Published: Sunday, 8th June, 2008 12:00
Free for all
By Robert Frische
Comments (0)
Print Article
This year's Big Day Out promises to be bigger than ever. Rob Frische takes a look at what's on offer.
A FREE festival which has world premiere performances and aims to promote environmental awareness is coming to Bracknell.
Big Day Out will be bigger than ever before with over 50 bands and a fringe festival over three days from Friday, July 11, to Sunday, July 13, at South Hill Park.
The community event is costing Bracknell Forest arts council nearly £100,000, yet festival-goers will not have to pay a penny - though organisers are asking for £2 donations.
South Hill Park music coordinator William Trevelyan said: “We do not have David Bowie or Snow Patrol but we do have musical stars of the future.
“My favourite of them is Mali band - Bassekou Kouvate and Ngoni Ba - who have performed on the Jools Holland show, and who Bono and Damon Albarn both rate very highly.
“This festival will have unexpected and surprising performances with something for everyone, while encouraging people to look after their environment.”
The ‘green theme’ will be played out in two dynamic pieces of performance art, the exact details of which are shrouded in secrecy.
World premiere Summoning the Beast of Bracknell will be an explosive finish to Big Day Out with a strong mythical edge. The artwork was produced by children from neighbouring schools out of recycled materials.
And on Sunday, July 13, at 3pm there will be a ‘meltdown’ in Bracknell town centre to symbolic the melting of the polar cap, but as it is a world premiere, not even the organisers know how this will be performed.
At Big day Out there will bands from all over the world such as Demark’s Efterklang, who play on Friday at the Wilde Theatre, as well as Bracknell musicians Nathan Ball and Anna Crowley.
The headliners are ‘festival’ band the Destroyers who will play with a group of Indian drummers - The Dhol Blasters in just one of the many multi-cultural collaborations taking place.
For more information on the Big Day Out and fringe events, call the box office on 01344 484123 or visit www.myspace.com/bigdayoutuk.
Further Details
