This April, Rotherham town centre will once again be transformed into an urban playground as UPLIFT Rotherham Skate and Art Festival returns for its second year.
This year’s event, running from Wednesday 5th until Friday 7th April, is set to be even bigger than last year’s with the addition of a pop-up roller rink from the brilliant Roller Girl Gang, two arenas for skateboarding and BMX, and demos from three amazing professional skateboarders including Skateboard GB National Team member Alex deCunha, plus Tommy Corbridge and Adam Kay.
Live music, over all three days this year, will bring performances from bands including Blood Stained Reputation, Paper Scenes, and a headliner each day, including award-winning musician Tom Killner, and to finish off the festival on Friday, Sheffield rock beasts Black Spiders.
Putting the art into UPLIFT will be a number of creative workshops, commissioned by Flux Rotherham, from artists Ed Syder, Natasha Clarke, and Phil Padfield who will all be based on Effingham Street for all three days of the Festival.
Teaming up with The Teenage Market, Rotherham Council has been able to offer free stalls to young people aged 16 to 25, so be sure to check out the market, where you will find handmade jewellery, hand-drawn posters, clothing and more.
Dodge barrels and lasers, build Tetris walls, shoot aliens, and become Pac-Man in the Actual Reality Arcade, a life-sized interactive zone inspired by classic arcade games where you play for real – gaming, but not as you know it! Actual Reality Arcade has been commissioned by Without Walls, Hat Fair, Norfolk and Norwich Festival, Out There International Festival of Circus and Street Arts and Stockton International Riverside Festival before coming to Rotherham.
On Wednesday 5th April, for one day only, renowned circus dance company Ockham’s Razor are bringing their new outdoor performance PUBLIC to UPLIFT at 11.00am and 3.00pm, next to All Saints’ Square. This incredible show is about support, freedom and tenderness, asking how and where we can be uninhibited and unbound when the ownership of public space has become increasingly colonised by corporations.
Rotherham Council is proud to bring this vibrant and exciting three-day event to the town, offering young people free activities, opportunities and ways to showcase all the amazing talent they have.
UPLIFT is a partner in Without Walls, a consortium of over 35 festivals and arts organisations bringing fantastic outdoor arts to people in towns and cities across England. Find out more on www.withoutwalls.uk.com.
Since its formation in 2007, Without Walls has developed and toured over 200 new shows and its commissions have toured widely both in the UK and internationally across 22 countries.
Without Walls is supported by Arts Council England as a National Portfolio Organisation. Find out more at www.withoutwalls.uk.com.