Giant mutoids on Bournemouth prom? Must be Arts By the Sea again!

The festival, now in its third year, is rapidly becoming as well-regarded as the town’s air event and its organisers hope that even more locals and visitors will delight in the feast of fun and experiences they’ve lined up for 2013.

Spokesman Rachel Shimell says: “The aim is for the festival to become a major cultural event in the international calendar, an artist-led festival that enables regional, national and international artists to create new work, and showcase their best work.”

So what can we look forward to this year?

Well, it all kicks off on Friday with a parade by Joe Rush and his Mutoid Waste Company, whose spectacular creations you may have seen at the Paralympic closing ceremony and more recently on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury with the Rolling Stones.

Added to that will be the work of artist and composer Ray Lee, whose sound sculptures on giant metal tripods will tower over the crowds.

The Michael Grubb Studio’s ‘lighthouse’ light sculptures will create what Rachel has described as ‘a unique world of light and colour’ and Jem Finer’s Spiegelei-on-Sea, will ‘reflect and magically invert the world’ using mirrors, lenses and what resembles large, polished spheres giving a different view of the town.

Over the weekend the only vintage mobile cinema in the country will be showing new animations for all the family and in the Lower Gardens the bandstand will be transformed into an alternative shoe shop, where you are invited to try shoes on and share shoe stories with the Valise Noir storytelling theatre. Swing band The Regular Joes will be supplying music and there’ll even be a Silent Disco to sway along to.

Add to this the planned roving piano recitals and a crinolined lady explaining the origins of Bournemouth as a seaside spa and the organisers hope the festival will build on its established reputation, especially when the opening weekend finishes with an English interpretation of Venice’s Marriage of the Sea ceremony, performed by over 100 local people.

In all, a staggering 50 events, activities and general wonders are promised, both indoors and out over three weeks, all designed to stimulate the mind and provide a visual and aural feast.

There will be theatrical performances, including Nude, by The Irrepressibles, Ring, ‘a seductive sound journey in complete darkness’ where the audience will be asked to don headphones.

The Mark Bruce Company will be bringing the dark tale of Dracula to life in dance, while, at Urban Reef, the reincarnations of Fanny and Johnnie Craddock will cook The Great American Songbook.

But, says Rachel, there are plenty of quirky, smaller events to take in, from a Balkan folk music and singing course, to Dick Danger – watch a man dive from a very high pole into a bucket of water – and the poet John Cooper Clarke.

Film fans won’t lose out, either, as there will be a special screening of Alfred Hitchcock’s directorial debut, The Pleasure Garden, accompanied by Jack Maguire and players from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.

“We really believe there will be something for everyone,” says Rachel.

  • artsbournemouth.org.uk