15 – 17 May 2014
Museums at Night, the annual night-time festival of arts, heritage and culture, will take place this year over the weekend of Thursday May 15 – Saturday May 17, 2014.
Over three nights in May, during which time hundreds of museums, galleries and historic spaces all over the UK will open up late and putting on a dazzling array of special night-time events: from unique literary talks in castles to star gazing in historic houses; sleepovers in palaces to city-wide culture crawls; bands playing in amongst museum exhibits to science fiction life drawing in galleries. The Museums at Night festival offers the chance to experience culture and heritage in a totally unexpected way.
In Liverpool on May 16, Light Night will see over 50 city centre museums and galleries opening and staging over 100 special cultural events. Highlights include the opening night of ‘The Vanity of Small Differences’ by Turner Prize-winning artist Grayson Perry at The Walker Gallery. There will also be light projections taking place across the city and vibrant mix of special events, walking tours, exhibitions and participatory workshops.
Some of the Museums at Night highlights in Liverpool include:
- Walker Art Gallery: Grayson Perry: The Vanity of Small Differences, Friday 16 May. An early opportunity to see Grayson Perry’s celebrated series of six tapestries exploring taste, class, aspiration and identity in a British context will be going on display to coincide with the Liverpool Biennial.
- Walker Art Gallery: Bring the Fire Project: Japanese Fire, Friday 16 May. A mesmerising experience created by Liverpool’s best up and coming fire artist collective. Enjoy a cutting edge performance comprising of live drumming, extraordinary fire costumes and installations with a mixture of stylistic elements taken from Japanese traditions. Created by Liverpool’s best up and coming fire artist collective, this fire and light performance is based on the exploration between modern objects manipulation arts, various dance forms and theatre techniques.
- Secret Location:Â LightNightÂ
Projections, Friday 16 May. Be dazzled by large-scale spectacular light projections by new media artist Andy McKeown on LightNight. The light projections will commemorate the centenary commemorations of WWI. The locations will be announced in Liverpool Echo during the week commencing 12 May 2014.
- Blackburne House: A Nightmare on Hope Street – Blackburne House Ghost Hunt,Friday 16 May. Join Night Vision Investigations as they give you a crash course in real ghost hunting at Blackburne House situated on “the most haunted street in the World”. You’ll learn the skills and knowledge to conduct a paranormal investigation and using their scientific equipment you will hopefully capture evidence of paranormal activity. No actors are involved, this is a REAL investigation.
- Liverpool Central Library, Archive and Record Office: Legends of Flight and Word up on LightNight, Friday 16 May. An immersive live musical and visual performance of a new composition in the amazing surroundings of the Discover Room. Lie on the floor and listen to a combination of electronic and traditional acoustic instrumentation and watch the visuals created by custom developed software projected onto the ceiling. Then go out to the roof terrace for another sound and light spectacular from Writing on the Wall, featuring performances of spoken word, rap and performance poetry from WoW’s Liverpool Young Writers and Nikki Blaize.
- News from Nowhere Bookshop: Celebrate the Peacemakers,  Friday 16 May. The day after International Conscientious Objectors Day, join the Nowhere Bookshop in their 40th year of celebrating peacemakers, from those who refused to fight such as Muhammad Ali and Joe Glenton, to those who dedicate their lives to stopping war. Help make 100 paper Peace Crane (in Japan 100 origami cranes traditionally means the granting of a wish), play an interactive game and enjoy white refreshments.
- Liverpool ONE: Tours of Liverpool’s Old Docks, Friday 16 May. Merseyside Maritime Museum will lead two LightNight tours of Liverpool’s revolutionary Old Dock, the world’s first commercial enclosed wet dock. Go back in time during this fully accessible tour and see a large portion of the Old Dock rising more than 20 feet from the bed of the Pool which is clearly visible.
- Baltic Creative: LightNight @ Baltic Creative, Friday 16 May. Liverpool’s vibrant creative and digital hub in the Baltic Triangle opens its doors to visitors of all ages to enjoy a mixture of workshops and open studios including monoprinting
 workshops with artist Sue Comer, photography from POTO Studios, workshops with as creatives, Edwardian Afternoon tea at Alison Appleton studio and live music at Unit 51 café. - Bridewell Studios and Gallery: Whines and Spirits – A Ghost Hunt at Liverpool ONE Bridewell, Friday 16 May. Do you dare to spend the night locked up in Liverpool’s former jailhouse? Then join us after hours for a paranormal investigation inside the Liverpool One Bridewell. The Bridewell is a Grade II Listed building built in the 1850s. Many drunks, robbers and assailants have been thrown into the cells and are now said to haunt the building. Learn the skills and knowledge to conduct a real paranormal investigation – no actors are involved!
- Liverpool Anglican Cathedral: Choral Psychedelia, Friday 16 May. As part of Liverpool’s International Festival of Psychedelia (27-28 September 2014), a unique musical and visual collaboration will take place between leading musicians from the global psychedelic underground and Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral. Based on the traditions of choral Evensong, the collaboration will see two seemingly disparate creative worlds gloriously converge within the Anglican Cathedral’s awe-inspiring confines. Expect anthemic drones and mesmeric strobes.
- The Bluecoat: 20 Stories High: HEADZ and JAM, Friday 16 May. Liverpool’s acclaimed 20 Stories High Young Actor’s Company present a special night at the Bluecoat. HEADZ is a reading of extracts from their forthcoming show, chronicling the lives and stories of young people in the UK today, This sharing is followed by 20 STORIES HIGH JAM. live music, open mic, slam poetry, and club tunes.
- Lush Spa: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Scented Cinema, Friday 16 May. Enter a world of pure imagination at the Lush Spa Liverpool Scented Cinema production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Your senses will be tantalised with exciting fragrances as you watch the 1971 adaptation of the classis Roald Dahl novel.
Events are being added on a daily basis but full listings for Museums at Night can be found at www.museumsatnight.org.uk.Â