15th - 30th October 2010
Events Calendar
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Press releases
26.01.10 Arts awards underline Queen’s commitment to cultural development – Gregson
Queen’s University’s success in winning two Allianz Arts and Business NI Awards underline the University’s commitment to cultural development in Northern Ireland, Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Gregson has said.
The Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s took the honours in the category of Best Cultural Branding for its creative partnership with the Ulster Bank, now entering its third year as title sponsor.
Festival Director Graeme Farrow was also named Arts Individual of the Year for his role in steering the Festival to new heights. The arts extravaganza has more than trebled the number of out of state tourists coming to Belfast for the event over the past three years.
The Vice-Chancellor said: “Cultural development is central to Queen’s mission. So too is a commitment to enhancing local economic prosperity. The Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s achieves both aims.
“These awards recognise the importance of effective and highly visible branding, which is crucial to the Festival’s impact. Under the creative direction of Graeme Farrow, the Festival and Ulster Bank have developed a unique programme and a range of marketing initiatives which increase a sense of excitement and ownership for the event among the local community.”
Graeme Farrow said: “I’m delighted that our success was recognised at the Arts & Business Awards,” said Graeme. “It is a privilege to work for a Festival that plays a hugely important role not just in the life of Queen’s University, but also that of the wider Northern Ireland economy.”
The Arts & Business Awards showcase examples of excellence and the delivery of tangible business benefits with winning partnerships across the spectrum of Northern Ireland business and arts sectors. They demonstrate that partner programmes can, and do, deliver great benefits not only for local communities, but also for the businesses involved.
26.01.10 Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s double winner at Allianz Arts & Business NI Awards
Creativity and innovation took centre stage as the Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s scooped the coveted Allianz Arts & Business NI Cultural Branding Award, which is presented to a partnership that reinforces the branding and marketing activity of a business through the use of culture, recognising the value and strength of the partnership.
The Ulster Bank’s title sponsorship of the Belfast Festival at Queen’s has been directly responsible for its short and long-term survival, but it is much more than just a financial commitment. Ulster Bank has embedded Festival into its business strategy, with this flagship arts sponsorship delivering a measurable and tangible impact on their bottom line and the cultural economy.
Speaking about the partnership, Cormac McCarthy, Chief Executive, Ulster Bank Group, said,
“For many years we have made it our goal to establish Ulster Bank as a leading patron of the arts. We have adopted a long-term strategy in our overall sponsorship programme and believe that our support of the Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s will not only increase visibility of Ulster Bank, but will also help to bring the festival to an even wider audience, including our customers.”
Festival’s powerful cultural branding and improved marketing strategy delivered record attendance in 2008, increasing the Festival’s impact on the Northern Ireland economy from £4.5 million in 2001 to £7.9 million.
Nelson McCausland, MLA, Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure, recognised the increasing importance of such partnerships between commerce and culture, saying:
“The current economic climate presents a more challenging environment for arts organisations to secure funding. For arts and creativity to really flourish in Northern Ireland the direct involvement of the private sector through partnerships with artists and art organisations is needed. It is most encouraging that the businesses nominated for the Allianz Arts and Business NI Awards have the foresight and confidence to invest in these mutually beneficial partnerships with the arts.”
It was Graeme Farrow’s role in delivering this return and ensuring the success and sustainability of Festival that earned him the new Arts Individual of the Year Award.
The Award acknowledges the hard work and dedication of those working within the arts sector. At a time when corporate sponsors would be nervous about getting involved in an organisation whose future had been widely questioned within the media, Graeme convinced Ulster Bank that Festival business planning was sound and the organisation’s future secure. His leadership ensured not only the survival of the festival, but also the development of a clear vision and focus for the next three years.
Graeme’s passion for Festival inspires passion in others and combined with his wealth of experience in working with corporate partners he has brought outstanding creativity to the Ulster Bank title sponsorship, and inspired new festival engagement initiatives, such as the Ulster Bank Arts Ambassadors scheme, free tickets for student account holders, discount for U First customers, and the Community Ticket Scheme.
Recognising the success of the partnership Mary Trainor, Director of Arts & Business Northern Ireland commented:
“In what has been a challenging year economically, it is encouraging that so many NI businesses have seen the benefits from an interaction and partnership with arts organisations, recognising their impressive track record in creativity and their ability to think outside the box. Particularly in the current climate, creativity and innovation are critical if businesses are to be resilient and proactive in securing their future. This year’s Award winners highlight just how effective successful arts sponsorship can be in delivering creative business solutions.”
