York Musical Society in concert at St Lawrence Parish Church, York
WHAT was immediately striking at the start of the concert was the vertigo-inducing podium from which musical director David Pipe conducted the choir.
Indeed, if he had swapped his baton for a paintbrush, he could have given Michelangelo a run for his money and painted a few contemporary murals whilst he was up there.
York Musical Society’s concert opened with five excerpts from Handel’s Messiah. And The Glory Of The Lord was tight; the imitative lines were clearly articulated and the soprano high notes well executed. Like the male voices, I struggled with the over-articulation of the consonants in the quick, fugal chorus, And He Shall Purify.
Ellie Miles-Kingston was a delight; the recitative (There Were Shepherds) and the aria (Rejoice Greatly) – duetting with the excellent organist, Shaun Turnbull – were beautifully delivered. The set closed with a lovely performance of His Yoke Is Easy.
David Willcocks’ arrangement of the English traditional Sussex Carol sounded both joyful and effortless. This is no easy thing as the writing is deceptively difficult, especially for the sopranos. This was followed by an utterly splendid performance of O Come, All Ye Faithful by us, the People’s Choir.
Interlude on The Coventry Carol by the splendidly named William Southcombe Lloyd Webber inhabits an entirely different sound-world to that of the Willcocks or indeed the later Rutter: austere, internal and actually technically quite challenging.
David Pipe’s performance was nothing short of poetic: emotional restraint, long unbroken lines, the carol tune always audible – tricky when played using the pedals. A real concert highlight.
Richard Shephard’s Christmas Cantata (after Corelli) was extremely effective and, on the whole, enjoyable. The writing for the sopranos was attractive, but I thought the tessitura sat high for too long with a tendency to drift sharp-wards. I really enjoyed the solo contribution from tenor Leo Fulwell. On the whole, I found the Cantata stylistically ambiguous but that’s probably just me and not the fine performance.
We, the People’s Choir, returned with yet another flawless performance, this time in the uplifting It Came Upon The Midnight Clear.
William Mathias was a truly outstanding composer. As this exuberant performance of his Sir Christèmas clearly shows, what seems like surface good, festive fun – fast tempos, bright brass-like organ writing, motor rhythms – is also a really well-crafted piece of music. The choir captured the energy and drive, and I heard a joy that was forged rather than decorative. Impressive.
What’s not to like about David Willcocks’ Silent Night? Given this rendition, clearly very little indeed. The YMS Choir delivered justice to the composer/arranger’s setting, enhancing the carol’s natural beauty.
Indeed, what’s not to like about John Rutter’s Shepherd’s Pipe Carol too? Again, given this rendition, clearly very little indeed. I just loved the persistent ‘dum-da-dum’ ostinato, which gave the music groove as opposed to flow. Add the syncopation into the mix and we are closer to pop, even jazz, rather than the traditional Christmas carol.
David Pipe’s performance of Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, arranged by Thomas Trotter, was a festive joy. We heard trotting hooves, bell-like figurations, crisp winter air, a season of goodwill and Butlin’s. I’ll get my coat.
After a standing, standout blast of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing – us again – the choir wished us a merry Christmas and directed us to free glasses of mulled wine. I felt we had earned them.
Emily Chattle’s Lowen and Ceridwen Smith’s Granbow in a magical scene in Next Door But One’s Christmas show with a difference, When Robins Appear. Picture: James Drury
FESTIVE shows, carol concerts, dancing with Anton and a musical aboard a Christmas steamer fill Charles Hutchinson’s in-box for December delights.
A different kind of Christmas show of the week: Next Door But One in When Robins Appear, Clifton Explore, December 18,5.30pm;York Explore, December 20 and 21, 11am and 2pm
WRITTEN and directed by Next Door But One artistic director Matt Harper-Hardcastle, When Robins Appear follows two friends as they face the big changes of moving house, starting new schools and a first Christmas without Grandma, when the festive sparkle seems to be missing.
Helped by a magical Robin (played by Ceridwen Smith), 12-year-old Ellis (Annie Rae Donaghy) and Lowen (Emily Chattle) are whisked away on a heart-warming journey through their favourite wintery memories to find the magic again. Soon they discover that the real sparkle of Christmas will not be found under the tree, but in the laughter, love and unforgettable moments we share together and that can live forever in our hearts. Tickets update: Sold out, for returns only, go to: www.nextdoorbutone.co.uk.
Adam Price’s Billy Crocker, left, Alexandra Mather’s Reno Sweeney and Fergus Powell’s Moonface Martin in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Anything Goes at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Full steamer ahead of the week: Pick Me Up Theatre in Anything Goes, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until December 21, then December 27 to 30
CLIMB aboard the S.S. American as it sets sail in Andrew Isherwood’s all-singing, all-dancing staging of Anything Goes, Cole Porter’s swish musical, charting the madcap antics of a motley crew leaving New York for London on a Christmas-themed steamer.
