the event in 2026 is back to the original date of May 22nd

untitled Holy Hiatus 18

Friday | Dydd Gwener 

May | Mai 22, 2025

16:00 – 22.15

Maura Hazelden & Jacob Whittaker

Small World Theatre | Theatr Byd Bychan, 

Bath House Road | Heol Clôs y Bath, 

Cardigan | Aberteifi, SA43 IJY

Entry by donation | Mynediad trwy rodd

This six-hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens. usually there is sound, a layering of recordings since 2008 giving a unique soundscape, there was a change last year as we went back in time to the last time Lou sang

Come to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation. People who use movement (or yoga etc) as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

There is a break between 18:50 & 19:05 during which people already in the space may remain if they wish, new people will be admitted after 19:05. There is a limited amount of people allowed in at any one time but except for the first time, this has not been much of a problem!

This started as a collaboration between Maura & Lou Laurens, who died in 2014

As has become usual, please do use the space for meditation, contemplation, prayer... And if you use movement or yoga etc as a form of contemplation or meditation please feel free to move in the space.

If you would like to know more about the history, the beginnings in 2008, please take look through the this Untitled Holy Hiatus Blog or Facebook page

photo from 2025

at 5 hours 30 minutes every year

Lou made a CD consisting of 3 minutes from the point 5 hours and 30 mins. Jake continued to archive for a few years after she died. Now, as we are making changes, Jake has put them all together on a youtube video with no images, just the date. 

We can hear the work of the recording and re recording that Lou started (based on the work of Alvin Lucier). Lou last sang in 2012, so her singing with herself has been fading.

We might create an image version at a later time. We feel it appropriate to share this, to celebrate Lou's experiment as we are making changes this year.

LINK HERE for a journey through the years

In the second year, Lou was unable to sing in the first half, so she wrote the song in charcoal as a duet to her singing the previous year, the photo is from the cctv footage of the first year

Not just a change of date for 2025

The sound has probably become very strange, especially if you don't spend much time in there - and not every year. For me, as I am there to listen, to body and everything it never seems odd, and the couple of times that are very loud and sharp, in isolation, never seem it in the whole. 

We can hear the work of the recording and re recording that Lou started (based on the work of Alvin Lucier). Lou last sang in 2012, so her singing with herself has been fading. You will hear what seems like church bells if you listen carefully. Even without singing being added, the bells of the breaks, the birdsong, the door banging, people coughing etc are layered on, we have a record of all the years.

Jake and I have talked over the last year or so about having a new voice, if we do, and there is someone who would do it, it would have to be a singing with Lou, not over Lou, we would need to fold up the years and return to an earlier recording.

So this year we will be stepping back in time with the sound.

We need to see how we feel about it....

So this is to let you know, you will hear more of Lou this year.

...It's making me think I'll get out the trousers I wore from the start until 2012!...

2025: May 23rd not 22nd!

with

small world theatre | theatr byd bychan

Untitled holy hiatus 17 DATE CHANGE 23rd May 2025

 May 23 Mai 2025

16:00 – 22.15
Maura Hazelden & Jacob Whittaker

There is a break between 18:50 & 19:05 during which people already in the space may remain if they wish, new people will be admitted after 19:05.
There is a limited amount of people allowed in at any one time but except for the first time, this has not been much of a problem!

Small World Theatre | Theatr Byd Bychan
Bath House Road | Heol Clôs y Bath,

Cardigan | Aberteifi, SA43 IJY

Entry by donation | Mynediad trwy rodd

This six-hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens. Untitled 16 will use 15 years of layered recordings giving a unique soundscape. Come to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation. People who use movement as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

We are tentatively continuing as we have done: Lou’s experiment with sound and space continues. There are distortions, curious new sounds and feedback, but being in the space and listening fully – to the space and to the self - the strangeness does not shock.

Link to further notes to explain the event and your participation

Untitled Holy Hiatus 16

 May 22 Mai 2024

17:00 – 22.15
Maura Hazelden & Jacob Whittaker

There is a break between 18:50 & 19:05 during which people already in the space may remain if they wish, new people will be admitted after 19:05.
There is a limited amount of people allowed in at any one time but except for the first time, this has not been much of a problem!

Small World Theatre | Theatr Byd Bychan
Bath House Road | Heol Clôs y Bath,

Cardigan | Aberteifi, SA43 IJY

Entry by donation | Mynediad trwy rodd

This six-hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens. Untitled 16 will use 15 years of layered recordings giving a unique soundscape. Come to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation. People who use movement as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

We are tentatively continuing as we have done: Lou’s experiment with sound and space continues. There are distortions, curious new sounds and feedback, but being in the space and listening fully – to the space and to the self - the strangeness does not shock.

