Comments include:
Eileen: “belfastcarnival dot com”
Katie: “It’s fine. It’s also rather mighty craic”
David: ” It will be noisy”
The Lord Mayor, Cllr Naomi Long:
“Over the past few years, the Belfast City Carnival has changed and evolved, and has become a cornerstone of our cultural calendar. At a time when central government is cutting back on its support for such events, Belfast City Council remains totally committed to supporting cultural activity in all four corners of the city. Last year, we invested £1.6 million in culture and arts groups, from grassroots level up, not counting the substantial investment we are making, on an ongoing basis, in the continued development of the city’s cultural infrastructure.”
“Events such as the Belfast City Carnival are not only good for the people of the city, they are vital in helping our tourism industry in its continued growth, as they provide attractions which visitors want to see. This year’s carnival will be bigger and better than ever before, and I urge everyone to come out and enjoy the thrill and spectacle of what promises to be a wonderful day for all the family.”
David Boyd, Beat’s Director:
“This year, as 2009 is International Year of Astronomy, we have taken the space theme to ‘Look Up’ and explore the stars. We are looking to the future too, as we will continue the theme into next year, looking more at the local space that we all share and the variety of life and energy found here.”
“Carnival provides a fun, interactive way for communities to learn about other worlds, people and places, while channeling their creativity to entertain others. The appeal of the summer carnival has grown year upon year and now in partnership with a range of other organisations we’ve sought to provide a full afternoon of entertainment that stimulates the senses.”
Deci, The Jane Bradfords:
“Its great that the Beat are bringing musicians in. You wouldn’t normally associate bands like us with carnival. Its good for the carnival to broaden out and its good to raise awareness about carnival within the music scene in Belfast”
“The work timescale is mad but it’s a great challenge – 2 weeks to come up with a 45 minute set with people we’ve never played with before – and it’s great craic!”
Shauna, SilouhettE:
“I’d never heard of Carnival, so its great to find out about it. It’s opened our eyes to what’s going on. This project has allowed some of us to develop our skills as musicians and it’s been a great opportunity to watch others work.”
Suzy, Katie and the Carnival:
“I’m delighted to be involved with the Carnival. It’s tough going, but we’re feeling up to the challenge. I’m very excited about the performance. It’s my first time working on a Beat Initiative event and I’m loving it, meeting new people, getting together with other musicians and enjoying a great atmosphere! Wonderful.”
Cara, Cara Cowan:
“Playing music with the Carnival Supergroup is an amazing opportunity. I’m so happy to be in a team with such amazing musicians. It’s wonderful to get the chance to play outside City Hall, to a wide audience filled with lots of different people who may not have heard of us before. I don’t really know much about carnival so I can’t wait for the day, to see the parade and be involved! I really hope to be involved with the Beat Initiative again – it’s been great fun and it supports us as musicians. It’s also a great excuse to dress up!”
