Festival Background

Manchester International Festival is the world’s first international festival of original, new work and it takes place biennially in Manchester, UK.

The Industrial Revolution forged the world's first modern city, which on 28 June – 15 July 2007 launched the world's first international festival of original, new work - created by leading artists from across the spectrum of credible popular culture, innovation and the arts.

Drawing on the City’s history, present and future, the Festival addresses urgent issues and stories of our time, whilst also reaffirming Manchester’s status as the ‘24-hour party city’. The unprecedented scope and ambition of the Festival’s inaugural commissions was rewarded with enthusiastic audiences and international critical acclaim.

A number of the productions created for the 2007 Festival are now touring internationally, while the Festival team focus on the 2009 Festival (programme to be announced in early 2009), which takes place in Manchester, Thursday 2 – Sunday 19 July 2009.

In June 2008, the Festival will present Leonard Cohen for four nights at Manchester Opera House as a trailblazer event leading up the 2009 Festival.