

2019 Programme

Monday 15th July
Circo Rum Ba Ba presents: L'Hotel
L' Hotel has parked ceremoniously at its latest destination.......The only hotel to come to you!
The "smallest hotel in the world " is shrouded but watch as it comes alive: beds are made, tables laid, chamber maids roused, bell boys leap into action and finally the special guests arrive and are ushered up the red carpet to their luxury accommodation.
Watch amazed as this charming, eccentric, tiny venue erupts into glittering cabaret, dances into dream filled slumber and wakes to clattering kitchen choreography.
Acrobatics, globe walking, dead celebrities, French finesse, trumpeting and mime mayhem make this an enchanting show to delight an audience of any age or nationality.
Joe Garbett Dance presents: Doubles
Doubles brings bursts of colour to the streets in a collision of dance and ping pong. Watch as the two competitors spin, slide and swerve their way through this playful pop-up performance.
Grab a bat and join in!
3.45pm Half hour performance with play at the end
5pm 20 minutes of table tennis games and fun
6pm Half hour performance with play at the end
Create Festival & Platform is proud to host an opportunity for our local creative community to come together. Whether you are an artist, street performer, a local music producer, or act, Create Festival would like to meet and help network you with experienced industry professionals. The evening will offer free 1 to 1 producer and funding advice sessions and a chance to meet the Create team.
Register for tickets here. For more information, please contact [email protected]
Tuesday 16th July
Dizzy O'Dare presents: The Dodo Rider
This dainty rider dazzles audiences around the globe, showing off her physical strength by bounding along on the back of a galloping Dodo, sometimes while blindfolded, and always full of nerve!
Bootworks Theatre presents: We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Boat
Step inside and pull up a seat round the hull of the Orca as we enter the movie world of Jaws! Get ready to embark on underwater exploration, cage diving and shark hunting...in the small town community of Selsey.
Selsey Amateur Dramatics has a brand new director looking to make a splash with their first big production. They’re also new to the community and this could be their best chance to make some new friends.
Bootworks Theatre’s latest outdoor production tackles the notions of belonging, difference and being a ‘fish out of water’.
We take the audience on a fun adventure which spans the joys of am-dram ‘warm ups’ to find our ‘inner sharks’.
For all ages (parental guidance recommended)
Followed by a showing of Steven Spielberg's 1975 cult classic movie JAWS. Cinema tickets available at
To follow Bootwork's performance in Elwick Place, The Picturehouse will be showing Steven Spielberg's 1975 cult classic movie JAWS.
Tickets available on The Picturehouse website here.
Flamboyant, political and riotously funny, Luke Wright creates inventive poems with loads of heart. Part Essex wide boy, part dandy fop, he writes from the sidelines about small-town tragedies and national farce, then performs his work with snarl and spit.
Jonny FluffyPunk performs poetry that deafly fuses bittersweet autobiography, political disillusionment and surreal whimsy, and is certain to entertain.
Please note, due to the location and some content of the shows, this is an 18+ event. Tickets are free but limited due to the intimate show space.
Tickets are available here
Wednesday 17th July
SameSky Arts presents: Puppet Parade
Follow the giant puppets of Ashford's very own Mr Harper and maybe a royal visit from Queen Marie of Romania. Follow the procession through the town centre for a celebration of Ashford's history, in preparation for Mr Harper's Birthday Party on Sunday.
CONFiCo presents: JOiNT
To articulate. To isolate. To share.
A playful and curious piece exploring the interplay between individuality, commonality and the body’s facility.
CONFiCo are CONFiDANCE's newly established professional training company for dancers with learning disabilities. Their practice blends improvisation, dance fundamentals and ensemble feeling, and is driven by collaboration.
This performance is a work in progress ahead of their debut professional performance in December.
Eric MacLennan presents: The Open Air Drawing-Room
Beginning with an antiquated artists drawing group setting up for some landscape painting. Arrival and un-packing of folding stools, easels, flasks, other knick-knacks and sandwiches etc… But this is no ordinary show - for the audience will be drawn into the group! A story that delightfully mixes historical biography with the fast contemporary world we now occupy. Visit website
Acrojou presents: Frantic!
Love, freedom, blood, sweat and rainstorms: Frantic is an explosive acrobatic exploration of our relentless devotion to busyness, the reality of a running mind and one man’s thirst for escape. Acrojou performances are non-verbal, telling human stories through physicality and visual design - making it accessible for people of all cultures and backgrounds. Visit website
Huey Morgan, the much loved, charismatic front man of acclaimed rock and hip hop group Fun Lovin’ Criminals will be performing a very special DJ set with Create at Revelation this Summer. The New Yorker has a whole lifetime’s worth of experience to draw upon when he is laying down one of his compelling DJ selections. He does so all over the world, at big parties, more intimate get togethers and acclaimed clubs and festivals in equal measure. This rock renaissance talent has a wealth of knowledge about the music he plays.
