'Good night Benidorm, good night Spain' of Benidorm Song Festival is heard again 60 years later

The exhibition of the 60th anniversary of the Festival of the Song of Benidorm yesterday opened its doors in an act that recalled and endorsed the first "Good night Benidorm, good night Spain" with which the first edition was inaugurated, in the year 1959.

The Councilor for Historical Heritage, Ana Pellicer, together with the curator of the exhibition, the journalist Juan Díaz, welcomed the attendees by emulating the presenters of the festival. In their message they paid homage to the people of Benidorm "for their dedication to the continued success of the festival" and especially "to the composers, musicians, arrangers, lyricists and performers who sought with each verse and each note the rhythm necessary to climb from step to step to the top. " p>

After the presentation, the mayor of Benidorm, Toni Pérez, addressed the audience to remind them that the Festival was revealed "from the minute one" as "the most important promotional vector that a tourist city in the world has had" . Perez recalled that the event served as the basis for the emergence of the "new Benidorm, the modern Benidorm that accompanies us since the fifties of the last century".

Among those attending the inauguration, it was possible to see the national deputy, Agustín Almodóbar; members of all the groups with representation in the municipal corporation, the major and children queens of the Festes Majors Patronals 2019, Marina Carrillo and Paula Mayor; the presidents of the Comissió and the Associació de Penyes, Roberto Carretero and Coli Pérez and members of other social and neighborhood groups in Benidorm. p>

Regarding the exhibition that reviews the 39 editions of the Festival, Toni Pérez said that "it does not pretend to be something nostalgic" rather it is "a recognition for an entire people" that turned to him "without knowing that they were helping to convert this city in tourism leader ". The mayor also reminded the people who made possible the birth of the Benidorm "that we all know today", especially to the one who was mayor in those years, Pedro Zaragoza, precursor "of the tourist marketing" before whom "we all have to take off our hats". Finally, with the "Buenas noches Benidorm, good night Spain", Toni Pérez gave the opening of the exhibition.

As soon as you enter the mouth of the Boca del Calvari, visitors encounter a red carpet that leads them to a stage. There, they are greeted by the flashes of a group of papier-mâché photographers to experience the same sensations that the stars of the song felt under the spotlight. In the basement are the posters, album covers, the winning songs and a timeline that tells the history of the Festival. Finally, the upper floor exhibits a selection of original discs, entrances, official documents and comics of the time with which the visitor can move to the golden years of the Song Festival.

As a complement, the Department of Historical Heritage has made available to visitors an application for Android mobile devices that can be downloaded for free from Google Play. With this 'app', augmented reality, using the camera of their smartphones, users can access multimedia content (music, video, posters, curiosities) that complements the information displayed in the museum.