Showing @ Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh until Sat 11 Oct @ 19:30, 20:00, 20:45
An autumn evening stroll around the Botanic Garden would be a pleasure in itself, but with site-specific performance group Vision Mechanics leading visitors along the leafy pathways to hidden glades of dance, music and film, it becomes a place of storybook enchantment.
Guests for Embrace are greeted at the Botanic’s North Gate and led in small groups into the heart of the gardens. There’s a transgressive, Blair Witch-y thrill to wandering round by torchlight and the sense of rebellion is complete when we arrive at an illegal environmentalists’ encampment. The company’s Creative Director, Kim Bergsagel, takes the role as lead environmentalist and chief storyteller, inviting us under the main canopy so we can learn about their cause and listen in to some heated discussions from the tents nearby. A flashing blue light signals the police are on to us, and we’re hurried away from the camp on an adventurous march through the park.
In one clearing we are introduced to 18th century proto-environmentalist, Amrita Devi, an Indian village girl who hugged trees to prevent them being chopped down for a king’s palace and was killed for her troubles. Her story is told through mesmerising animation, using shadow puppetry on gloriously vibrant backgrounds. In another candlelit dell, an indian dancer entertains us while we drink warming chai. The highlight comes when we stumble across a trio of forest-spirits huddled in the shade of a mist-covered old tree. The sprites wake from their slumbers to treat us to a neon-coloured acrobatic performance which both beguiles and impresses. For good measure, there are even talking flowers and a silent disco style piece about technology, which is diverting, if a little off topic.
As a story, it doesn’t entirely hang together, but the hour-long wander is a rich and absorbing experience. As long as you can swallow a heavy dollop of environmental evangelising (and the rain holds off), Embrace offers beautiful performance in one of Edinburgh’s most magnificent settings.