Manchester International Festival starts tomorrow with loads of exciting free events to explore

It’s what we’ve all been waiting for – after weeks of build up, the highly anticipated Manchester International Festival 2021 is officially launching tomorrow.

Running for over two weeks until July 18th, the annual festival boasts a whole array of exciting and – most importantly – free events for people from all over the region to take part in and enjoy. 

And, to kick start the festivities tomorrow, MIF is pulling out all the stops with a spectacular dance performance takeover down Deansgate.

@mifestival / Instagram

Described as a ‘human flip book sprung to life on the streets of Manchester’, Sea Change will feature 150 of Greater Manchester’s residents in a beautiful celebration of post-lockdown life, choreographed by French choreographer Boris Charmatz. 

Sea Change will fill Deansgate with a chain of both professional and non-professional dancers, each performing and repeating a section of unique choreography.

Rather than the work moving on in front of you, it’ll be up to you to ‘move on’ the work: walking or even running past waves of dancers to animate the action into your very own living flip book.

@mifestival / Instagram

Charmatz said of the immersive performance: “Designed as both a large festive gathering and a work of art, Sea Change works on two levels: viewers will perceive a single organism, one single continuous movement made by the many, and each participant singularly embodying the piece.”

Sea Change is completely free to attend, but tickets are required – get yours here.

And that is only the beginning – throughout the next few weeks, MIF will be hosting a whole array of exciting and free events, performances and exhibitions.

Festival Square, the home of the entire event, will be taking over Manchester’s Cathedral Gardens where there will be a whole array of food and drink stalls and free entertainment from international artists and Greater Manchester-based performers – including curated nights from Jamz Supernova, Homoelectric, Mr Scruff and DJ Paulette.

@mifestival / Instagram

There will also be the Global Playground, an uplifting new show mixing dance, music, theatre and puppetry tailored specifically for children and family audiences.

On the artistry front, guests can enjoy a whole array of cultured and thought-provoking exhibitions, such as the Portrait of Black Britain –  a powerful and timely exhibition by artist, activist and campaigner Cephas Williams posing a timely and poignant question: ‘What does it mean to be Black, living in the UK?’ This will be found in the Manchester Arndale. 

Captioning the City will also give residents the opportunity to explore around the city centre and experience Manchester in a whole new dimension.

To see the whole list of events taking place over the next few weeks and to book tickets, visit the official Manchester International Festival website here.