Simon ParkinOne area that's really grown since Latitude's inception are its theatrical stages. So much so that this year it can boast almost the full deck of top theatrical names.Simon Parkin

One area that's really grown since Latitude's inception are its theatrical stages. So much so that this year it can boast almost the full deck of top theatrical names.

The Royal Shakespeare Company, The National Theatre, Sadler's Wells and The Bush Theatre will all be present, together with a host of fascinating smaller companies.

Tania Harrison, festival arts programmer, said: 'The theatre will be phenomenal - you could not go to London and see everything we have got here. I can hardly contain my excitement about the dance, including the world class Sadler's Wells.'

The dancers will be presenting work on a specially designed stage Waterfront Stage.

Sadler's Wells will be presenting two productions, the freestyle hip hop break-dance inspired Psycho Stylez and a far more traditional Swan Lake, which will be perfect performed by the lake.

The RSC return with a new late-night event created especially for the festival. They have joined with the Suffolk Trial Society to collaborate on an event that highlights witchcraft, witch trials and the unearthing of a mass grave within the boundaries of the Latitude site.

The National will be staging The Eternal Not, a new comedy by Lucinda Coxon, directed by Anthony Banks.

Following on from last year's Latitude hit 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, the Bush Theatre has created another audience generated summer theatrical romp especially for the Festival.

The Young Vic will be staging Been So Long, a sultry tale with soul and jazz.

The Nabokov Theatre Company love Latitude so much they'll be back for the fourth year running, this time with Is Everyone Ok?, a sixty-minute joyride for the lost and bewildered.

Other groups staging work include Tristan Bates Theatre, Third Eye Theatre, Dazzle Corporation and the Lyric Hammersmith with a new commission exclusively for the festival.

The quirky little Cabaret Arena is one of those areas that always throws up something unexpected. You know what'll you'll get with bands but here it's a trip into the unknown.

Lined up in this surreal bordello of surprises this year are everything from burlesque cabaret troupe The Whoopee Club to The La De Dah 50s singers via an Elephant Man Elvis. We could say more but we don't want to spoil the surprises.