The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, 27 March 2010

Ryan Van Winkle

IN THE month when poet Ted Hughes was immortalised on the walls of Westminster Abbey, you could be forgiven for thinking that great writing is the preserve of an elite literati, many of whom are dead. The Golden Hour is an antidote to all that. If you are fed up worshiping at the feet of the tweedy and deceased, then this literary cabaret will cheer you up.

A vibrant band of eight writers and musicians – all of whom are under 35 – provide the cultural equivalent of riding bareback on a wild horse. It’s not that they are across the board sheer brilliant. But the social enterprise – called The Forest – which allowed them to flourish has effectively panned for gold amongst a group whose voices might not otherwise be heard. And the endeavour has come up with some real nuggets.

The Forest was founded in Edinburgh almost a decade ago, and young American Ryan Van Winkle has been involved with the organisation from early on. A cafe and a host of willing volunteers make viable the art gallery, recording studio and creative workshops. By deciding to tour the Highlands, The Forest is presenting those of us who live here with a model of how a new generation of artists can be nurtured.

It has to be said that the three women, poet Ericka Duffy, writer Jane Flett and singer/songwriter Hailey Beavis, are particularly accomplished. Their work came across as rich, reflective and original. It grapples with a wide range of themes from the Hadron Particle Collider to snow falls in Edinburgh.

The cabaret format of the Golden Hour allowed a free and easy flow between performers and audience. Candles flickered, wine flowed and the creative surprises just kept on coming. If Van Winkle – no mean poet himself – has enjoyed his Highland tour and would like to set up a social enterprise here, we should snap him up.

© Jenny McBain, 2010

Links

• The Forest
• The Golden Hour