This month Elaine Roberts takes us on a trip to
the wonderful Bath Festival. She chats to Head of Programming, Judith Robinson, about the event.
Welcome to the RNA blog, Judith. Can you tell us
something about the festival, how it came about and how long its been running?
Bath
Festivals has a long history, with the music festival starting as early as
1948, later joined by a
 |
| Ann Patchett - Photo credit Heidi Ross (Bath) |
literature and a children’s literature festival. This
year sees the launch of a new flagship festival for Bath - The
Bath Festival, a more visible arts festival building on Bath’s heritage of
successful music and literature festivals. The festival will have an accessible
and vibrant programme that embraces the wider performing arts. Leading thinkers, writers and musicians will
perform with the most gifted new talent emerging on the global stage. The
festival will also provide a platform for the year round extensive learning
& participation programme that Bath Festivals run for over 6,000 young
people, many with few opportunities to engage with the arts
Bath
Festivals will now present two large festivals, The Bath Festival in May and
the Bath Children’s Literature Festival in the autumn. They will both offer an
increased number of world-class events, feature rising talent and engage a
broader range of people.
Who are your main speakers for 2017?
This year,
we are welcoming a range of fascinating speakers and world-famous artists to
Bath, from Sir Salman Rushdie to Ann Patchett, Mary Berry to MP Jess Phillips,
acclaimed musician Madeleine Peyroux and the iconic Georgie Fame accompanied by
the Guy Barker Big Band, as well as the Philharmonia with conductor Herbert
Blomstedt. You can check out the full programme
here
As our blog is for writers can you tell me how
your festival would benefit our members?
We host a
range of creative writing workshops as part of The Bath Festival’s programme
which are aimed at aspiring writers, covering genres such as YA and performance
poetry, as well as crime-writing. We are also hosting a masterclass on how to
successfully submit a manuscript. There are lots of opportunities to hear
inspirational writers talk about their work and their journey to becoming
published authors.
How about staying over for the whole event.
Where can people stay?
Bath is home
to a range of beautiful hotels and B&Bs. A selection of them is listed in
our brochure or you can check out available accommodation on visitbath.co.uk.
What does it cost to attend?
Ticket prices
start at £5 – we also have special offers available for a range of events. All
details can be found in our festival brochure.
Do workshops/talks fill up quickly?
Some events
have already sold out since we went on general sale in February, so I would recommend
booking sooner rather than later.
How much time does it take to organise the
festival?
We don’t
really take a break from programming so even when we are confirming artists for
one year, we are already talking about the following year.
Dates for 2017 and possibly 2018.
The festival
starts on 19 to 28 May, starting with Party in the City on 19th May, an almighty
celebration of free entertainment. The streets, parks and venues in Bath will
be filled with a multitude of arts from electro-swing, to cheerleading, to
Chinese shadow puppetry. There will be
Samba dancing and drumming, DJ booths and a festival hub on Alfred Street for a
family-friendly extravaganza. Over 100
school children will bring the Abbey to life with song, stories and visual
arts. After dark, Queen Square will be
alive with music, local food and drink.
Dates for
2018 will be announced later this year.
Website: www.thebathfestival.org.uk
About Elaine Roberts:
Elaine is a
member of the RNA’s New Writers’ Scheme and the SWWJ and is currently working
on a family saga. She has sold short stories worldwide and enjoys attending RNA
events such as the London chapter and our annual conference. Elaine is a great
fan of writing retreats either week long by the sea with friends or one-day
retreats with fellow writers in her hometown of Dartford. Elaine runs a writing
blog along with writer, Francesca Capaldi Burgess called WriteMindWritePlace.
Members, please tell us about your experiences of literary festivals. We love to hear from you.
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