Countdown is on to arts festival

THE Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival returns this spring with a vibrant programme of theatre, music, spoken word and outdoor arts presented in venues across the region. Running from 21 May to 14 June, the festival will once again bring artists and audiences together in towns and villages throughout Dumfries and Galloway, celebrating creativity in some of Scotland’s most beautiful rural landscapes. Now heading towards its 50th anniversary, the festival continues its mission to present world-class performing arts across the region while supporting local artists and strengthening community connections. The programme blends international productions, nationally acclaimed performers and outstanding regional talent in an exciting and wide-ranging celebration of live performance. Following a rebrand in summer 2025, this year’s event is the first festival presented under the organisation’s new identity, Arts D&G. Formerly known as Dumfries and Galloway Arts Festival, the organisation relaunched in July 2025 to better reflect the wider range of performing arts activity it delivers throughout the year across the region. While the organisation’s name has evolved, the festival remains at the heart of its work, continuing a tradition that has brought world-class performing arts to communities across the south-west of Scotland for more than four decades.