THE STORY-WEAVER
Simon Sharkey, Katy Fuller, Novak, Roma Yagnik, Robin Peoples and Lightfires, with Sally Lofthouse

In a garden filled with flickering flames, a dramatic portal has appeared, carved with celestial secrets.  The Story-Weaver – our interstellar alchemist – will appear through the portal to tell you the tales of the wonders she has seen on her journeys across the North of Tyne region.  Inspired by stories of the heritage, landscapes, mythology, people of the region, the Story-Weaver has gathered it all together to reflect back this beauty and diversity to the people who live here. 

In this enchanted space, she is brewing up the magic to power the explosion of colour, light and sound across the nearby streets and buildings. 

ANTHRO ZOO
Heinrich & Palmer

Using a fusion of large-scale projection, light and sound, Anthro Zoo takes a nocturnal journey deep into the zoology stores of the Great North Museum - home to a vast and eclectic collection of taxidermy specimens.  Here resides an order of animal skins skillfully shaped by the taxidermist to capture the memory and shape of former lives.  Rabbit and wolf exist peacefully together with the now extinct Great Auk and Huia birds. 

Using 3D laser scanning technology, lighting and film, a selection of these creatures have been digitally captured and transformed into luminous bodies of light, ready to re-inhabit the city of Newcastle.  Scans of the museum and the city create an ethereal context for this imaginary world, whilst the façade of the Great North Museum provides a dramatic backdrop for experiencing Anthro Zoo. 

THE ZOETROPE
Illuminos

Making use of the unique architecture of the Newcastle Civic Centre, the building’s iconic drum is transformed into a shimmering, pulsing zoetrope, spinning on its axis and powered by the ringing carillon tower. As if conjured by the Tyne waters and the River God Tyne himself, water and energy surge down the tower, setting the great zoetrope spinning.

 From the electric lights of The Lit and Phil Society to the vast pulsing steam turbine of Charles Parsons, the vibrant Hoppings and the fiery Davy lamp, stories from North of the Tyne ebb and flow in a whirl of kinetic movement. The soundtrack also includes excerpts of original pieces composed and played on the Newcastle Carillon by Jonathan Bradley.

MEADOW WALL
Limbic Cinema

A magical and illuminated interactive projection inviting audiences on a journey from the undulating coastal dunes of Northumberland to the deep and dark forests of Kielder. The audience become part of the artwork as playful gestures cause the local landscapes to become populated with wild flora and fauna.

The experience seeks to promote positive human action and a more harmonious relationship between humans and nature, starting conversations about how we can restore and rebalance our natural ecosystems.

The piece includes poetry from Rowan McCabe, music by Rowan Evans  and animal illustration by Nurbanu Asena.