Donegal Cove inspires dance-theatre

Londonderry based dance company, Echo Echo, are deep in rehearsals for their recreation of the Cove, an original piece of dance-theatre, which sees them merge visual arts, music and dance with outdoor pursuits - all inspired by a hidden cove near Stroove, on the North Donegal coast.
By The Newsroom
Published 8th May 2014, 07:00 BST
Dance theatre piece inspired by a hidden cove at Stroove.Dance theatre piece inspired by a hidden cove at Stroove.
Dance theatre piece inspired by a hidden cove at Stroove.

The director, Steve Batts, discovered the Port-a-Doris cove a few years ago. It became the setting for one of the company’s 2011 projects and proved to be a magical, inspiring place- looking out towards Downhill beach on the other side of Lough Foyle.

During that site-specific project, many local residents came to visit and told stories of the cove having been a place where people proposed to their sweethearts and carved their names. They came to dance there too, many years ago, in secret. Interesting that in 2011 the Cove also became a special place for the Echo Echo Ensemble of six local dancers. They have scrambled, climbed, picnicked, swam, played, danced and meditated there. They have seen the seals and the fish, the birds and the insects. They have visited in the rain and sun.

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The Cove was subsequently created in 2012 with support from the Legacy Trust, as a creative collaboration between Echo Echo Dance Theatre Company and the Belfast-based visual artist Dan Shipsides, inspired by their memories and experience of the magical Port-a-Doris Cove. The production toured nationally to critical acclaim and was accompanied by an original music score by talented local composer Christopher Norby- who has also composed for Ulster Orchestra and NI Opera.

Echo Echo Artistic Director Steve Batts, said: “One of our reasons for re-creating this piece is that we only performed it once in Derry so not so many people saw it. The company has built up a very loyal and interested local audience but I think there are many more people out there who will enjoy this live performance work. The other reason is that we hope that we may be able to take the production further afield and tour internationally in the future.”

Echo Echo is considered to be one of Ireland’s leading dance companies and is known for it’s innovative projects and unique performance style. Performances of the Cove will be in Echo Echo’s beautiful home theatre space on Magazine Street for 4 nights from 14thmatinee performance on Saturday at 2pm. The 2014 performances of the Cove are completely unfunded so Echo Echo urge audiences to come and support the work of the many local artists involved.

For full details about the performances or any of the work that the company does, visit www.echoechodance.com or call 028 713 08883