Last Autumn (2021) Eurythmy West Midlands began the new term with a dedicated fourth-year group, preparing for their graduation, as well as leading a small first-year group on their new path of human and artistic discovery. The stage-group of 7 young performers started in October, finding each other and engaging in a process to discover what form artistic eurythmy can best meet the challenges of our day. In particular, what programme will suit outreach in these islands?
For the Michaelmas celebrations of Glasshouse College and for the Christmas Fair of the Ruskin Centre the poignant and humorous harvest story of ‘Monkey and Papa God’ from Haiti was performed to a delighted audience of all ages—mostly new to eurythmy. At the beginning of November a short programme was commissioned, especially for a birthday party as a fundraiser for eurythmy (what a good idea!).
For the Remembrance eveningin November, the students and the stage-group performers with their teachers attempted again to create the special link eurythmy can make to others who have passed over the threshold. The programme featured poetry by Vernon Watkins with music ranging from Bach to Messiaen and Peteris Vasks. We were also glad to welcome Sigune and Gregers Brinch to add to the rich programme. Our term was rounded off shortly before Christmas with the Students’ performances.
At present in the frosty January sunshine we are happy to be together again to focus anew on what wants to become.
The stage-group, together with the fourth-year students, started to rehearse the action-packed Romanian story “Harab Alp“, very well-known in the country of its origin. This shortened version of a long tale is intended to be performed to all the students of the Ruskin Mill Colleges and Schools, as well as to as many Steiner Schools and public venues as we can reach.
The stage-group is also fully involved with the process of distilling scenes from ‘Macbeth’ into a performance-piece “Before Dawn” to depict the forces behind human evil, of hunger for power. The programme will be woven through with music for piano and cello by Debussy, Shostakovich, Alois Zimmermann and Lera Auerbach.
The fourth-year students took on to explore the extensive poem ‘The broken Water-Jar’ by Octavio Paz, the well-known Mexican poet, as the main part of their graduation programme “Broken Light” This, of course, will be enriched with other complementary pieces of poetry and music. We also will tour various Ruskin Mill colleges as part of the King Arthur drama produced by students of the Ruskin Trust, adding eurythmy to several scenes.
Venues and dates for our programmes are at the planning stage. We are always happy to perform at a venue near you! Please do contact us.
Like other colleagues working in the artistic professions and in other fields, it goes without saying that we feel greatly challenged to keep our venture afloat and able to go into the future. The current situation is prompting us to find new ways in mutual recognition. Consequently, we are now in a process to join with Peredur Eurythmy in Sussex, to become one institution with two campuses under one umbrella of the Ruskin Mill Trust.
The students, performers and tutors of EWM are greatly looking forward towards reaching out to colleagues and friends to celebrate together our free humanity.
Maren Stott (for Eurythmy West Midlands)
Maren Stott: Dip. Eurythmy (Nuremberg, Germany) MA “Eurythmy Performance” (Alanus University, Alfter, Germany) has performed and toured internationally with various Ensembles and as a soloist. Teaches in the Eurythmy training since 1986. Is now one of the visiting, carrying members of the new stage Ensemble at the Goetheanum, Dornach, Switzerland.