Oxford Playhouse and Arts At The Old Fire Station Announce Return of Major New Fringe Festival Offbeat

Offbeat is a new partnership between Oxford Playhouse and Arts at the Old Fire Station, giving Oxford audiences an opportunity to engage with contemporary work - bringing 70 shows in 10 days to their front door. All tickets will be priced at £10 or less and the festival will be running from 23 June - 2 July 2017. The festival will Showcase Theatre, dance, comedy, music, family shows and spoken word brought to you by upcoming and established artists from Oxfordshire and across the U.K.

Applications for Offbeat 2017 open today, seeking exciting and innovative work that is new to Oxfordshire. Offbeat will carefully curate a rich and varied programme from the submissions received and are happy to accept work in progress, promising a fair offer for artists and a platform to test their work. Applications to participate in the festival open today and close 30 January 2017, please visit www.offbeatoxford.co.uk/apply to apply.

Jeremy Spafford, Director at the Old Fire Station said today "The world is complicated and we need to be able to look at complexity, nurture the talent that will help us understand the world around us better, celebrate difference and retain our sense of humour. Offbeat sums this up."

Louise Chantal, Director at the Oxford Playhouse said "Offbeat will create a sustainable platform for new work in the city, whilst playing a significant role in the UK festival circuit, with a long-term focus on artist development".

Last year saw the inaugural Offbeat festival, and included highlights such as Ross & Rachel by James Fritz and The Best of Trygve Wakenshaw, a documentary screening of Yasmin Fedda's Queens of Syria and stand-up comedy from names such as Rosie Wilby and Viv Groskop. A number of shows went on to win acclaim at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, including Katie Bonna's All The Things I Lied About, Francesca Millican-Slater's Stories To Tell In The Middle Of The Night, and Goose's Hydrobeserker.

To see highlights from the 2016 festival visit: https://youtu.be/MeUMhvNLmSI

For more information on the project visit: www.offbeatoxford.co.uk

Twitter: @OffBeatOx

Offbeat is made possible with support from Arts Council England.

About Oxford Playhouse

Oxford Playhouse is a theatre for everyone. Built in 1938, The Playhouse presents and produces a wide range of live performance in the main theatre, the Burton Taylor Studio and across the region in Playhouse PlaysOut projects. The programme includes the best of British and international drama, family shows, contemporary dance and music, student and amateur shows, comedy, lectures and poetry, seen by over 150,000 people each year.

The Playhouse produces and tours its own shows, hosts Artists in Residence and runs a new Writers' Attachment Programme (Playhouse Playmaker), with talent development and supporting local artists and companies at the heart of everything we do. 2016 saw the return of The Playhouse producing on its main stage with the world premiere of the official sequel to Peter Pan, Peter Pan in Scarlet and a co-production of Sand in the Sandwiches starring EdWard Fox as John Betjeman. There was also the inaugural Off Beat Festival, a showcase of new work in partnership with Arts at the Old Fire Station; and the Young Players Festival in March which presented work written, performed and watched by young people from Oxfordshire. The theatre's Learning and Participation team works with over 15,000 people each year through post show discussions, workshops, work experience, holiday schemes and two youth theatre companies.

We are a charitable trust and National Portfolio Organisation of Arts Council England, and are supported financially by the University of Oxford and Oxford City Council. For more information, see www.oxfordplayhouse.com

About Arts at the Old Fire Station
A thriving arts centre in the heart of Oxford, showcasing the best of local and international performance and artwork, which takes a risk and entertains.
- Theatre, comedy, dance, music, visual art and design.
- Space for performance, exhibitions, rehearsals, meetings, classes, innovation and debate.
- Working closely with the homelessness charity, Crisis, helping to build the confidence and skills of people who are homeless through projects and opportunities.
www.oldfirestation.org.uk | www.facebook/artsattheoldfirestation | @ArtsatOFS
The Old Fire Station, 40 George Street, Oxford OX1 2AQ

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