FESTIVAL AND EVENTS STRATEGY CO-ORDINATION GROUP
Friday, 17 October 2014 at 10.00 am in the Wighton Centre, Central Library
Present:
Stewart Murdoch, Director, Leisure and Communities, DCC (Chair)
Judy Dobbie, Head of Library and Information Services, Leisure & Culture Dundee
Nikki Mulholland, Events Team Leader, Environment Department, DCC
Angela Doran, Music and Events Development Officer, Leisure & Culture Dundee
Elaine Russell, Outreach Manager, University of Abertay, Dundee
Laura Wilkie, Festival and Development Manager, Dundee Science Centre
Pamela Roberts, Learning Manager: Outreach & Communities, V&A Museum of Design
Dundee
Isobel Melking, Dundee Science Centre
Suzanne Paterson, Great War Dundee Project
Merrill Smith, Head of Corporate Communications & Policy for Leisure and Culture, DCC
Jennifer Caswell, Team Leader, Business Development, DCC City Development Department
Alison McDicken, Press Officer, Dundee Rep
Peggy Hughes, Literary Development Officer, Literary Dundee
Tara Wainwright, Marketing and Communications Manager, V&A Museum of Design
Donna Holford-Lovell, Fleet Collective
Gaynor Sullivan, Business Development Officer DCC City Development Department
Apologies:
Vanessa Kelly, Communities Officer, Communities Division, DCC
Clare Brennan, Hannah Maclure Centre (University of Abertay)
Clive Gillman, Dundee Contemporary Arts
Linda Leuchars, Head of Development, Dundee Science Centre
Paul Harrison, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design
Billy Gartley, Head of Cultural Services, Leisure & Culture Dundee
1.
Presentation
Jennifer and Gaynor gave an update on the development of the Dundee City Region
Tourism Strategy.
Copies of their PowerPoint slides are attached for information.
A core group has been formed comprising Richard Gourlay, Dundee Science Centre,
Richard Ellison, Hilton Doubletree Dundee, Leanne Wallace, Dundee University, Gary
Thomson, Drouthy Neebors.
Most agencies had a link to the Dundee City Region Tourism Group and Gaynor
confirmed that she would ensure that those at the Festival and Events Group meeting
were kept regularly appraised of progress and enabled to contribute to strategy
development. They also confirmed that the intention was to have the draft strategy
available for comment in March/April 2015.
2.
Note of Meeting held on 14 May 2014
Approved.
3.
Updates
3.1
Creative Communities Event (3 September 2014)
This event, which had been hosted by the Hannah Maclure Centre, Abertay University,
brought together community representatives and cultural sector partners.
The seminar had been well attended from both sides and had provided an opportunity
for shared learning.
Presentations on the future of the cultural strategy and Creative Scotland’s strategic
overview had also been made.
A report on the proceedings is being prepared and will be available in due course.
3.2
Music Development
The application submitted by Dundee and Angus College on behalf of other partners
to Creative Scotland had secured an additional £30,000 for the next phase of the
Youth Music Initiative. Dundee City Council had also contributed funding to the roll out
of the initiative.
There was now a pathway from schools music to extra curricular activity, including
ASPIRE, to Dundee Schools Music Theatre, to the Cultural Services Soundbase
Programme, through to YMI and music mentoring.
This provides stronger support for those wishing to enter and progress in the music
business.
3.3
Dundee Festival Trust/Hogmanay Grants
The Dundee Festival Trust had now supported a number of Dundee based festivals to
enhance their programme.
The Hogmanay Grants Scheme brought in by Dundee City Council had also supported
a number of initiatives, including a Hogmanay House Music Event over two rooms in
Fat Sams on 31 December.
Applications for the Hogmanay Grants were still open until 31 October.
3.4
Open Doors – 13/14 September 2014
Feedback suggested that the weekend had been successful and that some venues in
particular had been very well attended.
It was not clear which weekend would be designated as Open Doors in 2015, but it
was expected that it would be around the second weekend in September again.
3.5
DCC Review of Support for Events Management
Merrill advised that the options appraisal which she had drafted had been submitted to
the Directors of City Development and the Environment Department, and their views
on these options were awaited.
It was understood that this report would then go to the City Council’s Management
Team and the Changing For The Future Project Board, with recommendations on how
best to support festivals and events going forward.
Stewart suggested that, in the process of finalising the report, there should be some
dialogue with the City Chambers staff who had become increasingly involved in events
in the City Square and in the programming of events.
4.
Great War Dundee
Stewart welcomed Suzanne to the meeting. He explained that she had been
appointed on a two year, fixed term contract funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, with
support in kind from DC Thomson, Dundee University and Leisure & Culture Dundee.
Her post was hosted by Leisure & Culture Dundee and she was working out of the
city’s Central Library.
Suzanne then described the work she had become involved in since taking up post.
Almost on day one, she had been thrown into the BBC event in the City Square which,
over two days, had recorded in excess of 10,000 visitors.
