A SKY appreciation performance being held as part of Warrington Arts Festival leaves you feeling on cloud nine.
Warrington Arts Festival has a variety of unique installations and experiences for visitors to enjoy until the weekend, one of which is like any other experience I have had.
I went along to the Sky Garden on top of Golden Square, a hidden gem of green space atop the multi-storey car park, to take part in Cloudscapes.
Cloudscapes, put on by family run arts company called Gobbledegook Theatre, is a roughly half an hour experience that allows you to sit back and take in the beauty of the world around you.
When you arrive, headphones and sunglasses are handed to each visitor before you make your way to the sea of bean bags laid out on the floor.
If it’s classic English weather and a little chilly, blankets are also handed out to keep you warm throughout – or, if you burn easily in the sunshine, you can also grab an umbrella to create some shade.
READ MORE > Two free aerial shows to wow crowds at Bank Park on Saturday
READ MORE > Check out the free art installations at Golden Square
Once everybody is comfortable, audio begins to play through the headphones, accompanied by an almost orchestral arrangement of bird sounds and waves.
Lorna Rees, who lives in Dorset, leads you through the audio as you’re encouraged to switch off and appreciate the clouds as they breeze above you.
“The sky is something we often take for granted,” she says in the recording.
“There are clouds wherever you are in the world. They are vast and ever changing.”
Through the audio, Lorna explains her passion for clouds and the environment, passing forward the message that we should all take a little more time to appreciate the world and take better care of it.
The 45-year-old also recalls the time she went to America with her dad, and how the memory of their travels and cloud gazing together is something she will always cherish.
While you listen along, you’re encouraged to treat the experience as you would a theatre performance, focussing only on the movement in front of you.
It struck me how little you notice the world move around you, when you yourself are going so quickly, and I came away with a deep appreciation for taking a moment to breathe and just watch the sky.
The average life expectancy of a cloud is just ten minutes, meaning that through the experience you’re treated to nearly three entire lifecycles in the sky above you.
When the audio finishes, you slowly make your way back from your seat to entrance to the sound of Rufus, Lorna’s son, playing guitar and continuing the serene ambiance.
Lorna stands at the entrance as you arrive and as you leave, giving her an opportunity to talk to visitors about the experience.
“Every time it’s completely different, and each audience is different,” she said.
“We have been in some amazing locations, but this is easily one of my favourite places we have ever been.
“I have the best time when I meet people and have conversations with the guests.”
Lorna, who has been organising this show for eight years, explained how each one is completely unique, as each sky is different.
“It’s never to be repeated, and that’s an amazing thing,” she said.
Cloudscapes opened on Tuesday and concluded on Wednesday evening, after holding three different sessions a day.
The experience tours across the country, so hopefully it floats its way back to Warrington again in the future.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here