Didsbury-Magazine-Jun-Jul-2013

WhAT’S ON
Festival SeasonWords
Catherine Reed
The glamorous culture fest that
is Manchester International
Festival returns this year for its
biannual visit to the city and
brings with it dozens of new
and exciting events. Add to this
some of the summer’s other
festivals and events, such as
Greater Manchester Fringe
Festival, Manchester Day Parade,
Manchester Jazz Festival and
Parklife, plus our very own
Didsbury Festivals and you can see
there is no shortage of fun to be
had with or without the weather!
Festivals and Special Events
Manchester Day Parade
2pm to 4pm, Sun 2 June - Manchester City Centre
This year’s theme is ‘Wish You Were Here’, so hopefully
the sunshine will also make an appearance to ensure
the expected 50,000 audience can fully enjoy this
brilliant spectacle with its giant puppets and displays,
2,000 participants and fabulous community group
musicians and dancers. The parade starts and ends
on Liverpool Road; for a full list of participants visit
themanchesterdayparade.co.uk.
Didsbury Festival and Parade
Sat 8 June - Didsbury Park
This wonderful annual family event starts with the
traditional parade at 11am from St Catherine’s
RC School where hundreds of schoolchildren and
community groups walk through the village to the park.
This year’s theme is Space and Stars so look out for lots
of extraterrestrial creations. Activities in the park include
bouncy castles, fairground rides, displays, stalls and lots
of tasty food.
Chinese Dragon Boat Festival
Sun 16 June - Huron Basin, Salford Quays
Dragon Boat teams compete for the 2013 trophy in a
thrilling event, which is a great day out for all the family
as it also features lots of really fun activities, such as
traditional lion dances, folk dances, music, songs and
calligraphy; plus it is in Salford Quays so you can also
visit The Lowry, Imperial War Museum and Ordsall Hall.
The event starts with an opening ceremony at 11am
and closes at 4pm.
76 I JUNE/JULY 2013
EVITA starring Marti Pellow
Mon 29 July to Sat 10 August - The Lowry
Didsbury Arts Festival
Sat 22 to Sun 30 June - Various Didsbury venues
This local arts festival brings a whole array of culture, fun
and entertainment to Didsbury every year and this year’s
programme includes a promenade production of ‘The
Turn of the Screw’ at The Parsonage, a contemporary
circus performance from circus artist Lia Baron, an
afternoon of puppet theatre for all the family in Parsonage
Gardens, and dozens more performances throughout
the nine-day programme. Visit didsburyartsfestival.com
for more information and tickets.
Chorlton Coffee Festival
Fri 28 to Sun 30 June - Various Chorlton venues
A three-day festival dedicated to showcasing Chorlton’s
cafe culture with a programme of events such as
Organic Coffee Tastings and a film festival.
Manchester International Festival
Thurs 4 to Sun 21 July - Various venues
MIF has commissioned leading artists from the UK and
around the world to create more than twenty world
premieres and special events for their 2013 festival.
Highlights include Massive Attack v Adam Curtis in the
Mayfield Depot (which promises to redefine the concept
of a gig), Goldfrapp performing with the RNCM String
Orchestra, and Kenneth Brannagh in Macbeth. Other
influential artists taking part include Neneh Cherry,
Delphic and The xx. Many shows sold out as soon as
they went on sale but there are still tickets available for
lots of events – visit mif.co.uk for more details, dates
and times.
RhS Flower Show
Thurs 25 July to Sunday 28 July - Tatton Park
This wonderful garden festival has lots of fresh ideas
for visitors who enjoy growing their own fruit and
veg. See them at the Great British Allotment area, or
if ornamental plants are more your thing, head to the
Floral Marquee to find a huge choice from some of the
UK’s top nurseries. Visit rhs.org.uk to book tickets.
Manchester Jazz Festival
Fri 26 July to Sun 4 August - Various
The 18th Manchester Jazz Festival is a celebration of
jazz that takes place over ten days. This year it includes
an exciting new commission ‘The Felonious Monks’,
which fuses early renaissance music and contemporary
jazz using a mixture of modern and replica 16thcentury
instruments. Venues include The Bridgewater
Hall, RNCM, and Matt & Phreds, with the festival
centred around a pavilion tepee in Albert Square. Visit
manchesterjazz.com for the full programme and tickets.
Dance
Strictly Confidential
Mon 8 to Sat 13 July - The Lowry
Starring Lisa Riley, Artem Chigvintsev, Natalie
Lowe and Ian Waite, this is a brand-new show
specially created by Craig Revel-Horwood to
enable fans to get up close and personal with
some of the stars of the BBC’s highly successful
show, Strictly Come Dancing. We are promised
personal stories, great music and of course some
fabulous dances.