The Lyric Lounge: Live Literature & Poetry Festival is praised
Posted on 3rd August 2009
Organisers of The Lyric Lounge have been delighted with the public response. Around 1500 people attended the festival, which featured workshops, performances, debate, open mic opportunities and exhibitions. The festival focused on poetry, spoken word, rap and monologue, with strong elements of visual art and music.
The Lyric Lounge also included a wide-reaching youth programme, encouraging young people to read, write and perform. This allowed around 50 local young people to work with established artists and perform their own work as part of two of the evening shows – The Edge and ILUVLYRICS. The Lyric Lounge also reached out to users of mental health and learning disability services with a range of projects and performances.
Highlights of the festival included:
-Special Olympics Cabaret – an event incorporating performances in poetry, comedy and music from local disability and mental health groups.
-Showcase Live – a performance by young men of B.M.E origin, with experience of mental health issues, including elements of spoken word, poetry and hip hop.
-A workshop and mentoring programme, allowing writers to develop their poetry with Dreadlockalien, Lucy English, Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze, Lydia Towsey, Kevin Fegan and John Hegley.
-ILUVLYRICS – an urban-style open mic competition compered by 1Xtra’s Ras Kwame and featuring Street Rhymers.
-Write Way Up – a specially commissioned show with performances from 5 poets, taking inspiration from heritage objects.
-Free Lyrical Lunchtimes, with performances from artists including Mombowie Starchild, Mark Goodwin and Mellow Baku.
-An incredible finale featuring the one and only John Hegley – comic poet and guitar strumming genius.
Rickin Bilimoria, of 2Funky Arts, who managed and produced The Lyric Lounge said: “This festival has developed, engaged and entertained new audiences. The future looks bright and we have a massive amount of faith in the sustainability of the programme.”
Lydia Towsey, Artistic Director of The Lyric Lounge commented: “This has been the first theatre based festival of poetry and live literature of it’s kind, on this scale, in the region – ever. It’s been more incredible, inspiring and amazing than we could have ever predicted.”
Internationally acclaimed poet and Lyric Lounge patron Jean ‘Binta’ Breeze has called the festival “a sign of a civilized community.” Meanwhile, festival goer Bobba Cass described the Lounge in the following way: “The energy itself is magical, with different roots coming together.”
The Lyric Lounge is part of Renaissance East Midlands’ contribution to the region-wide Igniting Ambition programme and is undertaken in partnership with Arts Council England East Midlands. For more information, please go to www.lyriclounge.co.uk or contact 2Funky Arts on 0116 222 0639/ info@2funkyarts.co.uk.
