COLCHESTER’S first Lightbulb Festival will take to the streets, bars, and live venues of the town this week, showcasing the area’s cultural side.

James Sarek of Colchester Poetry came up with the idea last year of a festival of classical music, local filmmaking and spoken word,

He says: “It was born out of a dream to get the community arts groups in the town working together and to deliver something to the public that showcases all that is good about the town.

“Not only that, we wanted to give people the chance to get involved. We have events ranging from poetry to film, contemporary music to karaoke, so, hopefully, people will find something that takes their fancy.”

The programme kicks off with a Poetry Showcase at the V Bar, in High Street, today, Thursday, June, 11, from 7.30pm to 11pm with Elvis McGonagall, a stand-up poet, who in 2006 won the World Slam Champion. He is one of the poets occasionally in residence on BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live.

He will be joined by MC Mixy, Fay Roberts and Colchester’s own wordsmith, JustSomeGuy.

On Friday, June 12, Colchester Film Festival and Slackshorts present an evening of short films, including some of best short films from last year’s film festival, screened on the back wall of 15 Queen Street from 8pm to 11pm, while at Trotters Bar, in Middleborough, Dead Air Live presents an evening of cutting-edge music from 9pm with performances by Hong Kong in the 60s, Sealionwoman, Doomsday Apocalypse Special and Dead Rat Orchestra’s Robin Alderton. Another member of the Dead Rats, Nathan Mann, is in action the following night at St Martin’s Church, in West Stockwell Street, from 7.30pm.

The evening, put on by Antigen Records, is celebration of the oral tradition with songs, poetry and stories. Also on the bill will be winner of the Colchester Arts Centre Poetry Slam, Tess Gardener and Some Kind Of Poetry Thing’s Aryn Clark.

Funded by Colchester Council, through the Creative Urban Renewal in Europe project funding, the festival comes to a climatic conclusion on Sunday with an open-air concert by Manningtree’s finest Dingus Khan, supported by iDrum and Colchester’s Hip Hop Workshop.

It takes place from 2pm to 5pm in the open space outside the Firstsite art gallery in Lewis Gardens, High Street. Finally, at St Martin’s Church from 7.30pm, an evening of classical music will feature performances by the Enescu String Quartet, Elaine Henson, Mark Gotham, Matthew Olyver and Tim Phillips.

The night will also feature an exciting premiere of a string quartet piece by Kelvedon-based performance music artist Lee Ashcroft.

For more information, go on-line at www.lightbulbfestival.co.uk