Canterbury Festival's family friendly programme

by Lauren Abbott

labbott@thekmgroup.co.uk

From disco dancing for babies to creating art out of Agar jelly - one of Kent's biggest arts festival is back for another year and promising something for all the family this October.

The Canterbury Festival takes place from Saturday, October 20 until Saturday, November 3 and alongside a raft of adult music acts, talks, comedy and shows is an action packed family friendly programme.

The majority of shows and workshops for young festival goers are held mainly in the Spiegeltent – a stunning 1920s vintage travelling dance hall that lends itself to cabaret, variety and all sorts of silliness. Seating is flexible, there’s a buggy park area, and plenty of space for smaller siblings to crawl and toddle and under ones go free! Roll up to some of these top Canterbury Festival attractions:

Song and dance

* Family dance party Baby Loves Disco is back by popular demand. The resident DJs will mix feel-good chart fillers with nostalgic classics amidst face-painting, balloons, a dress-up area, a selfie booth, and a licenced bar for parents. It takes place on Saturday 20 October, at 2pm in the Spiegeltent.

* Join Bob on a very, very big adventure for Sound Hunt, a quest to create music and discover sounds. ActLab returns to the Festival for a fourth year, creating an intimate experience for children and young people with learning difficulties. It takes place on Wednesday, October 24 at 2pm in the Spiegeltent.

* John Hinton has an animal song for every letter of the alphabet. From amazing arachnids to zany zebras, Ensonglopedia of Animals is on Tuesday, October 23, 2pm. Expect the unexpected and expect it to rhyme.

Belly laughs

* Stuffed with staggering stunts, incredible illusions and side-splitting comedy, Slightly Fat Features children's show will delight big and little kids alike. It takes place on Thursday, October 25 at 2pm in the Spiegeltent.

* Physical comedy and virtuoso musicianship combine in Släpstick showing on Tuesday, October 23 at 7.30pm at the Marlowe Theatre. Drawing inspiration from the silent cinema stars of yesteryear, Släpstick is suitable for kids, big kids and anyone in need of cheering up and is expected to be a festival highlight.

* Fresh from a five-star run at the Edinburgh Fringe, Children Are Stinky on October 27 at 2pm, boasts dare devil stunts, incredible acrobatics, lightning fast hula hoops and loads of laughs.

Clever clogs

* Zoologist and presenter Jules Howard imagines where the future of creatures on Earth might lie in Monsters that Might Be. Applying Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection, audience members can get involved, pitching their own uniquely evolved animals like tuskless elephants or snakes with eyelashes! Find it on Saturday, November 3 at 2pm in the Spiegeltent.

* Greek Myths are retold with traditional puppetry and innovative story-telling by actor and puppeteer Craig Johnson. His performance celebrates nature, science and the astoundingly beautiful world around us and takes place on Friday, October 26 and is followed by a free workshop.

* Create a masterpiece using a petri dish as a canvas and colourful microbes as paint with scientists at the University of Kent. After two days of microbial growth each artwork will be photographed and sent in a personalised email. Agar Artis - an art project with a difference happens on Saturday, October 27 from 2pm.