A circus of the sky and aerial spectacular could take place over Sutton as part of an arts festival to reinvent the town centre as a perfect venue for high quality arts performances.

The acclaimed Transe Express, a trapeze and music troupe that has performed all over the world, could be booked to perform at the three-day event planned for this autumn.

The festival is the brainchild of the Sutton town centre partnership, which wants to see the town remembered for hosting events with guests other than SpongeBob Square Pants and a fake wizard.

The partnership of councillors, police and traders, envisages an ambitious set of acts alongside the high-altitude high-jinks, which could include bicycle ballet and performances from giant robots.

It could also include onsite workshops, a screen programme and projections on buildings along the High Street.

Town centre manager Emily Fahey said: “We want to bring the highest quality artistic practice to an entertainments programme currently relying on SpongeBob SquarePants.

“We also want to inspire wonder and awe and demonstrate the potential for new spaces and promote them to artists.”

Miss Fahey said the event also had wider goals such as to help to reduce the fear of crime, celebrate the renewal of Sutton High Street and attract new footfall.

She said: “With this event we want to breakdown barriers and mistrust between generations and reduce the fear of crime during the 6pm to 9pm period and into the night.”

A preliminary budget shows the £142,500 festival would come at no cost to Sutton and would be funded by other agencies, such as the Arts Council and Transport for London.

The only cost incurred would be £10,000 staff costs for work done to support the plan.

A proposal has been submitted to the Arts Council and a decision is due on April 6.

The festival would take place from September 16 to 17.