AFTER a big year for Royston Arts Festival, the 2013 event will have a very small theme.

The festival’s annual meeting was held on Thursday, and it was revealed that the theme for the 2013 festival will be Small World.

Leading model-maker Jim Parkyn has already been pencilled in to share his experiences of working on such hit films as Creature Comforts and Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, as well as the Oscar-nominated Pirates. He is also set to teach people how to make their favourite Aardman creation.

Festival chairman, Graham Palmer said: “We want to make this year just as exciting as the last. We are determined to improve year-on-year. We think we have the right balance, but we need to continue to innovate.”

The 2012 festival’s theme was About Time, and featured a host of events including an invasion of the Daleks from Dr Who. An evaluation report showed that 5,300 people attended, and those polled gave the arts festival a 98 per cent “good-excellent” satisfaction rating.

“We certainly will not be complacent as we want to build on our strengths,” said Mr Palmer.

One way to do this will be through increased sponsorship, and the committee is searching for another “major player” to back the festival alongside the invaluable support it already receives from Johnson Matthey.

Mr Palmer said a renewed three-year deal had been struck with Johnson Matthey, but that the company is content for a second premier partner to become involved.

“The deal with Johnson Matthey had proved to be an important lifeline, and now we will be trying to raise additional funds to take the arts festival to the next level,” he said.

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