Colours of Eid 2024

Join us for our third annual Colours of Eid Festival

Luton’s big Eid weekend!

Saturday 13 April 2024

2 pm – 9 pm

St George’s Sq, Luton, LU1 2NG

A free family event with stalls, food, ice cream and lots of entertainment. And to top it off we have an AMAZING FIREWORK DISPLAY!!!

Colours of Eid is Lutons first Eid parade event hosted by Alif New Beginnings an arts organisation which promotes and celebrates Islamic arts and design across all creative disciplines.

We specialise in creating costumes and events where people come together to create beautiful parades and processions full of community spirit and joy.

Our inspiration comes from the rich Islamic culture and it’s influence from around the world.

Our vision is to open up cultural opportunities for everyone. We welcome people from diverse backgrounds and with varying experiences, abilities and needs. We ensure that equality and diversity are at the heart of everything we do.

Full programme:

From 2:00 pm – Food & craft, & funfair

Try the delights of locally made traditional food and sweet treats. Get a traditional mehndi (henna) design and enjoy the afternoon with the funfair!

From 2:00 pm – Costume showcase from Alif New Beginnings

Experience close up the wonderful costumes by Alif New Beginnings that featured in the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan’s ‘Eid on the Square’ event 2023.

From 2:00 pm – Family Islamic art workshops

Creative fun of all the family in The Mall Atrium and St George’s Sq.

Opening message, dua and recitation

Salam Alaikum and Eid Mubarak, all faiths and communities welcome.

Maryam Jazeem

Child recitation artist.

Motivational talk and storytelling with Jalal Ibn Sa’eed Mohabbat

The founding father, the vanguard and vision-air of the 1Eid project and a lecturer on theology, sociology and world religion history. Not only is he a trustee and the chairman of the 1Eid he works tirelessly for many other charities and Da’wah projects.

Zain Khan

Zain Khan is an International nasheed artist from the United Kingdom , who uses only his voice in all his nasheeds and recites nasheeds in English, Urdu, punjabi and Arabic languages. His nasheeds are very versatile as he can compose both contemporary and traditional nasheeds.

Luton Turkish Education & Culture Trust 

Join the children’s group for a beautiful showcase of traditional dance.

Queen of Queens

In conversation, celebrating the Queens of Luton.

Live Calligraphy creation by Abu Yahya

Luton based Calligraphy artist creates an original piece live on stage exclusively for Colours of Eid! Abu is a contemporary artist whose practice crosses Islamic calligraphy traditions with painting and sculpture. He uses wisdom or writers, poets and philosophers from around the world to convey messages of peace and to underline the commonalities of human existence.

Lina Abojaradeh

A Middle Eastern artist who has spent the last 15 years utilizing creative art mediums to tell the story of the Middle East, including creating award-winning videos, sand animation art, comics, and large murals.

Riki Cycle

An environmentally conscious, live-action family musical performance with puppetry, songs and interactive recycling. Riki Cycle is in training, and with help from his puppet friends Ali, Woodz and Tic, he learns what, where, and why we should recycle and save the planet. Recently performed for The Big Feastival, Greenwich Family Arts Festival, Offbeat Oxford and Luton Council.

Meet the Dinosaurs!

Roar into excitement with huge dinosaurs! Get ready for an unforgettable experience with totally Unleashed thrill of the Mesozoic era to any events we attend. Our life sized T-Rex is an experience that will have you roaring with joy!

DafZikir Drums & Storytelling with Rumi’s Cave

DafZikir Drums deliver a spectacular performance incorporating Islamic Sufi chants as a foundation of their rhythm setting the scene for storytelling by Rumi’s Cave, a London based community arts organisation inspired by the legacy of Jalauddin Rumi.

Sublime Science with Mad Marc

Dry Ice, Giant Smoke Rings, Mini Rockets, Foam Volcanos, and other silly science, ideal for all the family. We’ll even sneak in some learning when they’re having too much fun to notice! Mad’ Marc founded Sublime Science with the sole intention of showing children how much fun science can be. He founded Sublime Science with a £1,750 Prince’s Trust loan back in 2008, aged just 22. Marc’s best known as that guy that fired smoke rings at the Dragons on Dragons’ Den wearing a slime covered lab coat but went on to secure Dragon investment. Marc is utterly humbled to have won a a Queen’s Award for Enterprise, a Great British Entrepreneur Award, been labelled “a visionary” by Forbes and most important of all to have made science awesome for more than a million children!

Khayaal Theatre

Khayaal is a multi-award-winning theatre and drama education company dedicated to the exploration of Muslim heritage and interfaith literature and the experience of Muslims in the modern world for the stage, screen, radio and publishing. Khayaal has developed a strong reputation as the first dedicated producer of professional English language theatre inspired by Muslim heritages and cultures. Khayaal is forging a new genre and brand of cross-cultural theatre whose formula of wisdom and humour has won it popular and critical acclaim nationally and internationally. 

Next Generation Youth Theatre (NGYT)

A special live performance from Luton’s leading youth performing arts company, who recently performed with Beverly Knight as part of the BBC’s Big Night of Musicals.

Live Qawwali by the ”Raag Qawwal Group”

RAAG Qawwali Group are the grandsons of the Classical legend Ustad Latafat Hussain Khan and the 8th generation of classical musicians and qawwals in their lineage. Their grandfather Ustad Latafat Hussain Khan was teacher to many such as music director Naushad Ali, Bashir Ahmed Khan, Humera Channa and the famous Sabri Brothers Qawwal. RAAG Qawwali Group are a group of vibrant and talented brothers who continue to amaze audiences around the world and wish to continue the legacy of their forefathers through their journey.

Eid Parade

Led by Luton’s own Dhols Royce join Alif New Beginning for a spectacular costume parade showcasing costumes featured in the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan’s ‘Eid on the Square’ event 2023. Also ‘The Aunties’ in truck Art mobility scooters that featured in Luton International Carnival 2023. All showcasing the creativity of Islamic culture and celebrating the community of Luton!

Fireworks!

Join us for an amazing firework display!