Meet nightclub singer/evangelist Reno Sweeney (Alexandra Mather) and lovelorn Wall Street broker Billy Crocker (Adam Price), who has stowed away on board in pursuit of his beloved Hope Harcourt (Claire Gordon-Brown). Alas, Hope is engaged to fellow passenger Sir Evelyn Oakleigh (Neil Foster). Enter second-rate conman Moonface Martin (Fergus Powell) to join Reno in trying to help Billy win the love of his life. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Winter WonderBand: Performing Joy Illimited album at Helmsley Arts Centre
The cover artwork for Winter WonderBand’s Joy Illimited album
Christmas folk concert of the week: Winter WonderBand, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow, 7.30pm
CHAMBER folk quartet Winter WonderBand comprises Saul Rose (from Faustus, War Horse and Waterson Carthy) on melodeon; Maclaine Colston (Pressgang and Kings Of Calicutt) on hammered dulcimer; Beth Porter (SpellSongs and Bookshop Band) on cello and Jennifer Crook (Broken Road and Cythara) on harp and guitar.
Together they play winter and festive-themed acoustic music and songs, traditional, modern and original, as heard on debut album Joy Illimited, released on December 1. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
The Icons Of Soul: In serenading mood at Milton Rooms, Malton, on Saturday
Christmas soul parties of the week: The Magic Of Motown, York Barbican, tomorrow, 7.30pm; The Icons Of Soul, Milton Rooms, Malton, Saturday, 8pm
ON its 20th anniversary tour, The Magic Of Motown travels down nostalgia avenue in celebration of Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, The Supremes, The Four Tops, Martha Reeves, Mary Wells, The Isley Brothers, The Jackson 5, Smokey Robinson and Lionel Richie at York Barbican on Thursday. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Two nights later, direct from the United States, The Icons Of Soul serenade Malton’s audience with soul classics and slick dance routines as they celebrate 1960s and 1970s’ vocal groups such as The Drifters, The Temptations, The Stylistics and Tavares. Be prepared to dance all night long. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
The poster for Pocklington Arts Centre’s Christmas show, Elizabeth Godber’s Jingle All The Way
Deer double act of the week: Jingle All The Way, Pocklington Arts Centre, until December 23
FROM the team behind The Elves And The Shoemaker Save Christmas and Jack Frost’s Christmas Wish comes Elizabeth Godber’s latest Christmas family adventure, co-directed by Jane Thornton with musical direction by Dylan Allcock.
Reindeer siblings Rex (Emilio Encinoso-Gil) and Rosie(Hannah Christina) are reluctant to start at a new school just before Christmas, especially when that school is the East Riding Reindeer Academy, home of supreme athletes. Santa, however, has a position free on his sleigh squad; could this be Rex’s big chance? Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.
Eve Lorian: Conducting Prima Choral Artists’ Family Christmas Concert at St Olave’s Church, Marygate, York
Choral concert of the week: Prima Choral Artists, Family Christmas Concert, St Olave’s Church, Marygate, York, Saturday, 4pm to 5pm
PRODUCED and conducted by Prima Choral Artists director Eve Lorian, Saturday’s concert unites her choir with the New World String Quartet, organist James Webb and pianist Greg Birch in reflective and cheerful Christmas celebrations.
Here come high-spirited festive classics, modern choral arrangements and string and organ repertoire, including works by Tchaikovsky and Rawsthorne. Box office: primachoral.com and on the door.
Festive song and dance with Anton Du Beke and terpsichorean friends at York Barbican
Dandy dancing of the week: Christmas With Anton Du Beke & Friends, York Barbican, Sunday, 5pm
EMBARK on a dazzling journey into a festive wonderland as Strictly Come Dancing judge and ballroom king Anton Du Beke joins forces with his dynamic live band, vocalist Lance Ellington and troupe of dancers for a magical evening of cherished Christmas songs, captivating dance and festive humour. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Recommended by sold out already is Robert Plant’s Saving Grace gig, Ding Dong Merrily, at York Barbican on December 23 (doors 7pm), when Plant, co-vocalist Suzi Dian drummer Oli Jefferson, guitarist Tony Kelsey, banjo and string player Matt Worley and cellist Barney Morse-Brown showcase September 26’s Saving Grace album, “a song book of the lost and found”.
Pickering Musical Society in pantoland: Starting off the new year in Snow White at Kirk Theatre, Pickering
Booking recommended now: Pickering Musical Society in Snow White, Kirk Theatre, Pickering, January 14 to 25, 7.15pm, except January 19; 2.15pm, January 17, 18, 24 and 25
INTEREST has been “extraordinary” for Pickering Musical Society’s January 2026 pantomime, directed for the tenth year by resident director Luke Arnold. More than 1,000 tickets have sold already; January 18’s 2.15pm performance has sold out and several others are close behind.
Written by Ron Hall, the show combines comedy, spectacle, festive magic, dazzling scenery and colourful costumes and features such principals as Marcus Burnside’s Dame Dumpling, Danielle Long’s Prince Valentine, Alice Rose’s Snow White, Paula Cook’s Queen Lucrecia and Sue Smithson’s Fairy Dewdrop. Audiences are encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment. Box office: 01751 474833 or kirktheatre.littleboxoffice.com.
