O/T Freedom Festival

http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Free...day-Saturday/story-22878407-detail/story.html

Anyone going
Friday

Start your Freedom journey by taking in the Long Walk to Freedom Light Trail, from dusk to 11pm. The procession will wind its way through the Old Town and includes work by nine local artists, featuring light, colour and sound in tribute to Nelson Mandela, the inspiration behind this year’s festival.

On the High Street, catch an explosive performance of Halo by FlameOz with circus artists using bright LED glowing hoops and clubs. As the night falls, the spectacular Spark! illuminated drummers will perform on the Yellow Bus Stage from 9.30pm.

Elsewhere, catch the best of emerging and local music talent from 7pm on the Bridge Stage in Wellington Street, including Endoflevelbaddie at 10.15pm.

In the Freedom Festival Big Top there will be comedy theatre with The Ballad of the Burning Star at 7pm, and stand-ups Sam Harland and Alfie Moore from 9.30pm. These are ticket-only events, but there is a box office near the Big Top.

Saturday

A day packed with events for all the family and all tastes.

In Queens Gardens, the Freedom to Tell Tales Tent will feature back-to-back plays for children of all ages, including The Dragon Who Hates Poetry at 12pm and Spark the Goblin Wizard at 2pm. Elsewhere in the park, look out for the NoFit State Circus between 12pm-2pm, a contemporary circus combining music and dance with traditional circus skills. French performers Acrojou will also be trundling around the gardens in their rolling theatre giving workshops from 2.15pm to 3.45pm. The gardens will also be hosting BMX skills demonstrations.

Outside Princes Quay, look out for the flying trolley dancers of C-12 Dance Theatre from 2pm-2.20pm and 3.30pm-3.50pm. Using five supermarket trolleys, the dancers combine humour and highly physical dance in a spectacular street show.

For something a little less energetic there are a series of free debates and discussions at the Wise Building in the High Street, including Radio 1 DJ Andy Kershaw with ‘A Life in Music’ at 12pm, ‘Slave routes to Trade Routes’ at 1pm, ‘Cargoes and Migrants’ at 1.45pm and circus performer Ali Williams at 2.30pm.


Humber Street will be a hive of activity with scores of acts, entertainment and performances. It all starts from around noon with a range of family events, including A Flower for Mandela at Studio 11 and Espressivo, an interactive family drawing experience. There’s also a Comedy Club 4 Kids in the Festival Big Top at 1.30pm and mini-theatre The Incredible Book Eating Boy from 4.30pm in Humber Street.

Also, catch the stunning agility of The Urban Playground at Hull Marina, from 3.05pm, with urban dance, parkour and physical theatre.

The music stages around Humber Street (Bridge, Dance, Yellow Bus and Fruit Trade) kick off from 11am and feature bands to suit all musical tastes throughout the day, ranging from The Northern Academy of Performing Arts at 3pm on the Dance Stage, to Hull’s former Fine Young Cannibal Roland Gift at 7.30pm on the Yellow Bus, and rising star Kate Tempest at 10pm on the Bridge Stage.

At 9pm, across at nearby Humber Quays, expect a highlight of the festival in Spellbound, an epic production telling the ancient Ramayana, a story of jealousy, betrayal and daring. Told through shadow-play and traditional Indian dance, along with drummers and lanterns, the performance will snake its way from the Fruit Market to the Humber Quays for a spectacular finale.

Sunday

Hull singer Emily Moulton is among the acts kick-starting the final day of the festival from 11am. The former Winifred Holtby School pupil, whose song ‘No Way Out’ was featured on BBC Introducing, is on the Bridge Stage in Wellington Street.

Those looking for a few yarns to enliven their morning can visit the Freedom To Tell Tales Tent in Queens Gardens, where, from noon onwards, you can listen to stories including When Trolls Try To Eat Your Goldfish at noon.



By then, events on the dance stage in Wellington Street will be under way. From 1.30pm you can watch the East Riding Youth Dance Company, followed by acts including Humba Rumba Salsa from 2.30pm.

For those wanting to get involved in activities, Sunday’s events also include a series of workshops. From 1pm-4pm, you can try your hand at making earrings in the Oresome Gallery, Humber Street, or try having a go at parkour with the group Urban Playground from 3.05pm at Hull Marina.

By then another weekend highlight, A World of Colour parade, which runs from 3pm-4pm, will be making its way through the Old Town to Hull Marina. This colourful procession will conclude with a paint fight, similar to the Hindu Festival of Colours in India.

At 4pm, open mic events will have started at Fruit in Humber Street, with Naturally 7 – a New York a cappella group – closing proceedings on the Yellow Bus Stage from 5pm.

Those wanting to listen to bands later into the evening, as this year’s festival draws towards its close, can do so at Fruit Trade, in Humber Street, from 7pm onwards.

 

Come back, Stewey - you're needed.

 

**** that Stan the boards been miles better without that odious little wretch

 

V dot true, Chazzman.

 

I'm going tonight yes.

It's getting busy up there already. Gonna smash in some fodder and see what's going on.

Couple o' beers 'un all.

 

yes im off, dunno why, load of **** but I have to

 

naw CBA

 

just got home and under the midst of the tv, i heard a horrific rattling explosion, shat meself, thought me place was about to fall down, turns out it's the fireworks at freedom

 

you've come home before ten!!!FFS I hope theres a woman with you.

Get back out there and get a life instead of sat lonely and unhappy on here posting ****e through the night.

 

well yes, it's why i had to go, shes going clubbing while i stay in cause i cba, that makes me sound really bad

 

I personally don't think it was as good as previous years.

Seemed quieter...though that's at odds with the attendance figures presented.

 

That's a c##ts trick. Hope it's on CCTV and the persons responsible receive their just desserts!

 

Re the smashed piano, I did think it was a tad trusting to place them all over the city centre, at all hours, unattended. But, I hoped that they'd be embraced in the spirit they were intended, for people to have fun with.

Seemed depressingly predictable to find one has been smashed.

We will be a good city of culture, but we don't half have more than our fair share of uncultured yobs here in Hull. Shame someone had to stoop to that, but also sadly expected.

 

I went Friday evening and came away rather disappointed, it is the first time I have been having been out of the area, and maybe my expectations was too high.

 

We were there yesterday for a while, caught a bit of Naturally 7 on the Yellow Bus Stage but had to leave when it became apparent they were not very good (well, perhaps they were, but hip-hop-lite is not my thing and when they started murdering the Isley Brothers and getting the crowd to wave their arms it was our cue to leave).

Hillbilly Troupe smashed it as always on the Bridge Stage and then led a fabulous rowdy old school folk session in the Minerva with standing room only.

Caught a bit of Attila and one or two other bits.

On the whole it was a grand atmosphere and a good knees up. Nice one.

 

Good this year but a regression on last year.

 

Last year had The 1975. This year didn't.

That cannot be a regression.

 

Now, I seem to remember a time when people struggled to understand the lyrics to some of Slipknot's songs.

One of The 1975's songs came on the other day and it was something like "Heycallinaslickcosnyaowyouwill,ohyoubuyafrunwill Chocolate."

It sounds like a cross between Jar Jar Binks and Adam Sandler having a stroke.