2009 News and Information
New Arts Festival Warms Up Winter in Richmond
02 February 2009The City of Richmond is offering up a cure of the seasonal blues with the first annual Richmond Winter Festival of the Arts running from February 1 to March 15, 2009 at a multitude of venues across the community.
From classical music to tongue-in-cheek mystery theatre, from exhibitions by acclaimed visual artists to engaging children in interactive arts, the Winter Festival of the Arts offers something for everyone.
“Richmond is committed to becoming an important centre for arts and entertainment,” says Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “The City has created a number of strategies to help spur the development of our arts community. This will provide new opportunities for artists and arts groups, make our community a more vibrant and exciting place to live and generate economic spin-offs that improve everyone’s quality of life. I encourage everyone to get out and sample, enjoy and celebrate the rich diversity of Richmond’s arts and entertainment scene during the new Winter Festival of the Arts.”
The first annual Richmond Winter Festival of the Arts is multidisciplinary, multicultural and in a multitude of venues. Music, theatre, dance, magic, visual arts, film and comedy are all among the dozens of events included in this year’s inaugural festival.
A centrepiece of this year’s calendar is the first annual Children’s Arts Festival. This unique festival offers elementary school kids the opportunity to be hands-on with the Vancouver Theatre Sports League and the Tickle Trunk Players, try Taiko and African drumming, get on stage with Gateway Academy actors, learn to spin records with local DJ’s, and more. This event is already nearly sold out.
The third annual Winterfest Weekend is another highlight of the festival. This year, Winterfest Weekend moves to the Richmond Olympic Oval and will be held February 14 and 15 featuring 16 hours of live entertainment, including music, magic, dance, ice carving, interactive sports, arts activities and much more.
The hilarious comedy mystery The Art of Murder at the Gateway Theatre; performances by internationally celebrated classical pianist Joanna Trzeciak, Four Seasons Of Japan dance recital, New Asian Film series, and Art About Finn Slough exhibition are just a sampling of other events on the Festival Calendar. From traditional to cutting-edge, serious to over-the-top, the Richmond Winter Festival of the Arts has it all. Visit www.richmondwinterfestival.ca for a complete listing of events.
