Corby Grow Festival will be a feast of fun

Commissioned by Made in Corby and co-produced by The Core at Corby Cube, Grow 2019 takes place on Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 28.

Continuing to look at the essential ingredients for growth, Grow 2019 is inspired by the theme of food, celebrating all things culinary.

Corby’s town centre will once again be animated with hilarious street performers, magical family pop-up shows and spectacular art throughout the weekend.

Among the highlights will be a theatrical Community Feast on the Sunday where hundreds of diners enjoy delicious food served up by local chefs while entertained by music, dance and theatre from acclaimed street artists.

After delighting audiences at last year’s festival with The Spurting Man, Avanti Display return with the hilarious Mr Lucky’s Party, a tea party that descends into chaos with stormy weather.

Stan’s Cafe present Of All The People In The World, a beautifully simple performance installation in which artists build small and large mounds of rice representing the political and social realities in the world.

Street performers throughout Saturday include spectacular circus and dance in Grow from Kapow, 2Faced Dance Company with their trademark fusion of break, street and contemporary dance, and charming walkabout act The Vegetable Nannies. There will also be free craft workshops with artist Sarah Walpole throughout the day at James Ashworth VC Square where families can create something to carry in the parade.

To be enjoyed on both days of the festival are Artizani’s wacky interactive installation Bees: The Colony, family fun from Beryl & Cyril’s Great Barnsley Bake Off and a joyous mix of medieval dance, folk music and hip-hop from Boom Bike Bourrée.

At 5pm on Saturday evening, Artizani’s giant Lobster à la Cart will lead a colourful rainbow of foods on a parade through the town centre to Coronation Park, where revellers can enjoy a vibrant display of colourful smoke, pyrotechnic sparkles and a crescendo of crackers.

On Sunday from 12.30pm to 5pm Coronation Park is the setting for an enormous Community Feast and the return of the People’s Stage will showcase the wealth of talent in Corby featuring local musicians, choirs, community groups and spoken word artists.

The feast is the culmination of months of community growing projects and rescued food from Northamptonshire’s Fruitful Abundance CIC and three local chefs will cook up a delicious menu reflecting Corby’s diverse population and their cuisines.

Hosted by Stuart Reid, diners will be entertained by an exciting blend of choreography and music performed on a huge percussion wheel in Pulse! by Joss Arnott Dance, the whimsically witty Madame Bonbon and fantastic feel-good music from the Bollywood Brass Band.

A full schedule of events and times can be found at www.growcorby.co.uk and a printed leaflet and map will be available.

All entertainment is free throughout the festival but tickets for the feast are priced at £10*, with concessions at £8, and can be booked by calling 01536 470470 or online at www.thecorecorby.com.

Residents of Corby borough are eligible for half price tickets which can only be booked by phone or in person.

The project is steered by a panel of community members, commissioned by Made in Corby and co-produced with The Core at Corby Cube and Bill Gee Projects.

More information about the festival can be found at www.growcorby.co.uk and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.