Southwold Street Festival 2022 – credit Ian Lomas
The hotly-anticipated return of Southwold Street Festival is to transform the high street into a colourful carnival atmosphere this summer.
The festival is returning to the town on Saturday, June 29 for the first time since 2022, bringing as many as 3,000 revellers to the high street, which will be closed to traffic throughout the day.
It will form the fabulous finale to the wider week-long Southwold Arts Festival, complete with a huge procession of performers alongside a rolling programme of music, dance and family fun from 12pm to 5pm.
Its return comes thanks to local director Matthew Townshend of Matthew Townshend Productions (mtp) and its Theatre on the Coast summer season.
Matthew said: “The Southwold Street Festival has always brought a bright injection of colour and fun to the high street – so I am delighted to help bring it back this summer.
“The team at Southwold Arts Festival have had lots of messages asking if it will be back on this year, and we have we have so much planned for a spectacular return. That includes marvellous musicians and dance troupes that celebrate everything great about this beautiful seaside town.
“This is free family fun at its very finest – and will form the perfect send off for what I’m sure will be another incredibly successful Southwold Arts Festival.”
Other Southwold Arts Festival stagings on the day include Southwold Harbour’s celebrations for the 75th Sailing Club anniversary and the 200th birthday of the RNLI, as well as “Caped Crusader” and Yes legend Rick Wakeman at the Southwold Arts Centre.
Matthew is also calling on local people to get involved in the festival by volunteering through the East Suffolk Cultural Connections scheme, funded through the London Olympics’ Spirit of 2012 fund.
He added: “We have a bustling arts scene here in Suffolk – but that would not be possible without the amazing work of the fabulous volunteers giving up their time up and down the county.
“Volunteering in the arts sector is an incredibly rewarding way to bring joy to local people while celebrating our rich theatrical heritage.”
More information on how to become a volunteer can be found at www.culturalconnectionsvolunteering.org.uk.