Emily Chattle’s Lowen, left, Ceridwen Smith’s Robin and Annie Rae Donaghy’s Ellis in Next Door But One’s When Robins Appear. All pictures: James Drury
ACCORDING to British folklore, “robins appear when loved ones are near”.
The beloved Redbreast is omnipresent on Christmas cards, not least on York printmaker Gerard Hobson’s exclusive illustration for Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s 2025 charity card.
Mother Hutch had a corner devoted to each Yuletide’s new arrivals, and since her passing in September 2025, your reviewer has worn her favourite Robin badge on his lapel.
That lapel has a new addition, thanks to York community arts collective Next Door But One, whose cast of Ceridwen Smith, Emily Chattle and Annie Rae Donaghy hand out When Robins Appear badges at the conclusion to NDB1’s inaugural Christmas show (after 12 years of wholly inclusive, wholly accessible theatre-making for children and young people in and around the city).
Emily Chattle’s Lowen, left, and Annie Rae Donaghy’s Ellis experiencing “a different kind of Christmas” in Next Door But One’s When Robins Appear
Writer-director Matt Harper Hardcastle has penned “a different kind of Christmas show for those who have a different kind of Christmas”, in part inspired by the loss of his mother to cancer.
Enter the Robin, the harbinger of British winter birds, the messenger from the spirit world whose presence is deemed to be a comforting sign of a late loved one being close at hand.
Here, the Robin takes the form of Ceridwen Smith in magnificent gold and red, topped off with feathery plumage and tailed with natty red and pink pumps. On occasion, her hand transforms into a bird-sized Robin, again bedecked in festive livery of gold and red.
On entering York Explore’s wood-panelled Marriott Room, eyes are drawn to Emily Chattle’s Lowen and Annie Rae Donaghy’s Ellis, each looking glum, avoiding eye contact, tucked away but still in plain sight behind wooden triangular shapes with numbers that evoke both Advent Calendars and decorations in Catherine Chapman’s child’s play of a set design.
Movement director Bailey Dowler, left, writer-director Matt Harper-Hardcastle, Ceridwen Smith, Annie Rae Donaghy and Emily Chattle in rehearsal for When Robins Appear
Lowen, 12, misses her late Gran, known to her as Granbow, on account of wearing clothing as colourful as a rainbow: a habit Lowen seems to be mirroring in her get-up of pink, red, grey, amber and yellow stripes.
Ellis, also 12, is looking after her ill mum, both uncertain of her future. She feels as blue as her clothing, a mood not enhanced by moving into a new home and being unable to find her phone charger.
Both she and Lowen are surrounded by boxes: in Lowen’s case, the boxes for packing away Granbow’s belongings with her Dad (played by Smith, denoted by a hat, either worn or held in her hand when this admirable multi-tasker is playing Ellis’s Mum with the simple symbol of a pair of glasses).
Facing a first Christmas without her cherished, shining grandma, Lowen needs to find one elusive box, in particular, the one with her Dad’s fairy lights that Granbow (Smith in role number four) used to transform the cupboard under the stairs where he would retire in shy childhood days.
Emily Chattle’s Lowen with Ceridwen Smith’s Granbow in the shadow-play light box scene in When Robins Appear
At the start, Chattle’s Lowen and Donaghy’s Ellis do not know each other, but each is facing the challenge of a “different kind of Christmas”, of dealing with grief or illness, of coming to terms with changing circumstances or a change of address, above all of feeling overwhelmed.
Who should bring them together but Smith’s chatterbox Robin, chirping away ten to the dozen. What then ensues is an invitation from Robin to, first, Lowen, then Ellis, to recall a past Christmas that made them happy and then to invoke the spirit of that story into Christmas this year.
Those fairy lights and Ellis’s Mac’n’Cheese Christmas Day lunch feature in stories told with delightful interplay, typically imaginative direction by Harper-Hardcastle and highly engaging characterisation by Chattle, already such a whizz at children’s entertainment, and Donaghy, back home for Christmas in York after graduating with first class honours in contemporary theatre at East 15 Acting School and taking her first steps in London’s theatre jungle.
Joshua Goodman’s enchanting songs and Bailey Dowler’s less-is-more movement direction complement Harper-Hardcastle’s beautifully judged direction as the chameleon Smith and the Chattle & Donaghy double act – where they bring out the inner child in us all – hold the attention of children aged seven to 11 and their adults alike.
Emily Chattle’s Lowen, left, Ceridwen Smith’s Robin and Annie Rae Donaghy’s Ellis on Catherine Chapman’s child’s play of a set design
As ever with Next Door But One, whose research took in working with York Young Carers, this is a caring, considerate show, with British Sign Language to boot, that says so much in under an hour for those whose story is not the stuff of glitzy, wham-bam pantomimes.
What’s more, you will not see a better use of boxes this festive season, gradually transforming into a Christmas tree before your eyes, while an earlier shadow-play light box scene is wondrous.
