CRIPtic Arts Open Mic | 2025 Liberty Festival

Join us at The Bedford on Saturday 27 September from 12–3 PM for an afternoon of creativity, conversation, curiosity and performance as part of Liberty Festival 2025, hosted by the fabulous Drag Queen Sideshow nut and Lizard Lady Lolo Brow!

This two-part event kicks off with a PechaKucha and presentation session (12–1:30 PM), where speakers can present 20 slides for 20 seconds each, or simply take the mic for 5 minutes!

We’re excited to hear from people exploring themes related to disability arts, culture, identity, and activism, so go off on your topic of choice! Expect bold ideas, personal insights, and fresh perspectives.

Please see below for topics of interest and restrictions* on content and tech!

From 1:30pm, the stage opens for a special performance by folk artist Maddie Morris, followed by a vibrant performance-based Open Mic, welcoming local disabled artists to share their poetry, music, spoken word, comedy, or any creative form.

Whether you're a seasoned performer or just starting out, this is your space to be heard!

This event is free, inclusive, and politically engaged, aiming to amplify voices that are too often left out and to welcome new ideas to the spotlight!

Come to listen, support, or take the stage at one of Wandsworth’s most iconic music venues!

Want to present or perform?

To register your interest in sharing at either the open mic or the Pecha Kucha, please complete this form by 11am on Monday 15 September 2025.

Spots are limited so get in early!

*We absolutely want to hear your pet theories and fringe obsessions. We also reserve the curatorial prerogative to exclude acts that center homophobia, transphobia, racism, colourism, sexism, medicalism, conspiracy theories, violence and nationalist/xenophobic guff.

Access

• This event will have BSL Interpretation
• This is a relaxed event
• The venue is wheelchair accessible

About Lolo Brow

Drag Queen Sideshow nut and Lizard Lady Lolo Brow has been recognised at the forefront of Neo-Burlesque.

Since flopping on to stage in 2010 this London based Queer has performed in shows across the globe from KitKat Club in Berlin, a national tour of Australia and Las Vegas.

Infamous for their award winning comedy burlesque acts, Brow is also well known for their diverse skills ranging from Fire to whips and lack of morality.

About Maddie Morris

Maddie Morris is an artist who strives to make a difference in the world. Bold, insightful and refreshingly unique, they take traditional song in new directions to shine a light on contemporary issues, offering new perspectives about the world we live in today. After graduating with a first-class honours degree from Leeds Conservatoire, Maddie soon made waves by winning the 2019 BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Award, as well as landing a grant from the Alan Surtees Trust. From these firm foundations, their career has gone from strength to strength, with recent performances including Cropredy and Cambridge Folk Festival.

About Liberty Festival & CRIPtic Arts

Liberty Festival is the Mayor of London’s flagship disability arts festival, platforming some of the most exciting disabled creatives, showcasing bold, innovative work for free that excites, challenges and reframes disability for audiences across the capital and hosted in each London Borough of Culture.

CRIPtic Arts is a disabled-led arts organisation creating an artistic landscape where disabled people can flourish

Any questions?

Email the team at team@cripticarts.org and we'll be happy to help.