Eclectic mix of artists and acts for this year’s Bury St Edmunds Festival
From Rick Wakeman to Nigel Kennedy and from close harmony group The Puppini Sisters to the multi talents of John Cooper Clarke … just four of the many well known and local acts who will be performing at this year’s Bury St Edmunds Festival.
There’s also a host of many other artists, acts, cinema screenings and walks set to take place during the 11 days of the event across 14 venues and locations in the town.
The festival was launched at The Apex tonight, Monday, February 18, with organisers promising an eclectic mix of music, theatre, jazz and films to suit all tastes and appetites.
“It’s a fantastic line up that has been secured for this year,” said Jo Rayner, St Edmundsbury Borough Council’s portfolio holder for Leisure, Culture and Heritage. “There’s a concerted burst of activity collaborating home-grown talent with those of international reknown.”
Rick Wakeman kicks off the festival on Thursday, May 16, as part of his Piano Odyssey UK Tour, at the Apex, and the Chineki! Orchestra, which is the first group of musicians to feature a majority of black and minority ethnic players and founded by pioneering double bassist Chi-chi Nwanoku, closes it on Sunday, May 26, also at The Apex.
But in between there’s an absolute raft of thrilling shows and events taking place.
It includes Hervey at the Court of George II, based on the memoirs of the King and the Queen’s Vice Chamberlain Lord Hervey of Ickworth, and staged at Ickworth House, on Saturday, May 18, guided walks round the historic town; Songbook Sunday: Georgia Mancio, at The Athenaeum, on Sunday, May 19; Swan Lake, Theatre Royal, Tuesday, May 21; the phenomenal Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, The Apex, and Latin jazz from Picante, Hunter Club, Friday, May 24; Brighouse and Rastrick Brass Band, St Mary’s Church, Saturday, May 25; and Duo Diez, Unitarian Meeting House, Sunday, May 26.
FULL LINE UP
Thursday, May 16: Rick Wakeman, Apex.
Friday, May 17: Lady Windermere’s Fan, Abbeygate Cinema; Puppini Sisters, Apex; Sara Dowling, Hunter Club; Homity, Risbygate Sports Club.
Saturday, May 18: Historical Bury walk, Angel Hill; Street Theatre, Abbey Gardens; An Ideal Husband, Abbeygate Cinema; Hervey at the Court of George II, Ickworth House; Clare Teal, The Apex; The Bounty Hounds, Risbygate Sports Centre.
Sunday, May 19: Festival Eucharist, St Edmundsbury Cathedral; Breckland walk, Moyse’s Hall; Georgia Mancio, Athenaeum; The Importance of Being Earnest, Abbeygate Cinema; Suffolk Philharmonic Orchestra, Apex; Cathedral Choir, St Edmundsbury Cathedral; Growl, Theatre Royal; Bury Folk Collective, United Reform Church.
Monday, May 20: Joanna Eden and Chris Ingham, Apex; Tallis Scholars, St Edmundsbury Cathedral; Beowulf, Apex; Earl Okin, Hunter Club.
Tuesday, May 21: George Harliono, Apex; Swan Lake, Theatre Royal; John Cooper Clarke, Apex; Late Night Concert, St Edmundsbury Cathedral.
Wednesday, May 22: Swan Lake, Theatre Royal; Sarah Moule and Simon Wallace, Hunter Club; Nigel Kennedy, Apex; Chris Wood, Risbygate Sports Club.
Thursday, May 23: Mark Crooks and Chris Ingham, Apex; Hexachordia, Unitarian Meeting House; Akenfield Now, Moyse’s Hall; John Lill, Apex; Barbara Nice, Theatre Royal.
Friday, May 24: Quintet-A-Tete, Apex; English Piano Trio, St Edmundsbury Cathedral; Ukulele Orchestra, Apex; Picante, Hunter Club; Williams and Richardson, Risbygate Sports Club.
Saturday, May 25: Beating the Bounds, Angel Hill; Aliens Love Underpants, Abbeygate Cinema; James Campbell, Apex; Brighouse & Rastrick Band; St Mary’s Church; Kate Rusby, Apex.
Sunday, May 26: A Sideways Look, Angel Hill; Duo Diez, Unitarian Meeting House; Chineki! Orchestra.