Wingbeats

'Now I am a speck – and when I am a speck, I am most myself.'

Wingbeats was an ambitious arts project inspired by the paradoxical question: how can we fly without leaving the ground? The project brought together international and UK artists, school children, university students and residents of the East Riding of Yorkshire to create two operas, performed in Leeds and Bridlington.

Flight Paths (2011) tells the story of a Leeds girl’s journey from Bempton Cliffs to Flamborough on a midsummer’s day, and how it turns her life around. Amy's Last Dive (2012) is inspired by aviatrix Amy Johnson, the girl from Hull who flew around the world, took huge risks and made history.

The project was preserved (and celebrated) in a book from Valley Press. As well as the text for both operas, Adam Strickson (lead artist for the project) has compiled a fascinating selection of related material, including detailed creative diaries from the contributors – and every copy comes with two DVDs, so readers can own and watch the shows as they were meant to be experienced.