Here is your #OutdoorArts roundup – find out what’s happening over the bank holiday weekend and the next few weeks…

France | 23-26 Aug | This year Aurillac International Street Theatre Festival focuses on creation in public space and offering a wide variety of artistic forms that are created inside, outside, in situ, in urban or natural spaces.

Kettering | 24-27 Aug | Green Belt Festival invites you to their 50th anniversary festival, for a weekend of music, comedy, craft, theatre, dance, food, spirituality, talks, provocation and more. Don’t miss Stan’s Café, Pif-Paf Theatre and Spitz & Co.

Northamptonshire | 24-28 Aug | Shambala Festival offers a thousand chances to participate, whether you’re after escapism, brain food or just tears-running-down-your-legs hilarity. Don’t miss Thingumajig Theatre,  Tallulah Swirls Puppet Theatre, Sara Blackburn, Many Hands Circus, Baubo Theatre and Pyrite Creative.

Stoke on Trent | 25-26 Aug | The Big Feast is BACK for 2023! Run by Appetite, this is a free, outdoor event where art and artists pop up in streets and buildings within the City Centre. Don’t miss Joli Vyann, Gobbledegook Theatre, Trigger, Fatt Projects, Sonia Sabri Company, Miss High Leg Kick, Thingumajig Theatre, 16rpm and Upswing.

London | 25 Aug-10 Sep | GDIF 2023 will bring together UK and international artists in a programme of ground-breaking outdoor theatre, performance, art, dance and circus in iconic public spaces across London. OAUK will be there with a Funding Focus event, Artist Pitching AND a networking event in partnership with Without Walls.

  • Greenwich Fair | 26 Aug | Work from Rodney Bell & Chloe Loftus, Trigger, Simple Cypher, Circumstances, Soon Circus Company, Exoot, Guixot De 8, Ghetto Fabulous, Chris Pavia & Stopgap Dance Company, Just More Productions, Mind The Gap, Caroline Cardus, Omikemi in collaboration with Julie McNamara, and Oliver MacDonald.
  • Royal Victoria Dock | 31 Aug-3 Sep | Cygnus by Loomaland is a regatta of 12 life-sized swans performs a poetic ballet on the surface of the Royal Victoria Dock. Drifting on the still water as darkness falls, this is a mysterious and beautiful installation.
  • Royal Docks | 2-3 Sep | Sliding Slope by Vloeistof is inspired by the North Sea Flood of 1953 where four people fight for survival on the rooftop of a submerged house.
  • Canary Wharf | 6-10 Sep | Pan~ // Catwalk by Zwermers includes two performers, one catwalk and a never-ending row of outfits and challenges the urge to label or judge others based on how they appear.

Secret South East London Location | 6-10 Sep | The Architect by GDIF & Actors Touring Company is an immersive theatrical journey through time where audiences will travel aboard an iconic red bus and be transported across South-East London.

Netherlands | 25-27 Aug | Spoffin is the international street arts festival in Amersfoort in the Netherlands full of theatre, dance, circus and music. Don’t miss Daryl & Co and Mimbre and Joe Garbett Dance.

Warwickshire | 25-27 Aug | Camper Calling is the friendliest family festival in town with non-stop fun festival vibes all weekend. Don’t miss Handmade Theatre, Ras King Bobo, Panic Family Circus, The Actual Reality Arcade, Professor Pumpernickel and more!

Kensington & Chelsea | Aug | Kensington & Chelsea Festival is a multi-arts festival born out of a desire to lift spirits by celebrating culture and creativity, including creative experiments enabling audiences to see artists bringing new ideas to life:

  • 26 Aug | CODE by Justice in Motion is a spectacular blend of physical theatre, parkour and trial bike stunts with live rap music that shines a light on issues of exploitation, county lines and knife crime.
  • 26 Aug | Bonded by Alleyne Dance is an outdoor production that explores the construct of human dependency especially that of siblings – and how time and external conditions can affect the synergetic connection.

Leicester | 26 Aug | Re/action Festival is a brand-new festival exploring creativity for the climate, produced by Art Reach in association with Leicester City Council. Enjoy outdoor shows, giant puppets and tiny creatures and see an orchestra perform on vegetable instruments and soup. Don’t miss The Hidden Music of Trees by Jason Singh, The Herd of Mechanical Creatures by foolpool, Bee Cart by Pif-Paf, the Gujarati folk dance parade by Nupur Arts, Gnomus by Puppets with Guts, The Bees by Artizani, The Allotment Project by Casson & Friends, Time Machine Disco by Glasshouse Dance, and The Vegetable Nannies by Plunge Bloom.

