So we’re waiting for the day, waiting for the day, waiting on the day when we get to play!
The anticipation to share shanties and stories live and local in Leith has been keenly felt by both musicians Toby Hawks and Thrive Archive curator Jan Bee Brown during the pandemic. The Scottish International Storytelling Festival welcomed Scuttlebutt Stories onboard earlier this year and our event is in their programme. We found the perfect venue at Padlox Escape Rooms in Leith – situated in the former whaling offices of Christian Salvesen in Bernard Street and planned two perform to a small audience.
But will we be allowed to perform? As of yesterday’s tightened Covid restrictions in Scotland, the answer: wait until October 1st
Our efforts to share the love of Leith and its connections with Scandinavia have also been generously supported by SS Explorer, Leith’s very own sleeping beauty, a Historic Ship and Steam Fisheries Research Vessel currently undergoing renovation by volunteers in Leith Docks.
We’ve got the talent, identified the stories and have selected the shanties, Toby has found some fantastic Nordic fiddle tunes and so we wait…for the right time and a favourable tide.
Whilst we wait we’re fundraising to share stories, tunes and sea shanties for a virtual performance to be filmed by local filmmaker Ray Bird of Rare Bird Media to share the love of Leith and its maritime history.
But we need to pay Ray! You can help us get our film underway through our crowd-funder:
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/scuttlebutt-stories