Ladyfest Ten, a festival celebrating ten years of feminist arts and activism, is launching on November 5th at Southbank Centre in London. The event will include fire performances by Perfect Circle Poi, a storytelling performance by Vanessa Woolf and musician Katy Carr, a set by singer-songwriter You Are Wolf, a poetry performance by Catherine Brogan, and a performance by band Lulu and the Lampshades. Throughout the event, the Craftivist Collective will invite attendees to make origami doves for a temporary art installation.

1. Southbank Centre presents
Girl fawkes — a ladyfest ten celebration
Friday tonic/poetry international
The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
5.30 - 7pm, Friday 5 November
‘If I can’t dance, it’s not my Ladyfest Ten takes over this week’s Friday Tonic, as part of Poetry International
revolution.’ 2010, to celebrate ten years of DIY feminist arts and activism events across the
Ladyfest Ten manifesto globe.
About Ladyfest Ten Festival Terrace, 5pm:
This event marks the launch of Fire Performance from Perfect Circle Poi
Ladyfest Ten – a festival taking The poi spinners performing outside this evening are all members of Perfect Circle
place at various London venues Poi, led by Mandy Clark. The three poi dances feature a variety of fire poi, LED glow
from 11 to 14 November. The first poi and flags. The final fire spinning dance piece is entitled Thank You and has been
Ladyfest was held in Olympia, choreographed especially for Ladyfest Ten. Perfect Circle Poi runs courses and
Washington in 2000, emerging workshops for all levels in poi spinning and fire dance as well as performing at
out of the riot grrrl movement. events. Featured performers: Mandy Clark, Anjali Goyal, Kim Eaglestone, Helen
The original festival featured Rowe, Nichola Schwarz, Rachel Sinclair.
artists including The Gossip, Cat
Power and Bratmobile. Since The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, from 5.30pm:
then, hundreds of Ladyfest Vanessa Woolf featuring Katy Carr
events have taken place across Storyteller and writer Vanessa Woolf wrote her first play when she was 17, resulting
the world, run entirely by in her being expelled from school. Since then she has driven a lighting truck through
volunteers. True to the spirit of Spain with the James Bond crew, squelched under London in pitch-dark sewers,
the original festival, Ladyfest Ten traded antiques and sold hot chestnuts. Her short stories have been featured in
features emerging and numerous anthologies, live lit events, websites and magazines.
established female and feminist
performances (including music, Katy Carr is a London based performer and songwriter who sings, plays a vintage,
comedy, cabaret, literature, wurlitzer electronic piano, ukulele and banjolele with her group The Aviators. Katy’s
spoken word, dance) plus a music is inspired by themes, stories and characters from 1940s Britain, France and
diverse programme of Poland.
workshops, debates and
participation (such as art You Are Wolf
exhibitions, crafts, film, zines, You Are Wolf explores English and American folk and original leftfield pop with
ukulele jams, life drawing gentle touches of electronica, weaves in spoken word and throws in an array of wild
salons, debates and markets). vocal techniques. She has been played on BBC 6Music by Tom Robinson and Gideon
Coe, as well as Resonance FM’s The Other Woman and New York’s premier indie
radio station WFUV. Her debut EP, Hunting Little Songs is out now.
Catherine Brogan
A performance poet with punch, Catherine Brogan has been tearing up the spoken
word scene since moving to London in June 2008 including appearing on Radio 4,
representing the UK at the European Poetry Slam and being part of Southabank
Centre’s Polari’s pope-themed special earlier this year. Performing poems on
subjects ranging from feminism to Guy Fawkes, Catherine is a poet passionately
active in politics, including work with schools to set up co-operative businesses
selling Fairtrade products.
Lulu and the Lampshades
Lulu and the Lampshades are a band that draw on a host of influences to produce
something that is passionately ramshackle, upbeat and folksy at times, mournful at
others. Having released the single Feet to the Sky on Voga Parochia in October 2009,
an EP is due out imminently. Percussive and harmonic, their playful performances
often incorporate typewriters, cups and lampshade-wearing dancers.

2. The Soft Space at Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer, across the event:
Craftivist Collective
Create paper doves for peace. Linking into the theme of this year’s Poetry
International 2010, contribute to a temporary installation by making origami birds
decorated with your chosen quotes of poetry and prose. Craftivist Collective aim to
expose the scandal of global poverty and human rights injustices though the power
of craft and public art. They believe in creating change through provocative, non-
violent creative actions.
With thanks to:
Central Foundation Girls School
A group of Year 11 creative and media diploma students from Central Foundation
Girls School are working alongside Southbank Centre staff and Ladyfest Ten
volunteers to support this event. Inspired by Ladyfest, these young people are co-
ordinating their own festival, Central Fest, later this month for their peers and the
wider community in Mile End.