Welcome Yule Presents: A Midwinter Celebration

Sunday, December 11, 2022, 2:00 pm until 4:00 pm
Music, Dance, Songs and Stories to Drive the Dark Away. Masks requested.

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Welcome Yule - Music, Dance, Songs and Stories to Drive the Dark Away - Annual, Mid-Winter Celebration, this year weaving together English, Scottish and Celtic traditions of Yule (wintersolstice), Hogmanay (Scottish New Year's celebration), a bit of Robert Burns, and Imbolc (the feast of St. Brigid, who raises fallen Winter and brings forth new life in Spring, celebrated on February 1st), bringing the audience on a journey from one side of winter to the other. In sharing songs and traditions of olden times we feed a basic yearning for connection, with each other and the natural world in all its layers, remembering from simpler times what is important. Real magic happens - the magic of ancient traditions like the Abbotts Bromley horn dance, when eerie, antlered figures weave through the audience accompanied by a haunting tune. The magic of the renewal of life arising out of death. The magic of singing and dancing to drive the dark away to lift our spirits with the promise of the return of the light. The magic of storytelling, of puppetry, of superstitions. The magic of audience engagement - singing along, touching holly to the Yule log, and joining with the cast at show's end where the distinction between performers and audience members dissolves. The families of Welcome Yule have built a creative, loving community and draw audiences into that energy. We are so excited to be in person again this year after two virtual years due to covid. We kindly request that audience members wear masks inside the Shea. Thank you!

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors and Underwriters

Australis AquacultureArtisan Beverage CooperativeBenjamin CompanyBerkshire Brewing CompanyCohn and Company Real Estate AgencyCommunity CreditCommon CapitalCommunity Foundation of Western MassachusettsConnecticut River InternistsDean's BeansEasthampton Savings BankFirstLight GDF SueznaGill TavernGoff MediaGreat Falls HarvestGreen River FestivalGreenfield Community CollegeGreenfield Cooperative BankGreenfield Savings BankLootMassachusetts Cultural Council • Montague Bookmill Montague WebWorksNortheast SolarPeople's PintRainmaker ConsultingThe RendezvousSolar Store of GreenfieldStobierski and ConnorTold VideoTrue North TransitTurn It Up

Exciting News for A Happening IV: Leviathan

Cloudgaze and Eggtooth Productions are thrilled to announce that we have received a generous grant from the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice to support our 2024 Immersive Arts Festival, “A Happening IV: Leviathan.”

This festival will transform the Shea Theater into an exploration of theme, hosting installations, music, theatrical performances, and movement pieces, featuring the collective contributions of over 30 local artists. Audiences will experience otherworldly environments and narratives inspired by folklore, fairy tales, horror motifs, American literature, and the mythos of the Old Testament, all of which delve into the central question guiding the festival: "What does it mean to encounter something greater than yourself and to be consumed by it?" Through this theme, we explore how a community reemerges and imagines itself after destruction and transformation.

With the support of the Markham-Nathan Fund, we are excited to create an event that complicates perspectives and fosters meaningful dialogue. We are grateful for this partnership and for the work of the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice.

Thanks to the Mass Cultural Council for their vital support this year.We'd also like to thank the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts for their support in the form of a Flexible Funding grant. We couldn't do this work without you!