Lesley Fletcher, RSPB Cymru Site Manager Woodlands reviews 'For the Birds' - the immersive night-time show that was held last week at RSPB Ynys-hir.
Above photo: Neil Lambert RSPB
'For the Birds’ event was created by artists Jony Easterby, Kathy Hinde, Dark Spark and Esther Tew, was simply brilliant! It was amazing!
I got to see if from both ends. As a punter - it was a magical experience seeing the place lit up in the dark – a thrilling walk in a wonderful setting and gave me a new perspective on a place I already love. The laser in the reed beds created something beautiful, unexpected and alive, and for the who were fortunate enough to see the show....I loved the piano/bird cage thing!
I also saw everything that went on in the background. Being at Ynys-hir during the preceding weeks seeing all the hard work going into it, and then being a volunteer helping on one of the nights - it was a labour of love, and ran so smoothly. It was a credit to all those who made it happen. The slickness of it made the visitors totally unaware of the effort involved!
Everyone in Machynlleth is talking about it, and it has made RSPB seem relevant, current, interesting and cultured, and brought old and new audiences in. There must have been more than 900 visitors to the reserves over the four nights!
Well done everyone – lots of people worked really hard to make this a success, from top to bottom, from soup kitchen to stewards, from trail maintenance to visitor engagement, from car parking to health and safety………… but particular well done to Bev, [RSPB Ynys-hir Community Links Officer] for dreaming it up and driving it forward.
Lesley Fletcher RSPB Cymru Site Manager Woodlands