At Manchester international festival 2019, the Guardian will be running a series of events. Our eclectic line-up includes artists and Guardian journalists, and features a 30-strong choir, a Hollywood heavyweight, and the spirit of 1989.
The House of Unrest
5-7 July, Brickworks, Barton Arcade
A weekend takeover of an underground city centre venue, the House of Unrest celebrates the spirit of activism through an exciting programme featuring talks, workshops and documentary screenings.
Power of the word walking tours
5-7 July
Join experienced guide Jonathan Schofield for a walking tour of Manchester as he explores the words that made the city and influenced the world. This unique walk will reveal how the written and spoken word have shaped Manchester.
Rise Like Lions (in collaboration with Manchester Histories)
6 July, 5.30pm, Festival Square
To commemorate the Peterloo massacre’s bicentenary, actors, performers and spoken-word artists will read words of protest, with the 30-strong Commoners Choir providing an emotional finale. The event features an introduction by Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner and a powerful audiovisual experience from Greenaway & Greenaway charting the history of protest in the UK.
Rave, revolution and the spirit of 1989
6 July, 2pm, Whitworth Art Gallery
As part of Interdependence we look back to 1989, a year of seismic political change in Europe and cultural change closer to home. Guardian columnist John Harris will be in conversation with writer Agata Pyzik and DJ Dave Haslam, asking what it would take to see the optimistic spirit that defined that year return.
Ivo van Hove in conversation
10 July, 1pm, Manchester Art Gallery
In this one-off lunchtime event, presented by MIF in association with Guardian Live, Belgian theatre director Ivo van Hove will be talking about his life and work with Guardian theatre critic Michael Billington.
David Lynch: The power of Transcendental Meditation
13 July, 4.30pm, HOME
Join film director David Lynch (via video link), Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess and the executive director of the David Lynch Foundation UK, Deirdre Parsons, for an exploration of Transcendental Meditation.
For more information and ticket details, visit membership.theguardian.com/events