Liverpool Youth Service website

Fun at the Festival

Fun at the Festival

Last week young people from across the City took part in activities and workshops as part of the Integrated Youth & Play Service 'Mardi Gras Festival.'

Young people got involved in all kinds of arts activities from lantern making to circus skills, from dance workshops to DJing. The events were held to give young people a chance to learn a new skill, get involved in new ways and find out more about the Youth & Play Service and the kind of things they offer.

At the City & North Mardi Gras, held at Marybone Youth Centre, there were some great dance workshops going on and the young people got to show off their new skills in a performance which took place towards the end of the event. Some of the young people built a huge lantern which was used at the end of the event as part of the parade; something which is done at Mardi Gras festivals all over the world.

There were some brilliant performances, including a dance group, a DJing session, drama and a spoken word MC artist who spoke about Anthony Walker and race issues in Liverpool, which was really thought provoking.

Over at the Harthill Youth Centre in Wavertree, young people in the South Central area of Liverpool were doing some MCing workshops of their own, which were based around the theme of respect. The young people had the chance to record a demo CD and it was a great way to express positive messages and talk about respect in a more creative way. The lyrics which were written were all about everyday life and the experiences that young people have in Liverpool, their interests and the issues which affect them. The professional MC's who were leading the workshop really liked the lyrics and the demos the young people produced and were impressed at the amount of talent in South Central!

The South Central area is certainly not short of creative talent as young people took part in jewellery design, card making and face painting and there was even a smoothie making area for those who wanted to invent their own healthy smoothie recipe! The young people had the chance to use the 'bike powered blender' which meant the faster they cycled, the quicker their smoothie was ready!

The events went really well in each of the areas and it was great to see so many young people using their talents and getting involved in new activities. Liverpool Integrated Youth & Play Service provides young people with the chance to learn new skills at their local youth centre so if you are keen to try something different check the 'find an activity' section of the website.