a dancer in a strikign bird mask towers over another on lies on the floor wearing a fish mask - both are mid movement
Osian Meilir

Mabon

Production Info
30 minutes

Experience the Mabinogion in a new light as you journey through ancient Wales to meet the world’s oldest animals in Mabon by Osian Meilir.

Touring as part of
two dancers dressed in wild costumes, one in a large folk inspired bird mask and the other in a top that looks inspired by skeletons, they pose dynamically under blooming light

Surge | Gwefr

September - November

Discover three new worlds spanning from ancient mythology through to futuristic sci-fi. National Dance Company Wales will transport you through story, time and space with this triple-bill of captivating dance, and gorgeous design.

Be transported on a quest to discover ‘Mabon’ by Osian Meilir.
Experience the Mabinogion in a new light as you journey through ancient Wales to meet the world’s oldest animals.

Tradition twists with wild imagination in this modern myth. Fantastical costumes and rebellious choreography are interwoven with heritage, folklore and mystery. Inspired by the magical realms of Welsh mythology and set to new music by Welsh triple harpist Cerys Hafana.

Creative Team

Length: 30 minutes
Dancers: 6
Premiere: Autumn 2025 

Costume Designer: Becky Davies
Lighting Designer: Marty Langthorne
Composer: Cerys Hafana

Design Assistant & Principal Costume Maker: Amy Barrett
Costume Making Assistants: Katie Unwin, Nikita Verboon & Becky Davies.
Principal Mask Making Team: Rachel Merritt, Angharad Gamble (Rooftop Atelier) & Becky Davies.
Principal Prop Making Team: Rachel Merritt & Becky Davies.
Additional Mask Making Assistants: Elliott Ditton, Bethany Seddon, Ruby Aston, Ellie Rogers.

Costume Work Experience: Nancy Chen
Mask Making Work Experience: Nancy Chapple-Hale, Ethan Colwell, Zee Belle (Daisy Braithwaite-Muriel), Riah Betti, Abi Lee, Lea Binder
Prop Making Work Experience: Zee Belle (Daisy Braithwaite-Muriel), Seohyun Park, Robin Smith, Lilly Wood 

Thank you: Harvey Evans, Lucie Powell, Sophie Dwyer, Eilir Gwyn, Gerhard Kress, Re-Create Scrapstore, Cardiff Indoor Flea Market.

Choreographer

Osian Meilir

Osian is crouched in a dance studio smiling as they direct the dancers of screen. They wear a rust coloured t shirt and grey shorts.

 Osian Meilir 

Originally from Pentre’r Bryn on the west coast of Wales, Osian Meilir is a freelance choreographer and movement artist currently sharing their time between Wales and London. Since graduating from Trinity Laban in 2017, Meilir has been performing and creating work for a variety of performances spaces, having predominantly worked and created dance productions for the outdoors. Their work has toured extensively across Wales, the UK and internationally including Ten Days on the Island in Australia (2023), Biennale de la Danse in Lyon (2023) and at FIET; the Children's and Youth Theatre Fair of the Balearic Islands (2024).

Over the past five years Meilir has been commissioned to create new work by Articulture Wales, The National Eisteddfod, Green Man Festival and the National Dance Company of Wales. His work also expands into the worlds of theatre and opera having choreographed for Scherzo Ensemble, Cwmni Frân Wen and National Theatre Wales.

Meilir’s up-bringing in rural West Wales and their fascination with notions of identity, culture and community feeds their creativity and inspires their work. Their very early experiences and background of Welsh folk dance also has a great influence on their contemporary practice and has led them to appreciate how dance can build meaningful bridges between people from around the world. Embracing unity and harmony, within ourselves and each other, Meilir celebrates the beauty, simplicity and power of human connection.

Gallery
a dancer in a stag mask leaps high into the air
a dancer in a toad mask slides across the stage
a dramatically lit scene, one dance closest to the camera postes laid on the floor like a salmon, behind her, two other dancers lift a third into the air by their arms - light comes from behind them making an eerie scene
an owl and eagle masked dance duo, wrapped around one another.
dancer in an eagle mask and brown cloak, both arms up as if wings and one leg high in the air, bent at the knee
a dramatic scene, two dancers blend into the background whilst one in a stag mask with horns made of sticks looks directly at the camera, sliding a drum across the floor
dancers in tops that look like rib cages dance in formation, four in a square and one in teh middle, their elbos and knees are bent outwards and heads thrown back, mid dance

The Costumes 

The modern twist on Welsh costumes for Qwerin were designed by Becky Davies – who once again teamed up with Osian to create the mythical world of Mabon.

