Offering something for all the family, the Festival of Fire and Light will see Banbridge town centre light up from 21 to 23 April 2022 with an exhilarating three-day programme featuring bespoke workshops, storytelling, circus and street theatre, comedy and music. Solitude Park will host free family fun, art installations and fire performances and the festival will conclude with a talk from the legendary Sir Ranulph Fiennes about his life and adventures.
As part of the festival Banbridge will play host to Illumaphomium in Solitude Park, a dynamic and interactive, multi-sensory, music making installation – the first of its kind and it’s first ever visit to the Northern Ireland! Illumaphomium consists of more than a hundred illuminated chime bars, each of which respond to touch, to create a fun and spontaneous music experience. Accompanied by drop-in percussion workshops and children’s dance workshops – its music making fun for all ages!
Explore the history and cultural heritage of Banbridge with weekday walking tours by Jacqueline Connolly, and enjoy a free exhibition and gallery tour at the F.E McWilliam Gallery on Saturday 23 April. Let your creative side run wild with a number of bespoke art workshops, featuring Botanical Print on Linen with Ruth Osbourne, experiment charcoal techniques with Sharon Kelly, and create a stunning floral centrepiece fit for a banquet with Romaine Hodgen.
Visitors to Banbridge town centre will be treated to surprise interactions with a number of spectacular pop-up circus shows, entertainers and walk-about performers – and a few mystery characters, (or mythical creatures!) along the way. The festival will feature a delightful range of creative family-friendly events, featuring a ‘sail in’ outdoor screening of ‘Moana’ with art workshops, Wild Creations mindful movement, adventure storytelling with Eithne the Explorer and much more!
Emer Maguire, award winning science communicator and musical comedian will perform her latest show ‘In her Element’ in Banville House Hotel after her sell out show in the Ulster Hall.
With tribute to Frances Crozier, we are delighted to announce ‘An Audience with Sir Ranulph Fiennes OBE’. Described by The Guinness Book of Records as “the world’s greatest living explorer”, he is the first person ever to have climbed Mount Everest and crossed both Antarctica and the Arctic Ocean via the Poles and we can’t wait to hear his stories.
There will be a fire show finale each evening, featuring spectacular fire performances from the most talented fire breathers and artists in the UK! Prepare to watch in amazement as they light up the night sky with a dazzling showstopper.
Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough, Alderman Glenn Barr, said “We are delighted to partner with Tourism Northern Ireland in the staging of the Festival of Fire and Light which celebrates the rich and diverse history and heritage of Banbridge. Banbridge will throw open its doors from 21 to 23 April 2022 for a spectacular showcase and we are looking forward to welcoming visitors and residents alike to celebrate all that is good about our town.”
Event Manager Lois Kennedy from MayWe Events says “We are really excited to bring this fun filled festival to Banbridge. There is so much on offer and it is sure to be a hit with residents and visitors alike”
To book your tickets and for more information on Festival of Fire and Light, go to www.visitbanbridge.com/festivaloffireandlight
