Played in Oxford, Museums at Night May 2016

Played in Oxford 

On the night of 13 the of May guests at the Museum of Oxford enjoyed listening, and even dancing along, to some of the best local musicians performing in Oxford today. Played in Oxford, part of the nation-wide Museums at Night phenomenon, was the young volunteers group’s latest highly successful event.

Beginning a couple of months earlier by reflecting on the sad passing of the musical legend David Bowie, we wanted to celebrate the musical history of our own city. How apt that such an event should take place in the Town Hall where Bowie himself once performed. Our first decision was to showcase a range of local musicians of all genres and ages. 

After releasing a general call-out we whittled down the exciting responses to create a wonderfully varied line-up for the evening. Played in Oxford featured performances from Jack Little, Three Empty Domes, Papa Nui, Phousa, and Art Theefe. Jack Little and Phousa both presented chilled acoustic sets, Three Empty Domes’ alternative music stepped up the pace a little and Pape Nui and Art Theefe had our guests up and dancing to wrap the evening up. Along with a boogie we also offered our guests a bar, the evening was staffed by the team with faces bearing the Bowie lighting.

Of course it wasn’t all play! A major part of the promotional material for this event was centred around the team’s research into Oxford’s musical history. From this material we drew fun and interesting facts to create fantastic promotional videos, filmed around Oxford, which can now be seen on the Museum of Oxford’s YouTube channel.

The event attracted a variety of visitors from teens, to adults, to those still young at heart. Money raised by the event will be fed into the young volunteer’s next projects including the next Museums at Night event in October. Therefore, the team would like to thank all the performers and the brilliant guests who made the night so much fun!

We are eager to make the event a regular feature so keep your eyes peeled for the next #PlayedinOxford

Olivia Kippax-Jones