Red Rebel performance group lead silent three-day pilgrimage to COP26
The 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) will be hosted in Glasgow on 31 October – 12 November 2021. International leaders will come together to act against climate collapse.
The Red Rebel Brigade is a theatrical, apolitical performance group that raises awareness of ecological and political crises through peaceful, silent processions. Countrywide, hundreds of Red Rebels sound the warning through art and movement. Group members wear red, representing the danger of the climate crisis and its impact on humanity.
In the run up to COP26, Red Rebel Brigade groups UK-wide will complete a silent, three-day pilgrimage by train, starting in Truro and finishing in Glasgow on day 1 of the conference.
To witness and support the crucial discussions taking place at COP26, Red Rebel groups will stage haunting performances at each station along a planned route. Performances will share the message that we need to act now to halt serious natural disasters, global warming, and life-threatening pollution levels.
The three-day train relay, never before attempted by a performance group, will begin in Truro on Saturday 30th October and end in Glasgow on Monday 1st November. A banner (the 'baton') will be displayed during a high profile, public demonstration, signifying the end of the journey and the hope that COP26 will drive political climate action.
On Saturday 30th October, Red Rebels from Exeter will silently move through Exeter St David's station, staging a peaceful demonstration from 15:00.
Rebels will process onto the train for departure at 15:27, joining neighbouring Plymouth Rebels who will already be onboard, to carry the baton on to Bristol Temple Meads. The group will be escorted by local guides and environmental activists who will witness the departure at the station. Guides will join the Rebels on the train. There will be no disruption to passengers.
Exeter Rebels will join together with Bristol Rebels at Bristol Temple Meads station at 16:24 where a symbolic handover of the baton will take place.
“Red Rebels will travel, silently and with purpose, along the veins of the country to the beating heart of COP26 in Glasgow,” explain event organisers Catherine Heinemeyer and Christina O’Neill. “We will bring the message that it’s now CODE RED for humanity, for climate, and for nature. There is not a single moment more to waste, and policymakers who don’t come to the table ready to make sacrifices really will have blood on their hands.”
“The Red Rebel Brigade symbolise the common blood we share with all species, that unifies us and makes us one,” says Red Rebel founder, Doug Francisco. “As such we move as one, act as one and more importantly feel as one.”
