Cosmic experience promised as About Us opens in Derry today

Created by 59 Productions, The Poetry Society and Stemettes, and featuring poems and Scratch animations from young people from schools in Derry, across the north and Britain, the 25-minute projection shows will immerse audiences in a journey through 13.8 billion years of history.

By night, About Us will ‘transform the landmark Guildhall Square and Waterloo Place into a vast canvas combining awe-inspiring live projection-mapped animation with poetry, music, and beautiful live choral singing to create a unique spectacle’.

Positioned across the Square, a raft of freestanding plinths containing theatrical lighting and LED screens will offer the counterpoint of humans against the vast cosmic scale imagery of the video projection.

The evening shows will feature winning entries from the About Us poetry and Scratch animation competition, led by The Poetry Society and Stemettes, on the theme of ‘connectivity and the universe’, and selected by a host of distinguished judges.

Acclaimed composer and musician Nitin Sawhney CBE has composed the original score which will be performed as part of the live shows by Codetta, in association with the City of Derry International Choir Festival.

By day, pop-up multimedia installations will be open from 10am to 5pm to showcase the creativity of local children and young people with poems and Scratch animations created in schools’ workshops in Derry, Strabane and the surrounding area.

Mayor Graham Warke, said: “There is a real sense of anticipation building ahead of this amazing new festival experience for the City and District.

“The fact that so many local schools have collaborated in a creative way in producing some of the poems and animations for the installations is particularly exciting.

“The involvement of the fantastic Codetta will also bring something unique and personal to the experience.

“The fact that we are hosting two of the UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK commissions is a testimony to the city’s growing profile as an exciting visitor destination,” the Mayor added.

Lysander Ashton, Director of 59 Productions and Project Director for About Us, promised ‘a dazzlingly rich composite view of the extraordinary universe we all share’.

“About Us is an invitation to experience a world where you are made of stars, you’re built from a trillion intricate cells working in harmony, you are related to dinosaurs and you can make a connection to a billion people with the press of a button; it’s a celebration of some of the incredible things that make us, us, and I can’t wait for audiences to come and see it”.

Martin Green CBE, Chief Creative Officer of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, said: “UNBOXED is the UK’s most ambitious celebration of creativity to date and this free spectacular performance will show us what can be achieved when we harness the creative power of scientists, technicians, producers, musicians, poets and mathematicians to produce and present a truly extraordinary and inspirational experience, that audiences, and the choirs and young people who have contributed, will never forget.”

Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE, co-founder and CEO of Stemettes, said: “STEAM allows us to look at scientific concepts through a brand new lens. There’s more room for ideation and the freedom to create something new by taking an intersectional route to solving a problem. Building on tried and tested methods, STEAM supports the creative process so that people can help solve real-world problems. This multidimensional approach to creativity will be demonstrated through the use of Scratch animation projects in the About Us shows and installations which will provide a feast for the senses.”

About Us has been created by the award-winning 59 Productions, one of the creative and technological forces behind the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony; Stemettes, the award-winning social enterprise working to engage, inform and connect the next generation of women and non-binary people into Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths (STEAM) by showcasing a diversity of people working in STEAM; and one of the UK’s most dynamic arts organisations, The Poetry Society. Pe

About Us wowed an audience of 50,000 in Paisley earlier this month, and after Derry will travel to Caernarfon from 30 March to 5 April, Luton from 14 to 20 April and finally Hull from 30 April to 6 May. All About Us events are outdoor, free and unticketed, and suitable for audiences of all ages. Find out more: aboutus.earth