathews, Flick’ring Shadows
Penny Pepper, Wolf’s Head
Lucy Grace, Breadcrumbs
Kirsty Fox, They Said there were Pirates
Carlisle 17:18-18:02
Foxes Cafe Lounge,
Host: Nell Dunn
Performers: Ben Brinicombe, Kelly Davis
BSL Interpreter: Karen Edmondson
Stories
Rob Walton, Words On Paper
Samuel Wright, Here
Poems
Lindsay Reid, Summer Evening
Kelly Davis, Calling Them In
Katie Evans, 16:30
Joy Howard, Factory
Music
Nicola Reid, Witching Hour
John Chambers, Balcony
Rossendale, Lancashire 17:19-18:02
The Whitaker Museum & Arts Centre,
Host: Carl Bell
Performers: Tony Curry, Carl Bell, Neil Bell
BSL Interpreter: Amanda Owen
Poems
Aziz Dixon, Calligraphy of Starlings
Alison Lock, Crow Haibun
Stories
Kirsty Fox, They Said there were Pirates
Lucy Grace, Breadcrumbs
Rosalind Stopps, One Two Three, One Two Three
Samuel Wright, Here
Music
Sarah Grundy, Night & Day
Lancaster 17:20-18:03
The Print Room Café, The Storey
Host: Yvonne Felton-Battle
Performers: Mary Hooton, Leo Atkin, Marian Cox
BSL Interpreter: Carol Kyle
Poems
Joy Howard, Factory
John Bevan, Afterglow
Stories
David Hartley, Daylight Savings
Rob Schofield, Four Beaches
Rosalind Stopps, One Two Three, One Two Three
Birmingham 17:21-18:03
The Goose
Host: Adam Elmi
Performers: Sam Arrowsmith and James Bryhan
BSL Interpreter: Emma Dunleavey-Dale
Poems
Nigel Hutchinson, Some Times a Black Cloud
Sue Johnson, The Shortest Day
Stories
Sherry Morris, Granda’s Plan
Fiona Salter, On The Evening Train
Music
Brandon Sheils, Dusk
Bristol 17:27-18:07
The Old Barn, Kelston Roundhill
Performers: Paul Deaton, Elizabeth Parker, Corinne Harragin
BSL Interpreter Paul Mancini
Poems
Paul Deaton, Brunel’s Bridge
Elizabeth Parker, Dhusarah
Stories
Helen Slavin, At Sky’s Edge
Sherry Morris, Granda’s Plan
Music
Ichi, Magic Hour
Anna Kissell, Oh, The Dark!
Holyhead, 17:30-18:12
Ucheldre Centre
Host: Ness Owen
Performers: Nicholas McGaughey, Karen Ankers, Trefor Stockwell
BSL Interpreter: ffranses Wharton-Faraut
Stories
Katerina Watson, Threshold
Cath Bore, The Dusk Runner
Poems
Jill Sharp, The Dogs of Delhi
Ness Owen, Female Blackbird Sings (in Welsh and English)
Jeremy Dixon, Driving to Blackpool to Visit My Sister
Nicholas McGaughey, Magic Hour
Stevie Krayer, Sleeping Out
Carl Griffin, Sea’s Wedding
Music
Fiona & Gorwel Owen, Releasing Birds and Y Gwydd
Warkleigh 17:33-18:14
Courage Copse Creatives
Performers: Katy Lee and Lisa Schneidau
BSL Interpreter: David Wolfenden
Poems
Nigel Hutchinson, Some Times a Black Cloud
Kelly Davis, Calling Them In
Gabrielle Choo, Sundown Breath
Katy Lee, Red Coat, Wolf etc
Stories
Pippa Gladhill, In-Between Dog
Cath Bore, Dusk Runner
Katerina Watson, Threshold
Jackie Taylor, Cape Cornwall
Music
Tom Norden Crepuscule
Sharon Lazibyrd After Dark There’s Sun and Time Has Its Own Song
Redruth 17:40-18:20
The Writers’ Block
Performers: The Story Republicans
BSL Interpreter: Debbie Harvey
Poems
Alannah Egan, I Am Dusk
Roselle Angwin, The Standstill
Bridie Toft, Arrival
Stories
David Hartley, Daylight Savings
Patrick Gale, Sleep Tight
Music
The Farewell Shanty, collected by Merv Vincent
Dusk is Dark, poem by Andrew Lanyon, set to music by Katie Kirk
| site | start | finish | minutes |
| Ellon | 1707 | 1754 | 48 |
| Inverness | 1715 | 1802 | 47 |
| Greenwich | 1716 | 1757 | 41 |
| Nottingham | 1717 | 1759 | 42 |
| Carlisle | 1718 | 1802 | 44 |
| Rossendale | 1719 | 1802 | 43 |
| Lancaster | 1720 | 1803 | 43 |
| Birmingham | 1721 | 1803 | 42 |
| Bristol | 1727 | 1807 | 40 |
| Anglesey (Holyhead) | 1730 | 1812 | 42 |
| Warkleigh | 1733 | 1814 | 41 |
| Redruth | 1740 | 1820 | 40 |
