Wye Valley River Festival

The first ever Wye Valley River Festival has ended – two weeks of spectacular events from May 3 – 18th celebrating nature, culture, landscape and life along the River Wye in the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

As artistic directors we were delighted with the success of the outdoor arts programme, with audiences from Hereford to Chepstow following the story of Ratty the Wye water vole as he ran along the river attempting to evade capture and execution. The tale was told on a grand scale, with events unfolding over 3 weekends and at multiple sites along 50 miles of river.

With night time torch processions, a wire walk over the river, a show trial in Monmouth’s Shire Hall and a grand finale with massed choir, flame and illuminations on Chepstow Bridge, Ratty’s journey lit up the Wye Valley and gave scope for important discussions about the future of the countryside. The programme also included the Articulture Exploring Partnerships to Create Outdoor Arts meeting.

We want to thank everyone who contributed and the whole festival team and will be posting up a full report in due course. In the meantime, go to the AONB festival page to see a great collection of video clips and images, or see below for just a small selection of photos (taken by Jim Ozanne) and comments from those who enjoyed the events.

Thank you for what was the best piece of environmental interpretation I have ever seen.

Andrew Nixon
Development Officer
Wye Valley AONB

Just to say that the work you did surpassed anything we even dreamed of right at the beginning … It got a message out to thousands that we would never have been able to do and bonkers it may have been but brilliant bonkers nevertheless.

Cheers.

Nikki Moore
Information Officer
Wye Valley AONB

Hello Richard and Jon,
Just writing to say a huge thank you for everything you contributed to the Articulture day in Monmouth ,you have been the most fantastic partners. Thank you for making space for yourselves and your team to be able to participate on your busy day. Your entrance was great and you really set the scene for us on the day … The courtroom scenes were excellent.. a great combination of the engaging animal characters and story and the ‘expert’ witnesses who all spoke so sincerely … it was quite emotional as a watcher.

All in all we love you guys … good job – well done.
Big thanks!

Julie Ann Heskin
Founder / Director
Articulture