No Fit State Circus present Park Life at Maumbury Rings, Dorchester, as part of Inside Out 2010. Photo Roy Riley

Inside Out Dorset will return in 2012, with extraordinary events across Dorset, Bournemouth and Poole.

In 2007 Inside Out was the largest free festival of outdoor performance South West England had ever seen. The ten events that transformed locations across Dorset, Bournemouth and Poole drew over 30,000 people, not including those who took part in education outreach work that ran alongside the performance programme.

The festival far exceeded expectations, with excellent national coverage.  High quality performances by nationally and internationally recognised artists.

The programme was of the highest standard with a mix of national and international companies, light and darker moods and a range of contemporary practice. 

The style and content of performances are accessible to a non-arts audience and events are generally free and open to all. Participatory workshops involve local people in some performances.

Inside Out is unique among UK festivals. It is a high profile, non-metropolitan model promoting site-responsive contemporary performances in dispersed heritage locations. The carefully selected performances transform each place, giving audiences a different perspective. New site-specific commissions delve deeply into local heritage and traditions.

Inside Out was the initiative of the Dorset Theatre Promoters Consortium (DTPC), who collaborate on residencies and projects and managed the first Inside Out festival, which took place in 2001. They now work with an extended partnership which includes programmers from Bournemouth and Poole, resulting in significant sub-regional collaboration.

For more information visit the Inside Out Website

http://www.insideoutdorset.co.uk/home

Or read the Inside Out Blog

http://insideoutdorset.blogspot.com/