Arts Festival seen as financial, popular success

Press, 24 March 1980, Page 1

Arts Festival seen as financial, popular success

Indications’ are that the 1980 Christchurch Arts Festival, which ended on Saturday evening, was a success — financially as well as in .terms of popularity. It would: be at least a month before the festival accounts were finished, said the chairman of the committee; (Mr C. F. Whitty). But opinion was that the festival had been successful.

A $15,500 deficit left from the 1978 festival had caused doubts whether the festival would be held this year. A variety concert and raffle were held to reduce the debt from the festival, which cost $143,636. When the committee decided to hold a festival this year it guarded carefully against leaving a deficit, said Mr Whitty. “If there was a deficit this year it would be nothing like the size: of the last one,” he said.

The committee had cut down on staff and had used workers under the; Labour Department’s Temporary Employment Programme to keep costs down.

The manager of the Town Hall (Mr B. P. Connell) said the festival ran very smoothly. Bookings were up from the 1978 attendance figures, he said. There had been an average attend-

ance of about 60 per; cent, while the committee had budgeted on a 50 per cent attendance. .

The bookings were more evenly, spread because there was more variety and a wider appeal in the performances this year, Mr Connell said.

The most disappointing response was at the National Youth Jazz Orchestra of Britain, he said. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra concerts were not as popular as expected. The most successful shows were “The Nutcracker,” presented by the Southern Ballet Company with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, and “Badjelly the Witch,” by the Canterbury Children’s Theatre.

The festival’s opening concert “Jonathan Livingston Seagull,” performed by Christchurch musicians and directed by

Mr Connell, was also very successful..

Mr Connell said there had been requests to stage “Jonathan” in Auckland. He hoped the concert’s success would encourage the Town Hall Board to put on more shows of its kind.

The “fringe” activities, which included “Fantasticon” for children, daily activities in Cathedral Square, and events at the Town Hall, were also well attended.

The “Fringe Binge” events at the Town Hall had gone so well that they caused some problems of overcrowding, said Mr Connell. However he hoped the fringe events could be continued at the Town Hall throughout the year.

Mr Whitty said he expected there would be another Christchurch Arts Festival in another two years.