NDB1 are taking When Robins Appear on the road for eight primary school performances as well as public shows in Explore York libraries that all sold out before the tour opened. The £3.50 ticket price makes When Robins Appear the best-value festive family show in York this Christmas.
It would be no surprise to see this magical Robin bobbing around again next winter.
Next Door But One inWhen Robins Appear at York Explore, at Clifton Explore, December 18, 5.30pm; York Explore, December 20 and 21, 11am and 2pm. All sold out. Box office for returns only: nextdoorbutone.co.uk.
On the Way Up as Emily Chattle’s Lowen and Annie Rae Donaghy’s Ellis find festive cheer in a different kind of Christmas
Artist Donna Maria Taylor at work in her “bright and airy” Studio 1 at South Bank Studios, York. Picture: Paul Oscar Photography
SOUTH Bank Studios resident artist Donna Maria Taylor’s latest collection of paintings will be on display at Rise@Bluebird Bakery, Acomb Road, Acomb, York, from Thursday, when she will attend the 6pm to 9pm launch.
At the invitation of Bluebird artistic curator Jo Walton and bakery co-owner and poet Nicky Kippax, her This Rugged Earth exhibition will run for eight weeks until February 12 2026.
Inspired by the world around her and her travels both here in the United Kingdom and Europe, the majority of the new work nods to her love of rugged hillscapes and mountainous landscapes.
Donna exhibits regularly, this year taking part in York Open Studios, North Yorkshire Open Studios and the Saltaire and Staithes art festivals, as well as exhibiting in Skipton, Danby, Scarborough and Lincoln.
Her Bluebird Bakery exhibition, however, brings her work much closer to home. “Therefore I’m thrilled to have my paintings exhibited here,” she says.
Alongside her professional art practice, Donna is a fully qualified and experienced tutor, offering regular art workshops in York, as well as art retreats to Southern Morocco, Andalusia in Spain and Tuscany in Italy.
Next year, she will be opening her South Bank studio for the seventh consecutive year for York Open Studios (April 18/19 and 25/26 2026), and she will exhibit in the main gallery space of York Hospital, Wiggington Road, York, from September 2026 onwards.
The poster for Donna Maria Taylor’s launch of This Rugged Earth at Rise:@Bluebird Bakery
Here, Donna discusses This Rugged Earth, her highly productive 2025 and plans for next September’s York Hospital show with CharlesHutchPress.
Does the look of Rise/Bluebird Bakery influence your choice of artworks to be shown there?
“Only in terms of scaling up the size of some of my paintings to fill the space. Given that I’m used to painting large backdrops in the theatre though, going a little bigger is no real problem. It just means more paint and bigger brushes!
“I do think that the colour palette I’ve been using recently compliments Bluebird’s interiors, but I’m not someone who creates original artwork to match a room. My work is personal to me and hopefully forms a cohesive collection, no matter where it’s shown.”
What draws you to rugged hillscapes and mountainous landscapes?
“Something within me I guess – maybe it stems from walks I used to enjoy as a child in the Peak District…or family holidays in the Lake District and North Wales? I also spent three winter seasons working as a ski instructor in the Austrian Alps when I was younger, so maybe that’s it?
Loch Long, 2025, by Donna Maria Taylor
“I love the drama of rugged landscapes, the fresh air and the connection you have with nature. Although I don’t think I could live permanently in the countryside, I’ll often spend my spare time there – sketching, en-plein-air painting, walking or mountain biking with family and friends.”
Where have you travelled in Europe recently?
“I’ve been lucky enough to travel through quite a few places – Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria – mainly because I chose the ‘slow travel’ option to reach my art retreat destinations.
“I also came back from Italy via Slovenia this time: a place I’ve never visited before. The scenery there is stunning, although you do have to be aware of bears – not something we have to worry about when wandering around in this country…”
How do the opportunities to teach in Morocco, Andalusia and Tuscany come about? What do your sessions cover?
“They come via word of mouth and recommendations really. My first Moroccan holiday came about when I tripped and broke my foot whilst working on stage in the theatre back in 2018, meaning I couldn’t walk for several months.
Hole Of Horcum, 2025, by Donna Maria Taylor
“I had a lot of time on my hands and was stuck at home all day, so what was I to do? Make exciting plans for the future, of course!
“I’d already run a couple of art holidays in the UK, so going further afield and combining my love of art and travel felt like the perfect next step. By that point, I’d also had more than 20 years’ experience teaching adults, so I was used to working with a wide range of groups and abilities.
“Sketchbooks have always played an important role on the retreats because they allow you to get out and explore. When you’re somewhere new, that’s essential – so that you really get a sense of the place.
“The sketchbook becomes a sort of visual diary; a real record of your time spent there. Sketchbooks also make the retreats accessible to everyone, from complete beginners onwards.
“I encourage the use of a range of media in them, including watercolour, collage and acrylics. Of course, some people prefer to focus on more finished pieces, and that’s absolutely fine too. As an experienced educator you learn to adapt to each person’s needs.”
La Tania, 2025, by Donna Maria Taylor
What do your art classes and workshops cover?
