OPENING NIGHT
Start your fringe weekend with exhibitions and performances across the city before joining us to Illuminate Wolverhampton with out Friday-night lantern parade.
THE GRAND PALACE
24 School St, Wolverhampton WV1 4LF
VISUAL ARTS EXHIBITION | 5pm - 9pm
Explore multidisciplinary contemporary work by artists responding to the themes of Fringe Arts Wolves to the backdrop of a beautifully restored Grade II listed building in the heart of Wolverhampton.
Exploring Community resilience, activism, sustainable practices and care.
Also discover ‘Future Threads’ a sustainable fashion project, with creations by local secondary -school students in the main visual arts exhibition.
Participating Artists | Saskia Poller, Anne Cove. Alex Bird. Stephen Mcfayden , Steve Evans, Omuwaaa, Reinvtd clothes, Victoria Murrain, Belinda Longsden, Dawn P. Jones, Quilter’s Quest, Bridgnorth and Wombourne Quilters, Ian Hughes, Giovanni Uche, Sabbi Kaur
SPOTLIGHT: Runway • Music • Dance | 9PM - Midnight
The Industry Spot presents SPOTLIGHT: a takeover fusing top tier fashion, live music, and dance performances at Wolverhampton Grand Palace.
Following a packed opening day at Fringe Arts Festival Wolverhampton;
BBC Radio 1XTRA recognised Industry Tastemaker, Kupid the King, hosts a space to drink, dance, and experience the rich creative culture of the city.
From Bhangra to Breakdance, UK R&B to Amapiano, and streetwear to avant-garde runway collections, SPOTLIGHT shines a light on the talent within Wolverhampton’s creative communities.
Ms L Vibez controls the soundtrack from 9pm until Midnight alongside live instrumentation, live artist PAs, model showcases, and a historic Breakdance Jam hosted by the UK’s first B-Girl, Hanifa McQueen-Hudson.
| Free Entry | All Ages Welcome | Paid Bar available
MANDER CENTRE COMMUNITY HUB
Ground floor of the Mander Centre - lower level (near Bonmarche and opposite the YMCA)
REFLECTIONS - Lou Chapelle | 5pm - 9pm
Step into Reflections, an immersive installation by artist Lou Chapelle, exploring our relationship with water through holographic moving imagery and an atmospheric soundscape.
Creating a contemplative space within the Mander Centre Community Hub, the work invites audiences to slow down, reflect and experience the familiar movement of water in an unexpected form.
Supported through ILLUMINATE West Midlands
Free Entry | Drop in |
ST PETER'S COLLEGIATE CHURCH
Lich Gates, Wolverhampton WV1 1TY
Multidisciplinary arts Exhibition| 5pm - 9pm
Explore contemporary art throughout the historic surroundings of St Peter's Collegiate inspired by the architecture, pause and reflect on a sense of the sacred in ourselves and our environment.
Exploring themes of nature, love, community, mindfulness, esoteric knowledge and our connection with both each other and the world we share.
Participating Artists | Thomas Jack Brown, Tariq Evans, Alex Bird, Wayne Taft, Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak, Eva Siket, Finn Baker, Adam Wynn, Ian Hughes, Susan Pitt, Rashda A, Izrayhel Michael Francis, Deborah Stone, Matt Lloyd, Arman Ray, Wormhole productions, David Checkley
Free Entry | Drop in
Encounters: Above, Below | 5pm - 9pm
And who are You, when all is said and done?
A tiny speck. The whole Universe. The cold floor beneath. The vast sky above. Man…Bird…God… Nothing is as it seems.
Experience space differently through a gentle participatory exploration of mindfulness and body mapping.
Encounter The Conduit in St Peters Church.
Free Entry | Drop in
Collegiate Choir Open Rehearsal | Between 5pm - 9pm
Explore the exhibition accompanied by the sound of the Collegiate Choir rehearsing within the church;
The choirs at St Peter's Collegiate Church in Wolverhampton feature separate divisions for boys and girls, supported by choral scholars and lay clerks
Then head outside to St Peter's Square to welcome the lantern parade.
WOLVERHAMPTON ART GALLERY
Lichfield St, Wolverhampton WV1 1DU
Friday Late | 6pm - 9pm
Join Wolverhampton Art Gallery’s monthly late opening for exhibitions, talks, workshops and performances. In reponse to the themes in Permindar Kaur’s exhibition, Quilter’s Quest, Bridgnorth and Wombourne Quilters will showcase their handmade quilts which they donate to various community groups.
Followed by a talk, led by Ann Jermey an experienced quilt maker, who will discuss the history of quilt making, from past to present day, memory quilts and the importance of providing quilts to children in foster care.
Free Entry l Drop in demo 6pm – 8pm
Talk 6.30pm
THE LANTERN PARADE - All free
BELL SQUARE / VICTORIA STREET
REGISTRATION & LANTERN COLLECTION | 7pm
Lantern bearers can register and collect their lanterns at the bottom of Bell Square on Victoria Street. Register on the Before page.
To help our team prepare a great experience for you;
please register your attendance for the parade:
LEGACY: Sterran Dance / Flexus Dance | 7.20pm
Before the lantern parade sets off, experience Legacy;
an empowering performance of dance, music and storytelling celebrating the strength of the human spirit in a tale of survival and resilience. Through compelling movement, the work boldly challenges social restrictions and connects audiences with historical and influential role models of the City.
Produced by Sterran Dance.
LANTERN PARADE | 7.30pm @ Bell square
Follow the lights as the parade sets off through Wolverhampton city centre, led by NeONE the Wonderer with a stage on a bike, performing songs of protest from his new music project as the procession travels through the city towards St Peter's Square. Last year 300 people took part in the parade with over 150 lanterns both big and small.
Produced by Gatis Community space, Adam Billington and Wormhole Productions.
Out of the Deep Blue: Autin Dance Theatre | Approx. 7.45pm - 8.15pm @ St Peter's Square
The parade culminates with Out of the Deep Blue.
Out of the Deep Blue is an outdoor physical theatre performance featuring a 13-foot tall Puppet operated by 5 puppeteers and a female dancer. This spectacle is designed specifically for family and festival audiences and tells the magical story of Eko, a sea giant who rises from the deep ocean and who encounters, on the shore, a courageous little girl called Violet.
This non-verbal performance explores our relationship with the natural world.
ILLUMINATE LIGHT TRAIL
Look up, look around and discover Wolverhampton in a different light.
Working with artists David Checkley,Adam Billington, Wormhole Productions and Gatis Youth Club, Fringe Arts Wolves is creating a trail of illuminated windows and spaces across Wolverhampton city centre.
Some locations will feature distinctive artworks and light sculptures inspired by the festival themes, while others will use light to illuminate creative work or draw attention to interesting architectural features we might usually walk straight past.
Together, the trail creates a series of spotlights on creativity, environmentalism and some of the wonderful architecture around our city.
Four charity-shop windows will also showcase outcomes from Reinvntd CIC's sustainable fashion programme, exploring how clothing can be reused, reimagined and given a new life.
Where possible surplus and recycled materials have been used donated by the participating businesses.
Confirmed locations include The Posada, The Goose, Oxfam, Life Boutique, Baby Blues, British Heart Foundation, St Peter's Cafe, Barclays Bank, PACK, 1902 and Urban Rooms, Hampton Walk, Max Spielmann, Nationwide and Specsavers.
