Submerge launches citywide festival of radical international performance in Greater Manchester
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
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; and 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.
A large-scale, immersive audiovisual installation at Mayfield Depot All Things Equal by artist Urban Projections (Rebecca Smith) and Loraine James marks the opening of the festival on International Women’s Day (8 March).
“Manchester is known internationally as a hotbed for innovation, experimentation and radical artistic expression; it’s the perfect new home for Submerge Festival.”
Mike Pony, Artistic Director
Other performances include a Dance double bill at Salford Lads Club (22 March) with choreography from Alessandro Sciarroni (Italy) and Thick & Tight, Jamal Gerald’s sex-positive-dance-party-cum-performance Jumbie at HOME (23-26 March), and 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.
Submerge 2022 runs 8 – 27 March in venues across Greater Manchester, made possible with the support of Arts Council England and a number of local partners and funders. View the full programme at