Watch: Birmingham 2022 Festival programme launch

Birmingham 2022 is just around the corner, and alongside the Commonwealth Games, a huge festival is taking place to showcase the city and its place in the Commonwealth.

The official programme was revealed after much anticipation at Birmingham’s Symphony Hall on Monday (28 February).

What’s taking place during the Birmingham Festival?

Between March and September Birmingham and the West Midlands will be alight with a series of events showcasing the artistry in the region to the rest of the world.

It sets out to be the biggest celebration of creativity ever held in the West Midlands, and is one of the largest Commonwealth Games cultural programmes seen so far.

There is a feeling of electricity in the air across the region over recent years - modernised infrastructure, new daring architecture, Peaky Blinders, and of course the games themselves have all given rise to a new sense of belonging and identity in the city - something those bringing us the festival believe is worth sharing.

‘There really is something for everybody’

Raidene Carter, Executive Producer for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games said: “So I think from the audience’s perspective today what we really want them to do is take the message of what the festival is about, get their phones out, start using the hashtag, visit the website, so they can see what the festival is.

“I think in terms of the response to the work so far in terms of the projects we’ve got up and running, and the artists we’re making the work with, it’s been brilliant.

“We’ve always said that people just don’t know how creative this place is. And we didn’t have to ask too hard for brilliant ideas to come to us. And that’s effectively what’s now sitting in the festival.

“So there’s a lot of projects - over 200 projects made by nearly 1000 artists with about 10,000 participants taking part so that gives you an idea of the scale of the work. There really is something for everybody - families, young people, older people, people who love the arts, people who don’t go to the arts normally, hopefully something for everybody.

“So when mega events like Commonwealth Games come into town, the global spotlight is on us. And we really wanted to make sure that people saw the creativity that’s in this city in particular, because it’s all there to be seen.

“It just doesn’t always get its moment in the spotlight. So that’s what we’re here to do. We think the legacy of that could be immense. So audiences now need to play a part in that, you know, if audience’s come out, the energy of the whole summer will really build I think, and then it will catapult that legacy into future.”

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