Ashbourne Festival takes place every June and July in the small market town of Ashbourne – known as the Gateway to the Peak District and situated at the southern end of the Derbyshire Dales. Over the last two decades the Ashbourne Festival has hosted some of the best street theatre, musicians, comedians, artists and writers working in the region, nationally and internationally. It is a cultural oasis in a popular areathat is still relatively isolated from significant art venues. The Festival is now established as one of the town’s mix of traditions, which include Shrovetide football and the Christmas lantern procession.