Nelson Fringe Fest: Silent Spring Revisited
114 Hardy St, Nelson, Nelson / Tasman
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Jan Bolwell revisits Rachel Carson’s famous environmental book Silent Spring in an absorbing and informative solo performance. She explores Rachel’s struggle to enlighten people about the dangers of pesticides, and gives the work a contemporary and local relevance by introducing Kiwi ecologist Mike Joy’s challenges to our politicians about the environment.
Rachel Carson, the great American environmentalist, has been in Jan Bolwell’s life since she was nine years old. Her conservationist grandmother introduced her to Carson’s famous book ‘Silent Spring’ that exposed the dangers of the chemical pesticide DDT. Jan revisits this book through adult eyes, creating a solo theatre work on Rachel Carson’s fight for nature.
Audiences find out about Rachel’s struggle to bring the insecticide issue into the light. We are challenged also to consider current issues in our own backyard. New Zealand ecologist Dr Mike Joy is interviewed, and Jan has a ‘virtual’ conversation with him during the work.
Bolwell says ‘While I delve into Rachel Carson and her life, I try also to make her work relevant to a 21st century New Zealand audience. These are cataclysmic times with Covid and climate change, so it feels timely to look again at Carson and the environmental and ecological movement that she helped spearhead through her writing. We are keen to have post show discussions with our local audiences to discuss ecological challenges in their own communities.’
An exciting creative team has worked collaboratively on this work - director Annie Ruth, composer Jan Bolton, and lighting designer Helen Todd. Bolwell says “We have built this work together experimenting with both indoor and outdoor versions and we will do a fusion of both for the Nelson Fringe Festival performances.
Silent Spring Revisited began life as a Wellington City Council commission to take theatre to community centres in Wellington city. Since then it has been performed in both indoor and outdoor settings throughout the Wellington region.
Genre: Theatre
Age Rating: Family Friendly
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