CLERA CEREDIGION - CWMNI THEATR ARAD GOCH
Clera Ceredigion is a performance project by Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch which recognises and celebrates the county’s heritage as well as the strengths and events of the modern community.
As a result of Covid-19, rural isolation has worsened and has led to an over-reliance on impersonal mass media. Following two street musicians being applauded as they wandered the streets of Aberystwyth in the first lockdown, the Cwmni Theatr Arad Goch realised there was a desire and need for live, local and importantly, crowd-free entertainment.
As an outcome, Clera Ceredigion was created which was a series of live performances with the theme ‘Our Stories’. The ‘Our Stories’ theme included local legends and stories and traditional songs alongside current and recent stories and news.
Eight performers, being actors, storytellers, dancers, musicians, a poet, choreographer, and photographer collaborated with the director of the company to create small individual performances – with every individual element being a part of one thematic patchwork.
The performers then travelled to different areas in the county, arriving like ‘minstrels’ of yore – namely, wandering bards and musicians. They paraded like colourful and exotic virtual figures through a village or town, distancing themselves from each other and the public, before all of them, individually, go to the garden or front of individual houses or to a village square to present ‘micro’ performances.
As part of every event and visit a photographer/videomaker travelled with the performers to record the small individual events, the involvement between the characters and individuals in their communities, and the characters’ relationship with the landscape around them. The performances have been captured through photo and are available by clicking here. The videos will then be published digitally on a blog form which will be available to view here.
This project has received funding through the Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.