Exeter | 26 Aug | Exeter Street Arts Festival is an annual event live music, art, activities & more across Exeter all day & night! Expect Giant Fairies, floating Mermaids, Morris dancers and a jaunt into Wonderland… alongside all the marvellous street musicians and acts.

Canterbury | 26-27 Aug | As ever, bOing! will be totally free to enter so you can relax and enjoy a brilliant festival day with lots of free, outdoor performances and activities. bOing is a family festival, meaning its not just for children – we programme fantastic artists from across the UK and beyond for all ages. Featuring Oily Cart, Simple Cypher, Stopgap Dance Company, Avant Garde Dance, and Rimski’s Yard. 

Cambridge | 26-27 Aug | Experience the extraordinary at Out of the Ordinary Festival. Performance artists will bring fantastical worlds of colour, imagination and humour to Cambridge’s historic streets, entertaining and amazing everyone as they go! Don’r miss The Vortexes, Kwabana Lindsay, Jones & Barnard, Bedlam Oz, Jason Maverick, InfuseDANCE, Granny Turismo, George Orange, Darryl J Carrington, As Above, Joanna Peacock, The Vortexes, Bureau of Silly Ideas, MarkMark Productions, Bash Street Theatre and Vamos Theatre.

Birmingham | 26-27 Aug | Birmingham Weekender brings the city centre to life with colourful installations and energetic music, dance and theatre performances. Don’t miss Architects of Air, Matthew Harrison, Talking Birds, Circus Raj, The Working Boys Club, Guru Du Du, Marshon Dance, All or Nothing Theatre, Motionhouse, Upper Level, Sonia Sabri Dance Company, and the Weekender Carnival by ACE Dance and Music

Redcar & Cleveland | 26-27 Aug | Between the Tides is a brand-new free festival of adventure and exploration, imagination and messiness for children, young people and families of Redcar & Cleveland and beyond. Including Circo Rum Ba Ba, Tit for Tat, Autin Dance Theatre, Theatre Temoin, The Clay Connection, Tin Arts, Architects of Air, The Imaginarium, Apus Productions, The Living Fossil Company, Theatre Hullabaloo, Pilot Theatre, Lempen Puppet Theatre, Whippet Up, and Artemis Productions. 

Oslo | 26 Aug – 3 Sep | DiGGFest will celebrate dance and fill the streets and public squares with walking performances, acrobatics, pop-up shows, workshops, flash-mobs and lot’s of surprises. See Autin Dance Theatre and more.

Newcastle | 27-28 Aug | Newcastle Mela is based around Pakistani, Bengali, Indian and other South Asian cultures and this is your chance to experience the music, food and entertainment associated with these cultures.

London | 27-28 Aug | Notting Hill Carnival is the Ultimate Caribbean Inspired Street Festival. The carnival has over 1 million visitors sprawling the streets of London, making it the biggest street party in the UK. The carnival travels around the area of west London with fluorescent dancers, masquerades, live music, and artistic floats.

Leeds | 27-28 Aug | Leeds West Indian Carnival is the perfect blend of jaw-dropping costumes, infectious tropical rhythms, mouth-watering food, Caribbean Culture and entertainment for everyone.

Sunbury-on-Thames | 27 Aug | Nepali Mela Organised by the Tamu Dhee Association UK in collaboration with the Embassy of Nepal, London.

Somerset | 28 Aug | Circus on the Hill is an exclusive cabaret show by Pirates of the Carabina at Burrow Hill Cider Farm. They’ll be pushing the boundaries of technique and the mechanics of performance beyond the ordinary, and showcasing mechanically inventive contemporary circus, combined with theatre and original live music.

Hull | 30 Aug-3 Sep | Freedom Festival has epic spectaculars unfolding in public spaces, as well as intimate moments where audiences and artists meet. Experience the joy of shared cultural encounters, enhanced wellbeing and a greater connection to place. OAUK will be there with a Funding Focus event (3 Sep).

Nairn | 31 Aug-3 Sep | The 20th Nairn Book and Arts Festival will run from 31st August until 3rd September – a shorter festival but no less sweet , with their usual brilliant mix of author talks, theatre, music, art, creative workshops, outdoor performance and a few surprises! Don’t miss the On the Wing parade at 10.45am, 3 Sep.

