The park will spring to life on Monday 29 August, with a series of performances developed by Plymouth Dance for the final installment of the Council’s ‘Art in Central Park’ project.
Art in Central Park is a two-year public art and engagement programme linking in with the construction of the new Plymouth Life Centre and has featured a series of innovative and exciting projects to showcase the park's recreational use, beauty and heritage.
As well as performing in three separate locations in the park, Plymouth Dance will team up with local sports and dance groups to create a series of ‘Gorilla Picnics’ – where groups of young people appearing to be enjoying a picnic in the park will suddenly break out into dance at times throughout the afternoon.
The programme has evolved alongside the Plymouth Life Centre development and Plymouth Dance has been actively working to create links with future Plymouth Life Centre users to bring about the ‘Gorilla Picnics’.
Councillor Glenn Jordan, the Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Leisure said: “This is a great way to encourage more people to visit Central Park over the August Bank Holiday weekend and I’m sure it will be a fantastic final instalment to the Art in Central Park project. Plymouth Dance has created a day of events that all the family can enjoy, so why not pack a picnic and come down.
“Art in Central Park as been a huge success over the past two years and I can’t think of a better way for it to end than with Dance in the Park. The park provides the perfect stage for the music and dance performances and we hope to attract lots of new visitors to join in the fun and excitement.”
Plymouth Dance Coordinating Producer, June Gamble, added: “Dance in the Park brings the worlds of sport and dance together including netball and basketball players performing dances inspired by their respective games. It also gives us the opportunity to bring Central Park to life and celebrate all that it has to offer as a public space in the city of Plymouth.”
As one of the best leisure facilities of its kind in the South West and one of the country's leading centres of sporting excellence, the Plymouth Life Centre will underline the city's growing credentials as a premier venue for local, national and international sporting events.
When the centre is built, Plymouth will have the only 50-metre competition pool in Devon, Cornwall and Dorset. The aquatic facilities are set to be the largest of their type in Southern England (outside of the Olympic Village) and the gym will be the largest public facility of this type in the area.
The Plymouth Life Centre is the city’s biggest single investment in leisure facilities and its flexible use will bring huge benefits for the local economy and further strengthen inward investment for the city. For more information visit www.plymouth.gov.uk/lifecentre
For more information about the Art in Central Park project, visit www.plymouth.gov.uk/artincentralpark
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