ONE of the north’s most diverse and eclectic arts festivals bounces back into Belfast from September 5-8. Bounce Arts Festival features a mix of dance, comedy, music, art exhibitions, poetry readings and physical theatre.
The acclaimed disability and Deaf arts festival has 20 events squeezed into an action-packed long weekend at venues including the Black Box, The MAC, the Brian Friel Theatre and the Atypical Gallery in Royal Avenue.
The festival, run by the University of Atypical, showcases outstanding new work by deaf and disabled artists, musicians, actors, comedians, dancers and performance poets, supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Now in its eighth year, it has grown into one of the leading disability arts festivals in Europe.
This year's line-up includes ‘111’, a powerful duet featuring narrative dance and aerial collaboration from dancers with very different strengths and vulnerabilities and Neon Dream, featuring cult Afro-futuristic music icon Lady Vendredi, described as a "Voodoo priestess and pop star from another dimension".
There is also Turbo Hallion – surreal, Pythonesque comedy from Belfast’s own Paul Currie, winner of the Comedians’ Choice Award at last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, while playwright Christian O’Reilly (author of Inside I’m Dancing and Sanctuary) will talk about his new project Unspeakable Conversations, which explores the controversial subject of euthanasia.
Award-winning Guardian journalist Frances Ryan will launch her new book, Crippled: Austerity and the Demonisation of Disabled People and there'll be workshops, gigs and performances for younger people, family entertainment followed and a circus skills workshop.
:: See universityofatypical.org/bounce, email info@universityofatypical.org or call 028 9023 9450 for more info. Deaf people can text via 0751 7132 554.
