recently had the opportunity to spend two days with Luke Brown Company documenting the creation of the newest version of ‘Walk of the Dandelion : taking hopeful steps forwards’, for the All in the Mind festival on 10th September. One of the most notable features of Walk of the Dandelion is Daniel. If you don’t know who Daniel is, he’s the gorgeous 8ft Puppet who is brought to life by Ollie Webb. Daniel is made almost entirely out of recycled materials such as milk bottlesand recycled wood. This sweet gentle giant moves through the space and dances just as you imagine your Grandad might, and brought goosebumps to my skin many times. The dancers, Sarah White and Ivan Merino bring alive Luke Browns vision of hope, resilience and positivity with the image of the Dandelion being one of strength and determination and is a beautiful symbol in this iconic work.

This was the first time I had ever encountered puppetry and as a dancer it was incredibly interesting to see how movement, that feels so natural and internal to us as movers, translates to the enormous Daniel. It’s so much more complex than one imagines and is very cleverly and seamlessly performed by Ollie, with the help of Luke and Sarah on each arm.

The atmosphere of rehearsals themselves were full of so much joy and laughter, and the energy provided such a great safe space for the dancers to explore their ideas and dance worry free. The movement created by the dancers, glided through the space, bringing a breath of fresh air into the space as they focused on each other and how the movement felt in the body, rather than performing to the crowd. Although the same can’t be said for Daniel who was thoroughly enjoying himself blowing kisses and tipping his hat to the imaginary audience ;).

The meaning behind this project is something I really love and relate to, and hopefully others do to. The pandemic really impacted my mental health and was the start of 2 plus really difficult years, and dance brought me happiness and light in a time of darkness. And this is what Walk of the Dandelion is doing for others, giving people a light through performance, dance and puppetry. Taking hopeful steps forward, one dandelion at a time.

Hannah Mulligan x