World Buskers Festival expected to break records

Media Release - January 23, 2003

World Buskers Festival expected to break all records

The 10th annual World Buskers Festival in Christchurch which ends on Sunday is expected to break all attendance records.

A record 180,000 people watched the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute and Technology festival last year and this mark is on course to be broken this week.

Festival director Jodi Wright said today ``audience numbers have been up and we'll have more details next week''.

``Crowd favourites have been Blackstreet Boyz, Coexistence, Planet Banana and Skatenaked.

``The city mall and Cathedral Square have been incredibly lively for the past week beginning early in the day.''

The festival ends on Sunday but a post festival education expo featuring the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute and Technology's school of circo arts and festival performers will be staged at the Christchurch Town Hall on January 28.

The Christchurch City Council core-funded festival is a leading event of its kind in Australasia. Each year the organisers get more than 100 applications from international acts hoping to secure one of the spots.

Twenty-four clever and funny acts by 34 artists from around the world have been providing 300 street and stage shows and has been a major drawcard for overseas tourists and New Zealand holidaymakers.

Wright said last year's crowd of 180,000 people was up 20 percent on 2001. The growth in the event has been staggering after only 8000 people saw the first festival in 1994.

Christchurch City Council's annual resident survey in March found the Buskers event one of the most popular among the city's people.

Ends

Media advisory: For further information, please contact Jodi Wright, World Buskers Festival organiser Ph: 03 377 2365 or 021 679 542

Kip Brook, Word of Mouth Media NZ Ph: 03 374 5426

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