THE inventive and award-winning Bournemouth Arts by the Sea Festival has revealed its line-up with more than 50 events incorporating music, dance, film and visual arts.

Spectacular free outdoor arts events in the town centre, gardens and seafront will kick-off the festival during the opening weekend Friday September 20 to Sunday 22.

Returning for its third year, highlights include giant articulated creations from Mutoid Waste, fresh from Glastonbury where they created the set for the Rolling Stones. Live music from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra will accompany showings of Alfred Hitchcock’s early films and there will be a sound performance in complete darkness. Light installations, film screenings, street performance and a vintage market will be taking place from September 20 to October 12 in unexpected spaces around Bournemouth. The festivals in 2011 and 2012 attracted more than 100,000 people and featured some of the best local and international artists including Fuel, The Paper Cinema, Georgina Starr, Fevered Sleep and Ray Lee.

Carol Maund, the festival director, said: “We’re very excited to present this year’s programme of rich and varied events for the Arts by the Sea Festival.

“This year we have built on the success of the past two festivals by bringing some of the very best local, national and international artists, performers and film-related events to Bournemouth. “We have big names in dance, music and animatronics, as well as workshops run by professionals from their field. The festival has something for everyone, with a number of events aimed at children and their families.”

Film-fans can look forward to the only vintage mobile cinema in the country and there will be a very English interpretation of Venice’s 1000-year old Marriage of the Sea ceremony.

The festival is funded by an arts grant from Bournemouth Borough Council and sponsored by Arts University Bournemouth.

For more information visit: .artsbournemouth.org.uk