Following the success of How the Other Half Loves and with Brief Encounter just around the corner, Wiltshire Creative today announces programming for their Summer Festival Season, this year incorporating Salisbury International Arts Festival 2023.
Highlights of this year’s Salisbury International Arts Festival include:
- The Festival centrepiece – Wiltshire Creative’s outdoor, site-specific production of The Tempest in a reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic tale in Churchill Gardens from 24 May to 4 June
- Returning to the festival’s classical roots, vocal ensemble Siren present Doomsday, performed beneath and inspired by St Thomas’ medieval Doom painting, exploring themes of chaos and uncertainty at St Thomas’ Church on 7 June
- Opera della Luna returns to the Festival with Gilbert and Sullivan’s much-loved HMS Pinafore at Salisbury Playhouse in a hilarious recreation of the original hit on 8 June
- Festival favourites The Lord Chamberlain’s Men return in their outdoor, all-male production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, performed at Rack Close on 9 and 10 June
Salisbury International Arts Festival includes a range of music events for the whole family, including With The Beatles, celebrating the 60th anniversary of The Beatles’ performance at Salisbury City Hall in 1963 in collaboration with Salisbury History Festival; tweed-clad 10-piece ensemble Old Dirty Brasstards with their cross-genre eclectic party covers; as well as blues and jazz sensation Elkie Brooks performing her numerous hit singles at the Playhouse. Artistic Director of La Folia Howard Moody returns with a transporting evening of Bach’s Musical Offering on violin, flute, cello and harpsicord, in collaboration with Best Foot Music and interwoven with music and poetry from across the world at St Thomas’ Church on 14 June.
Motionhouse present the new circus production for all the family, Starchitects, incorporating gravity-defying choreography and digital projections at the Playhouse on 14 June; Farm Yard Circus at Rack Close, is a family-friendly farmyard-inspired eclectic mix of acrobatics, juggling, theatre and live music on 11 June. Gyles Brandreth and Susie Dent bring their award-winning comedy podcast Something Rhymes with Purple to the Playhouse stage on 17 June, with other comedy events from Marcus Brigstocke and Lucy Porter. The Festival will also feature exhibitions and films across Salisbury.
Outside Salisbury International Arts Festival, Wiltshire Creative also today announces their other Summer Festival Season events, including Musical Theatre Salisbury’s production of Legally Blonde, returning to the Playhouse stage this July; and their hugely popular Beerex festival, returning for its 41st year at Salisbury Arts Centre from 7 – 8 July.
Artistic Director of Wiltshire Creative Gareth Machin said today: “We have mapped out another marvellous programme for Wiltshire Creative’s summer season. It’s hugely exciting to be creating the Festival centre piece, The Tempest, here in Salisbury working with incredible professional artists alongside many members of our local community. Churchill Gardens will be reimagined as Shakespeare’s island in our biggest, boldest event yet. Elsewhere, music, dance, circus and spoken word events will fill our stages, bringing world class talent to our audience here in Salisbury.”
