Greenbelt 2011: More Lineup Announcements
Following our first lineup announcements a month ago, and the news about our programming for children in The Village yesterday, we're pleased as punch to announce many more names to look forward to, to get excited about, and to encourage the waverers to get their tickets for the best weekend of their summer!
Don't forget, get up to 20% off your ticket price by booking before April 30th!
We'll be reviving our Lineup section – greenbelt.org.uk/lineup – soon, with more information on all of these names, but until then, here are the new additions to Greenbelt 2011: Dreams Of Home…
Music
Joining Billy Bragg and Idlewild as headliners, we have gospel-soul legend Mavis Staples. The voice of the classic soul band The Staple Singers, Mavis's latest album "You Are Not Alone" was produced by Jeff Tweedy from Wilco and won her her first ever Grammy Award. Mavis Staples and her band will headline the Monday of the festival – book that Tuesday off work now!
Further new music bookings include The Unthanks, whose new album "Last" has been receiving rapturous reviews from the likes of Q, Mojo and Uncut. Singer-songwriter Grace Petrie has been championed by Billy Bragg and Emmy The Great, and BBC 6Music's Tom Robinson has dubbed her a "purveyor of political, lyrical vitriol". Gentlemen's Dub Club combine dub, ska and rap in a party-friendly mix, and Extra Curricular – having proved such a hit on the Underground stage last year – graduate to the Mainstage with their impeccable brand of funk, rap and soul. Add to that some visceral spoken-word Americana from Listener, rising stars of nu-folk Ahab, and high-quality Christian rap-rock hybrid LZ7, and Mainstage is going to be amazing.
Appearing elsewhere around the site, we have two outings for Martyn Joseph's songwriting circle The Rising, indie rock from Hope & Social, and another chance to catch Arun Ghosh, whose Asian-influenced jazz rocked the Big Top in 2010.
There's more to come, too… with full line-ups in Underground and Performance Cafe to be announced.
Talks
Our Talks programme is filling up too, with theologian Paula Gooder, HIV campaigner Margaret Sentamu, human rights campaigner and physician Sheila Cassidy, pastor and leadership advisor Kate Coleman, and Not For Sale's Dave Batstone speaking with Erik Lammerding, Senior Manager of Worldwide Developer Relations at Apple.
Plus talks from: Greenbelt evergreen John Bell, minister and activist Shane Claiborne, former helicopter pilot in the Israeli Air Force Yonatan Shapira, theologian and Methodist minister Inderjit Bhogal, Professor Emeritus of Cell and Molecular Biology Dr John Bryant, Episcopal priest Karen Ward, clinical psychologist Oliver James, Lutheran pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber, geneticist Dr Ruth Bancewicz, Christian Aid's Paul Brannen, Frontier Youth Trust's Bob Holman, Senior Lecturer in Theology and Politics Dr Luke Bretherton, Palestinian Lutheran Suad Younan, Senior Lecturer in Youth Ministry and Theological Education Pete Ward, Editor of the Latin American Bible Commentary Rosalee Velloso Ewell, peacebuilder Lia Dong Shimada, author Margaret Silf, and writer and minister Barbara Glasson.
Literature
We're very excited to announce our first names on the Literature bill as well. Stella Duffy is an author, playwright, performer and improviser, and has written novels including The Room of Lost Things, and her Saz Martin series of crime novels. Adrian Plass is a master at illustrating the amusing and ridiculous aspects of life as a Christian, and community poet Padraig O Tuama returns to Greenbelt with more lyrical insight.
There's a great array of novelists speaking about their work: Richard Beard, Mia Gallagher, Amy Sackville, Jari Moate, Nancy Matson, and RS Downie. There are also sessions from poets Kenneth C Steven, Andrew Philip, and European Poetry Slam champion Harry Baker. Plus short stories with Deborah Fielding, Andrew Tate on creative writing, poet and human rights lawyer Francis Khoo, discussions around this year's Big Read – Exile by Richard North Patterson – and Nicky Getgood, journalist, blogger and Digbeth enthusiast.
Performing Arts
Joining the Performing Arts programme are the brilliant Candoco Dance Company, who make contemporary dance for disabled and non-disabled dancers. Ben Moor is an accomplished comedy actor, whose storytelling show Coelacanth has received rave reviews since appearing in Edinburgh, and will be performed with a live music soundtrack. Plus, there's the chance for all comers to take part in the Scratch Panto – oh yes, there is.
Comedy
Joining Mark Thomas on the Comedy programme, stand up comedian and actress Jo Enright returns to Greenbelt. Jo has appeared in brilliant comedy shows like I'm Alan Partridge, Time Trumpet, Phoenix Nights and Lab Rats, and has been a favourite performer of Peter Kay. The Twist favourite Jenny Lockyer brings a full show, Folk On return at Last Orders and around the site, plus trusty favourites Get Up Stand Up and Last Orders.
Visual Arts
Willie Williams is the first announced name in Visual Arts, with his small scale works in glass and light contrasting with his enormous stage sets for U2, R.E.M and Lady Gaga. The Methodist Church bring their art collection to explore art depicting Jesus In The Everyday, the Angels of the North are a group of Leeds-based fine artists, plus there's a Where The Wild Things Are theme in The Hub, and The Scriptorium offers opportunities to illuminate the Greenbelt Gospel…
Film
The Film programme features dreams of home, and nightmares of paradise lost. From Toy Story 3 to Dirty Pretty Things, from 127 Hours to Street Kids United, the film programme is entertaining and provocative, with plenty more to distract you from the sunshine: Never Let Me Go, Of Gods And Men, Four Lions, Where The Wild Things Are, and The Unloved – with the Greenbelt Oscars and the new Children's Film venue The Village Screen also taking pride of place.
Worship
Those looking for new worship experiences will also find much to interest them, with Rend Collective, Wild Goose, Grace, L'Arche, Ikon and Visions providing different, original and unique ways to look for something deeper…
