Frequently Asked Questions

Various Voices 2009 is Europe's international festival of song, proudly celebrating the work of LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) singing groups and making it visible to the world. It happens every four years in different cities. For the London festival, we are especially welcoming other 'non-gay' singing groups, choirs, delegates and participants as well as audience members from the London, the UK, across Europe, the United States, Canada and around the world. We aim to create an interactive space where, through the transforming power of singing together, warm relationships and new understandings are created.

Delegate registration is open to everyone. If you want to sing on a stage with your registered choir or as part of the festival choirs then you need to register as a delegate. You do not have to be a singing choir member to register, registration is open to all.

No, the festival is open to everyone.

Whilst individual delegates, or member choirs, are responsible for all registration costs, a limited number of tickets are available at concession prices for concerts. Some choirs make their own arrangements to give subsidies or bursaries to support their members. We want to have events accessible to all.

Everyone can purchase tickets for concerts and workshops through the Southbank Centre box office. 20% Delegate Discount applies during the registered delegate priority booking period and until the end of February and 10% Delegate Discount for all further ticket purchases.

We do not currently want small groups to register separately. The choir information collected on line has an option for main/parent choirs to link/list their small groups.

Small Groups will be given performing opportunities as long as their parent choir is registered. There is a Small Choirs concert in the Purcell Room on Friday 1st May and they can apply for a cabaret spot on the festival stages.

Yes, please email to get advice about how to make an international direct bank transfer in UK Pounds for attending choir members.

We have tried to keep the cost of registration as low as possible and do not want delegates to pay for activities and events in which they do not intend to participate. We want each delegate to be able to construct their own individual experience and to choose exactly what they wish to do from the wide range of events on offer over the four days of the festival. Everyone can buy a full priced ticket to concerts and workshops but delegates will get a discounted price.

We want to keep the initial cost low to give more people the opportunity to register so they can enjoy the festival. The costs include:

• The early bird delegate fee will be £75.
• Concert tickets start at £10.
• Workshops will start at £5 – some workshops and masterclasses are free and open to all.

If you choose to purchase two lowest cost concert tickets and two workshops with the delegate registration, the cost could be as low as £101.

	London 2009	Paris 2005
Early bird registration	£75	£120
2 concerts @ £10 each less 20%	£16	Included
2 workshops @ £10 each less 50%	£10	Included
Total	£101	£120

Remember, registered delegates will get a discount of 20% for concert tickets and 50% for workshops.

Don't forget with your registration, you will also enjoy all of the free performances on the cabaret stages, the welcome party, opening ceremony and all the massed singing and free events. You also have the possibility to join one of the Festival Choirs plus ALL the other benefits of delegate registration.

The lowest cost for choir registration in Paris was €200 for choirs of 15 singers or less, in London choir registration fees start for 20 or fewer singers at £100 (approximately €125).

London registration gives you the choice so you only pay for what you want to do and see. Its good value for money over 4 full days and is being held in the one complex with some of the best concert halls in Europe.

Registration cancellations received on or before 1st March 2009 will be eligible for a 50% refund. (Note that all payments and refunds are in GBP, so for example if you paid GBP 100 we will refund GBP 50. Exchange rate fluctuations and credit card charges may mean you get less than 50% of what you paid in your local currency.)

No refunds will be made after 1st March 2009.

Transfers of registration may be made on or before 1st April 2009, and may be subject to an administration fee.

Requests for cancellation or transfer of your registration should be sent via email to for further advice.

Choir registration fees are not re-fundable, but you can still choose to come along and enjoy the festival.

We are using Google Checkout which is a secure third party credit card payment system. Their fraud protection policy covers you against unauthorised purchases made through Google Checkout. They do not share your purchase history or full card number with sellers. Various Voices London never gets to see your credit card details.

Various Voices London and Google Checkout will keep your email address confidential.

Yes, if you joined a delegate either direct with VVL or via GALA and paid your registration fee you can apply to join: for more details see the Festival Programme.

Tickets are sold directly by the Southbank Centre box office. You can book online, by phone, by post, by fax or in person. Group bookings (10 or more tickets for a given event) should be made by phone. See below for more details on all these options for Various Voices or for general information from the Southbank Centre website.

If you are not a registered delegate, visit the Southbank Centre website for a list of all the Various Voices events.

