By Thomas Stott
While the world seemed to be focussed on the football Euros, Silverstone, Wimbledon, and the Tour de France, Steiner House in London was abuzz with a different kind of excitement as an Intercultural Eurythmy Festival took place. For two days, artists and participants from all corners of the world came together to celebrate and explore a rich tapestry of cultures. The festival hosted the students from Eurythmy India and Peredur Eurythmy, as well as the stage group from Eurythmy West Midlands. Together, a dynamic environment was created, filled with diverse performances and engaging activities. As part of the festival, workshops offered the chance to taste different cultures – exploring the Mandarin language, the sound of Indian music through sitar and tabla, the tree of life in music eurythmy, and comparing traditional dance, chanting and yoga to eurythmy.
One of the festival’s most discussed performances was India’s ‘Love, and Be Silent – Scenes from Shakespeare’s King Lear’ which marked a first step of building a eurythmy training in India. The students came from Nepal, Malaysia, China, and of course India, each speaking a different native tongue. The teachers tried to blend speech, drama, and eurythmy with a visible joy in performing a moving choreography.
Shakespeare’s works wove throughout the festival’s programmes, providing a common thread as English was the shared language. Fitting to the shared topic, Puck made his appearance in Peredur Eurythmy’s evening programme ‘The Way Leads On’. The performance of the fairytale ‘The Golden Ball’ marked their end of term, which was full of exciting performances in the UK, in Germany at the Forum Eurythmie Festival, and finally in Steiner House, London, after the graduating student had performed in this year’s festival for new graduates in Dornach.
Between touring, Eurythmy West Midlands developed their summer production, ‘Shakespeare’s Fool’, in which the fool and some clowns from chosen works of Shakespeare took centre stage, inviting reflections on these roles with their own wisdom. This collage we were able to share at the festival in London. The helplessness of infatuated lovers was seen next to King Lear’s struggle for self-knowledge in the storm; the challenging vision of disillusioned Hamlet stood next to the monologue by the simpleton Lance, with his ridiculous enactment of a family parting, trying to teach his dog to show human emotions – portrayed by a eurythmist. Lear’s fool sang his famous ditty about making a fortune of one’s ‘little wit’; Launcelot Gobbo and Autolycus sang their songs of life, suggesting that all life is ‘just’ a play. Claude Debussy’s ‘quirky’ Cello and Piano Sonata made a challenging first impression on some of us, but after working a full year on all three movements, we aimed to show the joy of life in this music. We were grateful for the joyful response to this programme.
As the Intercultural Eurythmy Festival unfolded, Steiner House seemed to come alive. Many people were seen attending the performances, and as many joyful faces afterwards, touched by what they witnessed. The rain might have forced everyone indoors, but it only added to the intimacy and comradery. The atmosphere was electric; participants mingled, shared stories, the workshops were filled with eager participants, and the performances were met with enthusiastic applause.
Special thanks go out to Adrian Locher and Chrystal Hayn for organising this festival, that the group from India could join us, and for supporting our work in the UK in many ways. Well done to all the performers, whose dedication brought eurythmy to life! We also extend our heartfelt gratitude to our financial supporters, including every donor and ticket holder – your contributions truly make a difference. Special thanks to the Hermes Trust and the Anthroposophical Society in Great Britain for their generous support. Lastly, a huge thank you to my fellow stage-group colleagues for a special time and journey together. Your commitment makes this experience unforgettable.
Thomas Stott, eurythmist with West Midlands stage group; trained in Witten; since 2022 involved in advanced stage training and work, performed in several countries, including Russia, Georgia, Germany, Brazil, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Switzerland, and UK.
My journey in eurythmy and stage lighting began during my school years. As a lighting designer, I’ve honed my skills through the Eurythmie Festival in Witten, known as ‘Forum Eurythmie’, and recently started freelancing with several ensembles. My aim in setting eurythmy onto stage is to create a space of colour, to achieve glimpses of the supersensory in the sensory – an imagination that seems to be approachable, truly otherworldly. This is my ongoing research, playing with different light sources, including natural light through tinted glass windows.
Being on tour and working as a freelancer always involves picking up the work and ideas of my predecessors and finding a way. Combining my eurythmy training with technical skills has been a huge asset. The Intercultural Festival was a fantastic opportunity to bring together my passion for eurythmy and lighting, to engage with technicians and fellow designers and to connect with artists from around the world.
As I will go on to find my own artistic path, the work with Eurythmy West Midlands will come to an end in the autumn, after our upcoming tour to Asia. This will mean that I am open for questions on research, projects, performances or to start debating how our future could look like. I am excited to continue exploring and expanding the possibilities of eurythmy.