WEST Devon youngsters are being given the opportunity to team up with local artists to create a performance based around the Brown Hare, an animal held as sacred on Dartmoor in former times.

The project, organised by Med Theatre, will see young participants work over an intensive three-day period at the High Heathercombe Centre near Manaton, to produce an outdoor site-specific performance staged on the edge of moorland.

Dance artist and choreographer Rosalyn Maynard and musician Gillian Webster will work with young movers and musicians, encouraging both art-forms to be integrated with each other: dance will inspire music and music will inspire dance.

Artistic director of MED Theatre and local playwright Mark Beeson will oversee the text that will be used to structure the whole piece.

Movement development work has already begun with Rosalyn Maynard mentoring young movement student Daisy Martinez to create physical theatre motifs for the animal and its folklore and symbolism on Dartmoor.

Daisy said: 'The hare is such a magical, inspiring being to explore, through both its natural history and its mythology in a landscape where its stories are so deeply embedded.'

The hare, thought to have been held sacred on Holne Moor as recently as Victorian times, has a rich plethora of ecological, historical and religious connections with Dartmoor as well as locations stretching as far east as China.

Dartmoor historian Dr Tom Greeves will be providing expert advice for the group of young creators on the origins and folklore of the mythical animal, with particular relevance to the symbol of the three hares, which also happens to be MED Theatre's logo.

The performance Brown Hare, supported by the Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund and Teignbridge District Council, will delve into many aspects of the hare such as its appearance in local folklore, symbols of the hare found in our culture, and the current decline of the hare on Dartmoor through storytelling, drama, movement and music exploration.

The performance will take place at the High Heathercombe Centre on Saturday August 7 at 5pm.

For more details on how to buy tickets call 01647 441356, email [email protected]">[email protected], or visit the website http://www.medtheatre.co.uk">www.medtheatre.co.uk