Green Culture

Words Traci O’Dea

I think we can all agree that my home parish of St Helier is not the greenest of the parishes. My view is gold and blue—sand and sea—the same colours as the parish coat of arms. If I judge by parish coats of arms, then the two greenest parishes are St John and Trinity. I can’t speak for St John, but I can attest to the greenness of Trinity. As the new Team Leader for Highlands College Adult & Community Education at the Philip Mourant Centre, I spend most of my days amongst lush, verdant gardens where rabbits, butterflies, doves, and fuzzy bumblebees frolic between the lazy willow trees, hydrangeas and honeysuckle vines. I basically work in a Disney princess fairyland.

Summer is the greenest season in Jersey, and this is the time of year when cultural events move outdoors. I love a picnic and a play, and I cannot wait for this year’s season of outdoor theatre. The evening starts with the sound of champagne corks popping then plastic cups overflowing with fizz followed by blanket snacks on soft lawns before the cast transports the audience to the ancient city of Epheseus or perhaps a castle in Denmark. The Samarès Players always take full advantage of the blooming botanic gardens at Samarès Manor in St Clement for their performances. This summer, they are putting on Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, a tale of mistaken identity and twin swapping, on the 4 July to 8 July. In St Lawrence, the green gardens of Coronation Park host the annual visit from the Oddsocks theatre troupe who will be performing Hamlet, the Comedy for the first ten days of August. Tickets to Oddsocks and Samarès Players are available through Jersey Arts Centre (artscentre.je).

RampArts, Jersey’s coolest charity, hosts a one-day outdoor festival, RampArts on RampArts, at Mont Orgueil Castle in St Martin on the evening of 14 July. This multi-level cultural mash up brings together acoustic musicians, art stalls, bands, performance artists, face painters and a bubble play station in Gorey’s iconic 13th-century castle. Find RampArts on social media for all the latest information:

@RampArtsJersey

The most glam outdoor cultural event of the season is the Domaine des Vaux Opera Festival where everyone who’s anyone dons black tie and ball gowns to sip champagne in a bespoke marquee on the groomed gardens of Domaine des Vaux in St Lawrence. Diva Opera puts on three nights of performances that are often both moving and hilarious, 18 July to 20 July. Tickets to Puccini’s Tosca, Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte, and the Gala Evening of opera’s greatest hits are available on Eventbrite.

Arthouse Jersey’s Skipton Big Ideas: Where Waste Meets Design (overleaf) addresses our green theme in a different way. The interactive, evolving exhibition takes place at Capital House in St Helier throughout June and July and features a pile of rubbish that artists will be transforming into works of art, functional items and upcycled objects. Visitors are encouraged to participate in workshops on recycling, papermaking, weaving, patching, dyeing and crafting musical instruments from waste. For more information, visit Arthouse Jersey’s website: arthousejersey.je.

The five-day Jersey Festival of Words returns on the 21 to 35 September this year but in a new main venue—the rolling gardens of Howard Davis Park (which is shared between St Saviour and St Helier) where they will set up a 400-person marquee. The event includes such talented writers as Ania Bas, Tracy Borman, Jem Calder, Sebastian Faulks, Sarfraz Manzoor, Graham Ramsden, Cathy Rentzenbrink, Dan Rhodes and me! I’ll be launching my second book of poetry, Waving, at the festival. Ticket sales go live on 1 July at jerseyfestivalofwords.org.

Moreover, there are the many major outdoor music festivals and other artsy events taking place every weekend in Jersey which is becoming the hub of culture in the English Channel.