Let the Festival of Chichester begin! - video Dailymotion

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31/05/2024

The festival opens on Saturday, June 15.

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00:00 Good afternoon, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Sussex Newspaper and also Chairman

00:08 of the Festival of Chichester. Here's the brochure and opposite me is Kate Moss, who

00:13 is the President of the Festival of Chichester. Now the Festival of Chichester seems to come

00:17 round with increasing rapidity, but I always find it incredibly reassuring, Kate, that

00:23 every year you are absolutely, completely at the heart of our festival. And that is

00:29 just so encouraging and your support is so priceless and so valuable to us. Why do you

00:35 give that support? Why does the Festival of Chichester really matter to you? And we really

00:40 get the impression it does matter to you.

00:42 Well, thank you, Phil, that's so kind. And yes, you're right, I was there at the very,

00:46 very, very first meeting back in 2012 talking about the idea. I did chair it, of the Festival

00:52 of Chichester. Well, people know, you know, I'm a chai girl born and bred. I love everything

00:57 about Chichester. I love the landscape. I love the history. I love the atmosphere. I

01:03 love the fact that it's a tiny little town, really, called a city because of the cathedral

01:08 that punches way above its weight. But I think the thing about Chichester that is so exceptional

01:14 is that the arts, in its broadest sense, are everywhere and they are for everyone. They

01:20 are for every child, for every adult, whatever age, whatever their interests. And it goes

01:25 across the board, you know, all the way from sculpture and craft and painting and dance

01:32 to writing and music and everything else. And, you know, history and ghost stories and

01:37 storytelling, all of these different kinds of things. And it's at the local level, the

01:42 grassroots level, but also it's a town and a city, of course, with an international theatre,

01:48 an international art gallery, award-winning museum, extraordinary Fishbowl Roman Palace,

01:55 the Canal, all sorts of places. And I think the thing is that when you grow up somewhere

02:00 like this, the idea that the arts, music, all of it is for everybody is fundamental.

02:07 And I had all of that growing up. You know, I did concerts in the cathedral. I did things

02:11 on the Festival Theatre stage, in the assembly rooms, in the library. And I want to support

02:16 that and keep making sure that all of the people who live here, whatever age they are,

02:22 wherever they've come from, they also have the access to the best quality arts and can

02:27 join in. You know, the Festival of Kirchester is a festival for everyone, for the community,

02:33 as well as the broader arts community. And that makes it very special.

02:36 You summed it up beautifully. And the point is, there's an awful lot of work throughout

02:40 the year, and it gets closer and the work gets more intense. But the fact is, as soon

02:44 as we launch it on the Cathedral Green, with you saying similar, why it matters, it just

02:50 makes it all seem worth it, doesn't it?

02:53 Yes. And I think we know, particularly, you know, we're living in very challenging times,

02:58 and we've obviously been through the very challenging times of lockdown and Covid over

03:03 the past few years. And what we know, though, unequivocally, is that firstly, the arts,

03:08 you know, in the UK are worth £1.4 billion to the economy. But secondly, we know that

03:14 it was watching films, and reading the same books, and painting, and singing in choirs

03:21 over Zoom, and sculpture, and all of these other things, whatever the particular interest

03:27 you have. These were the things that enrich our lives and kept us all going through those

03:31 very separated, divided times. And so we need to keep saying that the arts are for everyone,

03:38 every single person in Chichester, wherever they've come from, whoever they are, should

03:42 have access to join in and to know that they are welcome. And the Festival of Chichester

03:47 is that, it's a bringing together of all the best in Chichester. And if you like, it's

03:53 a throwing the doors open wide and saying, come on in, nobody bites, you'll have great

03:58 fun once you join in.

04:00 Fantastic, beautifully said. Thank you so much, Kate. Thank you for all your support,

04:04 right from the moment of inception for the Festival, and right through to the present

04:08 day as our President. Thank you very much indeed.

04:12 - Thank you, Phil.

04:12 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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