“There’s a wide range of media and techniques: watercolours, inks, acrylic, print, collage, pastels and oils. I try to encourage learners to experiment, play with the mediums and really develop their own style, but observational drawing is also an important and fundamental part of it all too. It’s all about ‘learning to see’ and creating your own visual language.
“I think coming from a theatre background really has given me a multi-disciplinary approach to both my art and my teaching.”
How did your exhibitions in 2025 compare and contrast: Skipton, Danby, Scarborough, Lincoln, York Open Studios, North Yorkshire Open Studios (NYOS), Saltaire, Staithes and York Hospital (from November 2025 to February 2026)? It sounds like a very busy, very productive year.
“Yes, I perhaps packed a little too much into my calendar this year, but I do like to keep busy. The exhibitions organised through NYOS, York Hospital and the gallery were fantastic for getting my work out in front of new audiences, but festivals and events are quite different because you get to meet and engage with the people who want to talk to you about your work, so it becomes far more interactive and personal.
Les Chenus, 2025, by Donna Maria Taylor
“Also, you’re often working alongside other artists at events too, which I love. It’s harder work but very rewarding.”
Looking ahead, what will you exhibit in the York Hospital main gallery space from next September?
“New work that hopefully doesn’t exist yet! As an artist, I’m always striving to stretch myself and find new ways of expressing myself, so the answer to that really is ‘watch this space’…”
What is the function of art in a hospital?
“Having art in hospitals genuinely makes a difference to the lives of patients, visitors and staff alike. I know this from personal experience but also from the lovely messages people sometimes send me to tell me how much seeing my work has meant to them or made their day.”
Donna Maria Taylor: back story
ORIGINALLY from South Yorkshire, Donna completed Art Foundation course after A-levels, followed by degree in Multi-disciplinary Design.
Began career in Stoke-on-Trent as textile and ceramic tile/mural designer before gaining a distinction in her Postgraduate Diploma in Theatre Design.
Led to long and varied career in theatre design and production, allowing her to draw on wide range of creative skills. Worked in theatres across UK and abroad before moving to York in 2000 to take up post of full-time scenic artist at West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds.
Continues to work regularly with Yorkshire theatres, including Leeds Playhouse and York Theatre Royal, where she served as prop maker and workshop facilitator for this summer’s community production, His Last Report.
Well known for creating large-scale animal puppets that first appeared in the York Minster Mystery Plays, From Darkness Into Light, in 2016.
Alongside her theatre work, Donna contributes to community art projects, including two pieces inspired by the work of artist John Piper, now on display at Southlands Methodist Church.
Based at Studio 1, South Bank Studios, Southlands Methodist Church, Bishopthorpe Road, York, where you can visit her by appointment (donnataylorart@icloud.com) .
Lowe Ensemble: Echoes of the Spanish Baroque programme at York Early Music Christmas Festival
THERE cannot be many early music groups in which no less than five siblings are involved. The Lowes grew up in Madrid, although now based in London, so their Echoes of the Spanish Baroque programme may be said to have come naturally to them.
The ensemble – soprano, two violins and two cellos – was completed here by Daniel Murphy, doubling on theorbo and Baroque guitar: he fitted smoothly into the family setting.
In a sense, this programme was back to front, first revealing Spanish influence on other countries, before returning to Spanish originals. Lully’s comédie-ballet Le bourgeois Gentilhomme offered the perfect opening. It guys a rich man’s efforts to become cultured which, tellingly, includes acquaintance with Spanish music and dance.
The instruments were pleasingly jaunty in the Air des Espagnols before soprano Myriam Lowe joined with a more measured account of love’s delightful pains.
A Spanish sarabande for gamba and theorbo by Marais was a touch leaden even for this stately dance; it might have been amusingly compared to the 16th century zarabanda, quite a different animal.
But the melancholy rocking of Henri de Bailly’s Yo Soy La Locura (I Am Madness), with pizzicato accompaniment, revealed a Frenchman truly intoxicated by Spain. Similarly an Italian, Andrea Falconieri, used rapid tremolos in lower strings to demonstrate his excitement over a señora.
Before that we had the surprise of hearing Handel setting a Spanish love-song during his sojourn in Italy. Thereafter we were in Spain itself. After the sadness of delivering a José Marín tono, Myriam took to the harpsichord, joining the others in the refined variations of Santiago de Murcia’s Grabe.
More typical – to the outsider – Spanish repertoire came with Mateo Flecha’s lovelorn Florida Estava la Rosa (The Rose Was In Full bloom), slow at first but eventually rhythmically vivid, with guitar introduced.
Finally, the players let their hair down with a couple of fandangos. Alessandro Scarlatti’s wasvigorous enough, but Soler’s was idiomatic to the core, a joyful conclusion. The Basque carol The Angel Gabriel, beautifully slow, made a touching seasonal encore.
This is a fine group, with a bright future. They took their time to achieve full alegría de vivir (joie de vivre), but when the early tension had dissipated they arrived there in the end. I hope they will return soon.
