Coastal Currents once again proved an overwhelming success. John Knowles, festival manager, picked a few moments for us from this year's festival; highlights from a compact and exhilarating collection of arts events:
"Standing in Queens Square ringing bells and banging pots and pans, was perhaps the most surreal moment of this year's festival, but what a beautiful moment. Those who came to see and join in with Allegro Barbaro will never forget it and I still have a smile on my face from the finale of balloons; farting off into the night sky.
The Open Studios have excelled this year and thanks to our sponsors, the Roost Group, have been easier to find than in previous years. Every one was worth finding, little gems in back alleys and beach huts, if you've never done the Open Studios you truly are missing one of the most personal arts experiences on offer. Claremont Studios once again broke the mould and proved to be the home of conceptual thinking and radical innovation - Guys, I loved it. Street arts as usual played their part in Rye and Hastings and this year were complemented by the presence of Glyndebourne Opera. The Electric Palace's season of films by women directors, including local NESTA artists Nicola Bruce and Kate Adams, showed the kind of high quality that pervades this festival and the reason why it is rightly seen as a festival that punches above its weight.
It's impossible to pick a singular moment in this month-long love affair with art, it's like a great meal, everything adds to the whole, the sum of the parts adds to a sumptuous splendour. So here's to the artists, the puppeteers, the singers and film-makers, Jamboree arts perched on the edge of Hastings Castle and to all of the Council staff who made this possible and our partners in Rother and East Sussex County Council. Thanks."
If you wish to join in next year's independent festival, call John Knowles on 01424 717464 or email jknowles@hastings.gov.uk
Back to top of page...
< Safety Questionnaire | What's On >
This page last updated: 29/09/2005