Wednesday, 10am: THE SO Festival is set to remain a mid-year fixture, despite suggestions that shifting it later into the season could have more tangible benefits for Skegness.
Instead of tinkering with the current formula, the possibility of staging a second gala as a complementary finale to the holiday period will continue to be investigated.
"The SO Festival is set to stay early season where we feel we are best served at a time of a high concentration of visitors," East Lindsey District Council (ELDC) spokesman James Gilbert said yesterday.
"However I do know that Stefan Krause and the Town Centre Partnership are looking at doing something for later in the calendar to prolong the season."
Attracting visitors to the coast after the traditional summer rush and providing more child-friendly timeslots for night shows are two of the reasons a delay of the SO Festival has been suggested.
ELDC claims Saturday night's illuminations parade by Plasticiens Volants drew 16,000 spectators, while Friday night's aerial drumming by Transe Express pulled in 6,000.
Those figures will help justify a break from traditional switch-on festivities and a brave venture into a more artistic and performance-based realm.
"It demonstrated the public is fascinated and intrigued with events of this type," said festival director Robin Morley of Magnetic Events.
"It is new and the reality is that some things worked extremely well and some things didn't. But we have provided a good solid foundation for the future."
Following the four-day extravaganza ELDC has already started canvassing potential international and national partners to secure funds to grow the event.
For the last two years the SO Festival has been made possibly largely by a £250,000 grant from Arts Council England.
However ELDC is mindful of not relying on one source to ensure the longevity of the concept.
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