People only have a couple of weeks left to enter the 2025 Mrs Sunderland Performing Arts Festival.

The ever-popular festival usually attracts around 5,000 performers for its 135 classes and will be held between February 12 and 22, 2025, at Huddersfield Town Hall, but class entries close at 12 noon on Saturday, November 9.

The festival also hosts several workshops ranging from adult vocal to toddler and baby sing and sign and these have varying deadlines.

Other workshops are designed for people with special needs and there is a tea dance workshop too. Some of the workshops culminate in public performances.

A new event aimed at attracting older adults to disco dance and ‘bop’ the afternoon away is Discofest featuring music from the 1950s through to the 1990s which will be held on Friday, February 21, from 1pm.

Festival administrator Ann Talboys said: “The Huddersfield Mrs Sunderland Festival goes from strength to strength with seven major workshops including a new baby workshop, two showcases including the Discofest and five concerts.

“We have a new slow melody instrumental class and as well as all the usual favourite spoken word classes, like the dialect and drama classes, but we have added opportunities to share business pitches and slam poetry. Our spoken word adjudicator is providing a special workshop for those interested in spoken word auditions.”

One of the festival’s highlight is its Young Musician of the Year contest for musicians aged 18 to 24 who have reached a high standard of at least grade 8 or equivalent, including those aiming towards or just beginning a professional career in music.

The prizes are £1,000, £500 and £300 for the top three and the contest will be held on Sunday, February 16. It’s limited to the first 20 eligible entrants.

To find out more go to the festival’s website at https://www.mrssunderlandfestival.com/

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content, copywriting and ghost-writing autobiographies.