Halifax, West Yorkshire - Culture

Culture

The 3rd Battalion Yorkshire Regiment (Duke of Wellington's) formerly the Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding) Halifax Area Headquarters is based at Wellesley Park, on the junction of Gibbet Street and Spring Hall Road, in the former Wellesley Barracks Museum and Education Centre building. The Regimental Museum has been re-located within the Bankfield House Textile Museum on Haley Hill. The former barracks was converted into an educational school in 2005.

Former regimental colours of the 'Duke's' are laid up in the Halifax Minster. These include the stand used by the 33rd Regiment between 1761 and 1771, which is one of the oldest in existence in England, plus those carried by the regiment during the Battle of Waterloo and the Crimea. The 1981 stand of colours, was taken out of service in 2002. They were marched through the town from the town hall to the Minster, which at that time was still a Parish Church, accompanied by two escorts of 40 troops, the Regimental Drums and the Heavy Cavalry and Cambrai Band on Sunday 31 March 2007. The troops were then inspected by The Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, Dr Ingrid Roscoe BA, PhD, FSA and the Mayor of Halifax Cllr Colin Stout making a total of eight stands of colours within the Regimental Chapel. The regiment was presented with the "Freedom of Halifax" on 18 June 1945.

Eureka! The Museum for Children was inspired and opened by Prince Charles in the summer of 1992 and is located in part of the railway station. Once the home of the diarist Anne Lister, Shibden Hall is located just outside Halifax in the neighbouring Shibden Valley. Dean Clough, a refurbished worsted spinning mill, is the home of Barrie Rutter's Northern Broadsides Theatre Company and the IOU theatre company as well as providing space for eight art galleries.

Halifax, and in particular the Victoria Theatre (originally the Victoria Hall) is home to the oldest continually running amateur choral society in the country and possibly the world. Halifax Choral Society was founded in 1817 and has an unbroken record of performances. The Choral Society has a strong rivalry with the equally eminent nearby Huddersfield Choral Society. The Victoria Theatre contains a large concert organ built by William Hill & Sons that was installed in 1901. During the 1960s, when the hall was converted into the theatre, The organ was re-located to the back of the stage. The original console was replaced with a Rushworth and Dreaper unit, which consists of three manuals and a 32 note pedal board. A complete rewiring of the organ to add a second touch facility and a hydraulic lift was done, so it could be lowered and stored under the stage. The organ was rarely used, being played for a few orchestras and the choral society's Messiah. But the instrument is still playable and is occasionally used for private practice.

There is plenty to occupy lovers of amateur theatre. Halifax Thespians and the Actors' Workshop present plays of all kinds, and musical theatre is represented by Halifax Amateur Operatic Society, Halifax Light Opera Society, Halifax Gilbert and Sullivan Society, and All Souls Amateur Operatic Society. Halifax YMCA Pantomime Society presents its annual show in late January each year. Young people interested in drama are catered for by Halifax AOS and Halifax LOS, which each have a junior section, and another group, Stagedoor Theatre Co, specialises in dramatic activities and performances by children and young people. The Halifax & District Organists' Association, is one of the oldest organists' fellowships in the country.

As well as conventional cultural attractions, the Calderdale area has also become a centre for folk and traditional music. The Traditions Festival, held at the Halifax Piece Hall in the town centre, is a celebration of traditional music and dance from around the world, whilst the Rushbearing, held in Sowerby Bridge and the surrounding villages, is a traditional festival which was restarted to celebrate the Queen's Silver Jubilee and attracts Morris dancers from all around the country. The Square Chapel Centre for the Arts offers music, dance, plays, comedy as well as community events such as tea dances. The Victoria Theatre seats 1,568 people or 1,860 for a standing concert, and hosts a variety of performances.

Halifax town centre has a busy night life with lots of clubs and bars. To help with those who become vulnerable whilst enjoying and using Halifax's night life, Street Angels was launched in November 2005. Street Angels patrol the town centre on Fridays and Saturdays between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m.. In the first year police report violent crime has fallen by 42%. Street Angels work in partnership with St. John Ambulance, Nightlife Marshals, Police Community Support Officers, Police and door-staff as well as the Halifax Ambassadors who patrol in the daytime.

Halifax had one of the highest densities of pubs to inhabitants during a study that took place in the late 1990s. One such establishment that gained notoriety during November 2005 was the Zoo Bar. The nightclub had a history of under-age drinking, and became the first establishment in the UK to be closed because of the Licensing Act 2003. At the time of the police intervention officers reportedly identified 420 of the 500 people in the club to be under-age drinkers. The nightclub was identified in an American study regarding youths and alcohol and gained European notoriety. The nightclub was subsequently closed and sold to developers to renovate into flats. A recent report showed Halifax to have above average levels of drink-related violence and associated issues.