THE LONG-AWAITED Penarth Summer Festival is officially launched today.

The hugely popular Cliff Top Artists outdoor art exhibition, which has been part of the summer festival since 1965, officially launches the programme of events from 12pm on Thursday.

The Razzle Dazzle Theatre School will also be performing The Wizard of Oz on the opening day at the Paget Rooms, from 7pm, while on Friday there will be a treasure hunt at Penarth Athletic Club from 5pm and a Murder Mystery evening with PODS at the Paget Rooms from 7.15pm too. The Penarth Chamber Music Festival Gala Concert is also held at the Penarth Pier Pavilion on Friday from7.30pm.

Other must-see events on Saturday include Brass in the Park in Windsor Gardens and a Summer Festival Rock'n'Roll ball at the Paget Rooms.

Saturday also sees the launch of the Open Studio Trail.

The trail will be showcasing nine different artists’ studios, with eighteen artists taking part altogether, and will allow people to discover the diverse and vibrant artistic talent that is available in Penarth. The idea was put forward by Cathy O’Doherty, who runs the fused glass studio Cod Glass in Plymouth Road.

“I realised there is a lot of diverse talent in Penarth and that local people are not aware of who or what is on their doorstep. By joining together in this way we have a golden opportunity to change that. I know the popular ‘Open Gardens Trail’ in Penarth is very successful and this model could be adopted for an Open Studio Trail with the added bonus for us to raise funds for our chosen charity, Breast Cancer Care,” said Cathy.

All the studios are in walking distance of Penarth Town Centre, and there should be something for everyone as fine art, glass and ceramics will be on show. The artists will be available to discuss their work and all studios will have items for sale. Refreshments of tea, coffee and cake will be available at most studios with a donation to Breast Cancer Care

Leaflets with all available 'Open Studios' will be available from 113 Plymouth Road.

Penarth artist and mum-of-three Ceri Lambert has also organised this year’s Summer Festival Children’s Day, joining forces with a number of local small businesses and traders to create an exciting day out for all the family.

The Children’s Day is taking place on Saturday, July 12, between 11am and 4pm at The Kymin, Penarth.

The event is being aimed at children and their parents, with something for everyone to enjoy.

On the day kids can take part in a range of fun craft activities, as well as enjoying the face painting, workshops, a giant inflatable slide, games, stalls, a candy floss stand, and a recital by Penarth’s newest theatre school -D.A.P.S.

Penarth library staff are offering story times for the little ones and there will also be a free treasure hunt around the grounds of The Kymin written by Ceri’s husband, TV writer Kit Lambert.

Ceri said: “Basically I asked my children what they’d like on the day and then worked from there! I’m very lucky to know some incredibly talented and generous local business people, many of them working parents, and together we’ve organised a programme for families to have fun together. It’s been hard work but we love bringing our children up in Penarth and wanted to offer something back to the community.”

The Artisan Cook and Foxy’s Deli will be providing refreshments, including ice cream and freshly-made pizzas, and there will also be a raffle on the day in aid of The Anaphylaxis campaign.

The event follows from the success of last year’s Town Treasure Hunt and Family day by the same organisers which raised hundreds of pounds for charity. Keri Hutchings, the overall festival organiser, added: “The Children’s Day is a welcome addition to our programme and was one of the highlights of last year. We’re very fortunate to have so many local people who are willing to volunteer their time making the festival a success.”

More details can be found on:

http://www.artymonkey.org/Events.php

www.facebook.com/theartymonkey

email: admin@artymonkey.org

tel: 07792 403919