Five spectacular events will take place in the Thames region next summer, giving more than 1,000 participants from Oxford, Reading, Henley, Windsor and Slough the chance to take part in the excitement of 2012. CIAO! has joined forces with three other arts organisations in order to deliver ‘The Tree of Light’ which, funded by a major grant from Legacy Trust UK, will form part of the Cultural Olympiad (cultural celebrations of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games) in 2012.

The year-long project will celebrate the Olympic movement but will also highlight the need to live and work with sustainability and the natural environment and culminate in a major weekend celebration prior to the games. Schools and community groups from across the region will work with environmental scientists and professionals from the worlds of visual arts, music and dance to create a huge performance piece.

The creative team for the project include the innovative, high-tech theatrical design duo Block 9, who have become a regular fixture at Glastonbury Festival, Orlando Gough who is one of the UK’s most highly rated composers for ballet, contemporary dance and theatre, and choreographer Charlie Morrissey whose achievements include production elements for the opening of the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002. The centre piece of the project will be a giant, sculpted Tree of Light lit by low-energy LED light and powered by sustainable energy generated by cyclists and rowers from each local community.

Stewart Collins, Artistic Director of Henley Festival and the inspiration behind the Tree of Light project was delighted to receive news of the Legacy Trust funding: “From the word go we felt we had a wonderful and unique project but having now been given the thumbs up we can confidently look forward to producing a spectacle that will have an impact on many levels right across the Thames Valley – not to mention London itself. The creative team we’ve assembled is strong in every department and I think the project will have a real impact – and legacy.”

Sally Abbott, Regional Director, South East, Arts Council England, said: “We are delighted to support this consortium of strong cultural arts organisations through our Grants for the arts scheme and their environmentally focused project which is inspired by the London 2012 Olympic and Paralmypic Games. We hope that thousands of people living in the Thames region will take part in this magical celebration that brilliantly brings science, art and sport together under one banner.”

Dugald Mackie, Chair of Legacy Trust UK said: “The Tree of Light will help spread the magic and excitement of the 2012 Games outside London and leave a lasting legacy across the South East of England. The Games aren’t just for two weeks, and they’re not just for sports fans.  Through projects such as this, they will have an enduring impact on many people’s lives.”

CIAO! has joined with the following organisations: Henley Festival, Oxford Inspires and Windsor Festival to form the Thames Arts Consortium. The Tree of Light is supported with £200,000 in Arts Council England Grants for the arts funding, their open access funding scheme. The project is also strongly supported by local authorities and bodies across the Thames region.