Manchester International Festival 2017

Summary

Thank you for joining us this last 18 days and for making the festival a success. Scroll back to remember some of the higlights of MIF 2017 and see you in 2019!
Manchester International Festival ran from 29 June and 16 July 2017
Talk to us @mifestival on twitter & mcrintfestival on Facebook

Live Reporting

the Manchester International Festival team

BBC 6 Music is live from Festival Square at 1pmpublished at 11:01 BST 30 June 2017
Come rain or shine (and it will probably be rain)

You can listen to Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie right here, and get all the insider knowledge straight to your lucky, lucky ears...
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"An artist who inhabits the digital domain in a unique way"published at 10:53 BST 30 June 2017
Dark Matter: Holly Herndon

Electro-pioneer Holly Herndon hits Gorilla tonight at 7pm, external -we sat down with Mary Anne Hobbs to learn a little more about Holly and her completely unique sound...
Media caption,
#mif17 trailer for Holly Herndon
Part of a series of transformative gigs, you can find out more about the Dark Matter gigs here, external.
Why stop when the PA gets turned off?published at 10:22 BST 30 June 2017
Dark Matter: Levelz Takeover

Last night Levelz absolutely smashed the opening gig of our Dark Matter series, and we'll have exclusive photos up soon.
In the meantime, you can enjoy their encore, played as the lights came up - why stop when the gig ends, right guys?
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You can catch the rest of the Dark Matter gigs right here, external - and stay tuned for exclusive videos, stills and reactions to everything at this year's festival.
Day 2: What's happening?published at 09:56 BST 30 June 2017
DJs and live-streams and parties - oh my!

Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Drunk at Vogue: tonight at Festival Square
Welcome to Day 2 of the Manchester International Festival!
So, what can you expect, both on the streets of Manchester and here on the Live page?
Well, we've got a lot of amazing exhibitions opening today, including True Faith , external- exploring the legacy of New Order and Joy Division - ToGather,, external and Music For A Busy City., external
More about them all later.
Anarchic immersive madness Party Skills For The End Of The World , externalcontinues to smash audiences, La Sharvu , externalplay Festival Square and electro-pioneer Holly Herndon , externalwraps things up with an amazing gig as part of Mary Anne Hobbs' Dark Matter, external series.
We're also opening a brand new show - One Of Two Stories Or Both,, external which we'll be streaming right here at 6:30pm.
If you just can't wait till then to fill your ears with MIF goodness, BBC Radio 6 Music will be streamed here from 1pm- chatting to True Faith creators Jon Savage and Matthew Higgs, Music For A Busy City composer Huang Ruo, with music from the brilliant La Shavru.
And to round it all off, it's our opening party tonight: Drunk At Vogue, external - where you can expect sensational visuals, amazing drag and a grand-slam catwalk walk off.
Whew! Let's get started! Share what you're looking forward to @MIFestival - we'll post our favourites right here.
End of day 1 - a city joined in celebrationpublished at 21:51 BST 29 June 2017
Here's to the next amazing 17 days

We've kicked off this year's festival in style - with fantastic electro-rock courtesy of New Order, amazing hip-hop grime fusion thanks to Levelz, and the city of Manchester came together to applaud its most precious commodity - its residents.
We'll see you back here tomorrow for day 2 - trust us, we're only just getting started.
You can listen to Mark Radcliffe tomorrow live from 1pm on BBC Radio 6 Music right here. He'll be speaking to Jon Savage & Matthew Higgs on their exhibition ‘True Faith’ which opens tomorrow, as well as composer Huang Ruo on ‘Music for a Busy City’.
Soul singers LaSharvu will also be joining before their powerhouse gig at the Pavilion Theatre in Festival Square. That's Albert Square, just so you know.
To see us out, here's a snap of New Order rocking the socks off their sold out crowd. See you tomorrow!
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Audience reactions: What Is The City But The Peoplepublished at 21:13 BST 29 June 2017
Nothing like being in the crowd... (and make sure you hit play on the video, trust us)

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Missed the live-stream of our festival opening extravaganza? Fear not! The show is available to watch again right here - just hit play at the top of the page, and enjoy a city in celebration.
Gearing up for New Orderpublished at 20:52 BST 29 June 2017
The first of 5 gigs kicks off now

The sold out New Order gigs begin right now, check out the lucky crowd anticipating some legendary elecro-rock action...
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How well do you know your Manchester culture?published at 20:26 BST 29 June 2017
Take our quiz and find out!
BBC Arts

From LS Lowry to Oasis, and from Joy Division to Jane Horrocks, this is your chance to test your knowledge of Manchester’s cultural icons past and present with a fun quiz from BBC Arts featuring some of the city's all-time cultural heavyweights.
Click here to play - no cheating!
Image caption,
Do you know where Oasis got their name?
Grime/House/Hip-hop fusion - listen nowpublished at 19:58 BST 29 June 2017
Levelz take to the stage in 10 minutes, and you deserve to hear them

Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Levelz
In the first of our 8 Dark Matter gigs, external, curated by BBC Radio 6 Music legend Mary Anne Hobbs, Levelz will takeover Gorilla tonight in an anarchic, joyful, utterly unique experience.
You might not be lucky enough to make it, but you can certainly still enjoy the music - check out their Soundcloud and let us know what you think @MIFestival #mif17
Thanks for watching, worldpublished at 19:46 BST 29 June 2017
And we have plenty more where that came from

We couldn’t be prouder of our city, its residents - and our open invitation to any and all remains.
Feel free to scroll down and take in the stories of every single person who walked our runway tonight. They were, and are, amazing.
And if you enjoyed What Is The City But The People?, make sure to catch our next live stream - One Of Two Stories Or Both, external - tomorrow at 6:30pm. See you then!
See our full live-stream programme, - and stay tuned, coming up, Levelz playlist and New Order cheatsheet!
And that, as they say, is that.published at 19:42 BST 29 June 2017
This year's festival has officially opened.

That's our live-stream, folks, we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.
Please do let us know what you thought, tweet us @MIFestival with the hashtag #whatisthecity.
We love MCR.
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What an opening, what a night, what a citypublished at 19:36 BST 29 June 2017
What is the City but the People?

(We don't mind admitting we're tearing up a bit now)
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Another Dawn: A good one?published at 19:33 BST 29 June 2017
Another love story…

Stefan
Image source, MIF
Here is another love story.
Stefan walked to Bucharest to the edge of Jerusalem and back. He says everyone is a pilgrim.
He slept in Piccadilly station and under the stars. He gets back to his room at 11 o'clock every night.
And, as our stars flood the stage...published at 19:32 BST 29 June 2017
The audience cheers every step

What Is the City But The People?
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Night: from dark to lightpublished at 19:28 BST 29 June 2017
What is the City but the People?

Jehona
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Kosovo. Aged 11, Jehona witnesses her mother bring shot. Altogether 19 members of her family are killed that day in the garden. Jehona is also shot, left for dead. The point is she's here to tell the tale. And she tells it to all that will listen and that don't want to hear.
Quote Message
After the war finished we were medically evacuated to Manchester for treatment. I call Manchester home now, it has given me so many opportunities and it has helped me with my recovery - Jehona
Josh
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Josh was probably maybe perhaps going to be a superstar footballer. Then a tackle smashed his knee and his dreams. So he started selling stuff. Let's leave it there… At 18 he decided to grow up, jack it in and deal with the slog of life.
"Perhaps this is the story of any city...published at 19:28 BST 29 June 2017

Or just this one."
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Night: from dark to lightpublished at 19:26 BST 29 June 2017
What is the City but the People?

Kath, Dusty, Sarah-Beth, Nik, Danny, Josh, Saffron & Shanice do things.
Together they occupy empty buildings to create homes. They imagine how it all could be. And then they try to make it so.
A protest, they say, is an expression of a desire. Maybe it's a story of resistance. Or resilience.
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Kath
Image source, MIF
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Dusty
Image source, MIF
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Sarah-Beth
Image source, MIF
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Nik
Image source, MIF
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Danny
Image source, MIF
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Josh
Image source, MIF
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Saffron
Image source, MIF
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Shanice
Quote Message
I always repeat the stories where I met people who've changed me, who've inspired me, who have helped me learn new things. Those people are important in my life – friends catch you when you fall. They put me back together again. – Sarah-Beth
The city is the starpublished at 19:26 BST 29 June 2017
What is the City but the People?

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Night: From Dark to Lightpublished at 19:22 BST 29 June 2017
What is the City but the People?

Janice
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
After the sudden death of her husband, Janice says mostly "yes".
Quote Message
I have an allotment, go walking with two different groups, go swimming, holidays when I can and also do lunch, dinner and cocktails! - Janice
Jim & Joan
Image source, MIF
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Jim and Joan look after a lot of people and they look after each other. Perhaps this is an everyday story.
Quote Message
I love Levenshulme because of its diversity. We have a real mixtue of people from all different backgrounds, which is really interesting - Joan
Andy
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Andy wants to tell you that he was raped. He wants to know that the rapist infected him with HIV. He wants you to know that he went through hell. But he got himself out with the help of Survivors UK, Buster and his Mum.
Kemoy
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Kemoy knew Jesse James. The boy who was shot dead in the park. He didn’t see changes being made, so he makes them himself. There's loads to do. It might not happen, but he's aiming to be PM.
Izzy
Image source, MIF
Image caption,
Isabelle watched her siblings go out to work and earn money. Now she designs a clothing range for Hope & Story. Perhaps this is a story of any city, or just this one.
Quote Message
I have just got a job with help from the Downs Syndrome Association. It was a big step for me. I had to practise travelling to work on my own...I love my job, they are like my family - Izzy
Night: from dark to lightpublished at 19:22 BST 29 June 2017
Shakar & Shabnam: A love Story continued

Shabnam
Image source, MIF
The love story continues…
So, Shabnam looks at the scruffy young man on the bus. And remembers the boy who locked her in a cupboard. For a laugh.
Shakar tells her about the bench, the lamp post and the biscuits. The next day, she makes him the best ever chicken kebabs.
Three months later, they marry. 20 years and 3 kids later they're still together. Shabnam and Shakar run a charity. And six nights a week a food bank from the back of their car.