Accrington experiences weekend to remember as 5,000 people attend world class light event

A number of internationally renowned light sculptures descended on Accrington for a remarkable light event on Friday 25th and Saturday 26th October, which was attended by 5,000 people.

Enlighten saw the town’s key heritage buildings transformed, with contemporary art and light installations to savour.

Accrington Library, Accrington Town Hall, Market Chambers, the Victorian Arcade and St James Church featured incredible sculptures and performances, which wowed the visiting crowds, while there was also a fantastic opportunity to check out the newly revitalised Accrington Pals Memorial Garden on Church Street.

There was even a special appearance from actor Julie Hesmondhalgh, who led a special spoken word performance on the Saturday, reading a poem from Jeanette Winterson, as well as compering the main stage in Accrington Library, which featured spoken word performances from local school children.

Students from Accrington Woodnook Primary School, Hyndburn Park Primary School and Oswaldtwistle St Andrew’s CE Primary School all performed across the weekend, delivering poems about Accrington.

The free-to-attend event came in the form of a light trail around the town centre, where visitors were able to visit the different venues taking part, which included laser shows, light sculptures, a glow-in-the-dark community installation which saw 595 people take part in workshops before the event, Tiffany Glass, dragon projections, live singing performances and much more.

There was also an interactive trail around the town centre, where QR codes were scanned on mobile phones to reveal historical information about Accrington, including the Accrington Pals, Sir Harrison Birtwistle and more.

On Sunday, a ticketed event took place in Accrington Town Hall, with parents and their children enjoying a great afternoon of live music from Liverpool’s queens of electronic pop Stealing Sheep, while there was also a special performance from the principal viola of the Orchestra of Opera North, David Aspin, who originated from Accrington.

Councillor Kimberley Whitehead, Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage and Arts, said: “We have had the most amazing weekend here in Accrington Town Centre, with so many spectacular displays of art, light and culture.

“For both local people and those further afield, it has been a tremendous experience and one that has brought so much joy and entertainment.

“We hope the event will continue to enthuse and encourage our future generation to be creative and showcase their talents. Thank you to everyone who has made Enlighten such a special event.”

Actor Julie Hesmondhalgh, said: “Wow what an absolutely fantastic experience it has been, the Enlighten festival in Accrington Town Centre. All these huge scale immersive art installations all over the town, for free for people to enjoy, and ending with a fantastic evening of young people from the town reading poems about what Accrington means to them. I am very proud to have been part of it and well done Accrington.”

For more reaction from Enlighten, visit: www.hyndburnbc.gov.uk/enlighten

Enlighten is part of an exciting events programme delivered by Hyndburn Borough Council and funded by UK Government.  The event is curated by Hyndburn’s Head of Culture and Heritage, Lucy Dusgate.