A beautiful July afternoon was spent on the final day of one of my favourite East Anglian Festivals, ‘Primadonna’ at the Food Museum, Stowmarket. The Museum as a festival venue is superb. Recent refurbishment of the facilities mean it is accessible and has great toilets (for a festival goer that is an unusual bonus) and all the activities and exhibitions are available for the whole family.
Primadonna defines itself as a festival for people that love books, which makes it a great event for Suffolk Book League members. As I had a busy weekend in Felixstowe with activities for Felixstowe Radio and ‘WAMfest Felixstowe’ at the Carnival, I did not arrive until midday on the Sunday but I remembered from previous years that there would still be plenty to do and see. We arrived in beautiful sunshine and camped out at 'The World as it Should Be' stage which defines the ethos of the festival. We certainly soaked up some ideas.
Tedji Xaviere, a Cameroonian fiction writer, and London-based Olumide Popoola who is a Nigerian-German writer were in conversation, opening our eyes on the challenges in writing and communication encountered by the authors.
After we had consumed delicious noodles and ice cream we set about trying to consume more of the diverse offering of the festival in the short time we had on site.
My interests as event organiser of a small women's festival are also rooted in music by women as well as literature so I grabbed the opportunities offered by this diverse festival to consume musical performances. Jan Pulsford, organiser of Woodbridge Ambient Music Festival, was providing a haven of relaxation in the
Medieval Barn, accompanying poetry readings with her ambient sounds. This was followed by a young and very talented all female band ‘Baby Said’. We rushed back to the ‘World as it Should Be’ stage to hear from Anna Mudeka, singer and one woman performer of ‘Mama Afrika’ which is the story of legendary African activist Miriam Makeba.
There were so many workshops and talks by and for aspiring and established authors and poets that we couldn't participate in, due to our time constraints. But if our bite-sized experience has given you a taste of what you can gain from the ‘Primadonna’ festival, check it out next year, when hopefully it won't clash with so much going on in the county including ‘Latitude’.
Oh and check out ‘WAMfest Felixstowe’ on 11th to 13th October 2024 for more arts, literature and culture!
Laura Locke
コメント