'City Of Culture' Welcomes Americana Festival

As part of their celebrations for winning the UK City Of Culture, Londonderry will be hosting a variety of Northern Ireland's best folk acts in an Americana spectacular.

Stripes and Stars Americana will take place on Friday July 1 and Saturday 2. Sponsored by Budweiser and the American Consulate for Northern Ireland, the event, being described as "a crescendo of sight and sound", will bring the best of Americana culture to the North West.

Organisers said they aim to provide a festival that focuses on three main Americana themes; Music, Cinema and Literature. The music acts involved include Lowly Knights, Murder Balladeers, The 1930s, Captain Kennedy, Sullivan & Gold, Wookalily, Rachel Austin, Porch Song Anthology, Acoustic Dan & The Black Mountain Dipsos, The Heads of State and The Sons of Caliber.

The event will also feature a screening of the film The Last Picture Show.

A spokesman for the event said: "We intend to bring a sense of fun and Americana style to the maiden city which has been a major contributor to the development of Americana culture from the diasporas that have left these shores."

Celebrating Americana in all its forms, the main activity surrounds a two-day long festival, which takes place close to American Independence Day on July 4.

The festival was officially launched on Saturday 26th March in Bound for Boston, which was preceded by a Harley Davidson chopper display. During the launch, over one hundred bikers proceeded around Derry's two bridges and ended up in Bound for Boston.

The Tower Hotel in Derry have also provided an overnight stay for two with evening dinner, bed and breakfast as an exclusive prize draw on behalf of Stripes and Stars. All contestants need to do is join the events mailing list or like their Facebook page and they will automatically be eligible for the draw. The winner will be selected on 31st July 2011.

Tickets are available across all shows ranging from free admission to £6 and a special weekend ticket is also available for £10 only. Tickets can be purchased online at http://stripesandstars.ticketsource.co.uk/ and can be purchased at both The Waterside Theatre and The Nerve Centre.

Further details, along with abreakdown of the weekend's events are available on the Stripes and Stars website www.stripesandstars.co.uk.

(DW/KMcA)