UnShut Festival 2020

Name: UnShut Festival 2020
Start: 2020-07-02T10:00:00
End: 2020-07-04T23:00:00

Kristy Stott, Theatre Editor Last Updated 26 June 2020

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UnShut Festival

2-4 July 2020

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

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Experience UnShut Festival online, on the streets or by post this July.

Taking place over 3 days, UnShut Festival 2020 brings experimental and radical performance work. And while we’re upset that ordinary festival fun is out of bounds, we think that UnShut Festival offers a brilliant alternative, and offers a creative response to the situation we find ourselves in right now.

Working with live artists to explore the world we’re living in, and the ways that we connect, socialise and interact, the festival aims to investigate, challenge and test the boundaries of contemporary performance.

An online celebration of experimental work, there will be 12 performances. Work will include building a theatre from scratch, a world-wide street clean, a revolution by postcard and an intimate performance in Animal Crossing.

Bringing durational performance, intimate one-to-one performances on Zoom, audio performance, a series of family-friendly tiny installations hidden across Sheffield city centre and a special online Q and A where you can join the artists in discussion, we think UnShut offers connection, creativity and community at such a challenging time for artists and audiences.

While you’re here…be sure to check out our full (and frequently updated) guide to the best online things to do in Manchester and the North.

Where to go near UnShut Festival 2020

Manchester

Restaurant

The Head of Steam Manchester NQ

The Head of Steam chugs into the Northern Quarter showcasing high-quality drinks, and cult burger smashers That Burger Thing manning the kitchen.

Manchester

Restaurant

Asmara Bella

Eritrean & Ethiopian Restaurant in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, serving up traditional food from the Horn of Africa.

Manchester

Rochdale Town Hall

Rochdale Town Hall is a Victorian-era municipal building in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, widely recognised as being one of the finest municipal buildings in the country.

City Centre

Bar or Pub

Cafe Beermoth

Cafe Beermoth is the very definition of a modern Manchester pub – relaxed, friendly and with a wide range of carefully curated booze options.

Manchester

Restaurant

Jaffa Restaurant

Humble restaurant on Curry Mile that serves superb quality food.

Chorlton

Restaurant

Horse and Jockey Chorlton

Chorlton’s magnificent Horse and Jockey has had an almighty do-over, transforming it into one of South Manchester’s top must-visit drinking and dining destinations.

Castlefield

The Curling Club

New Jackson in Manchester is having a full scale seasonal takeover. Think curling lanes, lively bars and a packed line up of DJs and performances.

Manchester

Event venue

Chadderton Town Hall

Chadderton Town Hall is a magnificent example of Edwardian architecture . Built in 1912/13 in the style of ‘English Renaissance’ and recently restored maintaining its traditional features in regal reds

Manchester

Bar or Pub

Christmas
at St John’s

A new alternative Manchester Christmas market from the well-seasoned team behind our street food faves Grub.

Cumbria

Restaurant

Heft

A Michelin star restaurant and homely 17th century inn in the Lake District, with food provided by esteemed chef Kevin Tickle.

Chapel Street

Restaurant

Tangerine

Manchester’s latest must-visit multipurpose venue, offering top-level food, drinks and live shows.

City Centre

Bar or Pub

Posie

A new cocktail bar from the crack team behind 10 Tib Lane and Henry C.

See all places

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TheatreLeeds

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29 Jan – 21 Feb

TheatreBolton

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Three sisters, one bitter-sweet reunion – grief, whisky and buried truths collide in a sharply funny Northern family reckoning.

From £15.00

An image of a night club door with a pink and blue neon sign above it. The sign says Egypt with a gold neon cobra above it. On the club door is a sign saying Rome Corp - Under Offer

20 Feb – 21 Feb

TheatrePrescot

Antony and Cleopatra at Shakespeare North Playhouse

This UK premiere reframes Shakespeare’s story of love, loyalty and power as a contemporary struggle between community and corporate greed.

From £16.00

3 actors, dressed as a mouse, a gruffalo and a fox

27 Feb – 1 Mar

FamiliesManchester

The Gruffalo’s Child at Z-arts

Sneak into the deep dark wood with The Gruffalo’s Child in 2026.

From £14.70

A man in a prison cell is stood holding a phone to his ear.

12 Mar – 13 Mar

TheatreLeeds

Please Do Not Touch at Leeds Playhouse

Please Do Not Touch, a powerful and emotional one-man show at Leeds Playhouse. Tackling contested artefacts, justice and free speech.

From £15.00

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A doll with makeup peeks out of a hanging wall of butter yellow fabric. Red and black threads descend and cascade around the doll.

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This season, exhibitions across the North West feel attuned to the world beneath the world – the forces and stories shaping how we see, feel and imagine.

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.

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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.

Music in the North

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Food and Drink in the North

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