Texts for Translation 2009:
  Amanda Sobey

The Big in Falkirk Festival

Aspiring Australian Entertainment and Travel reporter, Amanda Sobey, visits one of Scotland’s historical towns to experience a weekend of Creative Arts culture.
“Your next stop, Falkirk.”

Falkirk (or Scotts: Fawkirk) is a town in the heart of Scotland, lying to the North West and North East of the cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow.
A man with his Terrier flashes a smile as I step out into Falkirk from High Street Station, on this overcast Saturday morning. Each year, these locals share their town with hundreds of visitors who make their way to experience the annual ‘Big in Falkirk’ Festival. The man proudly enlightens me with a brief history of his town. I learn that sections of the Roman Antonine Wall can be seen in Falkirk, an ancient stone and turf fortification, erected across Central Scotland, in the 2nd century, AD. This town is also world renowned for its battle site that resulted in the defeat of Scotland's 'Braveheart', William Wallace at the battle of Falkirk in 1298.

I continue down into Falkirk centre, in search of my bed and breakfast, The Molloy Rooms.

Walking down Falkirk’s fully pedestrianised High Street, I stop by a charity shop, in search of an extra layer to block out any sudden chill, that may present itself over the weekend.

A sweet sense of community spirit is displayed when the proud, volunteer behind the counter directs me to a Florist, a few blocks away. There, the next local offers to provide me with further directions to my accommodation.

At last I arrive at the red brick home of Celine and Neil Molloy. The Bed and Breakfast is an extension of their home and possibly a nice little pocket money earner for their retirement. The rooms are mostly occupied by traveling business and medical professionals through the week and tourists over the weekend. I arrive early to met dearly modest Celine, hurriedly putting the final touches on my room. Despite my super punctuality, the welcome is still very warm.

The hospitable couple encourage me to ask them for “anything at all” and hand over the set of keys to my room.

Neil kindly offers a space in the driveway to park my car. However, I politely decline, informing him that, for this trip, I’d be on foot.

Refreshed and offloaded, up the hill I walk, to the delightful Callendar Park.

“Get yer arse ere fookin noor!” commands a small, angry Scottish boy to his brother, who are standing outside the park entrance. A great start to the first impressions I am beginning to collect.

2009 is the tenth anniversary of the Big in Falkirk Festival, Scotland’s National Street Arts Festival. It was an introduction to Ian Smith, Creative Director of Mischief Le Bas, that intrigued me to experience first hand, this new, world of wonderful. He and his wife, Angie, are performing over the two day festival schedule. I take the opportunity to go behind the scenes to meet just some of the creative people involved.

Admiring the lush, green surrounds of Callendar Park, I follow the flock of people up the path. Along the way, passing two lovers, canoodling under a flourishing blossom tree.

Another couple, enjoy a little competition with each other, having a putt on the wee miniature green. While my ears follow the music, my nose is typically guided by the aromas of festival food.

Children line up, waiting for their turn to spring a jump on the inflated castles.

“Can we get an ice cream with a Cadbury’s in it?” a little girl begs her mother.

“Aye” she replies. “But only if you be a good, wee hen!”

Families and individuals flood the festival ground to be entertained for the next two days.

I soon find myself standing amongst the crowd, in front of the imposing, chateau style

six hundred year-old mansion, now recognized as a public museum.

An audience forms before the large stage on the front lawn section, so that they can see the performers up close.

The first band to catch my attention are six piece, psychedelic pop band, The Ray Summers.

Their cool, retro, fun and upbeat tempo livens up the atmosphere. Lead singer, Andy moon walks himself around the stage while performing the ‘Crazy World’, impressing the audience who are watching his every move. The band features two guitars, a Billy bass, electronic keyboard (straight out of the 1960’s US Surf era) and all pulled together by a cool percussionist. These six boys formed at the beginning of 2008, quickly attracting press interest. They have since supported established artists such as Sargeant, Alabama 3 and Paulo Nutini, as well as performing their own sell out gigs. This year, the band will release their latest album, Ray Summers.

A line of small children and their mothers, march through the crowd. I decide to follow them. Once they arrive at their intended destination, the children proceed to create an outdoor theatre piece on the lawn, titled “The Fantastic Staccatto Bananas”. The children are part of Falkirk Children’s Youth Theatre. They set a fairground atmosphere, splitting side show tricks to tell short stories linked with moralistic themes in between. I happily enjoy their ‘I beg your pudding?’ jokes, fluent French accents, imaginations of invisible dragons, clever acrobatic skills and expressions; “What fun!”

