Wonder Women feminist festival returns for 2017

Manchester's feminist festival Wonder Women returns this March with a programme of art, music, film, theatre and more.

Feature by The Skinny North | 06 Feb 2017

Drawing inspiration from Manchester's history of radical and feminist politics, Wonder Women festival marks International Women's Day 2017 with a ten-day programme of events.

Running 2-12 March, Wonder Women includes exhibition takeovers, comedy nights, inclusive parties, debates and more, taking place across many of Manchester and Salford's cultural venues. 

Highlights include a one-night intervention at Manchester Art Gallery, where Martin Parr's Strange and Familiar exhibition will be brought to life by performances exploring the social, cultural and political identity of women in 2017; a pop-up cinema event at the People's History Museum marking International Women's Day itself; a Ladyfest workshop offering an introduction to music production and marketing at Islington Mill; and an all-female techno night celebrating women working in the genre's left-field at Texture. 

At HOME, a screening of queer-punk documentary Rebel Dykes offers the chance to look back to the women of the 1980s who challenged norms in the post-punk era, while up-and-coming comedian Sophie Willan presents her acclaimed show On Record, which deals with her personal experiences of growing up in the care system, at the Lowry.

Conversations and panel discussions come from the likes of the Guardian’s Nazia Parveen and the BBC’s Steph McGovern, who'll be discussing the role of women in the media at the People's History Museum, while an event looking at the story of Enriqueta Rylands – Behind Every Man Is a Great Woman – looks at Rylands' personal papers and considers why she created the John Rylands Library in her husband's name.

This is the fourth edition of Wonder Women, a five-year event leading up to the 100-year anniversary in 2018 of the first Votes for Women being achieved.

Many events are free, and many will have their own collection for a nominated Manchester-based action group or charity that supports women’s causes.

Wonder Women 2017
Manchester, 2-12 March 

For the full line-up, click here

@WonderWomenMCR