The transaction fee for online bookings is £1.95.

If you are a registered delegate, first log on to the Southbank Centre website using the same email address and password you use on the Various Voices website. You should go straight to the delegate welcome page, your first known name should welcome you, and you will see the delegate discounted prices. If you have only just paid or given us permission to set up your Southbank Centre account, allow a few days for us to set you up. There is no booking fee for delegates. If you have a problem logging on to the website, please send an email to for investigation and assistance.

Follow the links to each individual event to book tickets. Payment is by credit card.

When we created your Southbank Centre account for you (and you should have received a confirmation email at the time), we used the email address and password you had on the Various Voices website at the time. If you have changed your email address or password on either website since then, the change won?t affect the other website as they?re entirely separate. Both systems have the option to reset and/or email you your password if you have forgotten it. Both systems also allow you to change your email address and password if you wish.

From the UK, call: 0871 663 2500
From outside the UK please call: +44 207 960 4301
Ticketing Services are open from 9am - 8pm UK time each day.
There is a call queuing system when lines are busy.
Telephone bookings have a transaction fee of £1.95.

Registered delegates, please say you are a Various Voices delegate, and quote the email address you used for your registration in order to qualify for the delegate discounts.

Delegates do have to pay the telephone booking transaction fee of £1.95.

The Royal Festival Hall is open daily, from 10am-11pm.
The Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer (for Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Purcell Room) is open an hour and a half before the listed start time for each event.
There is no transaction fee for tickets booked in person.

Registered delegates, please say you are a Various Voices delegate, and quote the email address you used for your registration in order to qualify for the delegate discounts.

Request for tickets can be sent to:

Southbank Centre Ticket Office
London
SE1 8XX
UK

Payment must be made by a pound sterling cheque drawn on a UK bank. Make cheques payable to Southbank Centre leaving the amount blank but indicating an upper limit. Postal bookings have a transaction fee of £1.95. Please include this amount in the value of the upper limit.

When booking by post please give your name, address, daytime and evening telephone numbers in case we have a query.

Registered delegates, please say you are a Various Voices delegate, and quote the email address you used for your registration in order to qualify for the delegate discounts.

Delegates do have to pay the postal booking transaction fee of £1.95.

Please book online or fax orders to +44 (0)871 663 2594.

Fax bookings have a transaction fee of £1.95.
Online bookings have a reduced fee of £1.45.

Registered delegates, please say you are a Various Voices delegate, and quote the email address you used for your registration in order to qualify for the delegate discounts.

Delegates do have to pay the fax booking transaction fee of £1.95, but do not pay an online booking transaction fee.

Visitors with a disability are invited to join the free Access List. By registering you may be eligible for tickets at concessionary prices, to bring a companion whose ticket is free who can assist you during your visit, to receive information in alternative formats etc. For a form visit the Southbank Centre Access page, email or call the Ticket Office on 0871 663 2500.

If you are booking 10 or more tickets for a single event, please contact Kit Stratfull from the Southbank Centre. We regret that it is not possible to make Group bookings online.

Kit Stratfull
Postal, Groups and Specialist Sales
Southbank Centre
Belvedere Road
London SE1 8XX

Hours: Monday – Friday 09.30 – 17.30

Phone from UK: 0871 663 2598
Phone from overseas: +44 20 7921 4901
Fax: +44 (0)20 7921 0607

If you are visiting Southbank Centre’s world-class venues with a group of friends, work colleagues, club members or students, you’ll be allocated a dedicated contact on our Visitor Services team to help ensure your trip runs smoothly. Please contact Kit Stratfull for more information about visiting us or if you have a specific access requirements.

Discounted Coach Hire: Groups visiting Southbank Centre are entitled to 20% discount on coach hire to the venue with 1st 4 Coaches Ltd. Please phone Glenn Ellis, UK Sales Manager, on 0871 288 4540 and quote Southbank Centre reference SBGE09. 1st 4 Coaches offer vehicles from between 8 to 83 seats and in standard and executive formats. Nearby coach standing facilities allow easy drop off and pick up.

Registered delegates get a 20% discount if booking before end of February 09. After that date, registered delegates get a 10% discount.

There are also “series discounts” available for booking tickets to multiple choir concerts. These are available to everyone.

