Enjoy the Springtime with our Outdoor Events
Spring is on its way to welcome the 2019 Brighton Festival, and there is no better way to enjoy the sunshine than by checking out our range of dynamic outdoor events!
This year, we have a huge variety of activities, performances, and exhibits hitting the streets of Brighton. Perfect for families and individuals who fancy taking part in the festival whilst breathing in the fresh seaside air, here are a few of the outdoor events you can get involved in.Silence
Winner of the 2018 Herald Archangel Award for its run at the Edinburgh Festival, we welcome the ‘fiercely physical’ and ‘gasp-worthy’ Silence, performed by the Teatr Biuro Podrozy. According to The Stage, spectators can expect a ‘large scale, high-concept spectacle’ and a harrowing tale of refugees fleeing from an unsettlingly familiar - though fictional - war. To portray the dystopian landscape of the story, ‘pyrotechnics, stilt-walking and abstract physicality’ are used, all set to a ‘soundtrack of yearning cello airs and jaggedly-industrial metal riffs’. The theatrics employed to immerse viewers in the tale are reported to be truly dazzling, ensuring you will be in for an unforgettable, and perhaps enlightening, performance.
‘This is a memorable show and it proves that the perfect theatre is the one which fascinates, refers to the emotions and leaves the audience with the impression that they experienced something important and unique.’ Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, 2016.
‘...a collage of evocative images that reach back into history but are at their most harrowing when echoing our own conflicted times...Callous violence, valiant beauty and plaintive humanity over-lap and collide as history repeats in a fiercely physical Silence that asks troubling questions. A viscerally memorable experience for those who stand and watch.’ The Herald, 2018.
Learn more about Silence and how to book your tickets.
Museum of the Moon
Whether you are an aspiring astronaut, lunar enthusiast, or just someone who appreciates the moon for its aesthetic beauty, this exhibit is guaranteed to leave you awed. Inspired by the unusually high tidal range in Bristol where he lives, artist Luke Jerram created a replica of the moon seven metres in diameter, with the intention of giving the public ‘the opportunity to fly to the moon’.
‘As a child I always wanted a telescope so I could study the Moon and the night’s sky. Now with my own Moon, I can fly there, study every detail and share this experience with the public. We can explore the far side of the Moon which is never visible from Earth.’ Luke Jerram, 2018.
For three days at the Brighton Festival, this entirely free spectacle will be located above Queens Park for everyone to come and observe. How you interact with the moon is entirely up to you – some may choose to picnic on the grass beneath its glow, others might take advantage of its beauty as a backdrop for a serenade, or you may simply want to come along for the chance to see the moon as you have never had the chance to, and never will again.
Read our interview with artist Luke Jerram!
Discover more about Museum of the Moon, including dates and further information.
Our Place
The Brighton Festival guest director of 2017, Kate Tempest, pioneered the outreach programme Your Place – an innovative way of bringing the festival to Brighton’s more rural communities. Over two years the participants of the programme in Hangleton and Whitehawk have adopted the project; this year, it is rebranding to Our Place. The diverse array of musical performances, theatre shows, and workshops within Our Place 2019 are sure to be the most exciting yet!
Our Place will be taking place over two weekends in May, across two different sites. The full line up is yet to be finalised, but here are some of the pre-announced events:
My House by Apocalyptic Circus is a circus theatre experience for young children and their families. Look through the doors and windows of this magical, quirky structure and explore the habits and routines of this unusual home.
Upswing’s Catch Me, a playful and dynamic pop-up style performance and installation, blending dance and acrobatics.
Learn more information about Our Place and how to get involved!
Without Walls
This year, Brighton Festival are keen to promote accessibility for everyone interested in participating. On Saturday, May 11, we present a full day of completely free events ranging from dance to theatre and beyond. For an inclusive and inexpensive culture immersion, we urge you to check out some of the acts, such as:
Scalped by Initiative.dkf - A dance-theatre exploration of fashion, conformity, life and otherness through an exhibition piece on Black women’s hair. Scalped channels global icon Grace Jones in a performance that is an affirmation of liberation and defiance.
On Edge by Justice in Motion - An international cast, including leading parkour athletes, marry exciting choreography and athletics to ask what freedom really means. Join them before their stunning On Edge performance to explore the sensational freedom of moving around the parkour construction site!
See the full list of Without Walls events!
These are just a selection of the many outdoor events happening throughout the Brighton Festival in May 2019. To explore more of the different shows, musical performances, interactive workshops and many other cultural events happening in the open air, take a look at our Outdoor Events page!