5th-7th January in Robin Hoods Bay & Whitby

www.musicportfestival.com

Eliza Carthy MBE has announced the line-up she has brought together for the 4th Normafest the festival she instigated to celebrate her mother Norma Waterson MBE and which allows Norma, the legendary English folk singer. the opportunity to perform again after a prolonged battle with ill-health.

Headlining the 2018 event from Ireland the amazing DERVISH who together with Lisa Knapp & Gerry Diver, Jackie Oates & Jack Rutter, Topette! , Banter , The Gift Band Acoustic (featuring Norma Waterson), Bright Phoebus Band (including Eliza , Marry Waterson. Neill MacColl etc) Thomas McCarthy. Eddie Jay, Hardeep Singh Kohli & Ian Clayton will provide a very special weekend of music, song and dance.

Friday nights events will all be in Robin Hoods Bay, Saturday’s events at Whitby Pavilion & Sunday’s afternoon session at Robin Hoods Bay.

Tickets are on sale via Musicport website with a limited number of full weekend tickets priced at £55. (tel 01947 603475)
There will also be a separately ticketed reception Friday teatime (5th Jan) at Tea Toast & Post in Robin Hoods Bay hosted by Norma herself. Tickets for this are £20 but very limited in number.

As Eliza explains “Seven years ago my mam was in a coma for four months having got septicaemia and she came out of it much physically impaired. That alongside the crippling arthritis she already had, meant she had to teach herself how to walk again, how to talk again, how to lift a cup. She can still sing, and she in fact comes alive when she sings. But the one thing she can’t do is travel. Normafest gives her a local opportunity to get on a stage and do what she loves. Everybody facilitates that, essentially. We sell tickets in order to pay bands to come here and augment the bill, so that if she isn’t able to perform, which can happen, there is still an extremely strong supporting bill of music around her. Normafest is a non-profit event, so most of these artists that have agreed to play for expenses and divide whatever is left in the pot between them which can amount to not very much.”

(Dervish)