LONDON, July 4 (Xinhua) -- Bells were ringing out Thursday to kick-start one of Britain's biggest cultural events, the Manchester International Festival (MIF).
Launched in 2007 as an artist-led celebration presenting new works from across the spectrum of performing arts, visual arts and popular culture, the festival, which runs through to July 21, has attracted internationally acclaimed artists from over 20 countries.
Many are working in one-off creative collaborations, with 20 UK and world premieres taking place during the 18-day event.
Yoko Ono, widow of the late British singer-songwriter John Lennon, has inspired the festival's opening day event, Bells for Peace.
The 86-year-old artist is making a video appearance at the event on Thursday. Ill health has prevented her from making the journey to Manchester.
"When I was a little girl and we wanted to celebrate, we always made sure to use the bell," she said in a message to Manchester.
"Peace is a celebration. The beauty of this piece will break the sky and more. One of the reasons this is very different is the fact that all of us will be making the sound together. More than ever, we must come together to heal each other and the world."
Manchester Cathedral gardens, close to the city arena where 22 people were killed in a terrorist attack in 2017, was chosen as the starting point for the bell festival.
The festival organisers have had 4,000 hand-engraved bells made to hand out to people, with hundreds taking part in bell-making workshops.
Albert Square in front of Manchester Town Hall has been transformed into the beating heart of MIF, with a pop-up festival venue hosting a free program of music and performance plus a lineup of street food and supper clubs.
John McGrath, CEO and artistic director for the event, said: "At MIF19, we see a whole host of artists looking to the future, some with hope, some with imagination and some with concern. We never impose themes on the artists we work with, but it's striking how this year's program reflects our complicated times in often surprisingly joyous and unexpected ways."
"Featuring artists from more than 20 countries, the festival also has strong local roots, with several commissions featuring the people of Manchester as participants. MIF19 will be a feast of energy, which I hope will inspire debate and delight for the festival's 18 days and far beyond."
Manchester's own history is taking center stage in MIF19, with the performance of "The Anvil: An Elegy for Peterloo," which marks the landmark 200th anniversary of the city's Peterloo massacre of August 1819, when British cavalry men charged into a crowd of up to 80,000 people who had gathered in Manchester to demand the reform of parliamentary representation, leaving 18 dead and hundreds injured.
ANU, one of Europe's most daring theater companies, will take to the streets during the festival for a series of immersive performances inspired by the stories of those who died in a massacre at St Peter's Field.