Next, I wonder over to a beautiful Flamenco artist, dancing inside an inflatable snow globe.

Fanning her Flamenco pericon, Theatre performer & dancer, Angie Dight, moves beautifully to the original soundtrack which had been specially created for her piece. Angie is classically outfitted with a stylized gypsy red and white polka dot dress. She moves in red shoes, a shawl and beautiful ‘flores’ are pinned, in her hair. Her dramatic dancing is contrasted with the simplicity of reading a book in the sunlight, which streams through the globe. Kitsch props are positioned inside the walls of the globe. This, combined with Angie’s expression and performance, convey imagery of feelings experienced by women of the Spanish Franco Regime.
Children sit cross legged, excitedly, up close. Their attention, captured and entertained by this Spanish princess. The inflated globe itself is a fantastical setting for creating a glimpse into her untouchable world.

“Underground” -produced by Motion House Theatre, stands out as a contemporary dance piece. It explores the reality concept of train travel. Set in a tubular structure, four dancers use dynamic, physical movement and unsuspecting aerial skill to create a powerful performance.

I watch the audience size grow as the performance atmosphere draws people in, unselfconsciously. The dancers’ facial expression, neutral, contrasts with the physical complexities of their movements. As an audience member, I feel my own heart beat with the pulsating timing of the soundtrack. The dancers portray underground graffiti artists who demonstrate love, spraying in motion, with aerosol cans, across the plastic wrapped set piece. The plastic is then ripped open to release any tension between passengers aboard the train. A brilliantly choreographed interpretation of the real life situations we find ourselves in… when traveling in confined spaces.

The afternoon progresses.

While watching the next music act, I imagine myself in a scene from Bedknobs and Broomsticks, dancing my way down a Portabello Road street Carnival.

Titled Carnival Collective, this vibrant group of 10 + musicians from the Sussex coast, move and shake their way through a colorful assortment of Latin American style sounds.

One of lead singers wears a moustache, penciled on her upper lip. Armed with trumpets, saxophones, percussive instruments, their vocal chords and dressed in only the brightest of blues, Carnival Collective are cool. Witnessing a Carnival Collective performance is a complete “uplift your spirits” package.

I spend the next hour dancing before the Stereo MC’s in the music area with the Brian Hartley, the Irish Matador and the dance troupers from Motionhouse.

When the Saturday events come to an end, I have the opportunity to stay on with the with the performing artists. “Why not?”, I think to myself!

Shortly after obtaining a VIP pass, we make our way into the fenced off area to celebrate day one of the festival. Inside the marquee, festival performers tuck into their hard earned, catered meals. I hear the singer from Carnival Collective ask for Vegetarian Haggis. I feel very privileged to be eating & spending time with these professionals. I do not hear a single negative comment about the Big in Falkirk festival. To the contrary. All professional artists who I speak to praise it’s atmosphere and longevity.

The day takes us into night, music, a signet induction and an introduction to Scottish Ceilidh (pronounced Kay-lee) dancing. We dance to this cheerful, lively music as the band instruct us with the steps. This music reminds me of a cassette tape I once had, by a band of “Aussie Bushwackers’’. My heart beats faster and faster with the tempo of the music.

One may consider this style of dancing a complete physical work out.

The night is interrupted by two costumed men, who pledge to “signify” their long time friend.
The story has it that (for no reason in particular) friends, Ian Smith and Neil Butler, have always worn a signet ring. Feeling out of place, a third friend questioned (on many occasions) the significance of those rings. So, now comes the night where Ian and Neil, with tongue in cheek, present their friend with a signet ring to “u-knight” the three. Performing an improvised speech, Ian calls all to gather round. He then asks the friend to kneel and accept his ring. It is quite the spectacle to see the these professional Directors in a mischievous manner. I feel thrilled to be witnessing the goings on of these performers after hours, when the crowds have gone home.

Hours go by, the Caleigh dancing finishes and it is now time for me to head back to the B&B for a night cap to prepare for day two!

A gentle wake up call from Celine arises me. I open my door to find my breakfast on the floor. Assembled on the tray is a small box of Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut Corn Flakes, muesli, strawberry yoghurt, fresh fruit & orange juice. Not short on variety. A delicious start to the day.

I take up a kind offer made by Celine and Neil to leave my bags in the room for the rest of the day, so that I won’t have to lug them around. I make arrangements to collect them again later when I leave Falkirk.

