Attenborough Centre For The Creative Arts announces spring season

Located on the University of Sussex campus in Brighton, Attenborough Centre For The Creative Arts (ACCA) has established a solid reputation for showcasing innovative contemporary artists and championing experimental work. Its carefully curated and thought-provoking programme of music, dance, performance, screenings, talks, workshops and festivals continues to inspire audiences from across Sussex and beyond. As we journey through 2025, they’ve announced a range of compelling shows and performances to inspire and delight.

Mercury-nominated modern jazz artist and saxophonist, Nubya Garcia, will perform to a sold-out auditorium on Wednesday 5 March. Her latest album Odyssey is a majestic feat. It’s a deeply personal offering about her trek to falling back in love with musical composition over the past four years. She is supported by harpist-beatmaker-producer Marysia Osu.

On Tues 11 March, the fifth anniversary of the day the World Health Organisation declared the COVID-19 a global pandemic, there will be a screening of Brighton-based artist Simon Roberts’ compelling film, An Avoidable Loss, A Failure of State. This poignant piece weaves Roberts’ seascape photographs, captured daily during the COVID-19 pandemic, with government press conference recordings, personal testimonials, daily death-toll figures for the UK, and a moving monologue by actor Rory Kinnear.

On Thurs  20 March, inclusive dance company of disabled and non-disabled dancers, Candoco, present a preview performance of Over And Over (And Over Again), choreographed by disabled-led company, Dan Daw Creative Projects. A beat-driven, joyful journey to a perfect rave - a place where everyone is welcome and where you love doing something so much that you would never want to stop. This performance is presented as part of Undisciplined festival, organised by South East Dance.

The Sussex Archaeological Society’s second annual Long Man Lecture takes place on Tues 8 April, hosted by cultural historian, literary critic, author and University of Birmingham lecturer Professor Alexandra Harris. In this lecture, entitled Neighbours Through Time – Local Lives, Infinite Visions, the perspectives of poets will mix with the visions of Sussex-based brewers, merchants and masons.

Austrian guitarist, composer and electronic musician Fennesz performs on Weds 9 April. Dating back to his early involvement in the 1990s Viennese techno scene, Fennesz is recognised as one of the most distinctive voices of experiential electronic music today. By plugging his guitar into his laptop and transforming and processing it, he managed to create a specific sound that is difficult to mistake for another’s. His new album Mosaic was released on Touch in December 2024. Support comes from Brighton-based musician and producer Marcus Hamblett.

A new commission by Marlborough Productions asks: “What If Kurt Cobain Was Trans?” Emma Frankland’s No Apologies delves deep into internet discourse and classical mythology, radically mis-remembering Nirvana’s iconic 1993 MTV Unplugged concert. It fights back against the pressure to mould ourselves into images that are acceptable to society and the danger that lies when we are not able to live as our full, vibrant selves. Performed on Weds 16 April with a live band.

On Weds 7 May, audiences will be treated to a rare and stripped back musical performance from acclaimed singer Keeley Forsyth with Matthew Bourne on piano as part of their Hand To Mouth tour. Having released three critically acclaimed albums, Keeley has become a leading performer on international stages and is known for the raw emotion of her singular vocal ability. Keeley's live shows are animated with a captivating physicality – a focus on movement that references both theatre and performance art.

Co-presented by Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts and Brighton Festival, Fri 16 – Friday 23 May, Emma Critchley’s Soundings is a three-screen film installation with live dance. This expansive portrait of the deep sea, as seen through multiple lenses, asks how we might connect with a space most of us will never experience first-hand. Accompanying this event is Walk To The Bottom Of The Sea, a seven-mile artist-led coastal walk, symbolising the ocean’s deepest depth, with speakers sparking conversations at key points marking different ocean zones.

To see the full programme and book tickets, head to: www.attenboroughcentre.com  

Main image by Stuart Robinson

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