Bradford Festival line-up revealed

From the Telegraph & Argus, first published Monday 7th Jun 2004.

Bradford will echo to the sounds of the city's famous Festival this month.

Dozens of spectacular street acts, the traditional Lord Mayor's Carnival Procession and the world-renowned Mela are some of the attractions.

This year's festival is being run by Bradford Council which has taken over from the former Bradford Internat-ional Festival Company.

The fun starts on Thursday, June 17, when Centenary Square will be transformed into a magical garden with a lake, sensory zones and a story-telling chair. On Friday, June 18, at 8.45pm at Cartwright Hall, theatre group Mischief Las Bas will perform the show Painful Creatures - described as "compelling yet macabre".

Emergency Exit Arts will present Runga Runga at the Crown Court Plaza at 9pm on Saturday, June 19, which will be followed by a fireworks finale. On Saturday, June 20, the Lord Mayor's Carnival Procession starts at Crown Court Plaza at 11.30am and winds through the city centre.

That weekend will also see a street arts festival around the city with comedy, drama, and spectacular feats from some of the country's top performers.

And the following weekend, June 26 and 27, what has been promised to be the biggest and best Mela in the Festival's history will be held at Peel Park.

Among the highlights will be a huge marquee, the size of a football pitch, where Bradford Vision will run community events. The temporary venue, called the Village, will be divided into four zones based on the district's adopted 2020 Vision themes of living, learning, playing and work.

There will also be a village stage with performances from local groups and African drumming workshop.

The play zone will have entertainment for young people, including an area devoted to traditional Asian games where people can `virtually' test their skills against history's finest cricketers. Other attractions include a picnic area and fair-trade cafe.

"It will be a bigger and better Mela than ever before - we want to give people a good time," said Bradford Vision's marketing and communications director Ron Miller. "It will be an exciting showcase for the district's partnerships and community groups."

A separate marquee - the future zone - will feature a video which will transport people to 2020 and give them a glimpse of what Bradford would look like. It has been produced by Studio 163 - a company formed by graduates from Bradford University's advanced information technology course.

Viewers will travel through space and time and find themselves in the city created by international architect Will Alsop for Bradford Centre Regeneration - the company which will spearhead the renaissance of the city.

During the Festival eight artists living in Bradford will throw open their homes to the public, giving an insight into the way they work. And the National Museum of Photo-graphy, Film and Television will expand the garden theme with an exhibition called Everything's Gone Green.

The Festival has attracted sponsorship from leading names such as Sony Asia Tele-vision and Western Union.

Bradford Vision is inviting organisations which want to be involved in the Mela village and community stage performances to call 0845 1272020.

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