The Welborne Arts Festival near Mattishall, the biggest village-based contemporary arts festival in Norfolk, returns on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 June (Saturday 11.30am to 6.30pm and Sunday 11.30am to 4.30pm), celebrating its 10th outing. The festival, organised by the local community, is based on the meadow close to the 11th century All Saints Church (postcode NR20 3LQ).

The weekend features a busy programme of film, drama, dance, visual arts, live music, literature, meadow performers, comedy and hands-on workshops. Entry is adults £6 and under 16 free.

Mike Webb, Festival Organiser said: “We are really pleased to be back celebrating our 10th Welborne Arts Festival, packed with exciting events and activities. We have a wonderfully diverse programme featuring Britten Sinfonia players, international author Louis de Bernières, Edinburgh festival Fringe-bound Rapid Gambit, Indian and Molly dancing, the best of Norfolk visual art and much more.”

Enjoy seven short films made in partnership with UEA – all inspired by Welborne and surroundings, have a go at Bhangra and Bollywood dance with Jaya Dance and Harpal Panesar and Molly Dancing with The Ouse Washes Molly Dancers. Watch, four short plays written by Wymondham-based writers Four by Four, plus comedy theatre, Faileontology, from Norwich-based comedy theatre company Rapid Gambit. Lucilla Reeve from 1942 will also present her personal battle to prevent wartime evictions from the Stanford battle area.

There’s drama from local schools, directed by UEA students, and music performed by local young people with two members of the Britten Sinfonia (Saturday at 2.30pm), as well as exhibitions and demonstrations from Norfolk Contemporary Craft Society, North Norfolk Organisation for Visual Artists, Katarzyna Coleman and Julia Sorrell and the regular villagers’ show. Neal French is the festival sculptor in residence and will be running sculpture workshops and Ian Sanders will be teaching people how to carve tree tables.

Join the village for the Festival Service at 10am on the Sunday in All Saint’s Church and hear Louis de Bernières read from his international best-selling novels, between 2.30pm and 3.30pm later in the day.

Tony Nelson, Sheringham Town Crier will again be keeping order throughout the festival. Cosmo and Joe from Foolhardy Circus will be teaching circus skills and there’ll be meadow performance from Vadimas (magician), Be Prepared with Val Keen and Babs Eager (Saturday) and the chance to enter the giant Whale (Sunday). There’ll be music from The Yaxham Ukes, Matt Williams, The Thinking Men, Dove and BoWeevil, The Albanian Washing Machine Company and more.

Welborne Arts Festival is supported by South Norfolk Council, Norfolk County Council, Norwich Town Close Estate Charity, The John Jarrold Trust, The Geoffrey Watling Charity, Creative Arts East and the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

For more information contact the Festival Office, t 01362 850327, www.welborne.org.uk. 

 

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