Opera for babies, a spooky performance of Macbeth and a visit by Little Britain star David Walliams are among the highlights of a children's arts festival which kicks off tomorrow.
The Spark will see a host of activities and exhibitions for youngsters aged up to 13 at venues across Leicester until Sunday, June 12.
Among the attractions is a "pop-up" gallery at Phoenix Square, in the city's Cultural Quarter, showcasing the work of young artists.
Pupils at Spinney Hill Primary School, in Spinney Hills; Sandfield Close Primary School, in Rushey Mead; and Braunstone Frith Junior School, organised the exhibition of artwork by their fellow students.
Spinney Hill pupil Nadeem Alimo Mahamed, 11, said: "I can't wait for people to see what we've achieved.
"We had to choose artwork which was going to be in the exhibition from all of the pupils in the school.
"My sculpture of Frankenstein will be there."
Bhawandeep Kaur, 11, said: "We had to work as a team to choose the best artwork, and it was quite hard because we didn't want to disappoint anybody."
Meanwhile, 10 talented young writers are set to meet David Walliams, whose world premiere of Mr Stink, a production based on his book of the same name, is on now at Curve as part of the festival.
The children were chosen for the from 470 youngsters who took part in a story-writing competition run by festival organisers.
Film and music-making workshops, a performance of Shakespeare's Macbeth in the atmospheric setting of the city's Guildhall, and The Pied Piper's Magic Flute, at the University of Leicester's Botanic Garden, are also on the programme.
Libraries and community centres will host free theatre, puppetry and music shows, while the very youngest audience members will be catered for with opera for babies at Embrace Arts, at the University of Leicester. It combines recorded music and live singing with sounds and words that tots can recognise and understand.
The festival will also feature an interactive production for people who have a learning disability by Speakeasy, a Leicester-based theatre company.
Festival director Ellen Bianchini said this year's Spark was going to be "fantastic".
She said: "We're doing a new thing this year by having a festival 'hub' at the Curve, to create a centre for everything that's happening. "When people turn up to see shows, there will be a lot more to do for families – dressing up, puppet-making, theatre tours and face painting."
The Spark Festival is funded by Leicester City Council, Arts Council England and commercial sponsors. In March, Arts Council England announced it was increasing its funding to Spark by 18 per cent, from �71,531 in 2010/11, to �84,388 in 2014/15.
For a full list of events, visit:
www.sparkfestival.co.uk
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