FESTIVAL of Literature goers were transported from the rainy streets of Swindon on Monday night to the far away, sunny shores of Central America in an evening of cultural celebration.

Marking 25 years of twinning with Swindon’s Nicaraguan partner of Ocotal, an evening of entertainment was laid on at the Arts Centre, giving a taste of cultural traditions, and reminding the audience of the firm friendship between the towns.

Dancer Maria Jose Gurrero set the pace for the evening by opening the show with a traditional dance in full Nicaraguan costume before being joined on stage by dancers from Swindon for another routine.

Dr Jorge Calderon Gutierrez brought a sense of poignancy to the evening, looking back at the devastating effects of Hurricane Mitch in 1998, but celebrated how Swindon had rallied round to help – raising almost £30,000 and donating 7,000 tonnes of aid to families facing devastation.

Firm festival favourite Jake the Juggler proved there was more to his time on Central American soil than delivering his popular circus skills classes with youngsters, when he addressed the audience in Spanish to call for them to dig deep and help him send back a wealth of new equipment.

His gravity defying juggling skills also went down well with the audience, proving even more impressive with the Arts Centre’s low ceiling, covered in expensive stage lighting.

Guitar and saxophone duo La Heidi Bèlika rounded off the first half of the evening with their toe-tapping music filled with Spanish charm, which led to festival organiser Matt Holland calling on the audience to stop clapping, lest they overrun.

After a brief interval the evening continued with a performance from singer, storyteller and guitar whisperer Richard Durrant, whose bare-footed performance – inspired by his icon Agustín Barrios Mangoré - led the audience on a journey from South Coast England to the far-flung reaches of Paraguay.

Childhood journeys on the number 26 bus to Hove for guitar lessons – an aging Routemaster, that seemed certain to topple when rounding the corner on to his home street, especially with Durrant and his friends eagerly sat on the top deck willing it to tip – became the musical vehicle for his journey to Paraguay in search of his icon – and the name of his album.

With formal training at the Royal College of Music he went in search of Barrios’ legacy, which instilled a deep love of Paraguay and has seen him return on many an occasion. In probably an Arts Centre first, the tones of the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra filled the auditorium after Durrant carried out a recording session with them for his new record The Girl at the Airport which he performed to rousing applause.