Spectacular night show 'will be bigger and better' in 2017

A SPECTACULAR night show covering 2,000 years of English history in just 90 minutes is to return for a second season.
More than 100,000 people flocked to Kynren – an Epic Tale of England during its run of 15 performances at a specially built outdoor stage overlooked by Auckland Castle.
Officials from Eleven Arches, the organisation formed to stage the show, say it won over the doubters who thought it could never be done; that it was too ambitious; and that no one would come to a corner of the North East to see a new kind of show performed by locals.
Eleven Arches is now gearing up for Kynren’s second season.
Plans are being devised to build on this summer’s success. One key goal is to increase volunteer participation by 50 per cent, with 1,500 people taking part.
Two more performances will be added to the schedule to create a run of 17 dates in total.
Eleven Arches officials say they are confident each show will be performed to a capacity audience of 8,000 – bringing about 136,000 visitors to Bishop Auckland from all over the UK and beyond.
To prepare for next year, Steve Boyd has been enlisted as creative director.
A specialist in mass choreography for ceremonies and live events, he has been involved in 13 Olympic Games, spanning Barcelona ’92 to Rio 2016, and led the volunteer performers in the spectacular opening and closing ceremonies of London 2012.
He also masterminded Eleven Arches’ original “Mix‘n’Match” sessions last year which heralded the beginning of the volunteer training programme.
Now, fresh from the Opening Ceremony of Rio 2016, he will be intricately involved in the recruiting, auditioning and training performers and the artistic evolution and direction of Kynren as it gears up for season two.
He said: “The astonishing success the Kynren performers achieved in the first season is just the tip of the iceberg.
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with this warm and ‘up-for-it’ community to build on their successes and leap into the next stage of the Kynren journey.”
Anne-Isabelle Daulon, chief executive officer of Eleven Arches, added: “We are challenging the community to increase volunteer participation rate and deliver a show that is even bigger and even better.
“This is a very exciting time in the evolution of Kynren; in 2017 you can expect more pageantry, more combat, more amazing choreography and more visual delight – on an even greater scale.
“In our first season, our performers proved they learn very fast and are capable of great things, so we need to keep challenging them.
“Steve joining us as creative director is a clear sign of our commitment to our volunteers to provide them with the best possible director, as we continue to build a world-class show.”