Streatham Festival is back from Friday 8th October to Sunday 17th October, for its 21st year, to showcase talented artists, musicians, photographers, and writers from the community.
The ten-day period will act as a celebration of the vibrant art scene in Streatham, which had previously been subdued due to the global pandemic and the restrictions imposed on events.
The festival is completely volunteer led, and the committee is made up of different members from in and around the community, who have come together to highlight local artistry.
Jane Wroe-Wright has been volunteering with Streatham Festival for six years and is currently the festival’s guide and connector.
She said that their goal is to make Streatham’s residents more aware of the diverse talent within the community, whilst also promoting it to people living in surrounding areas.
Wroe-Wright believes the variety of events in the festival compliment each other well and successfully appeal to a wide range of age groups.
The Streatham Lit Fest will be making its second ever appearance, which will include workshops, readings by authors, publishers and podcasters, short story competitions and story times suitable for families.
Popular event, Streatham Strut, will also be returning on Saturday 9th October, which will feature ten local bands, performing in ten venues, across a ten hour period.
This year’s lineup will include Carmen, The Tethers, Hipster Ray, WaYa & B’Wani, Haniell, The Renegades, JustVic, The Mayans, Los Domingos and Tootawl.
Tootawl, a six-foot-five Irishman said: “I played my first Streatham Strut two years ago and was really impressed by the community spirit.
“I met a great many local people who were delighted to have this festival happen in the area. I played in Perfect Blend in that year’s Strut, and that gig led to a regular Friday night spot with them until Covid hit.”
Despite Covid-19, the festival was still able to go ahead last year in between lockdowns and offered a range of virtual and in person events.
Streatham Strut took place virtually and the six-hour long YouTube upload has now amassed nearly 600 views which has helped to raise a wider awareness and gather an audience that would have been unattainable otherwise.
Some events took place in person in 2020 with a limited capacity of 30 people, so the organisers are excited for more people to be able to attend the talks, workshops and live music.
Other events to look forward to over the ten-day period include STREATART21, the Youth Music Showcase, the Eye on Streatham Photography Festival and much more.
Featured image credit: HeartStreatham
