A SPECIAL preview of this year’s Stockton International Riverside Festival brought an extra buzz to Stockton high street yesterday (Tuesday 14 July) with a stunning dance theatre performance by Southpaw Dance Company.
Members of the public were treated to the captivating street performance of ‘Carousel’ by Southpaw dancers as they flipped, rolled, dived and whirled in the town centre.
Their captivating show was just a taster of a full performance which will show at SIRF15 (30 July to 2 August).
‘Carousel’ features a splendid, fully functioning merry-go-round which provides the centre-piece for an edgy story of the enigmatic characters who inhabit the fairground.
As the fair shuts down for the night, its public face gives way to the exhilarating private celebrations and personal tragedies of an intensely close-knit group of people.
Councillor Norma Wilburn, Stockton Council’s Cabinet Member for Arts, Leisure and Culture, said: “Yesterday’s preview of ‘Carousel’ is just a taste of the fantastic and varied performances SIRF has to offer. There is always an exciting atmosphere during the festival and this year promises to be a classic – with more than 100 shows over the four days, there will be a huge range of spectacular music, dance and theatre to enjoy.”
SIRF15 will present more than 100 shows, running from noon until 11pm each day. There will be a mixture of both small-scale and large-scale productions shows for people of all ages.
Southpaw will perform ‘Carousel’ at SIRF on Friday, 31 July and Saturday, 1 August at 9.15pm.
To find out more and see the full SIRF programme, visit www.sirf.co.uk