Move~Gluasad is a multi-story performance written and directed by Julia Taudevin about migration, loss and the common human experience of grief. The show was developed by sruth-mara on the Isle of Lewis in 2018 before premiering on the island in January 2020 in a co-production with Disaster Plan.
“It’s based on keening rituals, the ancient Gaelic tradition of singing for the dead, but Julia Taudevin’s Move~Gluasad is driven less by grief than by the pulse of life. Where many shows about mourning become inert, trapped by an emotion that has no release, this one seems to see death as part of a cycle, both end point and new beginning; sad, horrific, terrifying, yes, but also as inevitable as the ebb and flow of the sea…. it is a production at once rooted and outward looking, unsentimental and sincere, with a sound, if not to die for, then at the very least to be reborn to.” – The Guardian (****) on Move~Gluasad’s premiere at Uig Community Centre.
Move~Gluasad‘s first full performances took place at Kinloch Community Hub (Mon 27 Jan 2020), Carloway Community Centre (Wed 29 Jan 2020), Uig Community Centre (Thurs 30 Jan 2020) and Back Football and Recreation Club (Fri 31 Jan 2020). This followed an initial period of development at Uig Community Centre in June 2018 with three performers, produced by sruth-mara, culminating in work in progress performances at Uig Community Centre and An Lanntair.
The Uig Community Centre performance in January 2020 had a four-star review in the Guardian. The show transferred to Celtic Connections the same month and, as an outdoor version for lockdown called Move, the Made in Scotland showcase at the 2021 Edinburgh Fringe. It ultimately returned to Lewis as part of a 2022 Scottish tour, again supported by sruth-mara.
The project was supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland, and Bòrd na Gàidhlig, in association with An Lanntair.
‘It’s one of those rare shows that can communicate a specific emotion purely through its theatricality, and the result is, indeed, deeply moving.’ – The List (****).
Performers Anna Porubcansky, Mairi Morrison and Beldina Odenyo at Uig Community Centre during Move-Gluasad’s first week of development in June 2018.
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