Volunteering at The Vaults

The Vaults has free wi-fi which makes me an even bigger fan of this place.

So far a dozen people have been buried alive at The Divine Edgar.  It’s booked up until 6pm and, although there’s meant to be a break between now (2ish) and 3pm there’s apparently a group of 8 on the way.  I’m really glad this one’s proving to be so popular.  The reactions of the people coming out have been great to see.

I’ve signed up to be buried at 11.45 tonight so I’ll be emerging from the grave at midnight.

Yeah, it sounded like a good idea at the time, I’m not sure whether I’ll be thinking that later…

I’m being relieved from my post at 3pm and am going to go off to explore what else is going on.  I know B1 Labyrinths is completely booked up but there’ll be other things to check out, The Fete Encounter for one.

My Fierce bank holiday

I’m sat typing this in the bar of the Hippodrome (who seem to have wi-fi but I can’t get on). I’m here a bit early for Whisper, which (launch party excepted) will be my first event of the Fierce Festival and was one of the most popular acts in the My Fierce Festival voting process. I’m not entirely sure what it’ll be like – I’m expecting audio/visual oddness but I’m pretty sure it’ll be interesting.

On Saturday it looks like I’ll be a bit more than the casual spectator I was planning to be. Due to a volunteer malfunction I’ll be up with the larks (well, 9.30am but it is a Saturday) helping to get the Fete Encounter ready in Brindley Place and then I’ll be over at The Vaults for The Divine Edgar, welcoming people in until about 3ish.

I’m planning to drop into as much of the free stuff as on Saturday, see It Sank With The Trace Of Us on Sunday and go to the Capsule-curated Julian Cope lecture on Monday.

I understand there are a few tickets available for most things going on so feel free to pop in (although I think B1 Labyrinths might be just about full up – worth checking). All details are on the Fierce Festival events page.

Ok, I think it’s about showtime for Whisper.

Filming Fierce

Joanna Geary, the Birmingham Post’s own digital journalist will be out and about over the weekend with a cameraman in tow.

She’ll be unburdening to a mannequin, having her feet washed, climbing inside a coffin, enjoying all the fun of the fete and who knows what else. Par for the Fierce Festival course then.

She’ll be tweeting over the weekend to let people know what she’s up to and might be streaming a bit of video too. Her Twitter is the best way to find out if/when she’ll be doing that. The video itself will, I imagine, end up on the Fierce Festival site at some point.

Preview screening of Helen

Helen is the debut feature by award-winning short film directors Christine Molloy and Joe Lawlor and has been selected to be part of both the Edinburgh International Film Festival and the Sydney Film Festival.

An 18 year old girl called Joy has gone missing. Helen is asked to ‘play’ Joy in a police reconstruction of the missing girl’s last moments but gradually immerses herself into the role, quietly and carefully insinuating her way into the lost girl’s life.

Although the film can’t be seen by the public until after the competitions, you can see a special preview on Thursday 29 May thanks to Screen WM and as part of the Fierce Festival. Fierce are inviting you to come and have a glass of bubbly, enjoy the screening and meet the people behind the film.

Drinks at 6pm, screening at 6.30pm. This one’s a bit special so put your glad rags on.

Tickets are free but you’ll need to call 0121 244 8080 to book your place.

Plans for the weekend – Fierce freebies

The city centre is the place to be this weekend with some great looking (free!) events coming up. These were all voted onto the Fierce Festival schedule by the public in March/April:

B1 Labyrinths (presented by Needless Allies)

Saturday 24 May & Monday 26 May
Hourly tours beginning at 12pm, 2pm & 4pm
Meeting at Tourist Information Centre, New St
Please book 0121 244 8080
(Wear comfortable shoes) / Free Event

A guided tour of the city centre where actors mingle with crowds and audiences find dramas in neglected alleyways.

The Fete Encounter

Saturday 24 May / 12pm – 6pm
Central Square, Brindleyplace
Free Event

The Fête Encounter presents 9 exciting live artists /collectives who have created engaging works to both explore the quirks of the British fête tradition and audience participation. Come and delve in a spot of ‘ethical bear baiting’, sign up for a parade, see a magic show, try your hand at fête games of chance, your foot at ukulele ceilidhs, traditional country dancing and vote for your favourite courgette all amid an abundance of bunting.

