Tickets Released For Free Mini-Festival, THIS IS FOR YOU DUNDEE

Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre present This is for you Dundee, a mini-festival of interactive events popping up online, aimed at Dundonians to rediscover their beautiful and vibrant city with the help from some of its foremost creative artists.

A natural continuation from Where are you, Dundee? which was created by and for the people of Dundee, This is for you Dundee presents new work created by 26 freelance artists and creatives engaging with the people of Dundee in celebration of their resilience during an extremely challenging year and exploring the transformative power of performing arts. As part of this mini-festival, six special projects will take place in the audio and digital spheres between 14 and 23 May. Crossing art forms and exploring a wide range of themes, This is for you Dundee offers something for people of all ages, with accessibility at its core and aspects of the festival, using non-verbal storytelling and dance with all projects captioned.

This is for you Dundee also celebrates local voices and local stories while it invites audiences to explore the city and our place within the world together. Throw a giant dice to hear a story in Dundee Delight Dice, scan a human QR code in Dundee QR-kun and create new, wilder memories in recollect: Dundee.

The cast and creative teams involved in the six projects include, among many others, Barrie Hunter and Ann Louise Ross, Dundee Rep Ensemble actors - you can currently catch Barrie Hunter online as Jim McLean in Smile, Rebekah Lumsden who was on the Dundee Rep Graduate scheme in 2016, Fergus Cruickshank, a filmmaker who trained at the prestigious Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, dancer and choreographer Yosuke Kusano who performs in Scottish Dance Theatre's Thin H/as H/air and Dundee-based arts companies and artists such as hidden route theatre company, illustrator Louise Kirby and actor Amy Hall Gibson.

This is for you Dundee is presented as part of Rep Studios, a new digital platform from Dundee Rep and Scottish Dance Theatre, showcasing a season of theatre, dance, and music which celebrates Dundee's distinctive cultural voice within a wider world facing change and evolution driven by these unique times.

Saturdays Doon The J.M.

Fearless Players, working with Alzheimer Scotland, present a short musical film based on the real-life stories of people living with dementia in Dundee. It follows the ups and downs of forty years of marriage of Andy and Eleanor whose romance began doon the J.M. Ballroom...

The J.M Ballroom, originally St David's Church, was located on Tay Street in Dundee, just a short walk from Dundee Rep where Saturdays Doon The J.M was filmed.

recollect: Dundee

Bandwith Collective presents recollect: Dundee, a filmed performance featuring the various never-quite-happened plans that were cancelled over the last year. But the reasons will not be what they seem... Bandwith invites the audience to let their imagination run wild. Holidays cancelled due to covid? Or maybe it was a family of lions that moved into your attic? recollect: Dundee will celebrate and commemorate Dundonians' cancelled plans, making new memories.

Mother Earth

Street dance collective Three60 present Mother Earth - a story that connects the audience with the artist and showcases love for nature and the powerful contribution that women make to humankind. Follow a Goddess as she transforms through her phases on Earth. Evolve with her as the story unfolds and she brings her inner ability from shadow work to the light. Mother Earth reflects on the time that we live in. Three60 believe it is their duty as artists to demonstrate to the next generation the influence art can have on our changing culture and reality.

Dundee QR-kun

Dance artist Yosuke Kusano will take to the city's streets with a unique virtual performance. QR codes will be placed on different spots across Dundee, transporting you to digital dance pieces. Visit them all throughout the week and tune in to watch a documentary about the making of the project from the comfort of home. Through this piece, Yosuke aims to humanify the QR code. The code itself was invented by a Japanese engineer and the suffix 'kun' is used in Japanese language when referring to a person.

Dundee Delight Dice

Illustrator Louise Kirby and actor Amy Hall Gibson present a story of reconnection to Sunny Dundee, where playful unexpected adventures happen with every roll of the giant Dundee Dice. This imaginative ever-changing story is sprinkled with surprise and delight and families are invited to join in from the comfort of their very own snuggly home, exploring the Delights of Dundee.

This digital performance will inspire families to create their own stories, unlocking their creativity and all the possibilities of play for the whole family to enjoy, again and again! Each family will receive a digital pack with ideas to continue the fun and, when it's safe to do so, continue the adventure around Dundee. Recommended for families with children between 3 and 6 years old.

Taking Space

hidden route theatre company and Hayley Blakeman present an interactive verbatim audio play inspired by a 2020 study which found Dundee to be the worst place in Scotland to grow up as a girl. Taking Space is a project that asks why this might be and dreams that one day the opposite might be true. With a specific focus on safety and public spaces this project explores what it's like to be a young woman in Dundee, through their eyes. It will also offer provocations, questions and small prompts to reflect upon your own experience as you listen. Taking Space is a cry for change, challenging the systemic issues and aiming to make Dundee a better, safer and more empowering place to be a girl.

Artistic Director (Dundee Rep) and Joint-Chief Executive Andrew Panton, Artistic Director (Scottish Dance Theatre) Joan Clevillé and Associate Directors (Engage) Tashi Gore and Jess Thorpe said: "We're delighted to premiere this festival of new digital work as part of Rep Studios. It's been a really inspiring process collaborating with a range of talented freelance artists who represent the very best of Scotland's performing arts sector. Collaboration and interdisciplinary creation sit at the heart of our work in Dundee. It's been exciting to see the very different ways these artists have created new work for and with our community. We can't wait for our local, national and international audiences to experience THIS IS FOR YOU DUNDEE."

Hayley Blakeman, Lisa Williamson and Gemma Nicol said on Taking Space: "We first talked about Taking Space over a year ago and, one year on, we believe now more than ever that the stories and conversations around women's safety and empowerment in public spaces need to be heard. This audio-play is a culmination of conversations we've had with young women from across Dundee who generously shared their stories with us; stories which were shocking, urgent, full of humour, hope and a compelling desire for change."

Fearless Players said on their show, Saturdays Doon The J.M.: "Working with Alzheimer Scotland, we spent 6 weeks talking and learning about life in Dundee from four couples who live here in the city. Originally intended to be a live musical, we have now adapted it to be a short musical film entitled Saturdays Doon The J.M. The piece is influenced by everyone with whom we spoke so whilst Andy and Eleanor are not directly based on any one person, their story is inspired by and filled with rich details from all those involved. It has been a wonderful gift to work on this project and we are so grateful to our collaborators at Dundee Rep & Scottish Dance Theatre, but especially grateful for our new friends at Alzheimer Scotland for being so open, welcoming and most importantly for trusting us with their stories."

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