Registered delegates please note that you can only get the Delegate discount or the Group Discount; you do not get both.

See the Southbank Centre Various Voices Festival page for the latest offers and more details.

If you are in the UK, you can either have the tickets posted to you, or (as long as you have paid by credit card) held for collection. If you are outside the UK, tickets will be held for collection at the venue, and you must pay be credit card.

• In the UK, your tickets will be posted unless otherwise agreed with the Ticket Office at the time of booking. Once you have bought your tickets, tickets are generally sent out within 2 to 7 working days of sale. Tickets for events further ahead than 14 days are sent out by second class, those less than 14 days are sent out by first class. However, tickets ordered within 5 days of the performance will be held for collection.
• When tickets are held for collection, they can be collected from the ticket kiosks in the Foyers. Tickets should be collected by the card holder and the card used to make the booking must be produced. Please try to collect your tickets on the first day of the festival, and allow plenty of time to do this as there will be a large number of visitors doing so.

The festival starts at 10am on Friday 1st May and continues every day until late evening on Monday 4th May. Participants can choose to visit London for longer arriving before the festival or to stay on after the festival to enjoy our vibrant and diverse city and country.

This is up to each person but here is a very rough idea of costs:

• Branded budget hotel like Travelodge is from £35 per night sharing a twin/double room including breakfast.
• Travel using a prepayment Oyster Card from return zone 1 - £3.
• Sandwich from £2, tea/coffee/soft drink from £1 - £2.
• Meal at a medium priced restaurant from £15.

From GBP £60 per day, that’s approximately from €75 euros.

London has an integrated travel system: buses, underground, railways and boats. All our events will be centred in the one location and depending on where delegates choose to stay, their travel needs and costs will vary. The 'Oyster Card' is a pre-payment card which is the most economical way of travelling in London. It can be purchased either in advance and on line, or when you arrive in London. This way you only pay the actual travel costs that you need, you may be close enough to walk or cycle to the Southbank. For more information read our Getting Around page.

We are exploring these issues. Please tell us about what facilities you might anticipate needing on site during the festival and we will advise you in due course if we will be able to offer a solution to these issues. Please send your email to

For group bookings we agreed not to add commission to the competitive rates being offered for accommodation. For individual bookings Hotelopia have agreed to donate 50% of their commission less their expenses to the festival.

We have created a Host Accommodation Charter and opened a register for hosts that we are actively promoting. See our Host Accommodation page. These private arrangements are outside of our control and will be subject to availability. We do not expect to be able to open the register to delegates until January 2009.

The artistic programme will be published on the website as the different elements of the programme are confirmed; there will be regular updates on what is planned.

The opening ceremony will be at 12:00am Midday on Friday 1st May 2009 and will be a free open event and the welcome party is free to all registered delegates and will be from 10.15pm on Friday 1st May 2009. The closing ceremony and festival awards will be at 6:00pm on the Clore Ballroom on Monday 4th May but there will be concerts and a farewell party until late into the night.

You can download a focus information sheet about all our participatory events including:

• ‘With One Voice’ [PDF link] – Festival Choir
• ‘Sing For The Cure’ [PDF link] – Festival Choir
• ‘Best In Show’ [PDF link] – Wacky Talent Contest
• ‘The Big Gay Sing’ [PDF link] – You can submit songs and vote for your favourites

Log in from our website to your account and select ‘delegate registration form’, go to the next page and where it invites you to ‘add another choir’ select from the pull down menu either ‘With One Voice’ or ‘Sing for the Cure’, keep selecting ‘next’ and you will go back to the home page. All registered delegates will be able to apply to join a festival choir.

Yes, we will have an on-line music download area and learning facility to hear and see the music at home or in the internet café available for registered delegates. We will begin to upload music in March.

We decided that an archival recording would provide better value for money than a commercial recording.

The Southbank Centre arts complex, the main venue for the festival, includes The Royal Festival Hall, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and Purcell Room. See our Venues page.

Yes, as long as the small group is part of a registered choir they will be able to perform on the cabaret stages.

Applications for Cabaret Performance Slots are invited from registered choirs and small groups affiliated with your choir. Applications will be reviewed by the artistic team and they will allocate slots in due course, we may have to be creative to accommodate larger numbers in staging a performance. Reserved slots will not be allocated until nearer the festival or during the festival. We will try to meet all groups’ expectations but cannot guarantee to satisfy all requests. To apply for a cabaret slot please send an email outlining your group style and size, along with your top 3 cabaret slots choices in preferential order to .

