FUSE International will return to Kingston-Upon-Thames this summer with a host of events spanning theatre, dance, cabaret, comedy, music and visual arts, taking place over ten days from 30 June-9 July in an international celebration of live performance and creativity – all created by young and emerging artists from around the world.
It is the second year the festival has taken place under the name FUSE International, having previously been known as the International Youth Arts Festival (IYAF) which has taken place each summer since 2009. Last year’s festival featured over 50 events and this year, more than 14 countries will be represented in the programme including artists from Australia, Argentina, Korea, China, Sweden and Canada to name a few.
This year’s festival will be headlined by WILD (The Musical), an award-winning musical set in the jungle (6-7 July). Presented by the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, the story follows the adventures of wildlife poachers Jim and Chad who stumble across a wild orchestra and make plans to capture the talented animals for a lucrative show on New York’s Broadway. Performed by a stunning 40 strong cast from Hong Kong, WILD (The Musical) will captivate all ages with its powerful message about wildlife preservation. The show features live orchestral music, hip hop, beatboxing, ballet, cha cha dance, body percussion, Chinese drumming, Chinese martial arts dance and unicycling. The production comes to the Rose Theatre, Kingston for its UK premiere following performances in Hong Kong.
Full listings of the 2023 festival programme will be circulated soon.
Speaking about this year’s FUSE International, festival director Petra Tauscher said “This year’s festival will be bright, bold and ambitious with a wide programme covering all art forms. Alongside our growing Fringe programme which showcases the best young companies and individual artists making names for themselves on the contemporary scene, we are honoured to be presenting the UK Premiere of a major international new musical. WILD (The Musical), the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong’s spectacular musical extravaganza set in the jungle delivers a powerful message about wildlife preservation. WILD is only in the UK for 3 performances and is not to be missed.”
Creative Youth is a charity based in Kingston-upon-Thames that exists to enable young people aged 5 – 26 to realise their potential through the arts, involving them in innovative, original and ambitious projects. Projects include the Creative Talent Programme, a young people’s skills development programme and heritage project AMP Kingston: Art, Music and Pop Fashion. The charity launched the International Youth Arts Festival in 2009 and continues to curate and present the festival under the FUSE International brand.
