(ilasgow. I suppose the a\is ol the city has him ed towards the West in recent times. but now it's tipping back again. You look round all the old buildings. all these merchant‘s warehouses that used to stand tor the economic wealth of the city. These days. in many ways. the wealth ol~ a city can be measured in its art and culture —- the great exports ol' this city are the very strong visual art community and the rising talent of our musicians. The centres ol‘ Scotland‘s cultural industries visual art. lilm. 'l‘V. fashion — are very much based in (ilasgow. and they‘w got their core in those same old warehouses. ll‘ you were starting lrom scratch. creating a festival to represent all of these diverse aspects. everything (ilasgow and Scotland are so successful at. the Merchant (‘ity would be the obyious location.‘ ‘l)i\'erse‘ feels like rather a small word for the breadth ol~ the .‘Vlerchant (‘ity liestiyal‘s programme. In l'our days and one area. you can visit art exhibitions. catch top Sc‘ottislt comedy. attend a celebrity-studded lttshiott show. battle your way out ol‘ a gigantic ma/e erected in (ieorge Square. watch the cream of ottr current cinematic output. stul'l' yoursell at a street market. hear the BB(‘ Scottish Symphony Orchestra in full llight. and Asian l'usion Bhangra beats. There‘s a special club laden with Scotland's l‘reestyling l'usion l)Js for those who prefer to do their celebrating at night. There‘s
‘IN MANY WAYS, THE WEALTH OF A CITY CAN BE MEASURED IN ITS ART AND CULTURE'
outdoor performance. outdoor music stages and dancing in the streets. And — breathe.
‘This sort ol‘ cultural activity is happening in the Merchant (‘ity all the time.‘ says Butler. ‘So. it we can kind of concentrate that during the l'estiy'al. we can giye people a sense of what they can experience throughout the year just in those few days. lloweyer. we want to take that further. too. It's important for tts to he able to showcase the work ol‘ national companies — Scottish Opera
and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. for
example. are both playing very big concerts during the festival. So what we want to do is
inyite people in. from (ilasgow. from all of
Scotland. and internationally. and say that this is the state of Scottish art and culture right now: this is what you can come and see and enjoy.‘
The Merchant City Festival runs from Thu 20-Sun 23 September. For full listings, see www.list.co.uk or www.merchantcityfestival.com
Get Lost!
THEATRE: GET LOST!
The most otmous $3|glt£l| that something :5; ltill)l)(;lltllt} Ill the Merchant Cit. is the erection of a gigantic inn/t: Ill the; rnirlrlle of George Square Anyvne brave enough to venture lllf$|(l(,‘ ‘.‘/|ll come across; a ‘.'£ll'l(3l‘,’ of characters. Surrea: SlllléllIUllf; and creatures of the topiary '.
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.7 ',-:: -'- L 'x' ,'THE LIST 19