Quays Festival: what you can see at the spectacular celebration of culture coming to The Lowry in Salford

Quays Festival returns to Salford this weekend (August 14 and 15) with two days of unique and visually jaw-dropping culture and free things to do.

Whether it is circus-style thrills and spills, immersive art installations or a dip in the water of the Quays, there is something for everyone on the schedule.

Circus specialists reach for the heights

All eyes will crane upwards when contemporary circus specialists Scarabeus take centre stage for a thrilling aerial performance.

Powerflex will be staged suspended from the tower at The Lowry.

The show is an incredible vertical journey in which the building is turned into an exploration of the idea of power.

There are four performances across the weekend, two on Saturday at 1pm and 4pm and two on Sunday at 11am and 3pm.

Each show will last around 15 minutes.

See things in a different light

The festival also marks the arrival of a new permanent outdoor art installation on the steps of MediaCity UK.

Through No.4, by acclaimed creative Liz West, is a six-metre-long triangular corridor of light and colour.

The walk-through structure encourages visitors to look at their surroundings in a whole new light.

Open water swimming with a twist

Colour Swim is inviting people to take the plunge into the water and enjoy the thrill of outdoor swimming with a twist.

The festival is teaming up with Uswim, House of Ghetto Manchester and Manchester School of Samba to bring live music and choreography to the water at Dock 9 of Salford Quays.

Taking place at 11.30am on Saturday, it promises to be quite a sight.

Places are free and can be booked now at https://www.quaytickets.com/en-GB/shows/colour%20swim/events

Find out more about the entire event at https://quaysculture.com/quays-festival-2021/