✩ HUEY MORGAN (Fun Lovin Criminals/BBC 6music) DJ Set
✩ Loose Funk, Soul, Reggae, Cool Jazz, Hip Hop and Indie Rock
✩ Licenced Bar from Curious Brewery & Chapel Down Wines
✩ Show time 7:30 until 10:30
Huey Morgan will be supported by LUCA AFROBEAT BAND, a Folkestone-based band making their own stamp on the afrobeat revival, melting the raw funk of Fela with 70s prog rock and metal influences to create a funky apocalytpical nightmare
Thursday 18th July
Joe Garbett Dance presents: Doubles
Doubles brings bursts of colour to the streets in a collision of dance and ping pong. Watch as the two competitors spin, slide and swerve their way through this playful pop-up performance.
Grab a bat and join in!
1pm Half hour performance with play at the end
2:30pm 20 minutes of table tennis games and fun
3:45pm Half hour performance with play at the end
Tutu Trouble is an exciting original new physical theatre show for children aged 6+.
Choreographed by Vinicius Salles and performed by Errant’s multi-talented dancers, Tutu Trouble is the story of Carolina and her best friend Scruff
who find a magical tutu hidden in a box in the woods, leading them on an exciting adventure of discovery and friendship.
With its positive LGBTQ+ theme, it's all about being who or what you want to be.... even if you're a dog!
Terry Hall, lead singer of the Iconic band “The Specials” will be performing a very special DJ Set with Create at Revelation – not to be missed! Terry music career includes Fun Boy Three, The Colourfield, Terry, Blair & Anouchka and Vegas.
Terry’s musical tastes are varied to say the least, expect to hear many hits from artists such as David Bowie, Toots & The Maytals, The Las, The Jackson 5, Max Romeo, and many more.
✩ TERRY HALL (The Specials) DJ Set
✩ Motown, Funk, Soul, Indie, Rock & Roll
✩ Licenced Bar from Curious Brewery & Chapel Down Wines
✩ Expect to hear an ecletic set covering Indie – Funk – Soul – Motown – Rock & Roll
✩ Show time 7:30 until 10:30
Terry Hall will be supported by THE PETTY THIEVES
The Petty Thieves are an explosive 7 piece sleazy Reggae/Ska band from the dirty suburbs of Medway, Kent. With a live sound ready for any audience and new material in the works, The Petty Thieves are on the move and you’re all invited to the party! Their upbeat sleazy Reggae sound will steal your heart but not your belongings and keep you skanking through the night!
Friday 19th July
Interactive art sculptures and opportunities to learn more about how you can be involved in saving the planet.
Errant presents: Tutu Trouble
Tutu Trouble is an exciting original new physical theatre show for children aged 6+.
Choreographed by Vinicius Salles and performed by Errant’s multi-talented dancers, Tutu Trouble is the story of Carolina and her best friend Scruff
who find a magical tutu hidden in a box in the woods, leading them on an exciting adventure of discovery and friendship.
With its positive LGBTQ+ theme, it's all about being who or what you want to be.... even if you're a dog!
Cohesion Plus present Four by Four the "Kings of Bhangra" who will be putting on a colourful and interactive dance and drumming performance which orginates from Punjab Northern India, fused with influences from Gravesham in North Kent. Four by Four are recognised nationally as one of the leading Bhangra performers in the UK and have performed all over the World in the last 25 years winning many accolades for their high energy shows.
Cohesion Plus present Four by Four the "Kings of Bhangra" who will be putting on a colourful and interactive dance and drumming performance which orginates from Punjab Northern India, fused with influences from Gravesham in North Kent. Four by Four are recognised nationally as one of the leading Bhangra performers in the UK and have performed all over the World in the last 25 years winning many accolades for their high energy shows.
Bootworks Theatre presents: We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Boat
Step inside and pull up a seat round the hull of the Orca as we enter the movie world of Jaws! Get ready to embark on underwater exploration, cage diving and shark hunting...in the small town community of Selsey.
Selsey Amateur Dramatics has a brand new director looking to make a splash with their first big production. They’re also new to the community and this could be their best chance to make some new friends.
Bootworks Theatre’s latest outdoor production tackles the notions of belonging, difference and being a ‘fish out of water’.
