The Eastbourne Festival - Arts and Culture 2012 will be taking place over three weeks from Easter Saturday 7 to Sunday 29 April. The Eastbourne Festival is now attracting participation and interest at regional, national and international level, enabling all strands of the arts from whatever part of the town to be drawn together once a year, to promote their work with others including local, regional, national and international professionals, to network with other associations from within the town and outside it, and to further expertise by participating in a variety of performance and visual arts workshops. The Festival is a blend of different kinds of dance and music, of theatre, storytelling, poetry, art exhibitions and workshops, together with over thirty Artists’ Open Houses; a showcase for local professional and amateur talent

“Streets of Eastbourne” launches the Festival on 7 April with an event in the town centre. Why not follow the vibrant street market, which will meander along the high street linking the two performance stages. Stage one will be at Sussex Gardens/Bankers corner and stage two will be in the T J Hughes precinct. There will also be an information stall where you can meet some of the promoters and pick up your festival brochures. Taking place from noon until 6 pm there will be a variety of bands, dancers, theatre, poetry and storytelling to entertain you together with workshops and it’s all free!

The Festival is packed with a variety of performance, here’s a sample of what is happening:

Jacqui Dankworth is one of the well-known artists performing in the Festival. Daughter of Cleo Laine and John Dankworth, Jacqui doesn’t confine herself to singing jazz.  She is gracefully at ease in folk music, as well as being an imaginative interpreter of the blues and is, without doubt, one of our finest singers regardless of category, and has probably the most flexible and expressive voice of her generation.  Recent recordings have been made with Elvis Costello, Sting and Paul McCartney, and she has recently shared the stage with Courtney Pine at the Royal Festival Hall.  Jacqui comes to the Eastbourne Festival with a full songbook, some of her own songs, some standards, and some you’ll have heard before. Jacqui will be at the Birley Centre, Carlisle Road, BN21 4EF on Sunday 15 April at 7.30pm Advance booking, tickets only from Hailsham Pavilion tel: 01323 841414 www.spyboy.co.uk

From Durban in Kwa Zulu Natal, ZULU will give a stunning performance on Saturday 28 April complimented by an afternoon workshop both at Underground Theatre, Grove Road, BN21 4TL.

ZULU is a company of young Zulu singers and dancers who rekindle their culture and heritage and deliver a heady mix of African harmonies (traditional songs as well as Afro-Gospel) with drum-rhythms and high-energy, athletic dance.  Festival favourites, they hit national TV in the UK and in South Africa when performing for the first officially sanctioned Mandela Day at the British Museum in July 2010.  Individual members of ZULU have performed in the UK as part of The Mighty Zulu Nation and on the West End stage in The Lion King as well as in various bands and groups at home. Described as: "Ladysmith Black Mambazo with high kicks!" Advance booking tickets only from Hailsham Pavilion tel: 01323 841414 www.spyboy.co.uk

Now for something completely different! Roy Bailey and Tony Benn present "The Writing on the Wall" on Saturday 14th April at Birley Centre. The Writing On The Wall is a collaboration between two eminent traditionalists. Tony Benn, now in his 87th year, is Britain’s longest serving MP. Famously outspoken and often controversial, he spent 50 years in parliament, many of those on the front benches. Roy Bailey also has a career stretching over 50 years as a folk singer, and has been described as one of the finest carriers of the people’s message and interpreters of both traditional and contemporary song. Together they present a performance of writings and songs taken from the words of socialists, radicals, chartists, suffragettes and revolutionaries that illustrate nearly 1,000 years of campaigning for justice, freedom and equality. Advance booking only from Hailsham Pavilion tel: 01323 841414; seats at £18.50 & £21.50. Further details at www.spyboy.co.uk

Eastbourne theatres are participating, shows at the Devonshire Park Theatre, BN22 8HB include:

Hardeep Singh Koli – Indian Takeaway -comedy, cooking and curry from the broadcaster, writer and Celebrity Masterchef finalist on 11 April at 7.45pm.

Sense and Sensibility A wonderful stage adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic novel of two sisters and their search for love. 26-28 April 7.45pm, matinee 28 April 2.30pm

www.eastbournetheatres.co.uk 

At the Lamb Folk Club, Karen Tweed will be performing on 18 April at 8.30pm. Karen is one of the UK’s finest accordion players; her extraordinary performances are full of surprises and explore the beauty of folk music from the British Isles and Scandinavia. Buy your ticket for £6 on the door. The Lamb Inn, 36 High Street, Old Town BN21 1HH www.lambfolkclub.freeuk.com

There are also a series of classical concerts at St Mary the Virgin, Eastbourne Parish Church these include:

The Thames Ensemble  perform Schoenberg's Verklarte Nacht and Tchaikovsky's Souvenir de Florence on 11 April at 7.30pm tickets £8/£6 on the door. This programme pairing two very orchestral chamber works: Schoenberg's heady vision of a lover's troubled moonlit tryst, and Tchaikovsky's passionate reminiscence of a sojourn in Italy.

On 17 April Nick and Anita Haigh present songs and tunes inspired by the spirituality of early Celtic Christians rooted in the Irish musical tradition. Celtic Roots and Rhythms will start at Ipm and there will be a retiring collection.

Not to be missed is Pastime with Good Company on 20 April at 7.30pm.  Lux Aeterna, Eastbourne’s Early Music Chamber Choir, presents a programme of Tudor Music including music from the Court of Henry VIII. Tickets £8/£6 available via www.luxaeterna.org.uk or on the door. 

Another festival regular Boudoir Burlesque will once again showcase the “Boudoir Belles” and the town’s favourite darlings “The Pretty Little Horse Breakers” performing their 2012 selection of beautifully choreographed routines before they head off into the sunset to the summer festival circuit.  Eagerly waited for by the ladies, a very special appearance by “The Chaps”, with an all male cheeky burlesque routine. Live music and in-house DJs. This event is at the Crown and Anchor event room on 21st April, 8pm-1am. Strictly adults only!

For the visual arts, the East Sussex Open Exhibition, showcasing the wealth of regional artistic talent, will be taking place at Towner, Devonshire Park, College Rd, Eastbourne BN21 4JJ from 24 March to 29 April. This free exhibition, open to all East Sussex artists and makers, takes place in the vast ground floor Exhibition Halls – the largest display space in the region. It will include paintings as well as installations, sculpture and photography. You can expect to see the best East Sussex has to offer.

As part of Artists’ Open Houses many local painters and makers will open their houses, studios and gardens to showcase a variety of visual delights. This will not only be painting and sculpture but crafts, such as jewellery, ceramics and fashion. It is always interesting to meet the artists in their own homes and see artwork in a domestic context. Admittance is free and sometimes refreshments such as homemade cakes are served. The Big House at 49 Prideaux Road features three painters and nine designer makers including John Warren with his domestic pottery in his “Arts and Crafts” house together with sundials, birdbaths and torso planters in the garden. Visit the Big House to see paintings, drawings, prints, photography, ceramics, jewellery and women’s fashion. Open Saturdays and Sundays: 7 & 8, 14 & 15, 21 & 22 April, 11.00am – 6 pm.

Lastly there is the Shout! A community project whose aim is to bring together as many people as possible to share in a good old fashioned sing along, creating shared memories and increase a sense of community spirit. The Shout is at Eastbourne Bandstand on 27th April at 6.30 pm.

More information HERE