As part of Manchester’s International Festival online events, residents are encouraged to join in with a mass sing-a-long on their doorstep.
Taking place on 28th May, the organisers of the Manchester International Festival are inviting the public to join with a sing-a-long. The event will take place at 7.30pm on Thursday 28th, half an hour before the weekly Clap For Carers tribute.
The Manchester Evening News reported the soundtrack for the sing-a-long would be put together by musical director Dan McDwyer. Plus, there will be some famous faces among the singers taking part.
The event organisers will be streaming the event on the Manchester International Festival YouTube channel, and the words can be printed beforehand. There is also a call-out for streets that want to be filmed during the event.
Aptly named ‘Together In One Voice,’ it is hoped that the sing-a-long will capture the spirit of the city and help bring people together. Online rehearsals are due to start this Friday.
The event is being backed by all ten councils in the Greater Manchester area and is supported by the Co-Op. Leader of Manchester City Council said, “It will be some time before we can hold mass events in our centres again” Therefore, they are holding Together In One Voice to “make up for it”. It has been designed to reach out to the furthest areas of the Greater Manchester community and deliver an event direct to their doorstep.
MIF Live
The Manchester International Festival is going online this year and has a host of events lined up. Big names taking part include Riz Ahmed and FKA Twigs alongside artists and performers throughout the festival. Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the festival, John McGrath, said: “We’re looking forward to seeing the work the selected artists produce and we hope the results will provide inspiration and joy to a wide range of people.”
Events behind closed doors
The new government roadmap suggests that cultural events could take place behind closed doors. In the second phase of trying to get the country back on track, it has indicated that it may allow sports and cultural events to take place next month.
The Prime Minister said it would offer ‘a much-needed boost of national morale.’
Speaking with Manchester Evening News, the chief executive of The Lowry Theatre and Arts Centre in Salford, Julia Fawcett said it would be challenging to monetise events behind closed doors. She added that many organisations are putting out work for free and explained the economic model would be difficult to structure in regards to customer expectation of payment for services.
At the moment, venues such as museums, theatres, and galleries fall into the hospitality and leisure bracket and haven’t been given the green light to open. At best, the earliest date would be 4th July, although this will only happen if we do not see a resurgence in the virus.
When these venues do open again, there is concern over social distancing as they are designed to be places where people gather to enjoy art, culture, and history.
