This December, families are being asked to help fight the “frost of forgetfulness” creeping across the South East Northumberland Museum in the old Woodhorn Colliery near Ashington, muddling memories and baffling boffins.
Pit canaries sense the danger and need the help of the public to stop the precious stories being lost forever. Families are asked to follow the frosty trail with a birdcage in hand, to collect clues and solve mysteries for a magical, memorable surprise…
This winter quest, part of the museum's always popular month-long Christmas programme, has been created by theatre company Unfolding Theatre and visual artist Bethan Maddock.
Unfolding Theatre’s Annie Rigby said, “we’re having a great time creating a mission to save memories at Woodhorn. After all, that’s what the museum and archives are all about. It has been amazing to see how the mission has captured the imaginations of Woodhorn visitors of all ages, as well as the staff and volunteers. We’re pretty confident that the Frost of Forgetfulness will be banished by their brilliant teamwork!
“It’s the first time that we have collaborated with visual artist, Bethan Maddocks,” she adds. “We loved the Winding Windows artwork and the miner’s canary window has been one of the inspirations for the Frost of Forgetfulness. I’m really excited to see how the idea continues to develop and grow.”
The Frost of Forgetfulness Winter Quest is open from Saturday 17 to Friday 23 December from 10AM to last entry at 3PM. Admission is free, no advanced booking required and participants are advised that they should allow an hour to complete their quest.
The project is supported by bait, part of the national Creative People and Places programme, and works in partnership to support more people in South East Northumberland to create and take part in inspiring and high quality arts experiences.