Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts (DOCA)
Presenting the best artists to from a multitude of art forms to Devizes
Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts (DOCA) is a registered charity on a mission to bring high-quality community focused arts to Devizes, Wiltshire and the surrounding area. They present professional outdoor arts experiences, creating participatory opportunities working with local, national and international artists.
DOCA’s annual programme sees some of the best artists from a multitude of art forms coming to Devizes to present outdoor arts at their most thrilling and uplifting. From street theatre to contemporary dance, visual art to puppetry, pyrotechnics, street music and circus – they aim to create inspirational events that everyone can be a part of.
Why we joined Without Walls
As new members for 2023, we are very excited to be joining such a varied, vibrant andimportant network. With so many events in our calendar, it’s important for us to have access to a pool of reliably high-quality artists and collaborators. As part of the network, we can enhance our creative programme, represent new and emerging work and stand proudly among a nationwide touring network of exceptional outdoor events and festivals.
We’ll also make use of Without Walls’ shared learning and organisational resources tosupport our goals on diversity, inclusivity and sustainability in order to move ourorganisation forwards in the best way possible for our community.
Impact on Local Community
Community outreach and engagement are just as important to DOCA as their artistic programme. They offer participatory opportunities around key events, engaging thousands of local people from schools, community groups and local organisations in workshops, carnival processions, volunteering and other interactive activities. DOCA aim to inspire audiences to engage as participants as well as spectators, nurturing collective ownership of the events that have become the heart of Devizes’ creative identity.
They actively implement a sustainability strategy that influences each event, from design to evaluation, and continue to work to lower their environmental impact as they look towards future events.
DOCA facilitate various audience engagement activities around key events, such as float preparation workshops (Carnival), lantern-making workshops in schools (Winter Festival), and additional community events such as Window Wanderland.
In addition to all this, DOCA work alongside Wiltshire Centre for Independent Living & Carers Support Wiltshire to make events as inclusive as possible.
What's Happening at Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts
DOCA delivers a year-round programme of free outdoor arts events and festivals in Devizes, consisting of our International Street Festival, Carnival Parade, Winter Festival, Picnic In ThePark, Colour Rush and Confetti Battle. These events engage the local community withhigh-quality art installations, street theatre, circus, musical performances and morethroughout the year, free of charge.
Image credits:
Banner – Band Carnival, photograph from Blazej Gradziel, © Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts
What’s Happening – Balancing, Street Festival, photograph from Laura Miller, © Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts
Slideshow – © Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts