Preston Live Arts Festival, a celebration of arts, culture, and homegrown talent in Preston, announces the initial line-up for this year’s Summer Festival which will run at venues across the city from 21-30 June. With something for the whole family, tickets for events are on sale at www.preston.live.

Get ready to pick your jaws up from the floor with Hey Presto-n! A night of illusion and Magic at the Charter Theatre on 30 June as a cast of incredible conjurers defy reality and blow you away with mind bending tricks! The magical line up of superstar illusionists includes Jamie Raven (Britain’s Got Talent), Edward Hilsum (The Magic Circle Triple Crown Champion), Mark Shortland (From Penn and Teller Fool Us), Marcus Lewis (The Hypnotist) and Alex Jesson’s Matricks Illusion.

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Tickle your funny bones at Live From the Guild Hall a two-night comedy extravaganza on 21 and 26 June. The first night features top family friendly Britain’s Got Talent comedians such as Lost Voice Guy, Steve Royle, Jonny Awsum, and Ben Hart. Or for those with an adult sense of humour the second night is the perfect tonic with Preston legend Dan Nightingale leading a hilarious line up of comedians including Adam Rowe, Lauren Pattison and Paul Smith, strictly 18+.

A series of Scratch Nights, Lockdown Stories, will celebrate the huge array of homegrown talent the city has to offer as selected artists of Preston share their lockdown stories. Each performance night at the Charter Theatre will be a tapestry of short inventive pieces, commissioned especially for the festival. Split across three nights and three specialties, dance, drama and spoken word on 22, 23 and 28 June; each evening will be a uniquely imaginative celebration of local voices and experiences.

Families can look forward to visiting the Family Fest which will be hosted at Avenham Park on 26 and 27 June where they can catch up with The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show a theatrical recreation of Eric Carle’s beautifully imaginative stories which features a menagerie of enchanting puppets during a magical show that faithfully adapts four of his beloved books for the stage. The production includes the fan favourites, Brown Bear, 10 Little Rubber Ducks, the newly added Dream Snow and, of course, The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Preston College will present Preston College Dance ‘Unlocked’ an evening of dance at the Guild Hall 25 June, from students who have worked with staff and other students to create exciting pieces over the previous year dancing in their kitchen garages and gardens! Finally able to bring this to life on stage for a live audience.

Local theatre company Create Theatre will bring together an evening of musical theatre at the Charter Theatre 29 June celebrating the best of Preston’s talent through the shows of London’s West End in Prest-End! The concert production will be performed by a cast of local professionals and will also feature the talented students from Create Theatre Academy. Expect a fantastic range of musical moments. With performances from many of the nation’s favourite shows from Jersey Boys to Billy Elliot and Wicked to Les Miserables.

Mayor of Preston Councillor Javed Iqbal said: “We are delighted to announce our initial line-up for Preston Live Arts Festival which combines much-loved, high profile acts with a selection of specially commissioned projects from our local creative community, the response to which has been overwhelming. It is brilliant that the city is being able to reopen safely and offer great arts, events and experiences for all the family.”

Councillor Peter Kelly, Cabinet Member for Culture and Arts, said: “As Preston comes out of lockdown we are committed to working towards putting our arts and cultural offering firmly back on the map, rebuilding our live performance programme and local audiences. We see the Preston Live Arts Festival as a key catalyst for the growth and development of the city whilst also providing our residents and visitors fun and engaging events and activities for the whole family to enjoy.”

With more to follow including a number of musical events, family workshops and a visual art exhibition follow Preston Live Arts Festival @PrestonArtsLive #PrestonLive. or sign up for more information and book tickets at www.preston.live. Limited concessions will be available for key workers to receive a 10 per cent discount off ticket prices check the website for details.

Preston Live Arts Festival has been made possible following funding from the DCMS Cultural Recovery Fund. All events and performance will be compliant with all current government recommendations and legislation at the time of the event. Details will be available on the Preston Live Arts Festival Website.

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Will you be going to any of the Preston Live events? Let us know in the comments.