We take the audience on a fun adventure which spans the joys of am-dram ‘warm ups’ to find our ‘inner sharks’.
For all ages (parental guidance recommended)
Saturday 20th July
Create Platform at Create Festival 2019, including a mix of interactive theatre, dance and music. Roaming performances of Dodo Rider and Arbour The Tree, installations and workshops led by Same Sky and Animate Arts, and Snowdogs will be making an appearance. Comedy Cavemen are sure to bring raucous laughter, and local perfomance artists Shades Of Bray will be debuting their latest project in the UK.
Enter Edem presents: Comedy Cavemen
A posse of Palaeolithic cavemen characters causing mischief and spreading an environmental message, you better hold onto your snacks as these silly hunter gatherers aren’t quite civilized yet! This team of toothy trouble makers will have audiences laughing and running to the recycling bin as they tell the tale (through grunts and groans) of their time spent frozen in ice to be awoken into a world of plastic problems to be solved!
Smoking Apples presents: Arbor the Tree
Follow Arbor as he strides around, vanishing between trees and emerging with his cart full of tree saplings. Arbor tells the story of a tree pushed from his home and his fight to preserve his future, featuring amazing puppets, and beautiful visual storytelling, we learn how Arbor came to be.
Eric MacLennan presents: The Open Air Drawing-Room
Beginning with an antiquated artists drawing group setting up for some landscape painting. Arrival and un-packing of folding stools, easels, flasks, other knick-knacks and sandwiches etc… But this is no ordinary show - for the audience will be drawn into the group! A story that delightfully mixes historical biography with the fast contemporary world we now occupy. Visit website
Dizy O'Dare presents: The Dodo Rider
This dainty rider dazzles audiences around the globe, showing off her physical strength by bounding along on the back of a galloping Dodo, sometimes while blindfolded, and always full of nerve!
SameSky return to Create with their iconic puppets, entertainment walkabouts, and arts and crafts workshops for all the family. This year SameSky has worked with five local schools in the build up to Create, with some work on display.
We have worked alongside six local schools, where artists and pupils have collected single-use plastic to fill their letter, and learnt how to transform plastic bottles into beautiful plants, which are displayed on their letters. Don’t forget to tag your images #CreateFestival2019
Some of Ashford’s fur-vourite four legged friends reunite for Create Festival 2019.
A collaboration between dance theatre company Shades of Bray and DJ REV. Dancing, mixing, speaking, tweaking, singing, laughing: unapologetically, again. Using performance art in a club setting to convey the power of collective effervescence. REV brings the tunes, Shades of Bray brings the moves… through much needed social cohesion we look at life, politics and the state of things (including us). Shades of Bray will be on the Create Festival DJ Stage from 12:00
Sunday 21st July
Mr Harper's Birthday Party will once again return to Ashford's Victoria Park, the day after Create Festival, once again for free! Expect music, food, street theatre, comedy walkabouts and our traditional birthday cake races. All part of this years Create Platform.
Enter Edem presents: Comedy Cavemen
A posse of Palaeolithic cavemen characters causing mischief and spreading an environmental message, you better hold onto your snacks as these silly hunter gatherers aren’t quite civilized yet! This team of toothy trouble makers will have audiences laughing and running to the recycling bin as they tell the tale (through grunts and groans) of their time spent frozen in ice to be awoken into a world of plastic problems to be solved!
Smoking Apples presents: Arbor the Tree
Follow Arbor as he strides around, vanishing between trees and emerging with his cart full of tree saplings. Arbor tells the story of a tree pushed from his home and his fight to preserve his future, featuring amazing puppets, and beautiful visual storytelling, we learn how Arbor came to be.
SameSky return to Create with their iconic puppets, entertainment walkabouts, and arts and crafts workshops for all the family. This year SameSky has worked with five local schools in the build up to Create, with some work on display.
We have worked alongside six local schools, where artists and pupils have collected single-use plastic to fill their letter, and learnt how to transform plastic bottles into beautiful plants, which are displayed on their letters. Don’t forget to tag your images #CreateFestival2019
Original compositions drawing cultural and musical influences from Tatarstan, Turkey, Russia and the Pale of Settlement… “I like to think of the duo as the Robert Plant and Jimmy Page of klezmer, with Polina Shepherd channeling the sound of Kashmir (the place and the song) through her evocative vocals like Plant and Merlin standing with one foot in tradition, like Page and the blues, and another foot in the avant-garde, like Page as Page, reinventing the sound and possibilities of what the instrument can do. Polina and Merlin Shepherd – the Led Zeppelin of contemporary Yiddish music.”