22 things to do in Bristol this week, April 1-7 2024

Monday: Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World, The Cube
A confusing yet tedious thrillride for the senses, Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World follows a film production assistant in Romania driving around the country’s capital running interviews for a film about people injured at work, whilst doing various other chores. Sounds tedious? It is, in the best possible way.

Tuesday: Experience Easter, Bristol Cathedral
Get into the Easter spirit with a range of festivities to keep the children entertained this Easter holiday at Bristol Cathedral. They will learn about the Easter story via interactive activities positioned around the inside of the Cathedral, alongside personal reflections and craft activities.

Bristol Cathedral – photo: Rachel Sutherland

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Wednesday-Saturday & April 10-13: Woodland of Wonder, Bristol Shopping Quarter
Visit Bristol Shopping Quarter’s Woodland of Wonder, a new family friendly community arts festival taking place in Sparks Bristol and John Wesley’s New Room, Broadmead from April 3-6 and 10-13. Expect exhibitions, craft workshops, and photo walks – all activities are FREE!

Woodland of Wonder – photo: Bristol Shopping Quarter

Wednesday: Diaspora! Festival – Flag up your identity, Trinity Centre
Part of the festival celebrating Bristol’s diverse multicultural population and honouring the stories/sharing the work of those who have migrated to the city from non Western European nations, the team behind Diaspora! Festival invites you to create your own flag that symbolises your identity, to be displayed across the city as part of the festival.

Diaspora! Flag Making Workshop – photo: Diaspora!

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Wednesday-Saturday: No More Mr Nice Guy, Bristol Old Vic
From the company behind Olivier-Award nominated For Black Boys…, comes an exciting new piece of gig-theatre which explores what it means to be a Black-British man fighting for a dream. Featuring an eclectic mix of rap, R&B and spoken word performed alongside a live band.

No More Mr Nice Guy – photo: Bristol Old Vic

Thursday: Mr Teds’ Quiz, Loco Klub
Think of a typical pub quiz – then forget everything you know about it. Mr Ted brings their chaotic blend of heels, shots & quite absurd lines of questioning to the tunnels underneath the train station – dress to impress (or bewilder), and bring your most (least) appropriate team name.

Mr Ted’s Quiz – photo: Mr Ted

Friday: Better Days with Bitter Babe and Fliss Mayo b2b K Means, Strange Brew
Colombian DJ Bitter Babe makes her Bristol debut, and where better to host such a shindig than at the Brew. Expect hips to be swinging on a level unlike your usual rave, as she brings her signature blend of latin inspired bass sounds to one of the murkiest, darkest back rooms in Bristol.

Saturday: Old Market tasty pub tour, Old Market
A self guided tour of some of the most vibrant drinking spots dotted around the lively area of Bristol that connects the centre to the East of the city. You will start off at Moor Beer Co., where you’ll enjoy samples of a few of their current favourite brews, before being handed your tour bag (full of beer tokens and snacks), along with a map detailing where you can spend your tokens – happy drinking!

The tour begins at Moor Beer’s headquarters – photo: Moor Beer

Sunday: Lyra Bristol Poetry Slam – Qualifying Heats, Watershed
Making a triumphant return after being moved to online since 2020, the annual poetry festivals always popular open poetry slam holds its qualifying heats at the Watershed this weekend. There will no doubt be a fantastic selection of rising talent on display, and you’ll be able to have your say on who makes it through to the next round.

Lyra Bristol Poetry Festival – photo: Lyra

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Sunday: Dreamcoat Stars, Redgrave Theatre
Dreamcoat Stars is back due to popular demand, for their 3rd UK tour. Bringing incredible live musical entertainment to the nation! Experience the UK’s biggest and best night of musical smash-hits in this star-studded concert featuring brand-new songs and arrangements.

Dreamcoat Stars – photo: Redgrave Theatre

And coming soon…

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April 8: Rude Science, Redgrave Theatre
Brace yourselves for TV Gastronaut Stefan Gates’ hilarious, high-tech, highly-explosive new family show, packed with science stunts, spectacular experiments and bizarre props. Expect enormous bottoms, fart machines, snot cocktails, vast whoopee cushions, urine powered fireworks and vomiting mannequins in this celebration of the fascinating bodily science essential to life.

Rude Science – photo: Redgrave Theatre

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April 9-13: Doubt, a Parable, Alma Tavern & Theatre
“What do we do when we’re not sure?” A lean, potent drama of suspicion and manipulation. Set in a Bronx Catholic school in 1964, the severe Principal sets about uncovering truth where there may be none, when she accuses the Priest of the most serious of crimes.