I Told It To A Mannequin (presented by Francesca Millican-Slater & Lindsey Price)

Part 1 Saturday 24 May / 3pm – 9pm
Birmingham Hippodrome
20 minute appointments
Free Event / Please book 0870 730 1234
Part 2 Sunday 25 May / 3pm – 6pm
Patrick Centre, Birmingham Hippodrome
Free Event / Drop in

Want to get something off your chest? Tell it to a mannequin, it’s good to talk to plastic people.

Also, not quite free but all pretty cheap are The Divine Edgar, Footwashing For The Sole, It Sank With The Shape Of Us and The Moment Before We Kiss.

I’m going to try to get round all or most of these and will report back on them. If you go then let me know what you thought in the comments.

Today at Fierce – 22 May

DV8 Physical Theatre – To Be Straight With You

Wednesday 21 – Saturday 24 May / 7.30pm
Warwick Arts Centre / 024 7652 4524
£18(£16), £22(£20)

“The persecution of people because of their sexual orientation is every bit as unjust as that crime against humanity, apartheid. We must all be allowed to love with honour.” Those words from Archbishop Desmond Tutu and hundreds of hours of interviews with people affected by prejudice across the UK form the basis for ‘To Be Straight With You’, in which the multi-ethnic cast of DV8 Physical Theatre tackle intolerance, religion and sexuality. A thought-provoking and uninhibited example of contemporary dance at its most thrilling, ‘To Be Straight With You’ contains strong language and nudity and is unsuitable for under 16s.

Fierce Launch at The Vaults

I had to go to the Dance TV launch earlier in the evening so I got down a bit late to the Fierce Festival launch party (generously sponsored by Tiger) on Friday night.  Not that late, but late enough to miss a performance by Miss High Leg Kick.  I liked The Vaults – all the exposed brick and recessed areas gave the evening the kind of underground feel you’d expect from Fierce.

Good times were had by all, I think.  Although from the chat on Twitter in the morning there were a fair few sore heads around Birmingham.

The festival starts in earnest on Wednesday 21st May with DV8’s To Be Straight With You and Jiva Parthipan’s Terror Of Living/Necessary Journeys, both at Warwick Arts Centre.  Tickets are available now.

Fierce! on the web

One of the best things about Fierce is the determination to take the entertainment to the audience.  As such Fierce can be found in many places:

For a start there’s the official Fierce Festival website where you can check out the event listings.

Fierce is also on Twitter, like all the cool kids are these days.

There’s a Fierce Facebook Group.

There’s a Fierce MySpace page too.

And of course Fierce is here too.  Fierce doesn’t just live on the internet though.  Fierce is real.  Come along to the events (even the ones that cost money don’t usually cost more than a pint) and see for yourself.

Welcome to a Fierce Festival blog

Hello and welcome to the semi-official blog for the Fierce Festival 2008 which starts tomorrow night (16 May) with the launch party at The Vaults in the Jewelery Quarter.

My name’s Chris Unitt (you may know me from such blogs as my own and Created in Birmingham) and I intend to cover the 11th Fierce Festival as best I can between now and 1 June

There are two main reasons for me doing starting this blog:

One.  Fierce do some fantastic, entertaining and essential work in the field of performing arts, especially in the Midlands.  They’re just a heck of an interesting organisation and the festival is something for Birmingham to be very proud of.

Two.  I’m putting my money where my mouth is.  Having taken over (the award-winning) Created in Birmingham I’ve taken up the mantle of trying to get Birmingham’s creative scene blogging.  To some extent this is me showing people how cheap, easy and (hopefully) powerful a blog can be for communicating what you’ve got to say.  I’ll be explaining how I do what I do on my own blog.

For now, I’d recommend you subscribe to this blog (click the orange square somewhere on this page) and settle in.  Or come back daily for the next few weeks and see what’s been going on.

Here’s to a great festival!