Black Gold Arts Festival 2021 with Contact

Kristy Stott, Theatre Editor

Book now

Black Gold Arts Festival

Contact Theatre, Manchester
19-29 October 2021

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Black Gold Arts Festival 2021
Image courtesy of Graham Clayton-Chance.
Book now

This October Contact and Black Gold Arts will present an outstanding line-up for Black Gold Arts Festival. Taking place during Black History Month, the festival will feature a powerful programme of Black-led art, performance and film.

A powerful programme of Black-led art, performance and film.

The festival Launches on 19 October with keynote speech from Kleaver Cruz. Examining topics of Black Joy, the speech will focus on Kleaver’s work on the Black Joy Project. Festival momentum continues with an online panel discussion on 20 October; Black Gold Arts will bring together a panel from the worlds of journalism, arts and psychology to explore the theme of Black Joy: why is it so important and how do we make more room for it?

A live world premiere of mandla rae’s eagerly anticipated film, as british as a watermelon.

Highlights of the festival include a live world premiere of mandla rae’s eagerly anticipated film, as british as a watermelon. Weaving poetry and storytelling, the work explores mandla’s fragmented asylum and migration experiences. Experience Mele Broome’s Wrapped Up In This, a new 40-minute film, blending vocal melodies, movement and spoken word, paying tribute to the women from the Caribbean and West Africa who uprooted themselves in the ’50s and ’60s to save the NHS.

There will also be an exciting new podcast launch. Created by Suriya Aisha, Sickbabe is a series of witty, honest chats with people who live with disabilities and long-term illnesses, plus a film screening of Chanje Kunda’s dark satirical comedy Plant Fetish. Additionally, the festival brings a lively panel discussion looking at the importance of community in music, and a movement workshop facilitated by choreographer and director Mele Broomes.

Take a look at the full line-up via the button below.

Where to go near Black Gold Arts Festival 2021 with Contact

Manchester
Music venue
The Deaf Institute

The Deaf Institute is a vibrant gig venue and nightclub for which it is well worth taking a jaunt out of the Northern Quarter.

Manchester
Catalog Bookshop

Find Peter and his Christiania cargo bike around All Saints Park, a hop, skip and a bunnyhop from Manchester Poetry Library.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
Sandbar

Sandbar, just off Oxford Road in Manchester, is a well-loved watering hole, with a great selection of ales and some eccentric seating.

Johnny Roadhouse store
Manchester
Shop
Johnny Roadhouse

Buffeted by fried chicken outlets, legendary musical instrument emporium Johnny Roadhouse has been serving the local music community for over 50 years.

Manchester
Café or Coffee Shop
Eighth Day

Eighth Day is a co-operative shop that sells ethically-sourced food, wine and cosmetics. There’s also café that serves hearty, healthy meals in the basement.

Manchester
Event venue
The Proud Place

Based in the heart of Manchester on Sidney Street, The Proud Place houses The Proud Trust and serves as a community hub for the wider LGBT+ population across Greater Manchester and beyond.

What's on: Theatre

DanceManchester
Obscura at HOME

Company Chameleon return with Obscura, a physically demanding double-bill exploring the hidden corners of self and society.

Pinocchio at the Lowry
FamiliesMediaCityUK
Pinocchio at Lowry

Watch a playful, high-energy adaptation of Pinocchio where everyday objects become puppets and family relationships take centre stage.

Culture Guides

Music in the North

We have an eclectic mix of gigs for you this month, moving from experimental electronics and noise rock to synth pop, opera, and hyper-local R&B.

Exhibitions in the North

From monumental to minutiae, this month’s exhibitions trace power, care and community across galleries big and small.

Food and Drink in the North

Hear ye, hear ye. Take some eating-out tips from our wintertime guide to food and drink in Manchester and the North.

A performer in a bright red costume sits on a snowy stage set, holding a large snowball between their legs with a surprised expression. The colourful winter backdrop features snowflakes, hills, a snowman, and a traffic light with glowing lights.
Family things to do in the North

Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.

Theatre in the North

Classic texts and new work meet in this month’s Theatre Guide, with a bumper crop of shows shaped by power, consequence and collective action.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Cinema in the North

There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.