Link to further notes to explain the event and your participation

please note we might have to start the public participation from 5pm rather than the usual 4pm due to a previous event.

Mae’r digwyddiad perfformiadol chwe awr o hyd hwn yn darganfod sut mae gofod trothwyol yn cael ei greu, ei brofi a’i rannu, trwy ail-adrodd cymal o symudiad a chân o’r 13eg ganrif, a ddyfeisiwyd gan Lou Laurens. Bydd di-deitl 16 yn defnyddio 15 mlynedd o haenau o recordiadau i greu sainlun unigryw. Dewch i fod yn bresennol yn y gofod sy’n cael ei greu. Defnyddiwch y gofod ar gyfer meddwl, gweddïo, myfyrio. Efallai bydd pobl sy’n defnyddio symud fel ffordd o fyfyrio neu weddïo yn dymuno symud yn hytrach nag eistedd.

Ry’n ni’n bwrw ‘mlaen yn betrusgar, fel ag erioed: mae arbrawf Lou gyda sain a gofod yn parhau. Mae yna ystumiadau, seiniau newydd rhyfedd ac ôl-dafliad sain, ond wrth fod yn y gofod a gwrando’n astud – ar y gofod a’r hunan – ‘does dim sioc yn y dieithrwch.

small world theatre | theatr byd bychan

untitled holy hiatus 15 ~ 22.05.2023

Untitled Holy Hiatus is not being advertised publicly elsewhere.

I shall send invites out via Facebook and email. RSVP would be appreciated, also if you know approximately what time you might arrive, please let me know

If you have not received an invite and you have been a regular participant and you use Facebook you can send a message via the Untitled Holy Hiatus page. If you know my email then contact me that way. If you know someone who would like to be there please contact me as above. You can leave a comment here if you don't use Facebook.

A maximum of 9 people in the space at anytime. The original was 6, the number has gone up and down...

UHH 14 2022

last year - 2022

It went gently. It was very comfortable and soft. J wasn't in the space as usual as he had a lot of work to do, T was with me for a lot of the time and no one else came. There were no knotty times of thinking too much about what to "do". 

I listened to the sound and the birds outside for 6 hours and think only once did my mind wander very briefly. T thought my movement was more fluid than he had seen. There was a little "play" with him as he walked around the space on a couple of occasions. 

During one on my own time I found myself moving in a very ballet way - lots of arm and sternum - that rather a Qigong way, it is a feeling that comes when doing some ballet but perhaps more people might understand the Qigong similarity!

Contentment was a feeling that came to me afterwards, and had a really good night's sleep. So a fulfilling, regenerative time. I've often thought I might find it difficult being on my own for a lot of the time and not being disciplined enough or something, but it wasn't the case. Perhaps not having done it since 2019 it was useful to not have other people. 

untitled holy hiatus 14 ~ 22.05.2022

 This year year will be by invitation so not open to the public. 

Last year UHH 13 was recorded - and only Jake was there. I was there for a little while - outside of an open window.

Here are some of the images taken by Jake last year.

If you have not received an invite and you have been a regular participant and you use Facebook you can send a message via the Untitled Holy Hiatus page. If you know my email then contact me that way.

22:02:2021 untitled holy hiatus 13

 Jacob will be listening to the space for us this year

in the absence

There is a private group set up on Facebook to share thoughts, experiences, memories of Untitled Holy Hiatus. If you have participated and would like to share something please do request to join the group link: Untitled Holy Hiatus Group

Thank you everyone who has participated in and supported this event - hopefully we will gather again in 2021

................................

the morning of May 22nd 2020:
It's so physical, so embodied. I feel the focusing in, the list in my head of the things to do/remember; the feel of those things, their volume, texture - chairs, table, blanket, glass for water ...

May 22nd 2020 Untilted HH in the time of a virus

As far as I can tell Untitled Holy Hiatus will not happen this year - certainly not as a public event on May 22nd. I am pondering the possibility if Small World is able to accommodate holding it on either the day in July with same day length, or the day with the same sunset time.
Or maybe mark it somehow on the day - perhaps online sharing every hour...

thoughts on the morning of May 22nd 2019

It's interesting to see how the performative nature has changed since the first time: it has unfolded into a ritual, a participatory event. No longer are there 2 performers exploring*, but, perhaps, a community created for those 6 hours. And the song, with nothing new added since 2012*, has embedded into the sound of the space.

Then thinking of the different ways of moving for me - the phrase of movement and the following my body: the phrase is performative, it is like a spoken prayer, a song sung. Although it is set it changes and different parts become emphasised, year by year or hour by hour.

