Bold brave and back! Into the New festival of contemporary performance returns

Published: 22/03/2021

It’s bold, brave and it’s back … four days of contemporary performance from some of the most exciting new artists in Scotland.  Into the New returns to the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) from March 25 with a powerful line-up of creative and thought-provoking live art, films and performances.

As Real As Reality by Maria Monteiro © Jassy Earl

Graduating students of the Contemporary Performance Practice programme explore, question and challenge a range of themes including gender stereotypes and family dynamics, explorations of identity and issues of mental health, as well as the relationship between art and artist, alongside durational performance and work on digital platform Twitch in this acclaimed annual festival of original work.

Under My Duvet (until further notice) by Forest Wolfe  © Jassy Earl

Into the New also features artist talks, a symposium with practitioners from across the UK that examines how and why artists use personas, alter egos and multiple identities in their work, and a late-night performance party – all live on Zoom.

The majority of performances have been performed and filmed on the stage of the New Athenaeum Theatre at RCS – following Covid-19 guidelines – and are shared on digital platforms. All have optional subtitles, alongside select works that feature BSL interpretation and integrated performance. Tickets are free but must be booked in advance.

Explore the programme and watch online from March 25 to 28: rcs.ac.uk/festivals

 Dr Laura Bissell, Interim Head of the BA (Hons) Contemporary Performance Practice at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, said: “I want to commend the artists presenting their degree show work at this festival for developing this material under some of the most challenging circumstances that students (and artists) have faced in our lifetimes.

“This graduating cohort has worked incredibly hard to not only get through this pandemic but to devise a range of exciting and diverse new artworks. I want to say thank you to our students, the artists of the future, for their resilience and for inspiring me every day.

“The way in which they have responded to this moment in a creative, curious and committed way has been extraordinary and I am amazed by what they have achieved. These artists have not stopped making, they have found new ways of creating, collaborating and bringing us together and that gives me hope as we navigate these times.”

Till I Die by Indra Wilson  © Robert McFadzean

The BA (Hons) Contemporary Performance Practice degree at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland – recently named one of the world’s top three destinations to study the performing arts – is a four-year, interdisciplinary performance-making course focused on the generation of new and original performances that sit outside of traditional theatre.

It brings together performance-makers, educators, advocates and active citizens who challenge norms, break down barriers and aspire to transform the world around them. It’s for the curious and creative, who want to become collaborative and socially engaged artists. At the core of Contemporary Performance Practice is a commitment to the sustainability and social function of performance and how it can be ‘an act of community’.

Students are equipped with multiple skills, not only in performance making but also in facilitation and working in communities, to create powerful performances everywhere from hospices, prisons and schools to swimming pools, beaches and building sites.

Mothers’s Milk by Sally Charlton © Robert McFadzean

Main image of We’re Not Really Strangers by Rachel Mclean © Robert McFadzean