EXCITEMENT is running high as the hotly-anticipated Frome Festival kicks off this Friday.
And with over 200 events spread over ten days, this is the biggest Frome Festival yet offering an impressive range of entertainment including top names in music and comedy, classical concerts and recitals, children’s activities, jazz, pop and folk music, opera, poetry, exhibitions, drama productions, walks, talks and workshops.
Festival director Martin Dimery anticipates another successful year saying, “Ticket sales are going really well and we’re excited for the festival to be getting under way.
“We have a wider range of events on offer than ever before; venues such as the Silk Mill and Cooper Hall have really increased the possibilities for the festival.
“Once again we are delighted to present a programme packed with events to appeal across all age ranges and a multitude of tastes.
“We’ve got one of the fastest rising stars on the TV and comedy circuit, Romesh Ranganathan – who was booked as a support act last year. And amongst our other high profile performances is this year’s opera, the enormously popular “Cosi fan Tutti” by Mozart. Both have sold out which is lovely to see. The Hoosiers and Mr Scruff are selling well, too, and should be great nights.
“It is a pleasure to be presenting other major acts like Glenn Tilbrook and the legendary Sugar Hill Gang. And we’ve got three of the British theatre’s most respected actors appearing – Sara Kestelman, Michael Pennington and Jeremy Burnham.
“The big names are taking the limelight but there are a massive number of smaller events taking place across the town. Frome will be open to discovery with talks and tours of art and craft studios, gardens, and some of the town’s most interesting buildings.
“The festival team is looking forward to welcoming everybody to Frome and putting on a great show. If the weather holds out that would be tremendous!”
There are 37 free events plus a further nine only asking for donations – almost a quarter of the programme.
The two biggest free events are the Annual Food Feast on Saturday 4th July and the Children’s Festival on Sunday 12th July.
The Food Feast attracts thousands to the Market Yard car park offering food and drinks from around the world together with live music.
Local radio station FromeFM will be running their Festival Breakfast Show throughout the festival, from 8am until 10.30am on 96.6FM or www.frome.fm.
See our handy full-festival programme on pages 13 to 20 with more Festival news on page 24.
For more information about the festival go to www.fromefestival.co.uk or call 01373 453889.
