Children’s Festival future still uncertain
Posted June 5, 2011 1:30 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – It’s still a little too early to say whether the Vancouver International Children’s Festival will be around next year.
The festival has been moved to Granville Island, from its traditional Vanier Park location, in order to save on costs.
Artistic and executive director Katherine Carol admits reaction to the move has been mixed. “I imagine that has had some impact. Certainly, some of the people I’ve spoke to are very happy to be here. But other people preferred to be at Vanier Park. So the jury is still out on that one.”
The date was changed, too. “It’s two weeks later. It’s no longer on the May long weekend. It should be easier for some people to attend, since a lot of people take off for the long weekend,” she speculates.
Organizers say they needed to sell 20,000 tickets for this weekend’s event to bring down the deficit. The festival lost half of its federal funding last year, and 20 per cent of its provincial funding.
