The dynamo works its magic as Bradford becomes a city of culture

Thousands of people braved sub-zero temperatures to watch an open-air spectacle that included magician Steven Frayne, formerly known as Dynamo, a 10-year-old rapper and a dozen aerial dancers who performed in Bradford’s Year Launched as UK City of Culture.

Frayne told the audience that he began his career doing street magic in City Park, where the opening ceremony was held, and that his home city is “going to make its mark on the world” in 2025.

Organizers said about 10,000 people came to watch the show, which took place in temperatures of -3C (26.6F).

Bradford is the UK’s fourth City of Culture, a title awarded every four years.

The scheme is designed to boost visitor numbers, economy and reputation of the chosen city, and Bradford has received £15m of government funding over the year.

Other events will include the Turner Prize, a national drawing project inspired by Bradford-born artist David Hockney and an exhibition about the similarities between boxing and calligraphy.

Frayne said the title of Friday’s opening ceremony “means more than I can put into words”.

“To be in a place where there’s a huge stage placed right in the middle for people to come and share some wonder, it’s a dream come true,” he previously told BBC News.

“I’m very proud to be from Bradford. It’s not necessarily the easiest place to grow up… so to be a small part of this (celebration), it’s incredible.”

The initial show, titled Rise, featured 200 performers including 10-year-old rapper Cruzy T plus poets, musicians and dancers along with Fryan, with the theme being warts-and-all pride, unity, diversity and overcoming adversity.

On two stages, scaffolding towers held stacks of boxes containing performers, as slogans and scenes of the city and its people were projected.

Projections were also used to transform the towers into Fran’s childhood home, with a young actor playing Fran as a boy, before the real magician ushered in a series of tricks. Had collected.

The show will be staged again on Saturday.

Shanaz Gulzar, creative director of Bradford 2025, said the inaugural event aimed to show that Bradford and the UK are “incredibly diverse, representative, resilient and strong, and capable of doing magical, impossible things”.

He hopes this year will bring pride to Bradfordians, bring in more investment and show a new side to the city.

“There’s a particular press and a particular image of Bradford, which is not true,” he said.

“Every city in the UK has flashpoints, there are challenges, and you need to give yourself the space and time to navigate things and come through them,” he said.

“We are more than one flashpoint, we are more than one moment in time, we are more than our challenges – we are also our opportunities.”

Gulzar said the City of Culture has attracted funding to allow the National Science and Media Museum to undergo a £6 million renovation.

It reopened this week after 18 months and is hosting an exhibition of a selection of Hockney’s video and photography works. Meanwhile, a Hockney-inspired drawing project will run throughout the year.

Other highlights include a tribute to Bradford playwright Andrea Dunbar, a season of films by working-class northern women, the installation of a new 15 meters (50 ft) statue in the city center and an exhibition of striking surrealist photographs by Ethiopian photographer Aida Muluneh. Will be included. ,

The exhibition will then tour to Cardiff, Belfast and Glasgow, the first time the City of Culture program has visited all four countries of the UK.

Gulzar said winning the City of Culture title was also helpful in attracting a new Brit school, which has trained many stars including Adele and Tom Holland. It is expected to open in 2027.

However, the title has not worked its magic over everything in Bradford’s cultural landscape.

The former Bradford Odeon, located next to Friday’s launch event venue, was to be reopened as a music venue for the City of Culture year after a £50 million renovation.

But the NEC Group pulled out of running it last year, leaving it vacant and the council having to look for a new operator.

The previous Cities of Culture – Londonderry, Hull and Coventry – saw increased attention and investment during their tenure, but there have been mixed results and mixed feelings about the lasting impact of the plan after their years ended.

• bronte sisters – Emily, Charlotte and Anne lived in Haworth in the Bradford district
• frederick delius – The composer was born in Bradford in 1862
• JB Priestley -The playwright wrote his most famous work, An Inspector Calls, in 1945
• david hockney – Britain’s greatest living artist was born in the city and studied at the Bradford School of Art in the 1950s.
• andrea dunbar – Playwright known for 1982’s Rita, Sue and Bob Too

And five current cultural heroes:

• Zayn Malik – One Direction heartthrob is Bradford 2025 ambassador
• bad boy chiller crew – Baseline rap trio were nominated for the Best Group Brit Award in 2023
• Nia Archives – The jungle music producer was nominated for a Mercury Prize last year
• zoe thorogood – The graphic artist was nominated for five Eisner Awards, the “comic book Oscars,” in 2023
• AA Dhand – Crime novelist’s books are being turned into a major BBC One drama