A free outdoor arts festival is set to take over the city centre this August
From 12 -14 August the city will be taken over by an extraordinary outdoor arts festival featuring performance and events from across Europe and it’s all free.
The 10th edition of Journeys Festival International in the city will spread over 13 locations including Jubilee Square, Leicester Market, the Clock Tower, Curve Theatre, LCB Depot and even Lee Circle. These spaces are set to be transformed by a weekend of fabulous characters, curious performances, live music and moments of magic.
People can see giant puppet slugs and dance performances for young children, a zero-waste market, carnival shows and circus skills, acrobats and break-dancers, exhibitions, comedy gigs, interactive technology games, theatre performances and the largest performance of the weekend features a mass cast made up of local people and professionals on the site of a derelict building at Lee Circle. The Saturday night show, Rush, promises to be one of the most spectacular shows the city has seen for years with huge video screens and a purpose-built set to host the huge cast on. There is truly only one chance to see this stunning show in Leicester and people will be able to watch this incredible performance, no booking required, for free but be warned, Rush, is performed on one night only. Lorna Fulton, Director of
Art Reach, producers of the festival told us more about the weekend planned in August,
“It was 2013 when the first ever Journeys Festival International was delivered in Leicester and it’s been incredible to see the audiences grow over the years. The city has certainly changed over that decade. To celebrate our 10th anniversary, we’re filling the streets with amazing things to see and do. We’re also celebrating the finale of our 3-year European Programme called Liberty EU so you’ll see performances from France, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Finland and from home featuring artists from all over the world. Together we want to celebrate Leicester as an international and diverse city. Thanks to Arts Council England and Creative Europe funding we’re able to offer the whole festival for people to enjoy free of charge.” The festival is also striving to be as accessible as possible for everyone to enjoy. Their new website has integrated screen readers, translation tools and highlight functions to make it easier to read about the shows and events coming this summer. The festival also has a dedicated access officer for you to contact if you have specific access requirements. It seems that Journeys Festival International has pulled out all the stops for their tenth anniversary celebrations and it should be one of the highlights of the city’s cultural events this summer. Head to www.artreach.org.uk/ journeysfestival to see the full line up of UK and international acts heading to town from 12-14 August.