Finishing Touches Put in Place for Arts Festival

Date Published: 11-Jul-2008

IT’S all systems go for the organisers of the Galway Arts Festival as they put the finishing touches to the annual artistic celebration that kicks off in the city on Monday.

The 31st annual Festival officially opens with a launch in Salthill’s Galway Bay Hotel on Monday evening and a number of shows open around the city that night. The two week event is expected to be worth in the region of €25 million to the city in terms of direct spend.

The Festival’s artistic director, Paul Fahy, like all the festival staff, were running around making sure venues were in order, that crews and casts were arriving as planned, that ticket sales were going smoothly and that basically, everything was in order for the two week extravaganza.

Mr. Fahy said on Thursday evening it was great seeing the erection of the Big Top, which is the venue at the Fisheries Field for most of the music shows, including Blondie, next Thursday night, which hasproven to be one of the Festival’s big sellers.

Yesterday evening, too, the Festival organisers were awaiting the arrival of the crew and cast of Circa from Australia who are putting on a very physical show.

The Joni Mitchell exhibition was also being mounted yesterday evening in the Festival Box Office location at…