The full line up for the Peterborough Arts
Festival, organised by Vivacity Culture and Leisure and sponsored by
Perkins Engines Company Limited, has now been announced.
This year’s Festival, which takes place from 30th June to 8th July, is
set to be a magical feast of entertainment: from headliners Hard-Fi in
Central Park, to Helter Skelters and Giant Elephants in Cathedral
Square, to some of the best talent from the Edinburgh Festival at the
Key Theatre. Whatever your taste in music, art, culture and
entertainment, there’s bound to be something for you and your friends
and family to enjoy.
Peterborough Arts Festival kicks off with a Victorian Circus
extravaganza in the city centre. On Saturday 30th June, Cathedral Square
will be transformed by a multitude of extra-ordinary performances and
entertainment. Come and be amazed by wonderful, bizarre, magical and
hilarious performances popping up all over the Square to celebrate the
Festival opening, featuring artists from around the world: Cirk Isis
will be astounding crowds with their acrobatic trampoline act. Walking
giants – a mechanical elephant and a giant Fire bird – will be witnessed
touring the city centre. Or, you can get a different perspective on the
city from the top of a Victorian Helter Skelter.
Then make your way over to the Key Theatre to experience the Reduced
Shakespeare Company performing The Complete World of Sports – every
sport ever played on every continent in the entire history of the world,
in less than two hours …
Festival Plus returns for the second year with a week of dance,
music, theatre, master classes and much more, from 2nd – 6th July. This
year, Peterborough gets the opportunity to experience a taster of the
world-renowned Edinburgh Festival material: leading comedic conjuror
and star of the BBC’s The Magicians, Pete Firman, performs brand new
material for his forthcoming Edinburgh appearance, as does
Peterborough’s very own Mark Grist. Maison Foo will also be performing
their Edinburgh Festival sell-out show, Memoirs of a Biscuit Tin, a
topsy turvy tale for grown-ups. The week will end with the Key Theatre
opening its doors to a Through the Looking Glass experience, with
unexpected performances taking place in every corner.
The Peterborough Arts Festival also provides the back drop to the
Olympic Torch Relay celebrations on the city’s Embankment on 3rd July,
organised by Peterborough City Council working in partnership with
Vivacity and Voyager Academy. World renowned Close Act will provide an
unforgettable welcome to the Olympic Flame, and there will be an
exclusive performance of the specially commissioned Song for
Peterborough by schools and communities from across the city with the
Peterborough Male Voice Choir. More information about the Olympic Torch
Relay can be found at www.peterborough.gov.uk/OlympicTorchRelay.
The grand Festival Finale returns to Central Park on 7 – 8 July for a weekend of epic entertainment!
The fun begins on Saturday 7th July at 12 noon with the Demon Barbers
turning traditional Morris dancing on its head with their memorable Time
Gentlemen Please. Visitors can have a go themselves at the Big Dance
Workshops taking place throughout the weekend.
Families will enjoy a visit to a vast (50ft!) inflatable whale, where
they might encounter a shipwrecked Pirate and real live Mermaid, or a
visit to the Monster Take Away, where you can create your very own
custom monster. At the other end of the scale, you can visit the Insect
Circus Museum to behold the Liberty Beetles and Cheeky Ladybirds!
Throughout the weekend, there will be entertainment in every corner,
from live literature, acoustic performances, music workshops and art
displays.
Headliners Hard-Fi round off Saturday’s fun with some of their
much-loved hits plus new material from their newly released album.
Sunday’s programme is kicked off with the award winning Peterborough
Male Voice Choir and Peterborough Voices. Don’t miss the renowned
Orchestra Da Camera, who will be performing music from all corners of
the British Isles to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee on Sunday evening.
Bring a picnic and enjoy a magical end to a magical Festival!
The 2012 Festival is sponsored by Perkins Engines Company Limited as
part of their own 80th anniversary celebrations which take place this
year. Perkins employees will participate directly in many parts of the
Festival, with art, dance, poetry and music workshops and performances
taking place at Perkins Eastfield facility in the lead up to the event.
There will also be a dedicated Perkins exhibition within the Festival
Community Zone in Central Park, which will celebrate the company’s
eighty year heritage and involvement with Peterborough, and invite
people of all ages to take a ‘hands on’ approach to engineering.
The Arts Festival is also supported by funding from Arts Council
England, with the aim of growing the Peterborough Festival into a world
class platform for artists and providing a strong arts focus for the
city.
Lisa Helin, Vivacity’s Cultural Development Manager, commented:
‘This year’s line-up is the strongest ever, and we’re thrilled to be
able to showcase such a range of artists in Peterborough. With the
support of the Arts Council, we’ve been working closely with partners
such as Norwich Arts Centre and SeaChange Arts in order bring in
talented new musicians and leading international artists alongside more
established names. We expect attendance to be the biggest ever,
creating a fantastic profile for arts and heritage within Peterborough.’
Ennodio Ramos, Perkins Sales and Marketing Director, added:
‘We’re delighted to be working with Vivacity on this year’s Peterborough
Arts Festival. We hope many of our employees and their families will
take an active role in the two-week festival, which is going to be a
great event for our city.’
The full programme of acts is available in the 2012 Festival brochure, available from
the Key Theatre and venues across the city, or via the dedicated Festival website,
www.peterboroughfestival.co.uk. Ticketed events are now on sale from the Key Theatre Box Office on 01733 207239.
