Today (8 December), the National Eisteddfod published its preliminary competitions programme for the festival held in Rhondda Cynon Taf next year
The announcement comes following discussions with Eisteddfod committees and groups, together with feedback from competitors, adjudicators, and the public during recent months.
The programme is ambitious and flows throughout the week, culminating in a natural and clear highlight at the end of the week. The main solo competitions in each of the sections will be held on the final Saturday, creating an impressive finale for the week.
Sunday sees a brand-new choral competition on the Pavilion stage, aimed at first-time Eisteddfod competitors, encouraging local community choirs to take to the national stage for the first time. The Open Choir competition will move to a new slot on Wednesday.
Visitors will be able to enjoy a taste of choral singing every day in Rhondda Cynon Taf, with organisers planning to programme a daily choral competition as part of the schedule on the Pavilion stage.
The Eisteddfodau Cymru choral competition kicks things off on Saturday 3 August, as part of a series of competitions celebrating the important relationship between the National Eisteddfod and the local and regional eisteddfodau across Wales.
By having a chance to look anew at the shape of the competitions programme, organisers have been able to ensure that all group competitions appear on the main pavilion stage, without having to introduce preliminary rounds in any of the artistic disciplines. They hope to attract competitors from all over Wales and beyond to take part in the festival held in Pontypridd next August.
Organisers will be announcing a series of special opportunities for former-winners over the coming months, with a number of performances and commissions planned, ensuring that the Eisteddfod continues to develop and support those who’ve competed as individuals on Wales’ main stage.
Trystan Lewis, chair of the National Eisteddfod’s Cultural Committee, said, “We’re delighted to start publishing our new-look competitions programme today. This is the biggest shakeup the programme’s had for many years. I hope our competitors and audiences will see this as an exciting development, confirming the important and central role of our competitions in the festivals or years to come.
“We’re very grateful to everyone who’s advised us as we’ve been developing the programme, both within the Eisteddfod and as we’ve been discussing a few of the ideas more widely. We’ve had a chance to listen and work in a different way and we’ve created an attractive programme, which flows well throughout the week.
“We’re publishing the day and date of every competition today, and we’ll be sharing information in the new year. We’ll then announce the full programme after 1 May, once we know how many group competitors have registered.
The competitions portal opens on 16 January as part of the 200 days to go celebrations. All information available online, www.eisteddfod.wales. The Eisteddfod is held from 3-10 August next year.