Through The Dark Hours: Lost Mother Moon

Come and live the ancient story of The Lost Mother Moon overnight at the Anglo-Saxon village of West Stow: the picture-perfect setting where the wild truly comes alive. It will be an incredible opportunity to go deeper into what community really means to us when we're on the land, particularly through the hours of darkness...

A village of paradise, a boggy marsh full of evil, a moon that drops from the sky and a community that loses its light...

The Lost Mother Moon is an English folk tale steeped in nuance around the subjects of community, isolation and the vast array of human psyches we all inevitably experience.  Some may know this story through Clarissa Pinkola Estes’ interpretation.  We offer you an opportunity to bring the story to life through the dark hours and dance into all its meaning.

Our grass-roots dance community has grown as an anchor to so many over the last couple of years and this Story Dance is an opportunity for us all to encounter a true, visceral understanding of what community really is and what it truly asks of us.

The glowing light of a community can be strong and deeply attractive but alongside sitting in this light together we must all be prepared to sit together in the darkness should it be called... 

A community can easily lose it's light and when that happens members of the community get lost too.  Isolation and independence has become all too familiar in our culture and even with the recent identification of how important communities are, we are, in a sense, still fumbling in the darkness in terms of understanding what is deeply required of a community.

The truly exciting and very real part of this whole encounter is that we won't (and we don't) always know what community might call for us to do or be... we need to be prepared for that; to allow for the unexpected and to greet it with a certain amount of willingness, even when it comes at the most inconvenient time to ourselves!

Join us for what will be a truly unique experience, bringing this story to life among the ancient-wilds of time and tales...

Details & Booking:

• Saturday 8th June, 4.30pm - Sunday 9th June, 7am
• Price: £130
• Payment of £45, non-refundable deposit, is taken at time of booking to secure your place. The remainder £85 is to be paid via BACS by 5th June 2024 (details in the confirmation email).
• This event is open to men and women.
• We will arrive as the general public exits and we shall leave before the world awakens again... stories deserve such mystery!
• We will be going through the story of The Lost Mother Moon in stages over the night with lots of time to share, rest, eat and of course dance!
• The encounter will include walking the ancestral village and river-land out of hours, gathering in the houses for story, sharing in circle by campfire, blindfold dance experience (at least 45 mins per person), live instrument soundscape meditation, embodied exploration of story through movement in relation to both isolation and community, fun, laughter, raw / roar emotion and the unexpected!
• This will be an overnight experience….There will be space for people to rest and shelter but we ask you to bring with you anything you will need for your own comfort (pillows / blankets etc), but not tents -  there will be no intentional camping, just resting.
• There will be light vegetarian snacks and refreshments available but please also bring a small dish (vegetarian) to share or cater for your own specific dietary needs should you have them.
• The event will take place in a secure location without public access after 5pm.
• Please note that it is intentional that we explore the more uncomfortable natures of being in the dark - the unexpected, poorer visibility, possible discomfort, the unknown etc. This is what will make up a huge part of the ‘story’ and the raw reality of life. The ground may be uneven, the lighting vastly reduced and the temperatures left up to the gods but this plays an important part of how community works together and self responsibility is a very real requirement for joining us.
• Parking will be available in the general car park - fees apply.
• This event will be a mixture of being under shelter and exposed to the elements. In extreme weather scenarios we will adapt the event accordingly.
• Limited places are available.