Watford Palace Theatre and Watford Borough Council have reimagined their annual outdoor celebration to ensure it is COVID safe but still full of fun. It will be a little different from previous years, but will once again transform Watford outdoor spaces into places of wonder and excitement, with dance, comedy and art for all the family to enjoy for free this July.
Make some music with junk, and faces from clay, see exhilarating dance exhibitions, take away bespoke poems, hear live music and stories inside a whale, meet some bees and a clown, and see an aerialist in a giant red beating heart.
This year the festival will take place in Watford Fields, King George V Park, The Parade and Garston Park.
Elected Mayor of Watford, Peter Taylor, said “It’s great to have Imagine Watford back this year for its 10th anniversary. After it being cancelled last year I know there were many disappointed people in the town who will welcome it back with open arms. Imagine Watford is a fantastic collaboration involving Watford Council and many partners, supporting our local arts and culture. I am looking forward to welcoming people back into the town centre and can’t wait for people to experience the exciting things that are planned this year.”
Artistic Director Brigid Larmour said “We’re delighted to be back this year with Imagine Watford, and can’t wait to entertain the town with our programme of fun, fantastic and totally free outdoor shows. Imagine Watford brings world-class acts to Watford, and is also a showcase for the ways that Watford Palace Theatre supports local creatives and freelancers in making new shows. We’ve taken the opportunity to do something a little different this very unusual year, with mini pop-up festivals around the town, across three weekends – there truly will be something for everyone to enjoy! As always, Imagine Watford is an ambitious event which couldn’t take place without our funders and supporters, and we’d like to thank Arts Council England, Watford Borough Council and Helen and Frank Neale for helping to make this free festival a success.”
Watford Palace Theatre inspires and entertains through inventive, ambitious, and inclusive drama, new plays, musicals, dance and family shows; free outdoor festivals; diverse stand-up; and a much-loved traditional pantomime. It reflects its diverse communities, and fully represents women, both onstage and behind the scenes whilst celebrating and developing creativity and skill in the community and with young people. The theatre’s locally produced shows and home-grown talent have toured nationally and internationally, been seen on BBC iPlayer, won awards and transferred to the West End. Recent productions include Talking Heads; an all-female Gaslight; the UK’s first African-American Glass Menagerie; and Ayckbourn’s Absurd Person Singular. World premieres include musicals Miss Meena & the Masala Queens and I Capture the Castle, and plays good dog by Arinze Kene, Poppy+George by Diane Samuels, Coming Up by Neil d’Souza, Jefferson’s Garden by Timberlake Wertenbaker, and Jumpers for Goalposts by Tom Wells, Creative Associates are central to WPT’s vision: they include Resident Partner Company Rifco Theatre Company, and tiata fahodzi.
Imagine Watford runs 3 July 2021 and 10-11 July and 17-18 July 2021. All events are free – however some are ticketed to keep COVID distancing compliant, full details can be found here