I make my way back up the same path from the day before. The weather doesn’t quite know what it’s doing yet as the grey Scottish cloud covers the bright, warm, Sun.

I take up an invitation to preview the work of some newly met acquaintances over in the East Village Dance Tent. Choreographed by Natasha Gilmore, their production “A Blank Album”, features four dance artists and musicians who perform live, with a guitar, fiddle, cello, percussion and voice. The piece embraces the surreal and fast pace of popular culture and invites the audience into the characters' inner worlds. Two interesting highlights are watching cast member Vince, split the crutch of his tight jeans while dancing and cast member Jade, physically sing on her head.

I’m such a big kid during the Big in Falkirk festival; soaking up every happy, bright, colorful concept, creation and performance. I watch a small scale show titled “Darwin and the Dodo”.

A comical insight into Charles Darwin’s ideas, life, times and legacy.

I chat to a man named Derek about his Nikon Professional digital camera while he photographs the life size 1972 Vietnam War Scene installation. Derek is a 70 something year-old but enjoys the challenge of keeping in time with today’s modern technologies. I thank him for his inspiration.

I lose myself in the “Brain Wave” production, presented by Whalley Range All Stars. A theatrical daydream where you can see what’s going on inside a 3 meter high head.

Burr…A chilly day. That extra layer of a cashmere sweater from the Charity shop comes in handy.

The aromas of food van lunch options lead to a slight drewl from my mouth.
Crowded around the Crepe Van are children who have worked up an appetite from the dance workshops taking place just across the grass.

Mmmmm.. I decide to try a spicy mushroom crepe. Watching the girl prepare and cook the crepe makes my tummy rumble with excitement. This is going to be good, I tell myself. However, just about every taste bud in my mouth turns itself off after I take my first bite.

The mushrooms are dry, the spice mix - a bland combination. Getting off my high horse of expectation, I remind myself that this is not a food festival and not France.

Later that afternoon, I do taste a ripper piece of moist, banana cake - the frosting so deliciously creamy and fluffy. A man by the name of Barry Sweeny also makes me a hot chocolate with cinnamon in his rare, classic 1955 Bedford B Fire Engine, which has been converted into a “coffee station’’.

I manage to view two separate performances by “sang-froid” Ian Smith, the Creative Director of Mischief La-Bas, who’d encouraged me to visit the festival. The first, featuring a dead matador (Irish performing artist, Brian Hartley), pulled by his bull (Ian Smith), through a transition of colour to monochrome. Titled ‘Beastly Beauty’, Ian encapsulates his feelings toward turning fifty years old in 2009.

The second performance, titled “The Hurty Gurty Man” is wonderfully clever and entertaining as we watch from our seated positions on the Falkirk Greenery. Using his hurdy-gurdy to make light of the typical Organ Grinder image, Ian interrupts the crowds and inflicts his re worked arrangements from David Bowie and The Beatles.

After exploring the last of the Street Art performances, I assist Angie with dismantling her Snow globe. First, we remove the entire contents from inside, then lay the deflated globe, flat and fold the plastic, using our best origami skills.

The night soon falls. We make our way back to the grounds for the grand finale. I’m suddenly blown away by the most spectacular pyrotechnic display. Fireworks paint the Scottish flag’s Saltire in the sky. Paying tribute to 2009, the year of the Scottish Homecoming, a heart structure is lit. It then transforms into a glowing silhouette of the face of Scotland’s poet, Robbie Burns, highlighting his 250th birthday.

The crowd cheer the finale.

It would be a shame to conclude this piece without making reference to the significant Industrial Revolution which occurred in Falkirk in the 19th century. It was in this town that industrial pioneer, James Watt developed the steam engine. Both the Forth and Clyde Canal and the Union Canal are central to the town’s industrial heritage. The canals were used to transport goods and raw materials to nearby Glasgow and Edinburgh. Today, the revolutionary 21st century Falkirk Wheel turns, at the junction of both canals. This attraction also a “must see” if one is passing through Falkirk.

Time feels just a flash as I make my way back to the High Street Station, where I first entered Falkirk, only the day before. I board the train back to Glasgow and reflect on the incredible two days I’ve just lived.

Having had my first taste of Festival culture, I now feel hungry to experience more of the world’s festivals. And to support those, which exist in my own back yard, Australia.

I feel humbled to have witnessed some very special performances, while, along the way, meeting wonderfully inspiring, creative folk. This weekend was big.

Big in Falkirk.

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