COULD this be a lieder recital? In an early music Christmas festival? Although it contained no mention of Christmas, nor even a fortepiano for authenticity, mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston and her piano-partner Sholto Kynoch delivered a lunchtime recital so memorable that none of the fortunate 70 in the audience would have had the slightest qualms about hearing it in the festival.
It was billed as A Lyrical Interlude, a translation of Heinrich Heine’s Lyrisches Intermezzo of 1827, from which all its poetry was drawn. It culminated in Schumann’s Dichterliebe, after seven related songs, including two each from the Mendelssohn siblings, Fanny and Felix.
It is not necessarily an easy option to include a chestnut like Felix’s On Wings Of Song. But here Charlston’s cleverly suppressed ecstasy, complemented by Kynoch’s gently rippling keyboard, delivered something special. Reiselied (‘Song Of Travel’) was vivid enough to evoke Schubert’s ‘Erlking’.
Fanny Hensel’s two songs, about a lonely pine and a swan giving its last, revealed Charlston’s ability to nail a mood at once. In juxtaposing settings of ‘Die Lotosblume’, she found an appealing line in Schumann’s but surprisingly greater depth of emotion in Loewe’s.
Few Anglophones can boast her command of the German language. This is not merely a question of good pronunciation, although hers is excellent; it is the ability to convey literary nuance. It proved a huge asset in her account of Dichterliebe, a cycle much more often associated with male voices. Both performers went well beyond the poetry’s “mask of irony” referred to by Kynoch in his first-class spoken preface to the work.
Her early naivety and the chattering excitement of ‘Die Rose, Die Lilie’ (even so, finding room for rubato) gradually dissipated as the shine of the romance began to tarnish. Charlston found greater chest tone for ‘Im Rhein’, leading to the start of nostalgic bitterness, although the hammered postlude was out of scale for the venue and left little in reserve for later in the cycle.
‘Ich Grolle Nicht’ (I Bear No Grudge) was positively dripping with sarcasm, slightly muted by her choice of the optional lower notes at the end: her mezzo would comfortably have reached the more telling higher ones. But what really made the song was the brief sotto voce at its centre, as she recalled a dream.
After a deeply elegiac ‘Hör’ich das Liedchen Klingen’, the next song, ‘Ein Jüngling Liebt ein Mädchen’ brought playful relief. She stayed rivetingly in character through the tearful dream, evoking tears in her listeners.
There was yet another new mood for a jaunty start to ‘Aus Aalten Märchen’ (From Old Fairy Tales) but a smoothly regretful transition as these in turn melted away like foam. There was real anger in the final ‘bad old songs’, as both performers wrung every last drop of self-pitying pain from the poet’s ‘Schmerz’.
The postlude was finely drawn, even if its rallentando was a touch over-pointed. But this had been
a genuine duet, the performers drawing from one another. This programme, plus Héloïse Werner’s song- cycle Knight’s Dream, can be heard at Leeds Song on April 15 next year. You dare not miss it.
Apollo 5 members, left to right, Penny Appleyard, Thomas Mottershead, Augustus Perkins Ray, Joseph Taylor and Lily Robson
APOLLO5 is a vocal quintet featuring soprano, mezzo, two tenors and a bass. Its early evening programme was entitled The Crimson Sun, reflecting both the close of day and the title of a piece by Alexander Campkin.
Despite the title, all the works on the programme were seasonal and most were festive too. Dobrinka Tabakova’s springy, syncopated Good-will To Men was immediately contrasted with Piers Connor Kennedy’s A Spotless Rose, not the traditional tune, but a reworking of two of the ‘O’ antiphons, moving gracefully from the original plainsong into modern close-harmony versions.
Thereafter we backtracked to the 16th century, where the singers’ straight tone was especially apt. Handl’s Omnes de Saba was brisk but lacked shading, whereas Guerrero’s Virgen Sancta – a rare example for its time of sacred music in the vernacular – had all the tenderness you might expect from the Spanish master.
The calmer centre of Byrd’s Laetentur Caeli contrasted well with its vivid frame. The passing dissonances of Poulenc’s O Magnum Mysterium were also neatly tuned.
It is always risky when modern composers attempt to rework established favourites: the results may inspire or annoy, rarely both. In the first camp were Fraser Wilson’s fresh new harmonies for The Angel Gabriel, whereas a new take on The Coventry Carol lacked clarity.
New creations rather than arrangements included Ola Gjeilo’s Ubi Caritas, respectful of tradition but also exultant, the reverent last-verse adoration of James Bassi’s Quem Pastores, the mediaeval feel of James MacMillan’s O Radiant Dawn, with its repeated cries of “Come! Shine!”, and Adrian Peacock’s Spanish-flavoured Venite, Gaudete!.
As for Campkin’s setting of Rev George Grantham’s Victorian carol, The Crimson Sun, it suffered slightly from being heard in the wake of Walton’s frisky Make We Joy Now, but its repeating downward motif in the soprano helped paint the fading daylight and its ‘Gloria’ refrain stirred the spirit.
Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych’s Carol Of The Bells made an ideal ending. On this evidence, Apollo5 is a versatile, well-balanced ensemble, whose programme was perfectly tailored to the festival.
Weather Balloons: Boschian vignettes and betrayals of guitar music at As Yule Like It at The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse
YORK arts collective Navigators Art promises “All cracker, no cheese” at As Yule Like It, Saturday’s live, local and loud showcase of “some of York’s finest and most individual sounds”.
On the Musique en Croute menu are Beatbox In Blankets: University of York music student Cast Beatbox, racing up the ranks in national contests; Post-Punk Profiteroles: Knitting Circle, York’s socially conscious and urgent post-punk trio, and Folk & Figgy Pudding: York St John University folkies The Queeries, purveyors of fun, frolicsome fiddling.
Being served up too will be Singer-Songwriting Surprise: Tang Hall Smart tutor and passionate singer-songwriter Toemouse, offering an invitation to a mystical ride, and Renegade Rock-y Road: Weather Balloons, off duty from regular band Fat Spatula but here on soft-rock on duty with Boschian vignettes and betrayals of guitar music.
The Queeries: Fun, frolicsome fiddling
Knitting Circle: Urgent post-punk tunesmiths
Expect “all the trimmings to kick-start your festive week”. Please note, some material may not be suitable for young children. The Basement is fully accessible. Doors open at 7pm. Box office: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/navigators-art-performance.
Navigators Art’s regular Folk & Word open-mic session at The Artful Dodger, Micklegate, York, returns on December 18. Further 7.30pm bills will follow on January 15 and every third Thursday of each month.
“We welcome writers and ‘wordful’ acoustic musicians who’d like to share their work in a warm and appreciative environment,” says co-founder Richard Kitchen. “We operate a safe and friendly ethos. Entry is free with a purchase from the bar. Access is by stairs only.”
Toemouse: Invitation to a mystical ride
One more date for the diary: Navigators Art will be hosting A Feast Of Fools III at the Black Swan Inn, Peasholme Green, York, on January 4 2026 at 7.30pm (doors 7pm).
“Welcome to our annual end-of-season celebration of Twelfth Night and Old Christmas, with a nod to the pagan and the impish,” says Richard. “On the bill are traditional song and contemporary treatments; hurdy gurdy, squeezebox and fiddle; harmonies, electronics and sound spells, headlined by York’s alt-folk legends White sail.” Access is by stairs only. Tickets will be available on the door, as well as at www.ticketsource.co.uk/navigators-art-performance.
Cast Beatbox: University Of York music student performing on Saturday’s bill for As Yule Like It
Alexandra Mather’s Reno Sweeney: Leading with pizzazz in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Anything Goes. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
IF your search is for anything but pantomime on the York stage over the festive season, then go full steam ahead for Cole Porter’s 1934 musical, one set on a Christmas steamer, it just so happens.
Pick Me Up Theatre supremo Robert Readman is on design duty (as well as in producer and co-choreographer mode), fitting out the Theatre@41 auditorium with blue-and-white seating on the deck of the SS American, the audience placed port or starboard side in a traverse setting.
The upper deck, as it were, likewise fills the mezzanine level with more seating in familiar sea-faring livery.
Add two white-frosted Christmas trees on raised platforms at either end that open up to turn into beds, and Theatre@41 looks a picture, a picture that has you wanting to join this fast-moving, fizzing, funny and fun party.
Susannah Baines’s Evangeline Harcourt and Mark Simmonds’s Elisha Whitney in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Anything Goes. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Andrew Isherwood is at the helm, steering Porter’s Anything Goes with a keen eye for comic as well as dancing rhythm, working in tandem with chief choreographer Ali Kirkham, whose CV reveals her past days on cruise ships.
On board is a cast that combines plenty of the cream of York’s theatre world with two new arrivals, Fergus Powell and Thea Fennell, who moved up from Cambridge only two months ago. Two classically trained voices are to the fore too: York Opera leading lady Alexandra Mather fronting a musical theatre production for the first time with aplomb as Reno Sweeney and University of York graduate Claire Gordon-Brown singing delightfully as Hope Harcourt.
As the SS American makes its stately way from New York to London under the ever watchful eye of Adrian Cook’s ship’s Captain, Mather’s nightclub singer-cum-evangelist Reno glides coolly hither and thither, as if Dorothy Parker were penning her lines.
Adam Price’s Billy Crocker, left, Alexandra Mather’s Reno Sweeney and Fergus Powell’s Moonface Martin in Anything Goes. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Newly red-headed and looking every inch the Thirties’ part, matched by her Angels (Chloe Branton’s Chastity, Sophie Curry’s Virtue and Sophie Kemp’s Charity), Mather’s Reno is working with her forlorn buddy, Wall Street broker Billy Crocker (Adam Price, lovely singing tone), the stowaway desperate to woo his beloved Hope Harcourt (Gordon-Brown’s role).
Porter, as elegant as eloquent in his writing, has such fun with Crocker’s character, who must take on myriad disguises not to blow his stowaway status. Price, light of comic touch, is a joy, particularly when faced with that old Skakespearean comic device of the mistaken identity.
