Meridian Puts Its Power Behind Iconic Carnival

Media Advisory for Immediate use 17 February 2009

Meridian Puts Its Power Behind Iconic Carnival

On 21 February the Cuba St Carnival will mark its 10th year of celebrating the distinctive culture of Wellington’s much loved street.

Each year the Carnival continues to grow and this year will be no different, with crowds of 150,000 people expected.

Wellington’s Cuba St Carnival is New Zealand’s largest street festival and, thanks to the support of sponsors such as Meridian, it continues to be a free event.

This year, Meridian will sponsor the Meridian Illuminated Night Parade, considered by many to be a highlight of the Carnival.

Meridian Sponsorship Manager Mel Seyfort says the company is delighted to be involved with such an iconic event.

“The Cuba Street Carnival is an event that gets the whole city buzzing. Although it’s just 10 years old, the Carnival has already become an iconic Wellington event - celebrating the capital’s truly vibrant culture. Meridian is proud to be part of the Wellington community, so joining in the carnival fun just makes sense to us,” she says.

“I know our team is certainly looking forward to having a ‘hands on’ involvement with this event,” she added.

The Meridian Illuminated Night Parade is set to sparkle from 9pm on 21 February. The parade starts at Courtenay Place and runs all the way to the top of Ghuznee St. The 2009 parade will be even more spectacular than ever with pre-entertainment from 8pm.

“The parade is being amped up even more for the ten year anniversary, so there will be a whole kilometre of flamboyant fun and sparkling surprises,” says Mel Seyfort.

“This event marks the start of some real celebrations for Meridian and the Wellington community, as the capital’s wind farm West Wind comes on line later this year – this is a great kick start to Wellington celebrations. We look forward to seeing Wellingtonians turn out in force and can’t wait to see some of the fantastic costumes they come along in,” she added.

Cuba St Carnival Artistic Director Chris Morley-Hall says the relationship with Meridian is a good fit.

“The Illuminated Night Parade provides a kilometre of sparkling, lively, energised, enthusiastic and vivacious entertainment. We couldn’t imagine a better fit for this sponsorship than Meridian,” he says.

The award-winning Meridian Illuminated Night Parade includes floats and performers from all over New Zealand.

Other highlights to look out for at the Cuba Street Carnival include a display of street art as you have never seen before, to Latin American performances, as well as music from a wide variety of acts including the Wellington International Ukelele Orchestra, and The Tutts.

Event Details:

Event: Meridian Illuminated Night Parade as part of the Cuba Street Carnival
Time: Live music from 8pm, Parade begins at 9pm
Location: The parade starts at Courtenay Place and runs to the top of Ghuznee Street.

ENDS

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