Wednesday 24 May

To Our Friends, Supporters and Partners:

The events of Monday night have horrified everyone in Manchester and beyond.  Our thoughts are first and foremost with the victims and their loved ones, targeted on an evening when they had come together to celebrate music and friendship.

As many of you will have witnessed, the response in the city has been of deep sadness but also great determination. The vigil in Albert Square on Tuesday evening was an extraordinary demonstration of strength and courage by the people of Manchester.

In the coming weeks, MIF will be working with the city council, Greater Manchester Police and other relevant organisations to review all arrangements for MIF17, including security procedures and precautions, and we expect to open the festival as planned on Thursday 29 June.

We hope the Festival will be a celebration of Manchester’s strength and spirit for the people of the city and visitors from across the world. Since Monday, we have received messages from our artists, friends and partners at home and abroad, full of love and support for Manchester.  They will all be here as planned this summer.

Whatever the outcomes of – and reasons for – this awful event, creative engagement and cultural understanding are more important now than ever.  Manchester is a city defined by its great culture. Art and creativity will be at the heart of our response to this attack, a source of healing and hope.

John McGrath (Artistic Director) and Tom Bloxham (Chair)