Hebden Bridge arts company to tell lockdown tale

Northern Rascals creates community-focused and thought-provoking dance theatre for a wide variety of audiences.

Under the artistic direction of Anna Holmes and Sam Ford, they endeavour to make work with depth and complexity that has the power to make a direct impact on society.

Its Digital Squad project for Northern Broadsides is a brand-new creation of online video content that highlights the effects of Covid-19 on young people. “Sunny Side: Through the Lens” will feature two dancers performing choreography based on material generated by young people in isolation; with music, animation and spoken word.

The piece will be co-devised alongside young people aged between 16 and 24, through a distinctive digital outreach programme.

Northern Rascals will research how Covid-19 is impacting their lives, getting testimonials, and encouraging them to create choreography and poetry about their situation.

Collating this material, the team will use this content to create the choreography, animation, and music composition and sound score for the film.

The theatre company will work with local schools and mental health support charities in Calderdale.

Artistic director of Northern Broadsides, Laurie Sansom, said: “We were inundated with so many intriguing proposals by 99 talented artists from across the north.

“It meant it was incredibly difficult to settle on a final nine, but we believe these short films will capture a snapshot of the North in lockdown, and ask some challenging questions about a world that will never be the same again.”