Live Events

Ana’s ability to weave intense, poetical storytelling into hauntingly tender melodies creates a musical journey that is widely tipped to go mainstream this year. The songstress is here joined by cellist Jonathan Hennessey-Brown.

We’d like to invite you to join us to hear about and discuss our plans for the future of the estate. The next briefing will take place at The Mansion House, Totnes on 4 September.

This is an opportunity to see the up and coming musicians of tomorrow, playing for you today.

Alzheimer’s Society has partnered with The Dartington Hall Trust to hold a fundraising ‘Memory Walk’ on the Dartington estate on Sunday 12th September.

Edward Espe Brown, Carolyn Steel | This course steps back from asking what to eat and how to cook it and reflects on our relationship to food as a whole, and what it can tell us about how we relate to the natural world and our inner world.

A play for four musicians and one actor, by Hugh Nankivell and Peter Oswald.

Kate Davies, Jonathan Robinson | How can we create sustainable human systems – social, organizational, political and economic? What methods and processes help generate innovative social change? What are the skills of successful change agents?

Surrounded by the intricate textiles of Jilly Edwards, Nigel Morgan plays music for solo
guitar in the lounge of William Lescaze’s High Cross House.

Alastair McIntosh, Iain MacKinnon, Sulemana Abudulai | The process of gaining community ownership or control of land involves working within a legal framework which has not in the past been friendly to community rights, and also can present that group with a whole new set of responsibilities and challenges. This course will address both aspects of the process.

Seth Lakeman, widely regarded as the UK’s foremost folk singer songwriter, makes his eagerly awaited return with new album Hearts & Minds.

Firmly established as one of the world’s finest chamber orchestras and known worldwide for its superlative performances and award-winning recordings.

October 4 – 8, 2010 | Tim Jackson, Ed Mayo, Julie Richardson | Unless we can radically lower the environmental impact of our economic activity – and there is no evidence to suggest that we can – we will have to devise a path to prosperity that does not rely on continued growth.

This is Now is New Art Club’s newest comedy show and the most recent in a long line of hits from comedy dance duo, Pete Shenton and Tom Roden.

Whaletone is an imaginatively created, funny, dynamic and adventurous piece of music theatre. The story involves banana cake, plum blossom remedies, a storm, a wedding, a Jamaican cow and a hippopotamus!

11 – 15 October 2010 | Erin Smith, Simon Mills | Today many of us have forgotten how vital interaction with the natural world is to our wellbeing. This experiential course will explore how cultivating our relationship to plants can improve our physical and emotional health on many different levels.

Theatre for 5-10 year olds by Daniel Jamieson. Imagine you woke up one morning and had wings instead of arms! Well that’s just what happens to Joe. He’s shocked, of course… you’d be too, wouldn’t you? Flying is for the birds.

October 17 – 23, 2010 | Jenny Mackewn and Toni Spencer | This practical and evocative course will explore questions of how to facilitate and lead groups engaged in the complex challenges of creating a sustainable future for all life. What forms best reflect our intentions? What practices reflect and therefore enable a more ‘eco-logical’ way of being? What approaches to leadership support and model the change we seek to facilitate?

October 25 – November 5, 2010 | One or two-week course | Fritjof Capra (by videolink), Gustavo Esteva (by videolink), Stephan Harding, Philip Franses, Satish Kumar, Oliver Greenfield, Toni Spencer, Anne Miller | This course will enable students to appreciate and understand what an ecological world view is and how it can be applied in their lives and work.

Fresh from winning his 2009 British Composer Award, Graham Fitkin has assembled a 9-piece band of outstanding virtuoso musicians to perform his punchy, no-nonsense music.

The latest work from renowned collaborators Suzy Willson (director) and Paul Clark (composer), Under Glass is a performance which takes place in a series of glass jars and cabinets.

The Odd Couple is Neil Simon’s adaptation of his own play about Felix and Oscar, the comical mismatched roommates made famous in the 1968 film by Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau.

November 8 – 12, 2010 | Ellen MacArthur, Ken Webster | How do we educate for sustainability? What new skills and ways of thinking can help young people and the institutions that work with them prepare for a challenging – and unpredictable – future? What qualities of leadership can inspire a new generation of engaged citizens?

Rooted in the musical traditions of Nigeria, Angola and Brazil and infused with contemporary European classical and jazz styles, percussionist and composer Adewale’s music is a global fusion of musical influences that appeals directly to the senses.

The musical world in 17th Century was divided between French and Italian style but at the end of the century there were attempts to reconcile these differences.

Teachers: Dusty Gedge, Gary Grant, John Little | By the end of the course, participants will have an overview of the benefits and challenges of green roofs and walls, how they are designed and the practical skills necessary to build your own.

Teacher: Lynne Franks | How can we create and embed a more sustainable feminine style of values-based leadership in all areas of business and society? How do we redefine success for the individual as well as for business?

Another great opportunity to see three exceptionally talented young musicians perform at the start of their musical development with South West Music School.

The Richard Alston Dance Company will perform a public Lecture Demonstration of their latest piece Overdrive.

Throughout December Dartington is hosting our first Christmas Tree Festival in the medieval courtyard.

Ben Mellor is a poet, writer, musician, actor and cyclist. Here the BBC Slam Poet Champion presents an “in progress” version of his new work, following a short residency at Dartington’s Schumacher College.

Each year King Edward VI Community College presents a massively popular celebratory seasonal concert in Dartington’s Great Hall.

St Agnes Fountain celebrate their 10th anniversary Christmas tour with a brand new celebratory album.

The 150 strong Dartington Community Choir is one of the largest and best regarded in the region, and its members are drawn from throughout South Devon.

Schumacher College course | Tchenka Sunderland, Lindsay Clarke & Chris Salisbury | At this, the darkest time of the year, it seems appropriate to seek the redemption of the Dark. Building on last year’s course, Darkness and Transformation, this course will enable participants to reflect on how we can renew our relationship with the creative mysteries of darkness and come to understand and appreciate its powers and gifts.

A festive programme from the Dufays presents a cockle-warming concert of Carols, dances and ballads for the Christmas season.

One, two or three-week course | Hardin Tibbs, Philip Franses, Jean Boulton, Gunter Pauli | January 4 – 21, 2011 | Consider any of the problems or challenges facing our modern world and it will quickly become apparent that they are part of a whole complex system which we ignore at our peril. This course provides an introduction to systems thinking and its application to sustainability, ecodesign, organisational and social change, industry, business and enterprise.

Schumacher College course | *Allan Kaplan, Bunker Roy, Aruna Roy | This course will explore the changing face of development, beginning with a discussion of the broader global context within which any development work must take place, moving on to look at the process by which individuals facilitate change within communities, and finally examining different examples of radical grassroots community activism and empowerment.

Schumacher College course | Chris Nichols, Chris Seeley | Recent economic events have told us that our present economic system is vulnerable. Can organisations be successful and genuinely sustainable – in the broadest sense?

One, two or three-week course | Mary-Jayne Rust and Dave Key | Ecopsychology has a fundamentally important role to play in responding to current social and ecological challenges. This three-week course explores the many layers of this role. From denial to inspiration for action, our motivations are governed by our emotional responses and what we believe about our place in the web of life.