Dorset arts company Emerald Ant, in partnership with the National Trust’s Kingston Lacy Estate, has been awarded over £78,000 funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to deliver an innovative new arts project that will bring the history and ecology of Badbury Rings Iron Age Hillfort alive for local communities.
And ‘Glow Badbury’ is already underway! The first field visits for local school children began on 2nd May, enabling them to explore the site and to learn the stories of the Rings 40,000 years of human history, under the expert guidance of the National Trust’s archaeologist. Working alongside the Trust’s Ranger the children will also find out about some of the wonderful wildlife that lives at this unique site.
Artists and musicians will then help those taking part capture their creative responses to Badbury Rings heritage and wildlife in a series of workshops in schools and community venues – writing stories, composing music and creating artwork.
The culmination of the project will be an enchanting evening celebration of the Rings through illuminated ambient performance pieces, a feast for all the senses through music soundscape, words, drawings, projections and site-specific theatre performances.
Emerald Ant Community Interest Company has been delivering high quality performance and creative experiences, inspired by Dorset’s rich cultural heritage, since 2015. Emerald Ant’s Creative Director, and Glow Badbury Project Lead Sarah Butterworth, said;
“We are thrilled to have received this support thanks to National Lottery players. We look forward to working with the National Trust’s Operations Team and volunteers at Kingston Lacy and the staff and volunteers at the Museum of East Dorset in Wimborne. The project will provide activities and events that connect local communities, and in particular children, with Badbury Rings through creative interpretation of its history and ecology. The workshops and final performance will bring people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds together, promoting health and well-being, counteracting social isolation and engendering a greater understanding of the site in order that it can be preserved for future generations.”
An educational pack, developed through the project, will ensure that all Dorset school children can enjoy and benefit from this imaginative look at a historically significant and much-loved site.
Additional funding has been provided for the project by the National Trust, Dorset Council and local schools.
Image: Badbury Rings, Artist Sarah Butterworth
