By Taylor Breckles

Robbie Burns Day is a beloved Scottish holiday that is celebrated by Scots and Burnsians alike worldwide. This is a day for dancing, laughing, sharing stories, reading poetry, and feasting with friends, both old and new, all in celebration of the Scottish bard. This year, however, celebrations looked quite different. Although we couldn’t gather in the usual way, many organizations came up with alternate arrangements, including ScotFestBC in partnership with the SFU Centre for Scottish Studies. In true pandemic fashion, the 2021 Robert Burns Day Celebration was conducted online via Zoom. And, wow, was it ever an experience! The event was open to anybody and everybody and – as a rare perk to the online environment – people from all over the world gathered together virtually. From across Canada to the United States to Australia, Burns fans across the globe sat in front of their computers to listen to musicians, poetry readers, a whisky maker, an acclaimed professor, and Scottish immigrants. As one of the performers, allow me to give you a backstage tour of the goings-on of our first-ever virtual Robbie Burns Day.  

Just as with an in-person event, the performers and hosts met early to ensure the smooth delivery of the evening’s events. This included sound checks, camera checks, a couple of rehearsals, and many jokes about the strangeness of the situation. We quickly discovered, for instance, a quirk in Zoom in which people couldn’t turn on their cameras as they were disabled for some reason. Did we figure out why? No. Did we find a workaround? Of course. By the time the “doors” opened to the public – over 500 people RSVP’d – even more quirks presented themselves. There were various issues with sound and visuals, but this only brought out people’s wonderful senses of humour. Our host, Mike Chisholm, commented that, “We [ScotFestBC] will be prepared for the next pandemic.”

In addition to jokes and the like, there were also amazing performances to alleviate the weirdness of an online celebration. Jack Lee, world champion bagpiper; Mary Ross, accordion player; Janice Hamilton, fiddler; Leith Davis, professor and Scotland expert; and Graeme Macaloney, whisky maker, were among the wonderful performers that delighted the audience. There was such a mixture of talent, ranging from toe-tapping music to educational talks, and it was easy to ignore our virtual barriers.

Speaking as a performer, it was a very welcoming atmosphere and the audience made sure to make each performer feel appreciated by commenting in the chat. I read Burns’ poem, “A Bard’s Epitaph,” for the event, and although it was my first time reading poetry in front of an audience, the atmosphere eliminated most of my nerves. I felt like my contribution was small, but after reading some of the lovely comments, I felt like I was part of the community. There was a sense of genuine appreciation, happiness, and camaraderie that was a significant contributor to the success of the event.  

Another opportunity that arose from the virtual setting concerned decoration. Each participant was encouraged to decorate their backgrounds – and themselves – with Scottish paraphernalia. There were even prizes for set decoration, such as gift cards from Scottish and British specialty stores. I hung my kilt on the wall and set up some Scottish trinkets. Others, much more impressive than my humble set-up, had busts of Burns, giant posters of the Scottish bard, and family crests. It was nice to see so many participants decorate their spaces. Beyond furthering the atmosphere, these backgrounds were also great talking points that allowed the audience to discuss their most prized pieces of Scottish memorabilia. The tradition of story sharing carried on! Some people talked about their previous Robbie Burns Day performances, others reminisced about life in Scotland, some modelled their clan colours, and some reminisced about the in-person traditions they missed – of these there were plenty.

Although we couldn’t celebrate in person, our first-ever virtual Robbie Burns Day event was still a lot of fun and I’m grateful that I was able to be part of it. It’s nice that despite the current global circumstances, there was a way to gather together, create a sense of community, and share this experience. If, dear reader, you missed this event and would like to see it for yourself, check out the recording.

Tapadh leat, sláinte!