Chesterfield Market Festival

27 July 2008

World-class music, whistle-stop drama, the town's biggest-ever Continental Market, an even more spectacular Garden of Light and a Beer Festival featuring Derbyshire's finest real ales will be headline events among a five-star brew of attractions at the fifth Chesterfield Market Festival this autumn.

The Duke of Devonshire will also visit the town during the three days of festivities to switch on new floodlighting at the Grade II listed Town Hall - installed to celebrate its 70th anniversary - on Friday October 31 at 7pm.

After performing the ceremony, exactly seven decades after Her Grace the Duchess of Devonshire officially opened the Beaux Arts-style building, the Duke will then unveil his masterplan for Chatsworth as it faces the challenges of the 21st century at Chesterfield Library lecture theatre.

The internationally-renowned Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will perform at the town's Winding Wheel on the first night of the Festival, which will run from Thursday October 30 to Saturday November 1.

Conducted by its director and principal clarinettist Michael Whight, the programme will include The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba by Handel, Mozart's Clarinet Concerto and Symphony No.29 and Rumanian Folk Dances by Bartok.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company will take its audience on an irreverent roller coaster ride from fig leaves to the Final Judgment in The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged) at the Pomegranate Theatre on Saturday November 1. The reductive romp through religion with high speed humour aims to amuse people of all faiths and beliefs.

More than 30 real ales from some of Derbyshire's best breweries - plus ciders, perries, country wines and free soft drinks - will be on tap during the CAMRA Chesterfield Market Beer Festival in the town's Market Hall on Friday October 31 and Saturday November 1.

Among the feature breweries will be Ashover, Brampton, Peak Ales, Spire, Thornbridge and Townes, while lunchtime sessions will include the chance to ‘meet the brewers' and enjoy ploughman's lunches.

Anyone with a taste for world music will savour the sound of accomplished early music ensemble, Fiori Musicali at Chesterfield Parish Church on October 31, or TransGlobal Underground, winners of the BBC Radio 3 World Music Award 2008, at the Winding Wheel on November 1.

On the final evening, an atmospheric Lantern Parade will once again wend its way to the spectacular Garden of Light, sponsored by Frederick's Ice Cream, at Chesterfield's showpiece Queen's Park, which this year will feature fascinating ‘dancing waters' on the lake, every evening during the Festival..

Free rides on the miniature train will transport visitors on a spellbinding journey through a fairytale forest, where a rainbow of lights will shimmer and move among trees and plants, dip into the lake and reflect ripples on to the leaves above.
Other popular attractions for all the family will be a traditional fun fair with steam-driven gallopers and a big wheel, a non-stop entertainment programme including jugglers, story tellers and stilt walkers and music every night in the bandstand. Holymoorside Band will perform on Thursday, the Pantonic All Stars Steel Band of Stockport on Friday and the Real Macaws on Saturday.

Lantern making workshops for all the family at a range of venues will precede the Parade, which will be led by the Real Macaws, who will be aiming to create a carnival atmosphere with their special brand of high-energy music. The Parade, sponsored by Midlands Co-op, will set off from Chesterfield Parish Church at 6.30pm, and anyone wanting to take part should register in advance at Chesterfield Tourist Information Centre.

Centrepiece of the market celebrations will be a Continental Market featuring more than 30 stalls, offering mouthwatering delicacies ranging from Dutch pancakes to Spanish paella and creative craft work such as leather handbags and Polish candles.

Programmes giving full details of all events and tickets are now available from Chesterfield Tourist Information Centre, Rykneld Square, 01246 345777/8, e-mail tourism@chesterfield.gov.uk.

Main sponsor for this year's Chesterfield Market Festival is local company Printability, which was launched in 2000 with a handful of staff, and now employs more than 40 people in the town. Among many other types of work, Printability prints match-day programmes for high-profile sports clubs throughout the country, and has gained a reputation for providing a high-quality design and print service.