There will be an extensive workshop programme throughout the weekend; we have a grant application outstanding to fund and market the workshops and we hope they will be free. There are free public workshops (just turn up) and ticketed workshops (tickets will go on sale as soon as possible). All confirmed workshops and events and activities are published on the Festival plan in the delegate area of the website and there is a workshops overview on the website.

Yes, an invitation has been sent out by the artistic team, if you have a proposal email: .

The choir concert blocks are the centrepiece of the Various Voices Festival and each block will consist of 3 choirs in a 90 minute concert. We are aiming to provide a rich four-day experience for the choirs in London, involving interaction with other choirs and audiences. This will include some external exposure and the opportunity to perform in the public spaces of the Southbank Centre, which has thousands of visitors every day. This will enable us to be more visible as gay choirs and to show the general public what we do, and give those choirs that want them, more performing opportunities.

We need all sectors of the movement and all kinds and levels of choir to be represented as far as possible. Your CD, video, tape or YouTube clip, will help to inform us to create balanced programmes of good quality and help us decide where to place you in this more visible external performing programme, both in terms of the level of experience your choir has and the type of repertoire you perform. We may use some of the material you supply to market your performance and the festival.

The Artistic team will talk to you or they will send you an email.

We also plan special masterclasses on the Monday, to enable those choirs that want to gain half an hour of support, encouragement and advice with a top choral singing specialist. The CDs will also help that specialist prepare for the session. Unfortunately there is not the time or space to have them at the same time as the choir blocks. They will be free and open to all to attend.

You can now book additional rehearsal time for your choir at the Coin Street Centre (8 minutes easy walk from the Southbank Centre). Each rehearsal space will have chairs, a keyboard or piano, and in most cases CD playback. Rehearsal space is available on Friday and Saturday, and will be sold on a first come basis. No booking is guaranteed until you have paid in full and your booking and payment is acknowledged. If you would like to book this, please email stating what size room you would like, how many hours you would like, whether you want to use a keyboard and/or CD playback, and stating your preference for date and time.

The choir size band cannot be exceeded for the room size, and if you want to rehearse choreography you may decide to hire a larger room to give yourself enough space. The Rehearsal rooms hire charges per hour are:

Choir size band	Choir size	Room size	Price (GBP per hour)
A (Friday only)	1 to 10	3.3m x 4.5m	20
B (Saturday only)	11 to 20	4.5m x 6.8m	50
C	21 to 35	6.2m x 6.8m	75
D	36 to 150	11.4m x 14.3m	200

Our focus is about performing and creating exciting experiences not only for the LGBT community and their singers, but looking to be more outward looking and inclusive, with the whole festival heavily marketed to the general public. In fact this will be the largest singing festival ever to be held at the Southbank Centre (SbC) in recent memory and will be the largest single event since the complex re-opened with the ‘Overture Weekend’ after the £110 million refurbishment in June 2007, when more that 25,000 visited the SbC during the 3 days of totally free events, 1,000?s of singers filled the entire building with song, putting voice at the very heart of the arts complex.

The creation of this whole project has been a major new innovative development on how volunteer organisations can work in partnership with large arts organisations. The Southbank Centre have been very helpful in working with us to curate the programme and when the final programme of big name concerts, events and activities is announced and the way in which choirs will be encourage to perform on stage together, in between, around and with each other, that our goal to move forward LGBT singing and choirs will have been realised.

We are encouraging monetary gifts and goods and services in kind, to assist with the organisation and running of the festival or to use for fundraising events like raffles and auctions. If you can introduce us to companies or organisations that may be able to help with sponsorship, giving, grants or as a commercial partner for the festival please email:

We will be setting up a facility to make donations through our website.

Yes, the festival has been organised and is run primarily by volunteers. Please visit our volunteering page or email for more information.

We plan to have a market area and will let you know the details nearer the time.

Yes as a registered delegate you will get a discount at the festival and t-shirts and other merchandise will be available to buy on-line through our web site shop later this year.

Yes!

We don't believe so, and hope that Boris Johnson, Mayor of London will want to be involved in some way with the Festival.