Haywards Heath Arts Festival Celebrates Local Talent and Supports Ukraine.

The Festival Organising Committee are proud to announce the Haywards Heath Arts Festival 2023, a week-long celebration of local arts and culture with the focus on community and charity. The festival will feature a variety of events and exhibitions across all genres of the arts, including music, theatre, comedy, poetry, painting, sculpture, and more and aims to make the arts more inclusive of the community as a whole and increase cultural awareness.

The festival also has a charitable aim and will again be supporting the cause of ‘Hope and Homes for Children’ and their work in supporting the displaced children and families caught up in the current conflict in Ukraine. In addition the festival will also be supporting ‘The Motor Neurone Disease Association.’

Some of the highlights of this year’s festival include:

· ‘Haywards Heath’s Got Talent’ – Have you got what it takes to get past our panel of judges? Prizes are up for grabs at what promises to be a great new addition to the festival.

· ‘Comedy at Cote’ – Cote Brassiere on The Broadway are hosting an evening of comedy and satirical songs courtesy of the ‘Cocktail Party’ and guest stand-up comics.

· For fans of Gilbert and Sullivan one of the leading choirs in Sussex, Coro Nuovo will be staging a concert showcasing highlight from their collective works.

· Telling and comparing the stories of two of Britain’s most notorious serial killers ‘Dial Medicine for Murder’ takes to the stage at the Hub Theatre. After successive visits to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a US tour this fascinating and dramatic consultation piece is presented by Dr. Harry Brunjes and Dr. Andrew Johns.

· Poet Fran Parsons will be providing an entertaining afternoon recital of her work at Hart Country Store on South Road.

· Two exhibitions will be running simultaneously at the Town Hall. A private collection of original and authentic props from a whole host of well-known movies will be on display along with the collection from Haywards Heath’s own ‘Gentleman of Horror’ Simon Flynn.

· ‘Funny That’ Will again be hosting what promises to be a fantastic night of stand-up at the King Edward Hall in Lindfield. The line-up is yet to be finalised but they never disappoint and bring the best (and sometimes the most well-known) comics from across the UK.

Marion Wilcock Chairperson of the Festival Committee said “We are very excited to launch the Haywards Heath Arts Festival for 2023. This is a great opportunity to celebrate our local arts scene and to support worthy causes. We hope that everyone will join us and enjoy the amazing talent and creativity of our community.”

The festival tries wherever possible to collaborate with local businesses, organisations, and media outlets to help promote and support the event. Colin Kenward of the organising committee said, “We are extremely gratefully to all of those who have agreed to take part in this year’s festival or helped by staging an event, and to those that have kindly sponsored individual events or the festival as a whole. In particular Gatwick Airport, The Co-Op and The Orchards Shopping Centre.”

The festival kicks off on the 9th of September during the ‘Town Day’ celebrations hosted by the Town Council at Victoria Park from 12pm to 5pm.

Penny Blake, The Treasurer of the festival organisation said, “We’ll be on hand throughout the day with a dedicated marquee where we’ll be only too happy to discuss all things Festival. We’ll also have representatives from our charity partners who can explain just what a difference any donation, be that large or small can make to their respective causes.” Penny added, “There are some tickets still available for some of the events and for those wanting tickets we’ll have ‘Box Office’ facilities in the marquee.”

Whilst the majority of events have been finalised the full program is subject to some last minute additions. To keep up to date with all things festival related and for ticketing information go to www.haywardsheathartsfestival.co.uk