Come Alive: Echo Performing Arts CIC

Echo Performing Arts CIC bring Come Alive to The Old Market on Sunday 8 November, a performance that pulls from the imagination, culture, identity and social expression of the company's diverse cast. The show blends dance, performing arts, animation and film across two halves, and it's put on by Echo Performing Arts CIC, a Brighton and Hove community that runs classes and performance opportunities alongside neurodivergent and learning-disabled dancers.

The first half looks at what it means to be human, told through the dancers' own way of experiencing the world. After the interval, the cast invite the audience into their own fantasy world, where they play out their cultural differences in how they tell their stories. It's a production that lets the performers lead the way, with the two halves moving from the grounded and personal to the imagined and shared.

Because it's a community-led company, the work comes from the people who make it. Echo Performing Arts CIC works with neurodivergent and learning-disabled dancers, and Come Alive is built around their perspectives rather than a pre-set script. The combination of dance, performing arts, animation and film means it's more than just a dance show, and the two-part structure gives it a clear arc: one half rooted in the human experience, the other in a world of their own making.

It's suitable for all ages, though under-16s need to be accompanied by an adult. The show runs from 16:00 to 18:30, with doors opening at 15:15, so you've got plenty of time to get settled before it starts. Tickets are £8, with concessions at £6, plus a £2 venue levy. That puts it at £10 for a standard ticket and £8 for concessions, and since it's a Sunday afternoon slot, it's an easy one to fit into the weekend.