You’ve got to hand it to Toowoomba; there we were looking forward to a balmy spring day at the Parkhouse Cafe for the launch.  What happened instead?  A gale blew out of the southwest during the night, and the temperature next morning dropped by what seemed 10 degrees from the day before.  The wind blustered its way through the camphor laurel trees outside--a little bit of atmosphere for Macbeth!  At least it didn’t snow as it decided to do, most unseasonally, in Tenterfield.

 

It was indeed, a master stroke to decide to take the launch indoors this year.  It’s always been under the trees in the Park itself, but we would have been blown away today if we hadn’t been inside the Parkhouse.  What nice people they are at the cafe.  1 hour complimentary wireless internet access for customers and a great venue.  They are also supplying catering hamper packs for our customers next year, and seem almost as excited as we are about the whole event.

 

A great turnout from the local business, government, media, USQ and the education sectors for a talk-up of Festival 2007 and the launch of the website

This is a nice looking site, a bit “corporate” in its look, but clean and efficient nevertheless.  It lacks a hit-counter, but we can get these stats from the folks in IT.  Importantly, it’s a one-stop shop and media outlet for the Festival which is being updated on a regular basis to keep the customers coming back, and build interest in the Festival as it looms closer.

 

The Vice-Chancellor said good things, Cr Michelle Schneider, on behalf of the Mayor, was equally complimentary, and we got some good media hits as well.  The students presented a little bit of “theatre for the mind”, a soundscape of Macbeth “bits” and three sonnets as tasters for the program.    Fun to see people listening so intently to Shakespeare’s words.  The pictures are of course, always better on radio!  We also created an A-V look at past festivals which was screened for the gathering.  The launch was a nice way for all of us to stop, take breath, and gear up for the next phase, which right now, is the finalising of budgets and creation of what is in essence, a giant “to-do” list.  Onwards and upwards.