From the Campervan of Love to the Luminarium and crazy hairdressers to The Beatles’ music for babies, the bOing! international family festival has something new and interesting for all ages.

The festival, which boasts its biggest and most international line-up to date for its fifth outing, will be held on the bank holiday weekend, Saturday, August 25 and Sunday, August 26.

Companies from Australia, France, Denmark, Spain and across the UK will perform indoors and outdoor, with organisers expecting around 15,000 to attend.

Highlights include, from Denmark, Androcles and the Lion, storytelling with projections, while sitting in hammocks and, for the third year, one of the luminaria created by Alan Parkinson for Architects of Air, Katena, returns bringing a maze of tunnels and soaring spaces inspired by Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia for all ages to experience.

On Friday, August 24 boing! begins by hitting the streets of Canterbury with Cohesion Plus performing bangra, plus the Bollywood Brass Band and a hip hop street battle.

Lively outdoor performances through the weekend include Campervan of Love, Bill & Bobby returning for their dancing in a bath show, DJs from The Netherlands making fries as they play tunes and some crazy hairdressers from Barcelona.

Spanish company Aracaladanza return to Gulbenkian with their show Constellations, which takes inspiration from the colours and patterns of artist Joan Miro, and Dyptik from Saint Etienne in France will be performing their dynamic outdoor dance D-Construction, with dancers caged and protected by a high wire fence. For little ones there’s La Petita’s Beatles for Babies, and for older children there’s Efren Pamilican Jr from Melbourne with his powerful hip hop, projection performance 9DIMES.

University of Kent graduates Frozen Light bring Isle of Brimsker for audiences with profound & multiple learning difficulties (PMLD).

THE BACK STORY

bOing began back in 2014, with the aim of showcasing the best in theatre, dance, music and film for all ages. Some 2,500 people attending the first year to see dancing diggers among other acts, while last year that rose to 11,500.

Much of the festival is free, though organisers advise visitors to book tickets in advance, while some performances do have an entry fee.

Among the free events is the three minute show the Bewonderment Machine by A Bird in the Hand Theatre, which will be outside the Gulbenkian on Saturday, August 25, and the Campervan of Love by the New Art Club (UK) on the Gulbenkian lawn - for ages o to 100 - at intervals on Saturday, August 25.

On the Library Lawn daring members of the public can let hairdressers Sienta la Cabeza and a DJ loose as they recycle everyday objects to make stunning head sculptures live. They will be creating live on Saturday, August 25 and Sunday, August 26 from 11.30am to 2.30pm.

Workshops are an important part of bOing! and visitors to the festival have the chance to turn their hand to animation, puppetry, bangra drumming, crime scene investigations and boat-hat making. There will also be a debate for eight to 12-year-olds hosted by ART(Y)31.

DETAILS

The bOing! festival will be held on Saturday, August 25 and Sunday, August 26 in and around Canterbury, with some street performances also on Friday, August 24. For the full programme, visit boingfestival.com/whats-on or call 01227 769075.