June 29th, 2024
‘The post before this was written with a different future in mind. Like everyone, we had to stop abruptly in 2020 due to Covid.
June was already gracing the big cabaret in the sky with her presence and the rest of us were holed up in our respective homes. Doreen and I emailed regularly though never got to have our afternoon tea in the garden as we planned. I visited Marie a few times over the garden fence and kept in touch via her family. She voice-messaged me once to thank me for the flowers I’d sent for her birthday. Betty and her family were making plans for her 100th birthday, hoping to have it at the Festival Theatre. Katie of course was in touch too and work spilled out into real life. Testament to the bond between us all.
I aimed when I started this work, way back in 2016, to keep it going as long as the spirit was willing and with a continued desire to be immersed in dance. We achieved that! A radicle action in the arts is so often time-limited due to funding prescriptions and rhythms. We’ve built the website, edited films, are considering an Instagram page, have had a great get-together with the families to ensure that they have all the digital and hard copies of our extensive documentation that they might want, and are an ongoing part of the Edinburgh Festival Theatre’s history and archive.
Thanks to everyone who made it possible. Most of all raising a glass to the intrepid troupers Marie, June, Betty and Doreen.“
An Audience With... 