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accessing the garden in the evenings. We want to give audiences the opportunity to see it from a completely different perspective.’
There’s a similar motivation occurring further north in Pitlochry. ‘We present the Scottish woodland landscape in a new and exciting way,’ says Derek Allan, The Enchanted Forest’s producer and creative director. ‘Moreover, it’s quite a magical experience going into a forest after dark. It’s not something people do every day, if at all.’
Night in the Garden’s purpose is partly to highlight (literally) much of the work the Botanics does in conservation, says Innes. ‘It’s one of the few places in the city where you can get a sense of true darkness. Although this is a light trail, what goes with that is darkness, and it’s about giving people a chance to experience that. It’s about dark, it’s about light, it’s about shadow and it’s about revealing these things that ambient light washes away. Then you can pick what you want to show people out of the dark.’ The Enchanted Forest is in a different stage of its life than Night in the Garden, with Allan proudly pointing out that most of the available outdoor lights in Scotland are used to illuminate a natural amphitheatre
with a stunning effect which has already seen the organisers asked to consider similar events in Canada, Wales, Ireland and Russia. ‘There have been son et lumière shows around the world for decades,’ he says. ‘Some focus on building-based urban light shows, some are primarily about technology, using video projection, digital mapping and so on. The Enchanted Forest is different in that it merges technology, art, sound and music in an amazing setting.’ The annual theme is different, he says, and this will be the i rst time that live performers have been used. ‘One element that’s important in these events is darkness, which means they’re always going to be in the winter months if you want to be able to run them at a reasonable time of the evening. That’s a challenge when you’re talking about electronics out in the cold and wet – but there is something very magical about the forest in the autumn.’
The Enchanted Forest, Pitlochry, Fri 3–Sun 26 Oct. Night in the Garden, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Thu 30 Oct–Sun 23 Nov.
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