2 March 2018
Performances:5.00pm and 7.00pm
The international tour of a new Viking-themed show will make its final stop in York on Saturday 2 March, for a unique performance of poetry, combat, sound and light in a specially-erected marquee in Museum Gardens. Follow The Vikings will see an international cast joined by local dance groups to create a spectacular dramatic show that tells the story of the Norse travellers, and the influence they had on the world.
York will be the final stage on the tour and the only venue on the UK mainland for the Viking Roadshow, which features projected backdrops and dramatic lighting create an immersive world in which the audience discovers the Vikings behind their reputation as fearsome invaders. Co-ordinated by York's very-own JORVIK Viking Centre in association with Destination Viking Association (DVA) - the show celebrates the cultural and historic impact of the Vikings through epic storytelling by Viking enthusiasts and experts spread across Europe, including local specialists drawn from the local area.
Performing as part of the York cast for Follow the Vikings will be percussion specialists from Hebden Bridge-based Drum Machine, and dancers from York Dance Space. Final year students from York St John University will handle the cast’s make-up, recreating dirt, battle scars and tattoos on the performers. As York hosts the final leg of the tour, the choir from Lofoten Viking Museum, who co-hosted the Norwegian performances, will perform in York. Returning will also be a Spanish troop of drummers – who most recently performed in York as part of the 2017 JORVIK Viking Festival – called Troula.
“This is a show with superbly wide appeal...mixing storytelling and prose with movement, dance and light, with contemporary lighting and dance blending with historic costumes and weaponry. It has been amazingly well received at each different venues – from Viking longhouses in Norway to al fresco performances outside the National Museum of Denmark and at Wood Quay in Dublin– and the involvement of local groups makes each show unique. We are delighted that the tour concludes in York, as it sets the scene for a visit to JORVIK Viking Centre, which depicts the life of the Vikings who settled here from what is now Scandinavia.." comments Sarah Maltby, director of attractions for York Archaeological Trust.
The York shows will be performed in tents designed to recreate the atmosphere of a Viking hall – the audience can unwind with ale from the bar, and sit for the show on benches. The tents will be warmed against the early March weather with fire pits.
Tickets cost just £5.00 for adults and £3.00 for children, and with limited capacity for each of the two shows (5pm and 7pm), early booking is strongly recommended.
To book, please visit jorvikvikingfestival.co.uk