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Into vogueing? Into ferris wheels? Well, you’re only human. Hitherto, it has been hard to combine these two fun things in one easily accessible location, but luckily, Somerset House on the Strand has now addressed this massive London deficiency. Its new summer festival, running for the first time this year, has a line-up that you can only really call ‘eclectic’.
This Bright Land is taking place from August 1-29 at the gorgeous neoclassical palace. Its organisers describe it as ‘a new cultural festival in the heart of the capital, championing the spirit and strength of community’, which sounds good and all that, but perhaps not very specifically descriptive. Digging deeper, though, you find that This Bright Land is a kind of Grayson Perry urn made into a group activity.
Highlights include the aforementioned observation wheel, which will tower 35 metres above the famous courtyard offering great views in all directions. Friday nights feature parties from collectives Daytimers, Nine Nights, ESEA Sisters and Movimientos. Saturday nights will see open-air themed vogueing balls from Vogue Rites, while Sundays will be devoted to family-leaning stuff like treasure hunts and street parties. Food comes courtesy of Black Eats LDN, which champions culinary delights from Black-owned businesses across the capital.
News of This Bright Land comes hot on the heels of the announcement that Somerset House would no longer host its famous Summer Screen outdoor movie nights, in order to concentrate on showcasing new London creativity, so you can’t accuse them of not putting their money where their mouth is.
See you up the big wheel.
This Bright Land, Somerset House, Aug 1-29. Free-£22.50. Book tickets from June 22 here.