THE 43rd Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival opens on Friday 20 May marking the first in a 10-day celebration of outstanding artists in theatre, music, dance, comedy and spoken word.
As the only region-wide performing arts organisation in Scotland D&G Arts Festival is a celebration of the performing arts, the people and the region.
The festival celebrates the stories of communities at the heart of Dumfries and Galloway with their programme.
From an award-winning line up of folk artists curated by Bogha Frois opening the festival this Friday, to bringing world famous Oran Mor to tour the region for the first time.
The festival gives rural communities the opportunity to experience work that they would otherwise have had to travel to the central belt to see.
Melanie Purdie, Strategic & Creative Director of Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival said: “Experience the performing arts in unique outdoor spaces, inside welcoming venues and in the comfort of your own home.
“We have something for everyone, of all ages, to enjoy this year. The Festival provides a rich mix of performances to entertain and inspire you, offering escapism this May.”
The festival kicks off with music from Bogha Frois at the Theatre Royal Dumfries, bringing a party that audiences don’t want to miss.
Bogha Frois curate folk events across Scotland with artists who, in Dumfries, include Marit Falt and Rona Wilkie, singer songwriter Lizzie Reid, piper and flautist Ailis Sutherland, Bogle Mufty, storyteller Finn Anderson and Dumfries born guitarist Jen Mac.
Also opening this year’s Festival in Dalbeattie are award-nominated comedy duo Your Dads Mum, who are presenting their show Tues Night @ Social Club.
Newly established for 2022 The Gallovidian Gathering and the Doonhamers Gathering, these ceilidhs invite audiences and artists together to share in the festival spirit and celebrate the best the region has to offer.
Theatre company Vanishing Point present their intriguing show The Metamorphosis: Unplugged, a new take on Franz Kafka’s mysterious and compelling tale in an acoustic retelling.
The Festival has worked alongside local artists Claudia Wood, Alex McQuiston, young Cello prodigy Will Archibald and Katharine Durran to create A Life in Music – A musical celebration in dedication to Derek Rangecroft MBE.
Tom Pow and The Galloway Agreement present their highly acclaimed show, The Village and the Road which brings together lived experiences of musical and oral history to create a voice for rural communities in modern times.
This show was developed through a commission with the Festival and back in 2021 sold out all 3 shows across the region.
Entering the first week of the Festival, the theatre programme shines with A Play, A Pie and A Pint from Glasgow’s world-famous Oran Mor.
Touring to Dumfries, Moffat and Stranraer, they present brand-new show The Infernal Serpent, which puts a modern twist on one of the oldest stories in the book and considers why – and how – we protest.
Audiences will also get to enjoy a local pie and drink as part of the show in this lunchtime experience.
The semi-autobiographical and bilingual play Tickbox is heading to Eskdalemuir on Monday 23 May and Whithorn on Tuesday 24 May.
It follows a Pakistani woman’s journey from a comfortable, middle-class life in Pakistan to Govan, Glasgow – intertwined with the story of her daughter, their parallel lives and the barriers faced.
At The Studio Theatre in Moffat on Wednesday 25 May, Sanctuary Queer Arts presents THREADS, a new film devised and created by Sanctuary’s first national Queer Young Company with a special Q&A about the film from the artists who created the piece.
Continuing their expansive work with young people, Stage iT, the youth strand of the Festival’s organisation, has curated a celebration of young musicians from across the region.
It gives young people the opportunity to perform alongside headliners and local rock band TORRS at Sounds of Stage iT.
Heading into the second weekend of the Festival, Britain’s Got Talent Winner, Lost Voice Guy presents his show Cerebral LOL-SY at the Theatre Royal Dumfries.
Poking fun at his life as a disabled person in a post-apocalyptic world, coping with the fame and fortune found in recent years.
The final day of the Festival on Sunday 29 May opens with Oi Musica’s newest street band The Tubes taking over the amphitheatre at Crawick Multiverse in a celebration of the region’s beauty and community spirit.
Closing the Festival this year is the last chance to see Paper Doll Militia’s five-star touring show Egg, an aerial theatre production from the acclaimed circus theatre company.
Throughout the week, D&G Dance presents #DGDanceDare – their mission to get the whole region dancing.
Dance Advocates will be inviting everyone to learn choreography, film themselves and share it on social media and a final mass performance will take place on Sunday 26 at Crawick Multiverse.
The Festival continues its D&G Arts Festival at Hame strand from 2021, bringing more accessibility to the programme and running throughout the Festival from Friday 20 – Sunday 29.
The online programme includes Sunday’s Child presenting Afloat, an online theatre piece set during the climate apocalypse in Dublin.
Townsend Theatre Productions’ Farewell Leicester Square, a one-man show that chronicles Britain’s first Black bus driver, Joe Clough film, Skookum Jim and The American Dream from Chrys Salt Productions and Thin h/as h/air, a solo exploration from Scottish Dance Theatre company member Pauline Torzuoli showcasing her unbelievable choreography.
