The Horton, Epsom’s unique arts venue, housed in the Grade II-listed building formerly Horton Chapel, will open its gardens for the first time this summer for a season of theatre, family events, and music beginning on 29 July.
Built in 1901, The Horton is the last surviving building of Epsom’s unique ‘cluster’ of five pioneering psychiatric hospitals, which covered 1,000 acres. Built for 10,000 patients from throughout London, they almost doubled the town’s population. The hospital became the largest employer in Epsom, pioneered psychiatric treatments, and drew in staff from across the world.
Now, after more than 30 years of being an inaccessible tangle of brambles and builders’ rubble, the venue is looking forward with great excitement to the opening of The Horton Gardens this summer.
Grass on the event lawns has begun to shoot, paths have been created, the wildflowers are peeping through, and The Horton’s dedicated team of volunteers has helped to plant trees and clear hundreds of metres of thorns and invasive plants.
The Horton’s Summer Season of outdoor performances
Tuesday 29 July at 11:30 am and 2 pm Quentin Blake’s Mrs Armitage on Wheels
The Horton’s first-ever outdoor performance!
If you could change anything on your bicycle, what would it be? A comfy new saddle? An ice cream maker? Rocket boosters?!
When Mrs Armitage goes out for a ride with her trusty dog Breakspear, she decides her bicycle needs improvement. With a new horn, a picnic hamper…and a sail, will Mrs Armitage be able to keep her bicycle in one piece, or will her crazy contraption prove too much to handle?
Adapted from Quentin Blake’s classic tale, Mrs Armitage on Wheels, Scoot Theatre presents a 40-minute interactive, energetic show, celebrating the joy of getting outdoors. A fun, family show suitable for aged 3+ and particularly enjoyable to primary-aged children, featuring live music, puppetry, and physical comedy.
Mrs Armitage on Wheels celebrates the power of imagination, the importance of resilience, and the joy of embracing the great outdoors.
Tickets – £17 / Family Ticket: £50 (admits up to four, must include at least one adult).
Saturday 2 August at 11:30 am, 12 noon, 1:45 pm, 2:15 pm, 3:30 pm, and 4 pm The Whale
A fantastic interactive theatre experience for children aged 3+, taking place in The Horton’s Gardens. Cast off your shoes and squeeze into the belly of a true-to-life, 18-metre inflatable whale.
This 30-minute performance uses exquisite puppets, comedy, and music as Circo Rum Ba Ba explores a tale of sea creatures and their battle to survive in the ocean.
Tickets: Child Ticket: £17 / Adult & Child Ticket: £32 / Group of Four: £58
Saturday 16 August at 11:30 am & 2 pm Everywhere’s a Beach
Join The Horton for a day at the beach, unlike any other in this high-energy, outdoor circus theatre show.
Perfect for the whole family, Everywhere’s A Beach is a charmingly ridiculous performance, taking place on a giant revolving beach parasol.
This dynamic, dizzying, and downright daft show will leave you dancing with delight. You’ll be swept away as this show embraces everything we love about the beach.
Our spinning parasol creates the perfect setting for our eccentric beach-loving characters. Watch as their world collides with yours, as sophistication turns to chaos in this aerial circus performance.
Tickets – £17 / Family Ticket: £50 (admits up to four, must include at least one adult).
Saturday 23 August at 11 am and 2 pm Message In A Bottle Circus Workshop
Join Pirate Blackbeard and Mermaid Pearl in a fantastically fun creative circus workshop for the whole family in The Horton’s Gardens. Come dressed as a pirate, mermaid, or any other sea-faring creature and try out juggling, dance, acrobatics, drama, and more, under professional instruction. The workshop will be led by actors Susy Puckett and Neil Sweeney from the show Message In A Bottle – playing at Leatherhead Theatre on 2 October. Children will be able to write their own ‘Message In A Bottle’ to be used in the show.
Children from the age of 4 can take part in the workshop.
Optional extras on the day will include face-painting and photography, for a fee.
Tickets – Free
Thursday 28 Aug at 6:30 pm The Music of Trees – Geoff Robb
Magical music in the wonderful setting of The Horton Gardens, surrounded by majestic, mature trees, as the sun begins to set.
Inspired by the wonder of the natural world, The Music of Trees weaves together tales of our woodland folklore with a suite of original compositions, written in the woodlands of Sussex during lockdown. Geoff is a master of the acoustic guitar with an intricate, richly harmonic style that blends his classical, jazz, Celtic, and Spanish influences. In The Music of Trees, he performs pieces inspired by the trees, including the ash, elm, birch, and yew, interspersed with magical storytelling.
Tickets – General admission £21 / Students: £17 / Cost of Living: £12
A limited number of ‘Cost of Living’ tickets are available. If you can afford to buy a standard ticket, please do so, as proceeds support the professional touring performers and the costs of running our charitable venue.
www.thehortonepsom.org *A £2 booking fee is included in ticket prices. This applies when booking online and in person. The booking fee covers costs charged to the charity for the booking system and payment processing. Travel to The Horton –The Horton, Haven Way, Epsom. Surrey, KT19 8NP The Horton is on the E9 bus route or a 20-minute walk from Epsom train station.