Doubt: A Parable – photo: Alma Tavern & Theatre

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April 16-27: The Last Show Before We Die, Bristol Old Vic
Welcome to the messiest break up you’ve ever been through: live. This Edinburgh smash hit is an existential cabaret about the big things in life. And Death. “Absolutely bonkers and deeply moving” (★★★★★ BroadwayWorld) don’t miss this five-star, “heady, gut-wrench of a show” (★★★★★ Guardian).

The Last Show Before we Die – photo: Bristol Old Vic

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April 26-29: City Nature Challenge, multiple locations
City Nature Challenge is an exciting collaborative mission to record as much wildlife as possible from 26 – 29 April, using the free iNaturalist app. Get involved in the Bristol effort as we come together to collect records of biodiversity across our area, alongside 500+ other cities around the globe!

City Nature Challenge – photo: Natural History Consortium

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April 27: Sustainable Pop-Up Market: April, Future Leap Gloucester Road
Our Sustainable Pop-Up Market is back for April, giving you the opportunity to shop from an array of indie sellers!
Every market hosts a different selection of stallholders, and you can expect to find photography and art prints, eco-friendly beauty and hygiene products, greener household alternatives, ceramics, handsewn homewares and much, much more.

April Pop-Up Market – photo: Future Leap

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May 3: The Breath, Bristol Cathedral
‘Quietly, inexorably, The Breath have become one of the most exciting folk acts’ – The Financial Times *****
Softly-spoken guitar whizz Stuart McCallum (Cinematic Orchestra) and larger-than-life singer/flautist Ríoghnach Connolly (BBC Folk Singer Of The Year) are something very special indeed. Catch their opening concert at Bristol Cathedral.
‘The jaw-droppingly stunning, woozy voice of Ríoghnach Connolly” The Guardian

The Breath – photo: Bristol Folk Festival

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May 5: Sheelanagig + Filkin’s Ensemble, St. George’s
Raise the roof this Bank Holiday with foot-stomping folk & joint-jumping tunes. South West quintet Sheelanagig headline a special concert with support from stunningly beautiful 14-piece Filkin’s Ensemble. Think Penguin Café meets Bellowhead, not to be missed.

Sheelanagig – photo: Bristol Folk Festival

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May 11: Blown Away, Trinity Henleaze URC
A great programme of music for wind instruments performed by players from the Bristol Ensemble:

• Mozart Serenade for Wind in C minor K.388
• Dvořák Serenade for Winds in D minor Op.44

We’ll hear the powerful and characterful C minor serenade by Mozart, a four movement work full of ingenuity, twists and turns.  And also, Dvořák’s Serenade for Winds in D minor, unmistakably Czech, an homage to music-making in Czech palaces and stately homes.

Blown Away – photo: Henleaze Concert Society

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May 15: Einaudi meets Max Richter, St. George’s
A hypnotic evening of music featuring mesmerising works by Ludovico Einaudi, together with Max Richter’s engagingly refreshing reimagining of Vivaldi’s ever popular Four Seasons.

Einaudi mets Richter by candlelight – photo: Bristol Ensemble

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May 24: Gavin Bryars double bill, 1904 Arts Club
Bristol Ensemble performs The Sinking of the Titanic by British minimalist composer Gavin Bryars. The work was inspired by the story that the band on the RMS Titanic continued to perform as the ship sank in 1912 and imagines how the music performed by the band would reverberate through the water some time after they ceased performing.

Composed between 1969 and 1972, the work is now considered one of the classics of British classical experimental music. It was first recorded in 1975 when it became the first release on Brian Eno’s Obscure Records.

Gavin Bryars – photo: Bristol Ensemble

SPONSORED
June 1-9: Festival of Nature, multiple locations
Festival of Nature is the UK’s largest celebration of the natural world, taking place 1 – 9 June across Bristol and Bath. Running for over 20 years, Festival of Nature offers people the chance to connect with local wildlife, learn about the natural world, and take positive action for nature.

Festival of Nature – photo: Natural History Consortium

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June 8: Music for a blue planet, Trinity Henleaze URC
In collaboration with the Festival of Nature, the Bristol Ensemble will take us on a breathtaking musical exploration of our beautiful planet with music from the BBC series Blue Planet by George Fenton together with Schubert’s enduringly popular Trout Quintet. Written by the young composer at just 22 years of age, this Quintet has a freshness and serenity that has engaged players and audiences for nearly 200 years.  This will be the last concert of our season, do come and join us.

Music for a blue planet – photo: Henleaze Concert Society

Main photo: Lyra Festival

Read next:

• Behind the scenes: Bristol Academy of Voice Acting
• Bristol multimedia artist AK-One presents debut album and first gallery show in seven years
• Bristol-born musical ‘Polly The Heartbreak Opera’ finally comes home

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