New Springs from Old Winters is Rosemary Lee’s first large scale participatory work as sole director in contrast to her collaborative partnership with Sally Sykes touring Mirror and Mirror and Memoirs of a Cast of Thousands.
She spent several months researching spring rituals in many cultures, the research and this work still feeds elements of her practice now, in Common Dance for example she returned to some of the themes and images from that work.
The piece involved a wide array of 57 participants from Physics PHD students, to Oxford dons to children from the council estates of East Oxford. It was performed in the Oxford Town Hall for two nights and was preceded by a dancing procession through the city involving a women’s Morris team, bell ringers and the smashing of a giant paper hare filled with sweets. The dance company Jointwork invited Rosemary to be in residence in Oxford and hosted the residency featuring in the work itself.
Excerpts of the work performed by Jointwork toured to one of the last of the Dartington Festivals. A distillation of that work resulted in Egg Dances.
Music —a compilation of a variety of music related to spring rituals, assembled by Rosemary Lee
Costumes and props designed by Rosemary Lee
