Category: Breaking News

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NCEM gardens to stage second set of Songs Under Skies acoustic double bills with The Crescent and Fulford Arms

Joshua Burnell: Sharing a Song Under Skies double bill with Katie Spencer on June 14. Picture: Elly Lucas

SONGS Under Skies will return to the glorious gardens of the National Centre for Early Music, at St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate, York, in June.

Five outdoor acoustic double bills will comprise Wounded Bear and Rachel Croft on June 1; Kell Chambers and Nadedja, June 2; Katie Spencer and Joshua Burnell, June 14; Zak Ford and Alice Simmons, June 15, and Epilogues and Sunflower Thieves, June 16.

Wounded Bear and Rachel Croft: First Songs Under Skies double bill on June 1

As with last September’s debut series, season two of the open-air, Covid-safe Songs Under Skies will be presented by the National Centre for Early Music (NCEM), working in association with The Crescent community venue, The Fulford Arms and the Music Venues Alliance.

Gates will open at 6.30pm for the acoustic double bills from 7pm to 8.30pm with a 30-minute interval between sets. Each concert costs £8 and tickets must be bought in advance, either in “pods” for family groups or as individuals at tickets.ncem.co.uk.  

Kell Chambers and Nadedja: Double bill in the NCEM churchyard gardens on June 2

Social distancing will be strictly observed and masks must be worn inside the NCEM but will not be required in the gardens.

NCEM director Delma Tomlin says: “We’re very excited to be bringing you the second Songs Under Skies: a feast of acoustic music taking place in our beautiful gardens, the perfect spot for a June evening in the sunshine.

Katie Spencer: Yorkshire singer-songwriter to play NCEM gardens on June 14, as well as a second Yorkshire open-air gig at Primrose Wood Acoustics, Pocklington, supporting Martin Simpson on July 1 at 7pm

“We’re also glad to be working once again with our partners The Fulford Arms, The Crescent and York Music Venues Network to begin the long-awaited revival of live music in our city. Last year Songs Under Skies was a complete sell-out and we’re looking forward to welcoming back audiences for these summer nights of music by these talented musicians.”

Harkirit Boparai, from The Crescent and the York Music Venues Network and North East regional coordinator for the Music Venues Alliance, says: “We’re delighted to be collaborating with the NCEM for another short run of outdoor concerts to take place in their beautiful gardens, with a stellar line-up of musicians from York and beyond heralding the return of live gigs to York.

Zak Ford and Alice Simmons: Playing acoustic sets at Songs Under Skies on June 15

“One of the silver linings of the pandemic has been that cultural organisations in the city have been able to collaborate in ways that they didn’t before, and after the success of our last series in the autumn, it’s been great to work with the NCEM team once again.”

Among the first arts organisations to stream online concerts, the NCEM has been keeping music alive since the beginning of lockdown, attracting a worldwide audience of more than 70,000. 

Epilogues and Sunflower Thieves: Songs Under Skies’ closing concert coupling on June 16

Over the past year, the NCEM staged socially distant events when possible and streamed concerts and festivals from St Margaret’s Church.

In June, this will continue with the streaming of the very first Beverley & East Riding Early Music Festival Online with concerts, walks and talks from the Yorkshire market town where the first festival was staged 35 years ago. This summer’s York Early Music Festival will run from July 12 to 16; a full line-up announcement is expected today (17/5/2021).

Kitty VR: Playing her first gig for seven months at the NCEM churchyard at last September’s first Songs Under Skies concert series. Picture: Neil Chapman/Unholy Racket

Last year’s inaugural Songs Under Skies presented Amy May Ellis and Luke Saxton on September 2; Dan Webster and Bella Gaffney, September 3; Kitty VR and Boss Caine, September 9; Wolf Solent and Rosalind, September 10; Polly Bolton and Henry Parker, September 16, and Elkyn and Fawn, September 17.

Full details of this summer’s Songs Under Skies can be found at: ncem.co.uk/songs-under-skies/.

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Bite-sized Q & A with…Elena Skoreyko Wagner on Magic, her Love Bites collaboration at York Theatre Royal

Magic trio Elena Skoreyko Wagner, Bethan Ellis and James Cave

THE Love Season will set hearts pulsing at York Theatre Royal, where the Step 3 reopening from tomorrow will make its mark with Love Bites: a love letter to live performance and a toast to the city’s creative talent.