Lou’s* last live vocals were in 2012 as she was unable to be there in 2013 as she had recently given birth. And 2014 was her last UHH: she was unable to sing, but her listening and presence were as strong as ever. She spent the last hour or so downstairs with me. At the end we knew we’d done it – we’ve achieved the thing we sought. By then people were coming to meditate or pray, to just be in the space, not to watch.

In 2015 I invited people who used movement as prayer or contemplation to move in the space. Regardless of whether they respond to me in any way, it supports me and has enabled me to continue. I noticed that many of those who were there in stillness had bare feet and were lying down! In 2015 I found myself moving with two people, and last year there was playful interaction with one of those movers – at a moment that I could have crumpled, a moment where I wondered if I could move at all.

After 2 years of UHH Lou and I agreed on a name for what we were doing: an act of devotion.

when we were two

untitled holy hiatus 12

May 22 Mai 2019
4pm – 10.15pm
Maura Hazelden & Jacob Whittaker

Small World Theatre | Theatr Byd Bychan
Bath House Road | Heol Clôs y Bath,

Cardigan | Aberteifi, SA43 IJY

This six-hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens. Untitled 12 will use 11 years of layered recordings giving a unique soundscape. Come to observe, to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation. People who use movement as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

We are tentatively continuing as we have done: Lou’s experiment with sound and space continues. There are distortions, curious new sounds and feedback, but being in the space and listening fully – to the space and to the self - the strangeness does not shock.

Mae’r digwyddiad perfformiadol chwe awr o hyd hwn yn darganfod sut mae gofod trothwyol yn cael ei greu, ei brofi a’i rannu, trwy ail-adrodd cymal o symudiad a chân o’r 13eg ganrif, a ddyfeisiwyd gan Lou Laurens. Bydd di-deitl 12 yn defnyddio 11 mlynedd o haenau o recordiadau i greu sainlun unigryw. Dewch i wylio, i fod yn bresennol yn y gofod sy’n cael ei greu. Defnyddiwch y gofod ar gyfer meddwl, gweddïo, myfyrio. Efallai bydd pobl sy’n defnyddio symud fel ffordd o fyfyrio neu weddïo yn dymuno symud yn hytrach nag eistedd.

Ry’n ni’n bwrw ‘mlaen yn betrusgar, fel ag erioed: mae arbrawf Lou gyda sain a gofod yn parhau. Mae yna ystumiadau, seiniau newydd rhyfedd ac ôl-dafliad sain, ond wrth fod yn y gofod a gwrando’n astud – ar y gofod a’r hunan – ‘does dim sioc yn y dieithrwch.

Entry by donation | Mynediad trwy rodd

LINK to further notes to explain the event and your participation

small world theatre | theatr byd bychan

notes to explain the event

Untitled has moved from an experiment within an art context to its own thing, a space for acts of devotion. It could never be a performance, it had to be “real” due to the length of time. Now it is something I offer myself – 6 hours that I would not spend without a public commitment in contemplation/prayer/devotion and open up to people who would like to participate. Jake and I continue Lou’s experiment of sound folded over and over even with no new voice added. This is probably one of the most curious things about the event!

Sit, walk, lie down, if you use movement as contemplation - prayer - meditation please feel free to move... yoga... be there for twno minutes, an hour, 3 hours...come and go...

Feel free to bring a cushion, a blanket, a meditation stool ... there will be some chairs

There will be a break 6.50pm – 7.05pm - but if you are deeply embedded you need not leave, but Maura will drink and eat something...

There will be more information in the Small World kitchen - the kitchen door is the entrance rather than the main doors

untitled holy hiatus 11

the inset photo shows the final sweeping of the floor in 2008

Untitled: Holy hiatus 10

monday | dydd llun
May 22 Mai
4pm – 10.15pm

This six hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens. Untitled 10 will use 9 years of time layered recordings and add to the evolving soundscape by recording this year’s acoustics. Come to observe, to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation. People who use movement as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

Digwyddiad perfformiol dros gyfnod o chwe awr, sy’n archwilio sut mae gofod trothwyol yn cael ei greu, ei brofi a’i rannu, gan ddefnyddio cymal o symudiad a chân o’r 13eg ganrif, a ddatblygwyd gyda Lou Laurens. Bydd dideitl 10 yn defnyddio haenau lluosog o recordiadau o gyfnod amser o 9 mlynedd, ac yn ychwanegu at esblygiad y sainlun hwn trwy recordio acwsteg eleni. Dewch i wylio, i fod yn bresennol o fewn y gofod gaiff ei greu, a defnyddio’r gofod ar gyfer meddwl dwys, gweddi a myfyrdod. Efallai y byddai’n well gan bobl sy’n arfer defnyddio symud fel dull o fyfyrio neu weddio i wneud hynny, yn hytrach na eistedd.

entry by donation
mynediad trwy rodd

facebook event

now

Untitled has moved from an experiment within an art context to its own thing, a space for acts of devotion. It could never be a performance, it had to be “real” due to the length of time. Now it is something I offer myself – 6 hours that I would not spend without a public commitment in contemplation/prayer/devotion and open up to people who would like to participate. Jake and I continue Lou’s experiment of sound folded over and over even with no new voice added.

