DINOSAURS and astronauts will rub shoulders in Northwich town centre this weekend, in what is hoped will be the first of many arts and culture festivals.
Featuring more than 100 performers and everything from floating astronauts to walking dinosaurs, NOW Northwich runs in Witton Street and Barons Quay from 1pm on Saturday, October 6.
See a full event schedule and map at the bottom of this article.
Funded by Cheshire West and Chester Council, Arts England and organisations including Northwich BID and Marketing Cheshire, the free family festival has been produced by a range of artists and creative groups.
As well as well-known groups such as Cheshire Dance taking part, the headline performance Saurus by Netherlands-based ‘Close Act’ will bring dinosaurs to life in an evening procession from the library to Barons Quay.
Festival organiser Graham Lister said: “There is something about scale here in terms of the ambition. Close Act coming over from the Netherlands – it’ll be their first time in the area.
“The plan we all want to aspire to is for this to become an event that happens every year and is part of the national network of festivals of this type – the Without Walls consortium.
“I led the Storyhouse project in Chester and one of the things we always said was that it’s not job done just because that money has been spent on that.
“We pitched this idea of something for Northwich, which was absolutely in response to the council saying that as part of the core values everyone should have access to high arts culture.”
Saurus features giant prehistoric beasts roaming among the crowds, interacting with audiences and using fire, light and music to create an unforgettable experience.
Community performances will take place alongside nationally-recognised UK artists, such as Highly Sprung – renowned for ‘Ubran Astronaut’ where an astronaut is suspended 20ft in the air as he goes in search of solutions to an environmental disaster.
Cllr Louise Gittins, CWAC cabinet member for communities and wellbeing, said: “Everyone should have access to high quality arts culture and we are delighted this festival is taking place in Northwich. We’ve been told to expect the unexpected.”
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