In October 2013 Transported worked with creator ArtReach to bring Night of Festivals to Boston, the second stop on their four location tour during 2013-14
Over a hundred members of the local community took part – performing in the fantastic carnival processions working with Mandinga Arts, as part of the Transported face painting team or as general stewards over the two days of events.
In Central Park, a Performance Dome and Storytelling Yurt were erected and saw over a thousand visitors over the weekend, with audiences enjoying a range of diverse performances including spoken word improvisation from Tongue Fu, and local choir Cantus Polonicum, amongst many others. The ArtReach Nanoplex (a caravan which has been converted into a moving image gallery with surround sound) entertained around 200 visitors. The carnival elements of the weekend attracted a lot of attention and interaction (even during the frequent showers on both days!) as shoppers and passers-by were transfixed at the energy and musicality of Paraiso Samba, and marvelled at the colourful costumes by Mandinga Arts – so brilliantly brought to life by local performers, who darted in and out of crowds and shops.
Laura Molson, one of the local performers, said: “It was an incredible experience and I loved every minute of it. It was great working with the costumes and having the fantastic make up done. I loved being a skeleton and definitely won’t be forgetting it for a long time!”
Transported went on to take some of the local performers to the world famous Notting Hill Carnival in August 2014, working with London School of Samba.
