Art Macabre board the Cutty Sark
When: 15th October 2016 at 7pm
Where: Cutty Sark, King William Walk, London SE10 9HT
£: Tickets cost £25 (includes a shot of whisky). Suitable for 18+
What is it?
Batten down the hatches and prepare for a storm, as theatrical sketching company Art Macabre commandeer the Cutty Sark for an evening of sea shanties, shipwrecked mermaid models, and sailor sketching.
On Saturday 15th October, Art Macabre will be bringing their very own taste of the salty sea to the world’s sole surviving tea clipper. For one evening only, they will be reflecting the ship’s dramatic history through life drawing and live performances.
Purveyors of innovative and immersive London sketching events, Art Macabre will present nude and costumed characters performing across the historic ship’s decks, along with the nautical sounds of Snottledogz Shanty Trio. The trio will lead sea shanties, folk songs, and singalongs during the evening.
If classical music is more your style, then never fear, opera-singing Carmen Mon Oxide will grace the ship as ‘Nannie the Witch’ from the famous Robert Burns poem, Tam O’Shanter. Which is where the Cutty Sark also gets its name.
Launched in 1869 from Dumbarton in Scotland, the Cutty Sark sailed the globe carrying cargo ranging from the finest teas, to gunpowder and whisky. The Cutty Sark also made its name as the fastest ship of the era during its time in the wool trade.
Celebrating this remarkable history, down in the belly of the ship in the Cutty Sark Theatre, characters will pose in theatrical tableaux, depicting the Chinese tea voyages of the clipper’s past. Suspended on the upper deck, and wrapped in rope amongst the rigging, will be tattooed mermaid model, Bliss Theadora, waiting to be drawn.
In the Captain’s parlour, join the ghost of shipping magnate Jock ‘White Hat’ Willis, original owner of the ship, to play drawing games. Down your free shot of whisky for some Dutch courage and become a model yourself, as author of Draw Faces in 15 Minutes, Brighton-based artist Jake Spicer, sketches your portrait.
The Cutty Sark reopened to the public in April 2012, marking a new chapter in the extraordinary life of the last surviving tea clipper and one of the world’s most famous ships. Visitors can venture aboard, walk along the decks in the footsteps of the merchant seamen who sailed her over a century ago, and explore the hold where precious cargo was stored on epic voyages.
Art Macabre inject a lethal dose of theatricality and curiosity into drawing. Directed by Nikki Shaill, Art Macabre specialise in creating immersive drawing events in unique spaces.
More info: www.rmg.co.uk and deathdrawing.com