artsekta
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24 October 15 - Picture by Darren Kidd / Press Eye.
****NO FEE****
INDIAN ILLUMINATIONS BRING BELFAST TO A CELEBRATION STANDSTILL
Age-old Indian storytelling met modern-day pyrotechnics in Belfast city centre at the weekend as an audience of more than 10,000 took part in one of the largest outdoor theatre events ever staged in the city.
Inspired by Diwali, the Indian Festival of Light, ‘Nine Nights’, presented by leading ethnic arts group, ArtsEkta, and produced by the internationally acclaimed Walk The Plank outdoor theatre specialists, was a spectacular celebration of Indian culture played out in music, dance, lights and pyrotechnics.
Staging the venture was a challenge of massive proportions for ArtsEkta, involving communities from across the city and showcasing groups and individuals who, until
the event, had little or no experience of performing in public. After weeks of training, 600 local people in vivid costumes led the stunning parade of dancing, shimmering lanterns as it wended its way from Custom House Square to City Hall to mark the start of the event. They were accompanied by the pulsating rhythm of fifty-four Indian dhol drums, each played to thunderous effect by a newcomer to the instrument.
Nisha Tandon, Director of ArtsEkta, admits that the standard of community performance – not to mention the noise levels! – blew her away as it provided an exuberant highlight of the wider Creative Belfast Programme funded by Belfast City Council and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.
She says, “We work around the year with schools and community groups right across the Province, building arts skills and confidence in people of every age and from all sorts of ethnic and social backgrounds. I know how much creativity is out there but, even I was amazed to see how so-called ‘ordinary people’ were transformed into fabulous performers for one incredible night of entertainment and a street party like no other.”
At City Hall audiences and community performers came together to enjoy the colourful and atmospheric re-enactment by Walk The Plank of the epic tale of ‘Nine Nights’. Dance, music and large scale pyrotechnics and other special effects brought to life for modern audiences the epic and ancient Hindu story which is a celebration of creation, birth and renewal, marking the start of new journeys, hopes and aspirations.
Congratulating all those who came together to make the event such a resounding success for the city, Deputy Lord Mayor Alderman Guy Spence, said, “It’s fantastic to see so many people and families out enjoying this spectacular evening of performance – such a feel-good event for the city. We wanted our Creative Belfast projects to highlight the importance of the arts in creating a colourful and vibrant city, and this event has certainly done that.”
“Creative Belfast is the first initiative of its kind. It represents the largest amount of project funding ever awarded by Belfast City Council and underlines the council’s strong, ongoing commitment to the cultural life of the city, and to promoting community engagement and challenging social exclusion by engaging Belfast’s diverse people and communities in culture and arts.”
To see photos of Nine Nights in creative action and find out more about future ArtsEkta events and projects visit www.artsekta.co.uk
‘Nine Nights’ was one of seven Creative Belfast projects funded by Belfast City Council and the Arts Council for Northern Ireland through the Creative and Cultural Belfast Fund. For more information go to www.belfastcity.gov.uk/creativebelfast and www.artscouncil-ni.org or keep up-to-date on social media using the hashtag CreativeBelfast, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/creativebelfast and on Twitter @Crea8tiveBelfast.
Issued on behalf of ArtsEkta
By Future Image
For further information contact
Sally Gardiner on 07768428820
241015dk330
24 October 15 - Picture by Darren Kidd / Press Eye.
****NO FEE****
INDIAN ILLUMINATIONS BRING BELFAST TO A CELEBRATION STANDSTILL
Age-old Indian storytelling met modern-day pyrotechnics in Belfast city centre at the weekend as an audience of more than 10,000 took part in one of the largest outdoor theatre events ever staged in the city.
Inspired by Diwali, the Indian Festival of Light, ‘Nine Nights’, presented by leading ethnic arts group, ArtsEkta, and produced by the internationally acclaimed Walk The Plank outdoor theatre specialists, was a spectacular celebration of Indian culture played out in music, dance, lights and pyrotechnics.
Staging the venture was a challenge of massive proportions for ArtsEkta, involving communities from across the city and showcasing groups and individuals who, until
the event, had little or no experience of performing in public. After weeks of training, 600 local people in vivid costumes led the stunning parade of dancing, shimmering lanterns as it wended its way from Custom House Square to City Hall to mark the start of the event. They were accompanied by the pulsating rhythm of fifty-four Indian dhol drums, each played to thunderous effect by a newcomer to the instrument.
Nisha Tandon, Director of ArtsEkta, admits that the standard of community performance – not to mention the noise levels! – blew her away as it provided an exuberant highlight of the wider Creative Belfast Programme funded by Belfast City Council and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.
She says, “We work around the year with schools and community groups right across the Province, building arts skills and confidence in people of every age and from all sorts of ethnic and social backgrounds. I know how much creativity is out there but, even I was amazed to see how so-called ‘ordinary people’ were transformed into fabulous performers for one incredible night of entertainment and a street party like no other.”
At City Hall audiences and community performers came together to enjoy the colourful and atmospheric re-enactment by Walk The Plank of the epic tale of ‘Nine Nights’. Dance, music and large scale pyrotechnics and other special effects brought to life for modern audiences the epic and ancient Hindu story which is a celebration of creation, birth and renewal, marking the start of new journeys, hopes and aspirations.
Congratulating all those who came together to make the event such a resounding success for the city, Deputy Lord Mayor Alderman Guy Spence, said, “It’s fantastic to see so many people and families out enjoying this spectacular evening of performance – such a feel-good event for the city. We wanted our Creative Belfast projects to highlight the importance of the arts in creating a colourful and vibrant city, and this event has certainly done that.”
“Creative Belfast is the first initiative of its kind. It represents the largest amount of project funding ever awarded by Belfast City Council and underlines the council’s strong, ongoing commitment to the cultural life of the city, and to promoting community engagement and challenging social exclusion by engaging Belfast’s diverse people and communities in culture and arts.”
To see photos of Nine Nights in creative action and find out more about future ArtsEkta events and projects visit www.artsekta.co.uk
‘Nine Nights’ was one of seven Creative Belfast projects funded by Belfast City Council and the Arts Council for Northern Ireland through the Creative and Cultural Belfast Fund. For more information go to www.belfastcity.gov.uk/creativebelfast and www.artscouncil-ni.org or keep up-to-date on social media using the hashtag CreativeBelfast, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/creativebelfast and on Twitter @Crea8tiveBelfast.
Issued on behalf of ArtsEkta
By Future Image
For further information contact
Sally Gardiner on 07768428820