Festival fever comes to Croydon this weekend with the mega Ambition Festival taking over venues all over town.

The council’s first festival in half a decade kicks off on Thursday and runs until Sunday, with more than 200 performances at around 30 venues, including five free outdoor stages.

There will be music, dance, comedy, theatre, public art, spoken word and poetry, family entertainment and tonnes of food and drink.

Here’s 13 highlights:

Soul II Soul at Concert Hall, Fairfield Halls, from 8pm on Friday

The double Grammy Winners roar back to life, led by the legend that is Jazzie B and a full line-up including strings and Caron Wheeler’s voice. Tickets cost £24 or £27.There’s a free after-show event with electro swing and speakeasy jazz in the foyer.

Musical Bingo at The Spread Eagle from 8pm on Friday

Eyes down, party up. The numbers are gone but music’s in instead at this interactive club night. Tickets cost £10. Check out the video preview below:

Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and Mad Professor at Arnhem Gallery, from 9pm on Thursday

Legendary dub music veteran Lee Perry’s been recording since the 1950s and has been included in Rolling Stone magazine’s Top 100 artists of all time and is well known for his work with Mad Professor. Now he’s in Croydon for one night only. Tickets cost £21.50.

Food

Tuck in to the bar and food by the Fairfield Halls and the Clocktower or go big at Beats and Eats’ event at Ruskin Square from noon to 10pm on Thursday, featuring a line up of DJs, live music, street food and cocktails.

A Night of Asian and British Fusion at Concert Hall, Fairfield Halls, from 7pm on Saturday

Listen to two cultures coming together to delight your ears, with performances from Wizards of Percussion, Circle of Sound, Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker. It’s free but you need to book in advance.

Alternative Dubstep Orchestra at Croydon Minster from 7pm on Thursday

Celebrating a global genre that was born in Croydon, this orchestra isn’t just electronic noise but features brass, string and a double drum kit to produce a full-on dubstep sound. Tickets cost £5.

Tinariwen at Concert Hall, Fairfield Halls, from 8pm on Thursday

These desert blues rockers have come from the Sahara and built a global following which has seen them win a world music Grammy award, perform at the World Cup opening ceremony and support the Rolling Stones. Tickets cost £24 or £27. Support comes from blues act King Size Slim.

Your Local Guardian:

Spencer Jones and Simon Munnery on the BlundaBus from 7pm on Thursday

Catch BAFTA and Barry Award nominated Spencer Jones and the acclaimed alternative comedian Simon Munnery on a double bill aboard a specially commissioned double-decker bus in Mint Walk. Tickets are very limited and cost £5. The BlundaBus continues throughout the festival.

International Playwrighting Festival at The Studio, Fairfield Halls, on 5pm and 7pm on Saturday and Sunday

The best new plays have been selected in the 29th festival and this weekend gives you the chance to see them – including theatrical pieces from Extra Cadoni in Italy, Theatro Ena in Cyprus and our very own BRIT school. BAFTA-winning playwright Peter Moffat will be interview on stage on Sunday. Tickets from £6.50.

Made Corrections and Poetic Arts present Music, Theatre and Spoken Word at Ashcroft Theatre on from 5.30pm on Thursday

An evening of performance which includes an Edinburgh Festival-bound comic play, Femmetamorphosis, set in London and about women coming together in the name of lingerie and love. Also featuring performances from Debarred, a theatre company solely comprised of people who have been through the criminal justice system. Tickets £6.50.

Gotta Dance

Take part in free dance classes, with Bollywood, Teadance, Folk, Eastern European and Ceilidh all being offered throughout the weekend.

Your Local Guardian: Lazy Habits

Beats and Rhymes at Arnhem Gallery from 2.30pm to 2am on Saturday

A day and night hip-hop extravaganza, headlined by festival stalwart Lazy Habits.

Scottish Falsetto Sock Puppet Theatre: Minging Detectives at The Spread Eagle from 8pm on Thursday

Hilarious and inventive, these socks get their heads around crime – taking on every genre from TV detectives to Film Noir and even Breaking Bad – with plenty of songs, sketches and violence. Tickets cost

Go to ambitionfest.com