ArtHouse Jersey announces the release of their extraordinary, specially commissioned Liberation 76 dance piece ‘Seventy Six Steps’, featuring the voices of Occupation survivors.
Carolyn Rose Ramsay, a Jersey-based dancer from Ballet Nacional de Cuba, Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, and the Norwegian National Ballet, set about enlisting five talented local dancers to create a one-off piece telling the stories of people who lived through the Occupation, armed with audio testimony that ArtHouse Jersey collected during research conducted for the Face of Liberation project last year.
Shot by Submarine Creative across various locations around the Island, the piece is set to music and overlaid with voices from various Occupation survivors, capturing the authentic sentiments and experiences of those who experienced first-hand this troubling time in Jersey’s history. They include Islanders Barbara Frost, Joyce Norman and the late Bernie Turpin.
The dancers
Veronica Fulton began her training at St Ouen’s School of Dancing before attending Bird College. Having now returned to the island after ten years in the dance and musical theatre industry, Veronica has opened her own pilates studio and continues to be involved in Jersey’s dance community.
Alicia Beck is an ex-professional dancer, based in Jersey since 2018. She teaches and practises pilates and continues to be involved in dance and theatre. As a strong advocate for the arts in Jersey, she was delighted to collaborate with Arthouse Jersey and local dancers and creatives on this beautiful and rewarding film project.
Sophie Marett began dancing at the age of three, at Studio 16 and Jersey Academy of Dancing. She went on to study at Stella Mann College of Performing Arts, and now teaches at the Central School of Dance.
Jade O’Leary began her dance training in Jersey before moving to England to attend full-time ballet school at the Tring Park School for Performing Arts. She has performed with the English National Ballet and Encore Dance Company in classical ballet repertoire, as well as contemporary and jazz works.
Jenna-Marie Oldham trained at the Jersey Academy of Dancing, and is a teacher of English and Psychology at Hautlieu School and mother of eight beautiful children.
Of making ‘Seventy Six Steps’ choreographer and director, Carolyn Rose Ramsay, said: “Having arrived on the island not long before Covid, Jersey has been a haven in a storm for me. I have been embraced by such a wonderful community of genuinely caring and supportive people here. This film is a love letter to our Island, to its history and its future, and to the inspiring people who have made it what it is. I have been so grateful to be part of this project and to work with these dedicated and talented artists.”
Director of ArtHouse Jersey, Tom Dingle, said: “We were well aware of how privileged we were to hear the stories and sentiments of Occupation survivors captured during our Face of Liberation project research last year, and were determined to further bring to life these very personal and original memories in other creative forms.
“In Carolyn Rose we were excited to have an artist of such calibre on-Island and were confident this would make for a stunning collaborative piece for the people of Jersey to enjoy. Our heartfelt thanks go to all those who have made this very special work possible from the Islanders who confided in us, the dancers, film crew, our in-house ArtHouse Jersey researchers and of course Carolyn Rose herself.
“We couldn’t be more delighted with the final outcome and it is my hope that this piece is seen by as many Islanders as possible as they reflect on the history and lessons that Liberation holds.”
ArtHouse Jersey’s ‘Seventy Six Steps’ is available to watch from Friday 7th May 2021 on ArtHouse Jersey Presents.
