Sparkfest

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Performance festival brings the creatives of tomorrow to Bath

Sparkfest returns for its sixth year, showcasing an exciting run of thrilling performances across the city of Bath from 11 May to 12 June. This five-week long festival brings audiences the creatives of tomorrow as they perform across the city in venues including The Egg, Widcombe Social Club, Burdall’s Yard, The Mission Theatre and Newton Park campus.

SparkFest celebrates the creative work from students, alumni, staff and collaborators across the School of Music and Performing Arts at Bath Spa University, produced by the school’s own production company, Bath Spa Productions.

The festival offers live and digital experiences throughout the five weeks. Below are just a few highlights from over 100 performances happening during SparkFest.

Common Passage

12 – 16 May, 7pm and 9pm, Burdall’s Yard

Performed by BA Acting graduate Lia Parry, Common Passage is an intimate, gritty one-woman show about the clarity that clinical hospital walls bring. This is the stark story of a young woman navigating her way through being sectioned.

Chimes Poetry

12 May, 2pm and 14 May, 7pm, Burdall’s Yard

Join Chimes poetry night for an extra special poetry workshop on 12 May as part of SparkFest, led by Bristol poet, Aish Humphreys. 

Aish has performed all over the UK and is currently writing a spoken word theatre show with Eryn McDonald exploring transness and masculinity.

Chimes return to Burdall’s Yard 14 May in collaboration with the Poetry Film Club for a poetry screening containing an explosion of words, images and sound, showcasing talent from across the UK.

SparkFest Rising in Partnership with EMERGE

21 May, 7pm, The Mission Theatre

SparkFest Rising provides attendees with an evening of new writing, exciting developments, and explorative live music. The evening will present work-in-progress sharings as artists generate creative ideas and test new work.

Independent Digital Collection (Screenings)

23 May, 7pm, The Mission Theatre

An evening of short film screenings, screen-dance works and other digital productions created by both graduating students and alumni from Bath Spa University’s performing arts courses.

Students have explored the collaborative process of making new performance pieces, either from an existing text or an entirely new work in all areas, including acting, comedy and dance, embarking on their own journey and process in curating these digital productions.

Plural Singularity

3 June, 9pm, Widcombe Social Club

A movement piece depicting the exploration of intimacy in the modern age. Plural Singularity aims to bring to light the more complex nature of affection which rarely graces the silver screen. 

Tickets to all performances can be booked via Bath Spa Live.