Maura 2016

untitled: holy hiatus 9

Sunday 22nd May 2016 at 4:00pm

Sunday | dydd Sul
May 22 Mai
4pm/yp – 10.15pm/yp

There will be a break 6.50pm – 7.05pm

movement practitioner | ymarferydd symud: Maura Hazelden
artist filmmaker| artist wneuthurwr ffilm: Jacob Whittaker

This six hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement, and a 13th century song developed by Lou Laurens and Maura Hazelden. Untitled 9 will use 8 years of time layered recordings and add to the evolving soundscape by recording this year’s acoustics. Come to observe, to be present within the space created. Use the space for mediation, prayer, contemplation, movement.

Digwyddiad perfformiol dros gyfnod o chwe awr, sy’n archwilio sut mae gofod trothwyol yn cael ei greu, ei brofi a’i rannu, gan ddefnyddio cymal o symudiad, a chân o’r 13eg ganrif, a ddatblygwyd gyda Lou Laurens. Bydd dideitl 9 yn defnyddio haenau lluosog o recordiadau o gyfnod amser o 8 mlynedd, ac yn ychwanegu at esblygiad y sainlun hwn trwy recordio acwsteg eleni. Dewch i wylio, i fod yn bresennol o fewn y gofod gaiff ei greu, a defnyddio’r gofod ar gyfer meddwl dwys, gweddi a myfyrdod.

entry by donation
mynediad trwy rodd wirfoddol

Untitled Holy Hiatus 8 2015

Friday | Nos Wener
May 22 Mai, open | ar agor: 4.30pm/yp - 10.15pm/yh
with a break | bydd egwyl: 6.50pm/ yh - 7.05yh
entrance by donation | mynediad trwy rodd wirfoddol

Theatr Byd Bychan | Small World Theatre
Bath House Road,
Aberteifi | Cardigan
Ceredigion SA43 1JY
 

 

This annual, six hour, performative event explores how liminal space is created, experienced and shared, using repetitions of a phrase of movement and a 13th century song. Originally an art collaboration between movement practitioner Maura Hazelden and singer/ sonic artist Lou Laurens, the event has grown into a devotional act.

Lou died in September 2014. Using 7 years of time layered recordings, Maura proceeds with Jacob Whittaker’s encouragement and is adding to the evolving soundscape by recording this year’s acoustics. You are invited to be in the space for meditation, prayer, contemplation, or just to want to be present. People who use movement as contemplation or prayer may wish to move rather than sit.

Mae’r digwyddiad perfformiol blynyddol hwn, sy’n para chwech awr, yn archwilio sut mae gofod trothwyol yn cael ei greu, ei brofi a’i rannu, trwy ail-adrodd un cymal o symudiad corfforol ynghyd â chân o’r 13eg ganrif. Yn wreiddiol, roedd hwn yn ddigwyddiad celfyddydol cydweithredol rhwng Maura Hazelden, ymarferydd symud, a’r canwr/artist sain Lou Laurens. Bellach, tyfodd i fod yn weithred ddefosiynol.

Bu farw Lou ym Medi 2014. Gyda chefnogaeth Jacob Whittaker, mae Maura wedi bwrw ati gyda di-deitl 8 gan ddefnyddio 7 mlynedd o recordiadau mewn haenau amser. Mae’n ychwanegu at esblygiad y tir seiniol hwn trwy recordio acwsteg eleni. Mae yna wahoddiad i chi gamu mewn i’r gofod ar gyfer myfyrio, gweddio, meddylu, neu i fod yn bresennol yn yr eiliad. Efallai y byddai’n well gan bobl sy’n arfer defnyddio symud fel dull o fyfyrio neu weddio i wneud hynny, yn hytrach na eistedd.

 

loss

This is a very personal entry.
For anyone reaching this blog from afar, who does not know Lou and me, I have to tell the sad news that Lou died in September 2014. She can be seen at times in the face of Rupert, her son, who will be two years old by the time Untitled Holy Hiatus 8 arrives.
Yes there will be an eighth event. I am not sure of the form it will take. But Jacob Whittaker has booked the venue.
I will be talking with people to find a way through.

Maura



Louise Lauren in 2007 at Capeli: Capel Crannog, a Gwrando project