Line-up unveiled for 2019 Kenilworth Arts Festival

The Kenilworth Arts Festival recently announced the line-up for the programme in its fourth year, which features international artists, UK premieres and exclusive performances.
The festival will also host multi-award-winning pianist Isata Kanneh-MasonThe festival will also host multi-award-winning pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason
The festival will also host multi-award-winning pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason

The festival, which will run for 10 days from Thursday Sept. 19 to Sept. 28, will take over open spaces, theatres, churches, bookshops and streets, transforming the town into a stage for the arts.

The festival, which is a non-profit organisation, aims to celebrate outstanding new work and to provide a platform for ideas and stories.

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Tickets are from £6 and are available from www.wegottickets.com/kenilworthartsfestival

Lewis Smith, the artistic director of Kenilworth Arts Festival, said “We’re thrilled to be able to welcome world class writers, musicians and artists to Kenilworth once again for our 2019 festival. The festival has grown year on year, and we are proud to continue to champion brilliant, thought provoking new work.”

Critically acclaimed award-winning singer-songwriter Nadia Reid from New Zealand will open the festival on Sept. 19 with a one-off concert at St. Nicholas church.

The festival will also host multi-award-winning pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason, who is a former finalist in the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year, and has performed in prestigious venues around the world including Carnegie Hall and The Barbican.

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Other musical performances include a concert from British-Bahraini trumpet and flugelhorn player Yazz Ahmed, American jazz pianist Darius Brubeck, son of the legendary musician Dave Brubeck, and an exclusive first UK performance from French singer-songwriter Pauline Drand, who perform songs from her debut album ‘Faits Bleus’.

The festival will also host a series of talks and readings featuring influential writer and editor Nikesh Shukla, to journalist Caroline Criado Perez OBE, Kerry Hudson on her latest book ‘Lowborn’, debut novelist Elizabeth Macneal whose debut book ‘The Doll Factory’ was a Sunday Times top ten best-seller and local author Caroline Lea.

There will also be a panel discussion on the children’s book industry featuring novelist Serena Patel and children’s book illustrator Jane McGuinness.

Festivalgoers will have the rare chance to see Irish sculptor Donnacha Cahill’s giant pop–up sculpture ‘The Gramophone’ which will make its first ever visit to England during the festival.

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The sculpture will be appearing in several locations in the town, and audiences will have the opportunity to connect to the gramophone by bringing their own records and hearing their favourite music as it has never been heard before.

Book lovers are invited to join the festival to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the world-famous publishing house Faber & Faber.

This special event welcomes Toby Faber, former managing director of Faber and Faber and grandson of founder Geoffrey Faber, who will be speaking about the ‘Untold Story’ of the publishing house, which has been a home to the likes of TS Eliot, Sylvia Plath and many more.