Outdoor Theatre: Playground of Illusions

 

 

Performers Travelling Light Circus bring you playful contraptions that are instantly engaging and intriguing. The Playground of Illusions is a collection of ‘giant toys’ that each contains a visual or auditory illusion, placed in an area that the audience is free to wander around and explore. Each illusion is self-sufficient and works brilliantly on its own; together they make an unforgettable and fascinating experience that is inspirational, educational and (most importantly) awesome FUN!

The illusions will have a common design aesthetic, inspired by steampunk and a sense of playful invention – there will be levers to pull and wheels to turn, buttons to push and pedals to pedal.  Travelling Light Circus re-use vintage industrial machines to make quirky gadgets, creating an intriguing visual spectacle that will draw visitors in and ignite their imaginations!

Theatre: A Valley of Vision with Shoreham Village Players

Our very own hugely talented theatre company bring you extracts from Samuel Palmer: A Valley of Vision, written by Katie Kingshill, a light-hearted take on the life and times of one of Britain’s most respected and brilliant artists Samuel Palmer, who lived and worked in Shoreham in the 1820/30s, producing his most imaginative and visionary art.

We are celebrating Samuel Palmer’s life and works generally at the Festival and will be announcing the autumn launch of a brand new trail – created in collaboration with artist Victoria Threlfall, Sarah Newman and the Darent Valley Landscape Partnership Scheme (funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund) – that starts in the picturesque village of Shoreham, taking you along the river Darent to Lullingstone Park and back along the high terraces looking out over the valley.  Watch this space to find out more!

Music: Buffo’s Wake

Brilliant, high-energy, carnival craziness from festival favourites Buffo’s Wake – with their Eastern European sounds and frenetic, beautiful instrumental ensemble, you will definitely be on your feet dancing.  Infectious fun and wild sounds!

Check out some of their most recent songs here: http://www.buffoswake.co.uk/music/

And a whole range of interactive workshops, delicious food from Brisket & Barrel, craft beer and cider and so much more…!

Workshops

We’ve expanded the workshops even more this year, with a whole range of fabulously creative activities on hand.  They will take place from 2.30 to 4.30pm in the meadow, before the play and the music (but alongside the Playground of Illusions).

3D Willow Art

Work with the strikingly creative artist Isobel Smith, making any object which the imagination is capable of conceiving!  Isobel is an artist-turned-puppeteer-turned performer. She received Puppet Centre bursaries and Arts Council funding to develop her ground-breaking work which crosses fine art installation, puppetry and performance. She co-founded Brighton Puppetry School in 2015 and has since studied Sculpture/Performance (MA) at Royal College of Art, London.  As well as running courses regularly at West Dean College in Sussex, she has run workshops for the Barbican Centre, Central School of Speech and Drama, Brighton University and Brighton Puppetry School. She works to avoid the drudgery of ‘Too Much Normal’, employing puppets and her other creations for their direct link to the subconscious and for their darkness, sweetness and naughtiness.   https://isobelsmith.org

Drumming Workshop

Our ever-popular session in the Yurt, with specialist sound musician, performer and general cycling marvel Paul Cheese who will be leading exciting workshops, reaching out to your inner percussion meister, getting you to choose and create your own sounds, bringing them together into a wonderfully creative performance.  Try out different types of instruments and a whole range of inventions and feel that rhythm!  Group drumming and singing taps into core energies, breaking down barriers, reducing stress and building great group dynamics.  And it’s a lot of fun!  There is no right or wrong – even bodies are great instruments – so clap, stomp, slap and snap.  Or sit by the gently-flowing river and wait your turn while dreaming…

Etching with Seal Chart Artists

 

Make your own Intaglio print with a portable printing press.  This year we welcome back local artists from the Seal Chart Etching Studio. The Studio was created by Lawrence Jenkins and other studio artists to help all of us explore the expressive qualities of a very special, tactile medium. The studio runs courses three terms a year for the serious printmaker, but also offers introductory and refresher courses.  At Shoreham Midsummer Festival Lawrence and artist Lindy Webster will be bringing an etching press to give you a chance to make and print an intaglio (foil impressions) print and see whether you want to try more! Lindy will be on hand to instruct and guide you through the process.

The Seal Chart Etching Studio was created by Lawrence Jenkins and users of his studio to help artists explore the expressive qualities of a very special, tactile medium.  http://www.lawrencejenkins.co.uk/studio.asp

Gong Workshop

 

Vibrations and Poetry in the Gong Therapy Tent. Sculptor and musician Lesley Pover has kindly agreed to return to the Festival, bringing her amazing concert gong to explore resonant sounds for relaxation and contemplation. Leslie Pover is an actress, artist and a sculptor of great talent.   The Gong is a phenomenal and powerful instrument, used since ancient times to transform energy. It was primarily used to induce states of meditation, but the Gong’s effect is far-reaching. It’s harmonic tones are believed to cleanse, purify, balance and harmonise the body, initiating alchemical processes at a deep level, acting as a catalyst to bring the body, mind, spirit and soul into a place of self-healing and transformation!  Relax and let the resonances wash over you.

Yoga Workshop

Shoreham’s yoga teacher Lucy Holland will be leading classes for people to try out a few yoga moves, giving everyone the chance to see if this wonderful ancient practice will turn their lives around as it has for so many others.  From Mountain Pose to Downward Dog, from Sun Salutation to Pigeon Pose, you will find ways of encouraging your body to take up all sorts of new, flexible poses you never thought possible, all under Lucy’s confidence-inducing, calm supervision.  A fusion of classical yoga poses with contemporary movement sequences, Lucy’s classes combine flexibility, balance, strength and breath whilst maintaining good alignment and a focused mind. And of course lots of blissful lavender-enhanced relaxation!   www.yogabylucy.com

Storytelling Workshop

Join an absorbing storytelling workshop run by Brighter Futures, a group of active and outspoken young migrants with roots around the world, and hosted by Arji Manuelpillai – poet, rapper and education artist and a regular at festivals all over the UK. Performances will be included from their recent published anthologies, ‘A City Imagined’ and ‘Imagine Your Shadow’. For more info check out their website http://www.brighterfutureslondon.co.uk/ and www.arji.org.  They will be presenting two separate half-hour sessions, from 2.45pm and 3.45pm, so be sure to book your place.  In the dreamy Airstream.  

…and other workshops to be announced soon!