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Bard and beach volleyball in weekend of Olympics fun
Louise Jury, Chief Arts Correspondent23 Jun 2009
Hundreds of events from giant dominoes to "hip hop Shakespeare" will take place this summer to boost public enthusiasm for the 2012 Olympic Games.
The public are being invited to take part in everything from beach volley ball to Bollywood dancing during the second Open Weekend laid on by Games organisers Locog.
The first attracted more than 700,000 participants across the country and is now coming back as an annual event. But whereas last year's event acted as the formal launch of the Cultural Olympiad - the four-year programme of arts events in the run-up to 2012 - next month's celebration is being expanded to include sports.
Barking will play host to beach volley ball as the town square is transformed into a beach. And venues across the capital will offer taster classes so people can learn new sports from archery and climbing to karate and capoeira, a type of Brazilian dancing.
At the World Rugby Museum in Richmond upon Thames, visitors will be invited to share their personal and family sporting memories.
Sebastian Coe, London 2012 chairman, said: "We created Open Weekend to enable people to share in the countdown celebrations towards London 2012 but also be inspired to discover new interests and develop their talents. Open Weekend is part of our vision for the games to inspire lasting change."
More than 300 organisations offered events last year and around 100 are signed up so far for the repeat run next month.
The giant dominoes will be brought to life along a 15km route from Newham to Greenwich by performers who will tumble down, while in "hip hop Shakespeare" young musicians reinterpret scenes from the playwright's work at the South Bank Centre.
Open Weekend will take place from 24 to 26 July. Full details are being unveiled today.
