|
The 6 Nations Rugby Internationals
(February - April)
Paris, London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Dublin and Rome - the attractions,
the beauty and the history speak for themselves. But one more thing
unites these six great cities, the world's greatest rugby tournament
- the Lloyds TSB Six Nations Championship.
After 90 years as the Five Nations Championship, the tournament
expanded to six in 2000 with the introduction of Italy and the addition
of Rome as another mouth-watering destination for tens of thousands
of rugby fans. As soon as the new year has been rung in, rugby fans
across Europe start to prepare for the most exciting part of every
season. Most away trips are planned meticulously two years in advance
- on the return leg of the current adventure!
It is not just the fans who prepare well in advance for the biggest
and best rugby carnival in the Northern hemisphere, the six European
capital cities gear up to host and entertain hundreds of thousands
of passionate fans.
FA Cup Final
(May)
The F.A. Challenge Cup is the oldest and most famous football competition
in the world. The number of entries in the competition has risen
steadily from the original 15 clubs in 1871. In the inter-war years,
over 600 clubs took part. Now there is a standard of ability and
ground facilities which must be reached before a club’s entry
is accepted by The F.A. Challenge Cup Committee. Six hunderd and
eight clubs have entered the Cup in 2001/02.
The Cup Final, staged at Wembley from 1923 to 2000 had a legendary
status within the game that looks set to continue while the Final
is played at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.
The game is undoubtedly the biggest annual football match in the
world. Success or failure depends on the form of the players on
the day rather than form coming into the final. Past reputations
seem to count for nothing – as a host of upsets over the years
prove. That is what people speak of when they talk about the magic
of the Cup.
Cardiff Singer of the World
(June biennially)
It is most appropriate that the highly prestigious singing competition,
Cardiff Singer of the World, should be held in the capital of a
nation with such a renowned choral tradition: Wales. St. David’s
Hall in the heart of the city provides a high profile venue for
the event. As the home of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, it
also anchors the competition to the musical roots of Wales.
Competitors are required to demonstrate their prowess in the disciplines
of opera or concert music, and song. During the course of the competition,
well over 100 pieces of music are performed: songs (accompanied
by piano or orchestra), oratorio (solo arias from sacred works)
and operatic arias with full-blown orchestral accompaniment.
Five finalists are chosen from five preliminary concerts, each involving
five singers, but it’s by no means a foregone conclusion that
each preliminary concert will yield a singer for the Final, as it
is the five singers with the highest marks overall who take part
in the Final.
International Film Festival of Wales
(November - December)
The International Film Festival of Wales (IFFW) now in its fourteenth
year, will be showing the talents of the Welsh Film industry and
Welsh filmmakers. Every year the festival has features from some
of the most talented directors in Wales. The International Film
Festival of Wales runs annually during November and December.
With funding from the BFI, Foundation of Sports and Arts, BBC, HTV,
and S4C, the Film Festival first shows all films in Cardiff then
at least half a dozen of those films are chosen and go on tour across
Wales.
International Festival of Musical Theatre
in Cardiff
(October - November biennially)
2002 sees the premiere of a major new international arts event in
the heart of Wales. Cardiff will play host to over 250 Musical Theatre
performances over a period of two weeks. Composers, lyricists, producers,
singers, dancers, actors and musicians from all over the world will
converge to celebrate one of the world's most accessible and best
loved art forms - the Musical.
There is something for everyone, as the Festival makes use of a
multitude of venues over the season...
- Be first to catch the world premier of a major new Musical prior
to it's West End opening.
- Take in a star-studded tribute to the composer Richard Rodgers'
centenary.
- Be in the audience as BBC Radio 2 conducts the 'Voice of Musical
Theatre 2002' competition, a search for the best international
singer of Musical Theatre.
- Hone your skills in a master class with star guests of the
Festival
- plus much, much more.......
The Welsh Proms
(July)
The Welsh Proms at St David's Hall always promises to be hitting
the right note culminating in the thrilling Last Night of the Proms.
A dozen or so fantastic concerts for all tastes - including many
evening orchestral proms, plus lunchtime proms, Gamelan, late night
jazz and of course the hugely popular Family Prom.
Welsh Proms is a summer celebration of the magic of music - a great
experience for all music lovers and a fabulous introduction to the
world of classical music. Go for it !
Calennig New Year Celebrations
(December to January)
Cardiff’s New Year celebration has been christened ‘Calennig’,
meaning New Year’s Gift. The ‘Calennig’ is a decorated
piece of fruit taken by children from door to door wishing good
heath & prosperity for the coming year. Traditional Calennig
verses were sung and a small gift would be given in return, often
a new penny.
WINTER WONDERLAND - In 2001 during the month of December City Hall
Lawn has been transformed into a magical Winter Wonderland creating
an unforgettable festive experience for all the family.
A giant open air ice rink is at the centre of the celebrations,
whilst the spicy scent of mulled wine and hot mince pies float across
the heated terrace area from the tasty catering & bar facilities
over looking the ice.
Cardiff Summer Festival
(July to August)
Europe's biggest free festival is also one of the best. There are
dozens of spectacular events for all the family, attracting 500,000
visitors to the city.
The Cardiff Festival is held annually during the last two weeks
of July and the first week of August. It is made up of the Welsh
Proms, the Celtic Food and Drink Festival and numerous arts, music,
theatre and comedy events at various venues throughout the city
- and on the streets!
The highlights for many is the Big Weekend, which has been described
as 'the biggest all-city bash this side of Edinburgh'. This first
weekend in August is when Cardiff turns into a mixture of fairground,
theatre and concert hall and the whole city comes out to party.
Its grand finale is a free music festival on the lawns in the Civic
Centre. In previous years you could have enjoyed Stereophonics and
the Spice Girls - absolutely free.
And if that doesn't appeal, you could always go for Wales's biggest
funfair, which fills the boulevards of the elegant Civic Centre.
|
