We’re just coming to the end of another Spring season of what’s called Rural Touring across Cumbria.
That’s the name given to getting professional performance art – be it music, theatre, magic, even dance – into rural areas, usually village halls but also schools, pubs and even libraries. There are about 25 organisations that do it across the UK. Here in Cumbria, it’s run by Cockermouth based Arts Out West for west Cumbria, and Penrith based Highlights Rural Touring for most of the rest of the county. About 50 venues altogether are on the schemes.
Behind the Scenery this month gets under the bonnet of how it all works. Tom Speight spent an evening at a typical rural touring show in Shap Memorial Hall near Penrith to watch a piece of theatre called Ladies That Dig. As the final touches were being put to the set design and the last chairs were being set out, he first got talking to the volunteer promoter, the person who pulls it all together….
