Crawick Multiverse opens with solstice performance

About 30 musicians and dancers will take part in a performance to officially open the Crawick Multiverse

A former opencast quarry which has been transformed into an enormous landscape artwork will officially open to the public this weekend.

The Crawick Multiverse, designed by renowned artist Charles Jencks, has been created with materials found on the site in Dumfries and Galloway.

The £1m project on land near Sanquhar was funded by the Duke of Buccleuch.

It will be launched on Sunday with a performance by a cast of 30 dancers and musicians.

The Crawick Artland Trust, which manages the site, has said it hopes to attract international visitors and boost business in Sanquhar, Kelloholm and Kirkconnel.

The opening performance, which coincides with the Summer solstice, is called Oceanallover and it has been specially developed by artistic director Alex Rigg.

The Crawick Multiverse has been designed by Charles Jenks and funded by the Duke of Buccleuch

He said: "Through conversations with Charles Jencks and with the Duke of Buccleuch and the local community, it is clear to me that my job is to present something which is interesting to look at in itself but allows other people to see the potential of the site for future events."

The performance is likely to raise questions, rather than answer them, he said.

"It's likely to be quite abstract at times and certainly not a conventional piece of theatre," he added.

"The performance itself, until we have done it I can't describe what it is. I'll be waiting to hear what other people say about it, myself.

"I'll have discussions with other people, asking them what they thought it was and what they thought was interesting. It's a puzzler."

Mr Jencks previous work includes the Garden of Cosmic Speculation north of Dumfries, and the Beijing Olympic Park's Black Hole Terrace.

He has said the Crawick artwork "celebrates the surrounding Scottish countryside and its landmarks, looking outwards and back in time."

The Crawick Artland Trust hope it will attract international visitors to the Sanquhar area