Walk The Plank Produce A Wave At Picasso

01 August 2010 12.12 BST

From July 16-18, Liverpool’s docks were transformed into a playground of art and maritime activity by producers Walk the Plank, attracting around 50,000 people to the World Heritage site for the first installment of the city’s On the Waterfront series.

The event featured giant sand sculptures, a pirate world record attempt, multiple street theatre acts, a UK premiere of a high energy acrobatic performance, and was headlined by evening spectacle A Wave At Picasso.

Cultural resource and arts organisation Walk the Plank creatively produced and programmed the weekend in partnership with Culture Liverpool, as well as working with Tate Liverpool to create the site-specific, specially commissioned evening finale.

A Wave At Picasso was inspired by the Tate’s current exhibition Picasso: Peace and Freedom and took place on Liverpool’s Salthouse Dock. Multiple lights were rigged around the edges of the dock, sending beams of colour reflecting off the water as the sun dipped and evening set in. Specially composed music accompanied choreographed canoeists whose vessels were animated with bursts of pyrotechnics and swimmers transported flares across the dock.

A duo of mini ships with Picasso inspired designs on their sails carried figures representing Picasso himself as fireworks punctuated the activity. The show also included a projection screen on one side of the dock where a film created by Digital Insanity showed bright bold images underscoring the show.

The water was also animated with ten floating Picasso fire images and ten floating illuminated Picasso flags. Central to the activity was a 3m x 6m Dove of Peace fire sculpture, and three floating firework pontoons.

Walk the Plank worked with Tube UK Ltd (Sound), DBN Lighting Ltd (Lighting), and Production Eye (Event Production) to deliver the half hour show.

The next On the Waterfront will happen on August 6-8 featuring the best of international outdoor dance, including the Argentinian company Voala, Factoria Mascaro from Spain and many UK-based dance groups. Other highlights include street theatre, dance workshops and a mass participation Tai Chi class! Walk the Plank have worked with Xtrax and Merseyside Dance Initiative to programme the weekend.

www.walktheplank.co.uk
Photos: Mark Loudon