02.11.09 Festival ends with a final flourish
From our Polish Passions to the great Gilad Atzmon, the 47th Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen's finished on 31 October with a magnificent closing weekend.
Thanks to the fantastic line-up, hotels, bars and shops benefited from the 2 week extravaganza across Belfast with visitors from around the globe, including the Czech Republic, USA, Latvia, France, Germany and Holland.
A full economic impact report will be concluded early in 2010 but key research findings are as follows:
Audiences
• Audiences of 36,000 plus approx 10,000 attendance at galleries participating in the festival – a 25% increase on attendances for Visual Arts the previous year thanks to internationally renowned artist Sean Scully’s exhibition at the newly opened Ulster Museum
• 11% of festival audience was in the 16 - 24 year old age category
• 10% of 2009 audience were senior citizens
• Audiences from within Northern Ireland are made up of an even 50/50 split between Belfast and the rest of NI
Customer Satisfaction
• 93.8% of audiences rated as excellent or very good their overall festival experience (survey of 1,067 attenders)
• 94.7% of audiences rated as excellent or very good the quality of the artistic programme (survey of 1,067 attenders)
A city-wide festival
• Festival venues (33 in total in 2009) now stretch throughout all parts of the city – not just the Grand Opera House, Belfast Waterfront and Ulster Hall, but to the North (Jewish Synagogue; Ardoyne Library), South (Elmwood Hall; Ulster Museum) East (Belfast Met, Tower Street) and West (An Chultúrlann; Clonard Monastery)
International Profile & Visitor Numbers
• The Festival generated almost 500 items of media coverage in 2009 of which 5% was from out-of-state, primarily within ROI but also coverage in GB publications including The Guardian and The Times.
• The number of out-of-state visitors attending the festival now accounts for 8.5% of its total audience – a 340% increase during the last three festivals (up from 2.5% in 2007)
• This international audience, together with 600+ visiting artists and crews, accounted for 4,670 bed nights for Belfast during the 16 days of the festival.
• 68.1% of out of state audiences travelled to Belfast primarily for the purpose of attending an Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s event, with 89.3% pre-booking events tickets before leaving their normal place of residence.
Education & Outreach
• Over 1,000 free tickets were given out as part of an Ulster Bank Community Ticket Scheme to a total of 63 groups from across NI.
• The festival teamed up with the Workers' Educational Association to deliver a “Hitchhikers' Guide to the Festival” which offered free tickets across a range of events, together with a Festival ‘tour guide’, to a number of different community groups. The project was funded by Belfast City Council and Community Relations Council.
• 1,142 tickets were sold to 64 schools from across Northern Ireland
• The Festival delivered two signed lectures (Noam Chomsky and Marcus du Sautoy) and two captioned performances (Terminus and Black Milk), as well as making the brochure available in Braille and on an audio CD, including the distribution of 250 CDs to the RNIB’s mailing list.
• 550 tickets were given out as part of “A Night for Belfast” to the final performance of Macbeth. This free ticket offer was promoted via the Ulster Bank's microsite and was heavily oversubscribed.
Audience Development
• 9,524 new customers have attended festival over the two year period 2008 – 2009 thanks to increased investment in programming, improved brochure distribution through Belfast Telegraph, and the expansion of education and outreach activities.
Title sponsor Ulster Bank is delighted both with the visitors to the city and almost 2000 new theatre fans thanks to their unprecedented ticket giveaways.
Cormac McCarthy, Chief Executive, Ulster Bank Group said bringing the arts to new audiences was an integral part of Ulster Bank's involvement in the Festival. “Through our involvement in the Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen’s we were able to give new audiences a chance to experience the thrill of the theatre. Community groups and charities across Northern Ireland applied for tickets to see 8 different shows in the Festival programme, which were hand-picked by the Festival Director as must-sees. The scheme, which has proved to be a terrific success, reached out to those who might not normally have the chance to visit the theatre allowing them to experience some great productions and a fantastic night out.”
The Glencairn Youth Initiative summed up the delight of charities and community groups. “We applied for tickets to see Macbeth and Clarendon Dock. The range of drama, dance and music on offer was superb but the action of Macbeth on motorbikes was perfect for our teenage audience and everyone had a wonderful time.”
Other News
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