City of London | 31 Aug-16 Sep | At Bartholomew Fair the City will become the stage for an array of exciting, unique entertainment, and live performances taking place across the Square Mile. Don’t miss Bandaloop, 15Feet6, Fraser Hooper, Joan Català, Mr Wilson’s Second Liners, Barnard, Hicks & Jones (Barnard & Jones and Jon Hicks), Simple Cypher, Dulce Duca, Dizzy O’Dare, Cocoloco, Pif-Paf, and Natural Theatre Company.

  • London | 31 Aug-2 Sep | Resurgam is a performance by world-leading US-based vertical dance company BANDALOOP. Combining aerial choreography, cutting-edge climbing technology and original music on St Paul’s Cathedral.

Croydon | 1-3 Sep | The Liberty Festival is the Mayor of London’s flagship programme celebrating Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent Artists, curated by registered charity Drunken Chorus. Don’t miss The Liberty Garden Party (2 Sep) with outdoor performances from Def Motion, Moxie Brawl, SAVVY Theatre Company, Stopgap Dance Company and Tit for Tat Circus.

London | 1-30 Sep | Totally Thames is an annual season of unique, diverse and accessible arts and culture throughout the month of September with activity taking place on, beneath, and along the River Thames. Don’t miss The Line, XAP (Cross Arts Projects), and Camilla Brendon.

Devizes | 2 Sep | The Devizes Carnival Procession brings the town alive with vibrant walking groups, floats, bands and more with thousands of people lining the streets along the 2km route. This year’s theme is ‘Environment’ and invludes seven days of community workshops in the lead up to the event.

Mansfield | 2 Sep | The Full Shebang is arts festival for all ages – experience eye-popping outdoor performances, bonkers walkabout shows, dance, music, and more. Don’t miss Daryl & Co and Mimbre, Hands Down Circus, Hikapee Circus Theatre, Miss High Leg Kick, Matthew Harrison, Mr Wilson’s Second Liners, Lena Lenman, Handmade Theatre, Plunge Bloom, Orchestra of Objects and Bedlam Oz.

London | 2-3 Sep | Black on the Square celebrates Black culture and creativity with music, spoken word and dance, brought to you by the Mayor of London.

Morecambe | 2-3 Sep | Vintage By The Sea is a free family festival celebrating the brilliance of timeless design, fashion, art, vehicles, entertainment and culture in Morecambe. Don’t miss Jellyfish Theatre, Kitsch & Sync, Jean-Morag and Viv the Spiv.

Luton | 2-3 Sep | Desi Fest is a celebration of unity, diversity, and community. It serves as a platform to bring together individuals from different backgrounds, fostering a sense of togetherness and promoting cultural exchange. Don’t miss Amina Khayyam Dance Company.

Leeds | 5-9 Sep | Nest is set in 2050 and climate change is shaking the natural world. Now that the bird watchers can no longer watch, Skylar’s home will never be the same again…LEEDS 2023 and the award-winning National Youth Theatre are staging a series of breathtaking events against the stunning backdrop of RSPB St Aidan’s Nature Park, in a once-in-a-generation experience for performers and audience alike.

Leicester | 7 Sep | Hurrah Hurray oh fabulous day, the Ugly Bugs Wingding has flown into town! Leicester theatre company Enter Edem invite you into their magical miniature world to meet an array of enticing insects and colourful creatures on their way to an un-bee-lievable party at the University of Leicester Botanic Garden.

Spain | 7-10 Sep | FiraTàrrega offers a selection of theatre, movement and circus performances that aim to seduce the public and arouse the interest of attending industry professionals; an offer that combines the various dramatic disciplines, paying special attention to national and international creative trends. See Kaleider’s Fish Mobile above the streets of the Spanish town.

Dorset | 7-10 Sep | b-side is an internationally recognised arts festival that is led by the love of local. This year the festival is celebrating This Land, the limestone Isle of Portland that is their home, in all its splendid, fragile beauty.  Prepare to have your senses tantalised, to connect with others around you, and to experience the landscape like never before….Don’t miss Uncommon Land by Wildworks, a modern ritual where people and symbolic animals will come together in celebration.

Cornwall | 8 Sep | You Are Here is an immersive outdoor experience, brought to you by SproutSpoken, weaving people and place with words and space. Featuring writers and performers from Looe and surrounding area, together with a wider creative team from further afield in Cornwall, this one-off live event on Hannafore Beach is not to be missed.