Issued by City of York Council
Following the success of York’s first festival to celebrate street performance last year, a bigger, better Buskival event is launched today by City of York Council.
Brands-for-less homeware retailer HomeSense, located on Foss Islands Road, is again sponsoring the free event, which will take place on Saturday 25 May from 11am to 7pm and Sunday 26 May from 12noon to 5pm in the city centre.
Councillor Sonja Crisp, City of York Council’s Cabinet Member for Leisure, Culture and Tourism said: “Over 50 different street performers will be taking part and will include a wide range of local, national and international buskers. They will be performing at more than 12 different busking pitches around the city centre to amaze residents and visitors alike.
“It’s a great performance opportunity and a way of celebrating the skills and talents of the street performers who help enliven our vibrant city centre, and it’s terrific entertainment to draw even more people into town.”
This year the event has been extended into the evening on Saturday so that people can enjoy the festival for longer, as well as allowing more buskers to take part in the event. There will also be a networking opportunity for the buskers themselves, so that they can share their thoughts and experiences with other entertainers.
New for 2013 will be a number of free skills workshops, such as juggling sessions, which will be available for children and families to enjoy.
As part of the two-day festival there will be a competition for members of the public to choose their favourite busker. The winning artist each day will win £150 and other prizes (which could include a recording session) will be confirmed nearer the time.
“We are very excited to be part of Buskival again this year to celebrate the unique, diverse and thoroughly entertaining musical talent in our local community,” said HomeSense store manager Richard Andrews.
Neill Ryan, a winning busker from last year’s festival said: “During Buskival the atmosphere in York is amazing. The streets come alive with a rich variety of acts – it’s a great thing to be a part of.”
To enter the competition buskers must have a current and valid busking badge for York.
For more information about Buskival visit the York Festivals page, the Facebook page or follow @York_Festivals on Twitter.
For more information on busking in York contact Debbie Bell, City of York Council: [email protected] or call 01904 552270.
This content has not been created by YorkMix but by one of our trusted news sources. YorkMix is not responsible for the accuracy of the text.