9 November 2013 Adelaide
South Australia
South Australia
DIRECTOR's MESSAGE
 |
||
In 2012, the Credit Union Christmas Pageant celebrated its 80th year.
The Credit Union Christmas Pageant brings a smile to all who attend or watch it on TV. In 2012, just shy of 500,000 people watched the pageant live, either as part of the crowd (350,000) or on television (140,000). It was big - it was really BIG!
The pageant’s longevity is due to the strength of its storytelling and its historical significance, having first been produced as a means of delivering a greater sense of community spirit at a time of economic depression. Its success over 80 years also relies to a large degree on the creativity of its artists, who are fine artists in their own right.
In the October school holidays last year, and as part of our 80th celebrations, we produced a pageant trail along North Tce, the cultural precinct for the City of Adelaide. The trail exhibited pageant artworks, historical documents and photos, pageant performances, Humphrey B. Bear, floats up close, photos on Nimble, puppet making, a Migration Museum exhibition and costume displays. This took place throughout the North Terrace precinct, taking in the State Library, the SA Museum, Art Gallery, Migration Museum and Royal South Australia Society of Art Gallery. Everyone was welcomed to four days of magic and a celebration of artistry in motion. Thousands took up a paint brush and helped paint an 80 metre community paint by numbers wall. Over 25,000 attended what was a very successful and fun event.
On the 10th November last year, the 2012 pageant was indeed BIG! All of the new floats succeeded in delivering magic and awe to the thousands of eyes and ears along the pageant route, all eager to enjoy the fun of the day. The 80 drumming candles leading the pageant were a great hit (Boom, Boom, Tish!). To all who rehearsed and managed this unit, a big thank you. It was a first and was clearly a favourite for all who saw it and heard it.
Thank you to the Credit Union staff from People’s Choice Credit Union, Community CPS Australia, Credit Union SA and Police Credit Union who played their roles beautifully during last year’s event. Thank you to the many volunteers who looked after makeup, marshals, mechanics and drivers. Thank you to the participants not from the Credit Unions, including dancers, bands, circus performers and clowns. To our sponsors and supporters - thank you for all that you do to help bring this event to the streets of Adelaide. Thanks to the people of South Australia for being such a great audience to play to.
Thank you also to Events South Australia and South Australian Tourism Commission staff for their assistance in the lead up to and on pageant day and to our media partners for their wonderful support – all of which we know will continue in 2013. Once a part of the pageant family, always a part of the pageant family.
And so we put the 2012 pageant to bed and start preparing for 2013. I look forward to seeing you all there and wish you good health and every success in 2013.
 |
||
Brian Gilbertson
Pageant Manager and Creative Director
