ArtsFest

Birmingham Royal Ballet

ArtsFest kicked off on Friday night with Bhangrafest in the Eastside. High energy, high performance - it really got the weekend off to a fabulous start.

We were out and about over the weekend - take a look at some of our pictures.

Bhangrafest - Sonia Deol

On Saturday the weather certainly helped to pull in the crowds to see an amazing amount of acts right across the city. After last year's down pour it was a real relief to see the sun shine.

Walking around the city every corner seemed to unveil something interesting to see or listen too.

Hina and Co were the first act on the main stage in Centenary Square on Saturday. We first featured Hina when she was a student at UCE and her first performance at ArtsFest which was at a much small venue.

So it was a thrill to see an almost full audience gathered to watch. The dance company gave a colourful performance and really got the Saturday events off to a flying start.

This year there's been a real emphasis on youth, with lots of workshops and demonstrations, including BBC Blast in Victoria Square.

Big Voice

By the BBC Big Screen in Chamberlain Square up and coming bands gave some great performances - all under the umbrella of birminghammusic.com.

The variety of acts this year gave ArtsFest a very broad feel, something to interest everyone.

As well as showing off a lot of new and upcoming talent and the focus on youth, there were the real gems that are so wonderful, you just have to sit back and enjoy them - such as the performance by the Royal Birmingham Ballet on Saturday evening.

The audience sat entranced - and as soon as the Ballet had finished the audience had another treat with a very different appeal. It was The Dhol Blasters. The same audience were on their feet getting into the rhythm.

The Mexicolas

The Dhol Blasters were followed by the Big Voice². Four choirs gathered in the square and the audience were asked to join in - you could hear their voices ringing over the city.

Saturday night didn't finish here - there were several venues across the city that had acts late into the night.

A new addition to ArtsFest this year is events at Eastside. Although much quieter than the city centre venues, the people that ventured out to these venues seemed to enjoy the activities.

And if it seemed a bit too far to walk, a bus was provided by Aston Manor Transport Museum, to ferry people between the city centre, Eastside and The Drum.

On Sunday the activities continued along the same vain. The annual children's Off Our Trolley parade took place in Centenary Square and the CBSO were in the square for the ArtsFest finale.

Falun Gong

Send in your reviews

Obviously so much was happening over the weekend we couldn't cover everything - so if you saw something you really wanted mentioned, then send in a short review.