He works well not only with Mather’s Reno, queen of the acid comment, but also with Powell’s Moonface Martin, Public Enemy #13 conman, who joins Reno in backing Crocker’s cause, while also seeking to elude detection. Both have to keep their wits about them, and Porter gives them lines plenty to fit that bill.
Thea Fennell’s Erma Latour is given a lift-off by Charlie Fox, left, and James Robert Ball’s Sailors in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Anything Goes. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Taking on disguises: Fergus Powell’s Moonface Martin, left, and Adam Price’s Billy Crocker take on ever more extreme steps in Anything Goes. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Charlie Fox, in a break from cruise-ship engagements, bonds with the equally agile James Robert Ball as a brace of nimble sailors, while Ball has a second string to his comedic bow as the righteous Minister Henry T Dobson, something of a turbulent priest to rock the ocean liner.
Neil Foster first played Hope’s fiancé, Sir Evelyn Oakleigh, the only Englishman aboard, at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre all of 27 years ago, and the role fits him like a familiar glove, immaculately attired, thoroughly decent, delighted by American sayings. You might call Sir Evelyn nice bit dim in that Harry Enfield way, but Foster’s characterisation is more than mere caricature, and he revels in Sir Evelyn’s sudden revelation.
Susannah Baines’s grand mama Evangeline Harcourt (a role shared with Beryl Nairn), Mark Simmonds’s resolute Elisha Whitney and Leo Portal’s busybody Ship’s Purser are all in fine form too, and we are sure to see more of Pick Me Up debutante Fennell on the evidence of her Erma Latour, who’s a scream. Zachary Stoney and Reuben Baines, from Pick Me Up’s autumn hit production of Bugsy Malone, add a youthful spark here too as Spit and Dippy.
Fergus Powell’s Moonface Martin, left, with Reuben Baines’s Dippy, centre, and Zachary Stoney’s Spit. Picture: Felix Wahlberg
Deputising for musical director John Atkin, who was on Father Christmas duty elsewhere on press night, Nigel Ball led the band as merrily as Porter’s wonderful tunes demanded, while Mather, Price and co delighted in his witty lyrics.
Kirkham’s choreography is playful, stylish, thrilling, making the most of the open deck with panache and exuberance, all enhanced by Julie Fisher’s fabulous costume designs. Throughout, Mather leads with pizzazz, hitting the heights with a knockout performance that affirms she is as much at home in musical theatre as opera. Cue a fight for her services! You’re the top, Miss Mather, as the opening number proclaims.
Does the director let anything go in Anything Goes? No, sirree, precision, precision, precision rules as he puts the swish into Isherwood, turning the madcap into the ever maddercap, the tap number into top of the taps, the romantic buds into full bloom.
All the while, the Porter hits keep a’coming: It’s De-Lovely, Let’s Misbehave, Bon Voyage, I Get A Kick Out Of You, Blow, Gabriel, Blow. Isherwood and his company get a kick out of every one of them, and so will you. Truly, it’s delightful, it’s delicious, it’s de-lovely.
Pick Me up Theatre, Anything Goes, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York. Performances, 7.30pm, December 15 to 18, December 20 and December 27 to 30; 2.30pm, December 20, 21 and 27. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Do you bite your thumb at me, sir? James Robert Ball’s Sailor in Anything Goes
Gerard Hobson’s Christmas card design for Yorkshire Wildlife Trust
YORK printmaker and wildlife enthusiast Gerard Hobson has teamed up with the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust to design a mixed-media illustration of a Robin for the charity’s 2025 Christmas card.
York Open Studios regular Gerard, of Water Lane, Clifton, says: “As a Yorkshireman and artist, I hold a deep love for our country’s wild and varied landscapes. Each visit leaves me renewed and inspired by its beauty and the wildlife I encounter, from the snow buntings and swallows to curlews and short-eared owls that influence my work.”
Celebrating the wonder of wildlife this winter, Gerard’s exclusive Robin illustration is available in a pack of eight cards, left blank inside for your own message, on sale at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s visitor centres at #PottericCarr Nature Reserve, Mallard Way, Doncaster, and Spurn National Nature Reserve, Spurn Head, south of Kilnsea, East Riding.
York printmaker Gerard Hobson at work in his garden studio
Responsibly sourced and 100 per cent recyclable, the cards, envelopes and packaging are on sale at Hobson’s Choice, Gerard’s daughter Grace Bird’s shop in Castlegate, Malton, and online at ywt.org.uk/shop too.
“The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust chose the Robin print,” says Sheffield-born former zoologist Gerard. “The trust felt it had neglected Robins for its card in recent years but said ‘everyone likes them’, so decided the Robin should be the card design for this year.”
The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust is driving nature’s recovery, from the Yorkshire Dales to Flamborough Head. “We care for our nature reserves, landscapes, rivers and coastline so wildlife and people can thrive,” says the trust. “With the help of our members, we are nurturing our wild life and wild places back from the brink. Consider adding your voice to the chorus at: ywt.org.uk/membership.”