The next big event which had followed closely was the opening of the Time Capsule
which had been lodged in the Dundee Post Office. This continued to be a source of
great interest and a series of public events had been organised to allow people to look
at and read items from the Time Capsule.
One of the major projects was to develop a Dundee Great War website which will host
a searchable archive of material. This work was progressing. GWD are hosting an
event on 6 December at Discovery Point themed loosely around the 1914 Christmas
truce. Although still to be confirmed, the programme will consist of bookable
workshops on the Great War.
A 2015 outline programme has also been established by the Partnership and details of
this will be circulated as early as possible.
One of the key events in 2015 will be the commemoration of the Battle of Loos in
September.
It was noted that there was a parallel project emerging from the City of Culture work
referred to as Autobiography of the City. It was suggested that Suzanne make contact
with Anna Day to ensure that there was understanding of where these two projects
might provide mutual support.
Suzanne emphasised the potential for collaborative programming in order that World
War 1 commemorative events were integrated into other festivals and events during
2015 and 2016.
5.
Dundee Cultural Strategy
Copies of the 2015-2020 Strategy and the draft Action Plan had been circulated with
the calling notice for the meeting. Stewart advised that these documents had now
been “signed off” by the Strategy Group and were progressing through agency
management teams for their approval and the Dundee Partnership, which would
receive the reports for their consideration and approval on 6 December 2014.
In this period, UNESCO would announce their decision on whether Dundee had been
admitted into the Creative Cities Network, with the designation “City of Design”.
It was also hoped that Creative Scotland would be in a positon to confirm their support
for a Place Partnership, the main focus of which would be to implement aspects of the
Cultural Strategy.
6.
Information Exchange
6.1
Dundee Science Festival
Programmes for the 2015 Science Festival, which will take place between 1 and 16
November were distributed. The programme lists 112 events, with a focus on food
and drink, health and wellbeing. 40% of the programme has arts related content.
6.2
Firework Displays
The city’s two major firework displays will take place on the evening of 5 November.
In previous years these have attracted up to 30,000 visitors, with many more viewing
the events from a greater distance.
Nikki noted that Police Scotland charges for attendance at public events remained in
place and that this was the subject of on-going debate with Police Scotland.
6.3
Dare Protoplay
This year’s audience had been stable at 13,000. However the percentage of the
audience from outwith Dundee had risen again and was now over 45%. A detailed
audience analysis had been undertaken and copies of this were available on request
from Elaine.
A
YouTube
item
featuring the
digital ceilidh can
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXvZsqJgyfc&feature=youtu.be
6.4
be
found
at
Safe and Legal Events
Nikki Mulholland and Graeme McKenzie from DCC will update the Guidance for Safe
and Legal Events which can be found on the City Council’s website. It is intended that
this update will be published in the spring of 2015.
6.5
Reader in Residence
Thanks to a grant from the Scottish Book Trust, the Library and Information Service
had appointed Zoe Vanditozzi as its Reader in Residence.
Zoe was open to approaches from other partners for ways in which she could enhance
their events, promote new readers, increase library usage and build on existing links.
6.6
Dundee Rep
The Rep are currently working on a co-production with the Greyscale Theatre
Company for an event called “The Gamblers”.
Their community tour will go to 10 venues in and around Dundee.
Rehearsals for the Christmas show “James and the Giant Peach” are underway.
The Bonar Hall is now managed by Dundee Rep and any group seeking use of the
Bonar is invited to contact Eve Muir at the Rep.
Scottish Dance Theatre at the Rep are currently touring India and China and will play
to huge audiences.
6.7
V&A Museum of Design, Dundee
The Alice Rawsthorn Lecture – Hello World: Where Design Meets Life – will take place
on Tuesday, 28 October at 6.00 pm in the Dalhousie Building. Booking for this is
essential.
Plans for an ambitious community programme and tour of Scotland during 2015 are to
be announced before Christmas.
6.8
McManus
In partnership with the V&A, McManus will host “A World to Win: Posters of Protest
and Revolution”. The private view will be on 13 November and there will be an eight
week run for this exhibition which comes direct from the V&A in London.
Along with other city centre cultural agencies, The McManus will be open late on
Friday 14 November in support Christmas Light Night.
6.9
Dundee Literary Festival
Programmes for the Literary Festival have been distributed widely and the programme
for this year’s festival is the most ambitious yet.
The festival is supported by Waterstones Book Trust and many of the events in the
festival are free.
6.10
Music Development
A fusion festival has been programmed for 9 November – details available from
Angela Doran.
Dundee has pitched to host a BBC audience development event in May 2015.
6.11
What’s On Extract
An extract of cultural events in the public domain was circulated and is attached.
The positive publicity for the city derived from Dundee’s reported status as the “fifth
best cultural offer” in the UK was discussed.
The Crack (Newcastle/Gateshead) plan to carry a feature on Dundee in their
November issue.
7.
Date of Next Meeting
Friday, 6 February 2015 at 10.00 am in the Wighton Centre, Central Library.