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The Norfolk and Norwich Festival is back with its
renowned mix of music, theatre and comedy, along with some new features
to attract an even wider audience.
"I鈥檓 very excited about the 2003 programme,"
said the festival's artistic director Peter Bolton.
"What I think we鈥檝e managed to do is bring
together a whole load of things that wouldn鈥檛 otherwise come to
Norfolk if we didn鈥檛 do them."
Highlights include an opening concert from the
Michael Nyman Band, the promise of laughter with comedian Phil Kay
and an internationally acclaimed selection of classical and contemporary
performers.
"Our jazz programme has an international level
of performance that you wouldn鈥檛 otherwise get in this part of the
world and that鈥檚 very exciting," enthused Bolton.
Taking to the streets in 2003
The festival sees a new development
this year with the introduction of a street festival on Saturday
3 May. From midday, Norwich city centre will be transformed by a
mesmerising array of some of the UK's best street performers.
"It鈥檚 been a long standing desire that we
get the festival to lots of other people who perhaps aren鈥檛 engaging
with it already," said Bolton.
Street performers |
"They鈥檒l be a real blitz on Norwich鈥檚 streets
with lots of free events. You won鈥檛 be able to move for street performers."
Festival for all
As artist director of the festival, Peter Bolton
still faces some criticism that the event remains an arena for the
cultural elite, but argues this is more an issue for society than
for him: "I think there is always that
thing of 'classical music is only for the knobs' but I don鈥檛 think
that鈥檚 our problem.
"I think that鈥檚 a society thing and people
have labelled certain things in certain ways. I
don鈥檛 think the festival is elitist.
"My job is to put on really good events of
a variety of sorts. I don鈥檛 think anything
we鈥檙e doing requires a particular sort of person to enjoy it - I
think anybody can," he added.
Drama and dance
In addition to the wide range of music performed
throughout the festival, audiences also have the opportunity to
enjoy a number of theatrical works.
The Northern Ballet Theatre presents Mozart's Requiem
choreographed by Birgit Scherzer, a performance featuring a chorus
of 50 singers from the Keswick Hall Choir.
Jonathan Ollivier, a principal dancer with the
NBT, said Requiem is very much a personal experience for every member
of the audience: "The story is quite
hard to explain as it鈥檚 pretty much down to individual interpretation.
"The ballet doesn鈥檛 really have much to do
with Mozart at all and it doesn鈥檛 have a definite story.
"It鈥檚 quite hard to explain. It鈥檚 about whatever
the audience wants to make of the ballet, there is no right or wrong
story," he said.
The festival also sees a rare
performance of Everyman, starring and directed by Simon
Callow with a cast from Norwich's Maddermarket Theatre and the London
Mozart Players.
Pop goes the festival
On the issue of including more pop concerts under
the festival's umbrella, Bolton argues that Norfolk already has
enough of these events.
"I think we have to balance what other people
are doing," he said.
| HAVE YOUR SAY |
What do you think of the festival
line up? Is there enough variety, what acts would you like to
see as part of the festival?
. |
"We have a lot of other promoters in Norfolk
that are bringing pop acts to the county.
"What we鈥檙e trying to do is position ourselves
so we鈥檙e not repeating what else is going on during the rest of
the year, but it doesn鈥檛 rule anything in or out in the future.
"It鈥檚 always a difficult one, but my criteria
is to broaden the programme as widely as I can that it is distinctive
and at an international level of performance.
"In the future we do have ideas for developing
events that would have a very broad appeal involving major artists
that would reach a very wide public. These things are very much
in our minds so watch this space."
The Norfolk and Norwich Festival 2003 runs from
30 April - 10 May. Full event listings available at .
Throughout the festival, 91热爆
Radio Norfolk will be broadcasting news and reviews from 6pm
weekdays on 95.1 & 104.4FM in Norfolk, UK.
The 91热爆 is not responsible for the content of external
websites
Michael Nyman image courtesy of David Gamble
听
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We鈥檙e doing a broad range of stuff. It includes comedy,
jazz, new music, classical music, street events, contemporary
dance and it doesn鈥檛 get much broader than that. I don鈥檛
think we鈥檙e doing anything that would exclude anybody
from coming for any reason.
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