Bigger and bolder than ever before, Ensemble Festival returns to London’s Royal Docks on the 20 and 21 July. Produced by East London arts development organisation Certain Blacks, Ensemble once again presents an action-packed and diverse programme of spectacular circus, street theatre, live music, dance and more. Ensemble Festival is completely free to the public.
At this year’s Ensemble Festival, Docklands audiences are set to experience the celebrated feats of NoFit State Circus, one of the UK’s most treasured contemporary circus companies, set to create and perform their signature stunts on towering structures built entirely from bamboo. Following a dazzling display last year, Gorilla Circus are back for 2024, their new show combining acrobatics, street dance and roller skating, performed on a giant moving treadmill.
Renowned theatre company Cardboard Citizens present Cardboard Citizens Collective Youth Programme and as a festival opener and JW3 pay homage to an East London working class tradition via the Great Yiddish Parade. All of this and much more at Ensemble’s outdoor extravaganza including commissioned emerging artists from the UK and beyond.
This year marks the fifth Ensemble Festival, which first took to the streets in 2019 as part of Newham’s Join the Docks Festival. With ongoing support from the Royal Docks and as part of the Without Walls consortium, Certain Blacks have grown and diversified Ensemble year on year, including a Covid-safe event in 2021. Clive Lyttle, Artistic Director of Certain Blacks, says:
‘Ensemble represents everything we’re about at Certain Blacks. Our aim is to bring diverse artists from the margins into the mainstream, and we’re wowed by the imagination, diversity and sheer artistry of this year’s line-up, including new work commissioned especially for Ensemble 24. I think the range and ingenuity of artists creating work for the public realm is only matched by the appetite of audiences for these often transformative experiences. The arts are increasingly integral to how we connect with where we live, or to the places we visit, and there is nothing quite like the thrill of a shared, live performance to bring people together.
We are grateful to the Royal Docks team for their continued support and for sharing our vision for Ensemble, and to the very many agencies and individuals who make the festival possible. Everyone on the ground (and in the air!) is gearing up for Ensemble; we are so excited to meet the audience.’
Ensemble Festival 24 takes place at the Royal Docks in London. For full details of all events, including details of performance times and precise locations, please visit www.certainblacks.com
