With just over a week to go until the Norfolk and Norwich Festival returns, we have rounded up some of the must-see events happening in the city.
The hub of the festival is Chapelfield Gardens, which becomes Festival Gardens, and the Adnams Spiegeltent is located there.
1. Chelsea McGuffin & Co: Le Coup
May 17-28, 5.30pm or 7.30pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
Join a troupe of travelling misfits at this neo-vaudeville speakeasy while they compete through circus skills, fire breathing, daring aerial feats and acrobatics.
Le Coup is a tribute to the funfairs of yesteryear, accompanied by the bluegrass sounds of live band Father Grant and The Blunt Objects.
2. 12 Ensemble & GBSR Duo
May 19, 8pm, St Andrew’s and Blackfriars’ Hall
Two of the most exciting young groups in the UK classical music scene join forces for a very special performance.
String collective 12 Ensemble and piano and percussion duo GBSR Duo explore music’s obsession with death as they perform heavenly and hellish visions by five composers.
READ MORE: Norfolk and Norwich Festival: Explore this year's highlights
3. Alfa Mist
May 20, 8pm, St Andrew’s & Blackfriars’ Hall
Alfa Mist is a musician, producer, songwriter and MC whose distinctive music - a dark and alternative form of jazz - mixes hip-hop, soul and club tropes with jazz improvisation.
Join Alfa Mist for a head-nodding night that pairs the immediacy of jazz improvisation with a pervasive sense of rhythm.
4. Jessica Walker and Luke Styles: The People’s Cabaret
May 23, 7.30pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
The culmination of a three-year project working within Norfolk communities, cabaret singer Jessica Walker and composer Luke Styles are joined by the Chroma Ensemble for a night of contemporary responses to protest songs.
The People’s Cabaret reflects the issues facing East Anglian communities today.
5. BBC Singers
May 26, 7.30pm, Cathedral of St John the Baptist
Britain's only full-time professional chamber choir is joined by saxophonist and composer Christian Forshaw and conductor Owain Park to perform a rich programme at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival.
It will mark the 400th Anniversary of Byrd’s passing through performances of The Great Service and Ave Verum Corpus.
READ MORE: Bands and premieres to see at Norfolk & Norwich Festival
LATES AT THE SPIEGELTENT: A series of genre-defying performances take over the Adnams Spiegeltent as one-off late-nights in the heart of Festival Gardens.
HERE ARE SOME OF OUR TOP PICKS:
6. Paul O’Donnell: DIA-BEAT-ES
May 18, 10pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
Paul is a type one diabetic and has been for 28 years and he is also a DJ.
DJ Beat-es presents a unique theatrical comedy DJ set, mixing popular songs like Sweet Dreams, Because I Got High (blood sugars) and Bleeding Love.
7. Nihiloxica
May 19, 10pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
Get ready for the dark, otherworldly sounds of Kampala’s finest. With three percussionists, one kit drummer and an analog synth player, Nihiloxica harnesses traditional Ugandan Bugandan drumming and mixes it with techno.
Exploring the common ground between techno and tradition, the band has one aim: to make people dance.
8. W.H. Lung
May 20, 10pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
Manchester’s synth-pop powerhouse W. H. Lung comes to Norfolk fresh from the 2022 festival circuit, where they played the legendary Williams Green stage at Glastonbury.
Think Donna Summer meets Kraftwerk: delve into a music hole and fall in love with electronic pop.
9. Join the Din
May 27, 10pm, Adnams Spiegeltent
Formed in 2018, this international ensemble embodies the vibrant and exploratory nature of the contemporary UK jazz scene.
Join the Din pairs explosive double drums with duelling saxophones, bass and synths.
The Norfolk and Norwich Festival runs from May 12 to 28 - buy tickets at nnfestival.org.uk
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