A French Medieval Celebration, & A Visit to the Scandinavian Northlands

In 2006, Portland Revels produced their Christmas show for that year, "A French Medieval Celebration of the Winter Solstice." Here's the photo collage I created for it:

We've already seen 2007's "Haddon Hall", so I'll move on to 2008, with "A Visit to the Scandinavian Northlands." Check out the awesome trolls and other mythical beings created by Barbara Millikan, who also makes our dragon every year!

(Just a reminder: These are very large, and I've uploaded them that way. Click on them to see the whole collage, because only a third to a quarter of each one actually shows on this page.)

Portland Revels Does Shakespeare; Christmas in Appalachia

What would happen if the most famous dancer of the Elizabethan era, Tom Kemp, were sent to a small village with instructions to prepare a celebration for Queen Elizabeth, shortly to arrive? Just for starts, each villager would manage to grab a page from one of Shakespeare's plays, and at the appropriate time (or, more like, inappropriate) would leap up, recite a line from a death scene, and die forthwith (in the acting sense, not in reality!). In this collage, look for a scene where every cast member on the stage, except one woman reciting the line, "And the rest is silence," and the queen's party--every villager--lies dead on the stage.

Somewhere in Appalachia, on Christmas Eve, travelers arrive at the small church where the locals have gathered to sing, dance, and feast the holiday. The travelers and townsfolk share their folk traditions, stories, and songs. One traveler, however, attempts to steal the music, grabbing it and stuffing it into a bag that grows larger and noisier with each stolen tune. Will he get away with it?

A Second King and the Fool, and a Scottish show

Today's photo collages (with hopefully one or two more to come) are both from Portland Christmas Revels shows set in the British Isles, the first in England proper, the second in Scotland.

Revels Haddon Hall, and Irish in America

Two more photo collages, one set in Haddon Hall in England, and one in Ireland. Both, I believe were set in the 1930's, but the plot for Haddon Hall involves a family buying the Hall and moving in, only to find that when Christmas arrives, the cabinets open, and long-departed inhabitants come out to celebrate.

This is Haddon Hall:

And these are scenes from the Irish show:

I'm posting these collages in aid of our 20th Anniversary Jubilee, and being very brief, because I haven't thought of these posts as "real", but I have to say, each one reminds me what a wonderful Christmas/Solstice show Portland Revels puts on every year, and how much fun and light they bring to my winter world, whether I'm in the cast or on the stage, as I have been for twelve of the nineteen shows. Revels is not just a part of my life, it's a part of my soul.

Celestial Fools, and a Party in Italy

Picture a drab, brown village in the middle of nowhere. Now picture three fantastically garbed medieval clowns arriving, and the party that ensues, along with magic, wonder, song, comedy, and dance. That was 2001 for the Portland Christmas Revels.

I'm skipping 2002 for now, as I don't have that collage done. I'll be back!

In the meantime, the solstice celebrations have moved, in 2003, to Italy:

Portland Christmas Revels shows for 1998-2000

Portland Revels has done two shows of a Celtic nature. The first, in 1998, was broader in focus, encompassing traditions from Scotland, England, and Wales. (Don't quote me there--it's been nearly twenty years, and I'm going by memory.) These are very large images; click on them to see what isn't fitting on the page.

After that came the first French Medieval show, in 1999.

Then, in 2000, a Victorian Show.

Portland Christmas Revels Northlands show, 1997

1997 was the year of our first Northlands show, and featured the national choreographer of Norway, a champion pole dancer (it's a folk form, not what you're thinking! Quite an amazing dance, though.), and a quartet of folk singer-musicians from Karelia, in Russia. I loved this show, and enjoyed talking to the choreographer about my name, which is very popular in Norway.