Saeborg and Zubin Kanga are amongst the international artists from over 10 countries bringing UK and world premieres to the first Submerge Festival in the North, 8-27 March 2022.
Taking place in iconic venues across Greater Manchester, Submerge Festival presents its first festival of experimental international performance, music and visual art in the North, 8-27 March, with artists from across the globe, alongside the next generation of UK creatives.
Based around the theme of resistance, festival highlights include: the UK premiere of Pigpen (19 March), an installation by Saeborg (Japan), which sees a giant latex pig give birth to a litter of human-sized piglets; Cyborg Soloists:
The Body Electric (18 March), a series of intimate world premieres presented by Zubin Kanga (Australia) combining classical piano with cutting-edge digital instruments, lighting and sensor technologies; and All Things Equal, a large-scale, immersive audiovisual installation in Mayfield Depot by artist Urban Projections (Rebecca Smith) and Loraine James which marks the opening of the festival on International Women’s Day (8 March).
Other performances include a dance double bill in Salford Lads Club (22 March) with choreography from Alessandro Sciarroni (Italy) and Thick and Tight, Jamal Gerald’s sex-positive-dance-party-cum-performance Jumbie at HOME (23-26 March), and The Ten Commandments at the Lowry by the legendary David Hoyle (23 March).
The concurrent club night and gig programme features genre-pushing artists including 2 Pigs Under 1 Umbrella (Austria), Cakes Da Killa (USA), Blood Williams (Germany) and GÆRALD (Belgium); plus immersive experiences, workshops and lectures throughout the three weeks exploring everything from gender and queer theory to the politics of breastfeeding and social care.
Mike Pony, Artistic Director of Submerge said: “Manchester is known internationally as a hotbed for innovation, experimentation and radical artistic expression; it’s the perfect new home for Submerge Festival.”
Submerge 2022 runs 8 – 27 March in venues across Greater Manchester.