For Mabon, Becky has brought six characters from the Mabinogion to life, drawing inspiration from Welsh traditional costume, archaic writing and the ancient Welsh landscape.

Becky designed the incredible costumes, each with multitudes of hidden details; here you can see some of Becky’s beautiful illustrations for the costume design, which are being brought to life by costume maker Amy Barrett and team. 

Becky Davies 

Originally from Old Ynysybwl near Pontypridd, Becky Davies (she/her) is a Creative Practitioner with many strings to her bow. She has over 18 years experience as a Set and Costume Designer, including her role as an Associate Artist for Taking Flight Theatre Company and Leeway Productions. Becky now predominantly works as an Illustrator and Community Artist, with her queer, neurodivergent and Welsh identities naturally informing her practice. Her specialism in Creative Access and Art Workshop Facilitation, with a focus on wellbeing, feed into her part-time role as a Senior Lecturer on the BA Creative and Therapeutic Arts course at the University of South Wales (2011-Present).

costume photo test

costume design sketches

more costume sketches

The Music 

The world of Mabon is further shaped by music from  Welsh triple harpist and composer Cerys Hafana. For Mabon they have created a beautiful and haunting Welsh-folk inspired sound that transports you into the ancient forests of Wales’ myths and magic.

 

 

Cerys Hafana

Cerys Hafana is a Welsh triple harpist and composer who mangles, mutates and transforms traditional music. They explore the creative possibilities of traditional and archival material, alongside original compositions.

Cerys released their first album, Cwmwl, in 2020. Their second album, Edyf, was selected as one of The Guardian’s Top Ten Folk Albums of 2022, and was shortlisted for the 2023 Welsh Music Prize. In January 2024 Cerys released The Bitter, an EP of English and Scottish folk songs. In September 2024 they released Crwydro, an EP of solo piano pieces to mark two years since the release of Edyf.

Cerys has performed at festivals such as Festival Interceltique de Lorient (FR), Green Man, Reeperbahn (DE), Other Voices (IE), WOMAD, End of the Road, Rudolstadt (DE) and Trans Musicales (FR), and has supported artists such as Charlie Cunningham, Adwaith, Andrew Wasylyk and Yann Tiersen. They have also toured with leading classical ensemble Sinfonia Cymru in early 2024.

Cerys has performed live sessions on Radio 6 Music (Cerys Matthews, Riley & Coe), Radio 3 (In Tune and Music Planet), Radio Wales and Radio 4 (Woman’s Hour).

(Photo: Sebastien Madej) 

a black and white photo of Cerys playing their harp

The Lighting 

The atmosphere of Mabon is created by Lighting designer Marty Langthorne.
An expert in colour theory and in collaboration, Marty worked closely with the team crafting the world for Mabon. His lighting casts mysterious shadows and illuminates radiant joy.

Marty Langthorne

Marty’s work spans theatre, dance, installation and live art.

Recent Credits include: Zoetrope(National Dance Company Wales); Feral Monster (National Theatre Wales); In World’s Unknown (Seke Chimutengwende/Canduco); Shuffle (Lea Anderson & We Staged); It begins in Darkness (Seke Chimutengwende);  Showmanism & Remember Me (Dickie Beau); Caretakers (Nic Conibere, Sadlers Wells); Watch it (Wendy Houston); Written in the Body (Charlotte Spencer, Brighton Festival); Bottoms, 40/40 (Two Destination Language); Snakeskin in the Wild & Readings of what was never Written (Neurolive); In Floods (Greg Wohead), Pleasure Seekers (Bourgeois and Maurice Soho Theatre); Fat Blokes, Class (Scottee); My Body My Archive (Tate Modern); Our True Feelings, Choreography of an Argument Around a Table, Tug(Dog Kennel Hill Project); Cornelia Parker (Tate Britain); The Candle Project (Abigail Conway); 24/7 (Esmeralda Conde Ruiz & Hellerau Dresden); First Light, a light installation for babies (Daniel Naddafy & Barbican).

As Part of the Duckie collective he has designed many of their theatrical club events such as Princess, Gay Shame, Servants Ball and Border Force. As a light artist he creates installations investigating human response to colour in the natural world.

dancers stand in a circle under a bright light, all facing the centre and raising their headpieces aloft