The arrival of the awakening buds of spring will be celebrated with a weekend of colour, music and making in the latest transformative arts event from Wye Valley River Festival.
Wye Valley River Festival CIC, an arts organisation led by artists and communities, will stage a torchlit gathering, creative workshops and a cabaret in Llandogo on Friday March 21 and Saturday March 22 under the name The March Flare to bring people together to mark the return of the light.
The March Flare follows the success of the 2024 Wye Valley River Festival, which saw thousands of people attend vibrant arts events across the region last summer, followed by a stunning October light and sound show Shadows of Tintern, held in Tintern Abbey’s grounds.
The March Flare begins on Friday with The Still Point, Immersive Sound, an evening of sound, words and music inspired by the Spring Equinox at St Oudoceus Church, Llandogo, during which the audience can drift through the change of the season, basking in layers of sounds from Jenn Singleton, Megan Brooks, Jo Meikle, Gavin Lewery, Tim Hill and others.
Tickets cost £5 plus a booking fee and are available here.
On Saturday afternoon, the Flower Crown Workshop at Llandogo Village Hall will see expert Shanna Ludwig from flower shop Harebell & Bee lead two ticketed sessions on making a colourful dried flower crown to mark the turn of the season.
Workshop attendees can let their creativity run wild with everlasting flowers like daisies, strawflowers and statice along with grasses and seed pods to decorate their headdresses. Tickets cost £5 plus booking fee via the Festival website.
The same afternoon choir leader Jenn Singleton will hold the Sing in Spring Workshop, which promises two hours of song and vocal play exploring Spring’s emergence and harmonies.
Jenn will create a special welcoming space for people to explore a deep connection to their voices and will teach some of the songs to feature in the later celebrations. Tickets cost £7 plus booking fee through the Festival website.
On Saturday there will be performances in the late afternoon leading up to a fire parade in the evening. Attendees will walk together through Llandogo under the moon, fire torches in hand, waking up the world and soaking up the season’s change.
The procession will head to the village hall for the final event, a feast of food, music and merriment, with space to sing songs and tell stories.
Visitors are invited to bring a dish to contribute to the feast, along with brooms, pots and pans, shakers and instruments to blast away the cobwebs and give Spring the welcome it deserves.
To secure a free place as a fire torch bearer, advance registration is needed.
Artistic director Phillippa Haynes, of Wye Valley River Festival CIC, said: “We are delighted to bring The March Flare to Llandogo to bring together people to celebrate the arrival of spring with the typical noise and colour for which Wye Valley River Festival is known.
“The two days of events will be full of workshops and gatherings to gently wake up the earth, trees and ourselves with spring songs, shared stories and weaved headdresses before the fire procession through the village and fields.
“With a variety of opportunities for people to join us we would encourage people to get their tickets so they do not miss out. We look forward to seeing Flare-goers bring their own creative flair to be part of the celebrations.”
The festival is held every two years to bring together local people, environmentalists and artists in an internationally important landscape, with its return planned for 2026.
It is developed with Wye Valley National Landscape and funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Arts Council Wales, Arts Council England, the Sustainable Development Fund, the Welsh Government, Cadw and Ashley Foundation.
- Tickets and more information for The March Flare are available at: www.wyevalleyriverfest.com/upcoming-events/
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