LGBT Arts Festival Weekend

Source: The List (Issue 625)
Date: 19 March 2009
Written by: Allan Radcliffe

(0)

LGBT Centre for Health and Wellbeing, Edinburgh, Fri 20–Sun 22 Mar

CREATIVE FESTIVAL

Scotland’s capital can lay proud boast to being the only city in the UK to have its own dedicated health and wellbeing centre for LGBT folks, which runs activities, courses, workshops and events throughout the year. Now the centre has launched its first ever arts festival, which aims to celebrate the creativity of the LGBT community in Edinburgh and its surrounding areas.

Over the past few months the centre has been offering a series of arts workshops and courses, including a ‘Make a Film’ weekend course detailing how to make a five-minute documentary from start to finish; a ‘Write a Magazine’ weekend, run by such acclaimed facilitators as novelist Jessica Gregson and cartoonist Kate Charlesworth; and a monologue-writing workshop run by Cheryl Martin, director-in-residence at the Traverse theatre.

Now the fruits of these creative labours can be enjoyed as part of the climactic Arts Festival Weekend, which takes place at the centre at the end of March. The weekend festival, which is open to all LGBT people, their friends and supporters, includes ‘Play in a Day’, ‘Band in a Day’ workshops for aspiring thesps and musos, and features a poetry open mic night and a performance finale on the Sunday.

Lauren Fox, festival co-ordinator, says: ‘We’ve been so well supported by contributions from some wonderful artists, writers and dramatists, without which the events would not have been possible – their commitment is testament to the value of the festival for all involved. I hope the Festival Weekend, including the exhibition and performance evenings, will attract plenty of people to come and see what’s been going on, and support all of those who have created works so far.’

For further details see www.lgbthealth.org.uk

More: Days out, LGBT, Music, Theatre, Visual art, Life & style, Previews (Days out), Previews (Visual art), Previews (Theatre), Previews (Music), Exhibition (Visual art), Band in a Day, Creative Festival, LGBT Centre for Health and Wellbeing, Play in a Day