More than 200 artists from a variety of art forms applied for £1,000 love-letter commissions to be staged tomorrow (17/5/2021) – the first day that theatres can reopen after restrictions are lifted – and on Tuesday.

The 22 short pieces selected will be performed each night at 8pm under the overall direction of Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster. Each “bite” will take hold for five minutes.

In the sixth in a series of CharlesHutchPress Q&As, papercut artist and illustrator Elena Skoreyko Wagner has five minutes to discuss Magic, her Love Bite collaboration with composer and singer James Cave and writer Bethan Ellis.

How did you hear about Love Bites, Elena?

“My collaborator, James Cave, caught wind of the project and got in touch.  We had discussed collaborating before, during one of the intense, hour-long “work” conversations we would have while our daughters took gymnastics together, but I think it was Bethan’s idea to adapt one of my poems.” 

What is your connection with York?

“York is our home! I honestly didn’t know if I would ever have a place that felt as much like home as York does. I am Canadian, and my husband, Achim, is German, and our first child was born in Canada; our second in Germany.

“We spent the first few years of our relationship in Toronto and the next five in Bonn, Germany, but really had no idea where we would settle. Achim ended up getting a job here in York, and we moved here knowing nearly nothing of the place. I had only ever been to the UK once, when I visited London for a weekend!

“But we encountered so much warmth and kindness, we feel like we got very lucky to randomly end up here! We intend to stay for a good while.” 

“These little things. Thank goodness for these things,” says Elena, as she seeks out magic and meaning in the mundane

What will feature in your Love Bite, Magic, and why?

“Our Love Bite is a miniature musical theatre piece, adapted from a poem I wrote during the first lockdown. The poem starts, ‘If ever you worry that magic is not real, remember how music can make you feel’, and continues with a list of little moments, small experiences of wonder and magic. If you are able to see them, recognise them in that way.

“James has composed a piece of music that he’ll be performing live, while I operate a miniature paper theatre I’ve constructed. The theatre is actually a re-creation of our allotment! 

“I think I largely coped with this past year by mining for these small sparkling bits, just catching hold of moments of beauty and connection during a very anxious time. It carried me through in a lot of ways.

“So, this piece is a sort of love letter to that, I suppose. To my allotment, in one sense, but only as a stand-in for that experience anywhere…For the house plant that I was able to propagate after months of trying! For watching my kids develop an entire fantasy world while lying on a hammock together in our tiny backyard for hours upon end…These little things. Thank goodness for these things!”

Your work “seeks to find magic and uncover meaning in the mundane”. What makes York a good place to do that?

“York is a beautiful city, which in many ways makes it easier to find magic. There are snickelways that look straight out of Tolkien, and crumbling walls, climbing with vines, straight from The Secret Garden! But really, York is just as good a place as any.

“I think that’s the discipline of it… It’s an approach to moving through the world. One of the lines in the poem is, ‘how we can have conversations with nothing but glances’. That is magical too, in my mind.

“Just these slow observations; noticing these truly amazing things, allowing ourselves to get caught in them, for just a second even, to help carry us through the rest of life, which can be on the heavier side.”

Elena Skoreyko Wagner will be making her York Open Studios debut at The Drey Studio in July

In lockdown, what have you missed most about theatre?

“I’ve missed that sense of occasion, of all of these people coming together in this perfect storm of creative energy to create something to move and touch others.

“When I go and see a performance, I feel that, and that proximity to people creating, putting this thing out into the world together, it’s inspiring in the most literal sense. I walk away feeling energised to make more, to kind of continue that current of electricity! I have missed that.” 

What’s coming next for you?

“After this, I will be illustrating a book about mums’ having feelings! I’m really excited about that. I also have some animated projects and I’m working up to taking part in York Open Studios in July.

“I opened a small studio on Heslington Road, The Drey Studio, in September and we haven’t really been able to properly get it running yet, given the restrictions, so I’m also looking forward to breathing some life into that space as well!” 

What would be the best way to spend five minutes if you had a choice?

“It’s possible that, over the past year, my vision for an ideal five minutes has gotten smaller, but maybe that’s not the worst thing in the world. The happiest five minutes I’ve had in recent months was digging in my allotment, sun on my face, to the sound of bird song and my kids laughing their way through some make-believe game about a dragon named Tiny, while they shared the swing we hung up in the apple tree. 

“I would like to note, I’m not a good or experienced gardener, but it does not matter. Just being able to find peace and beauty in this small way…I could not have felt happier in that moment.”

Tomorrow’s show has sold out. Tickets for Tuesday cost Pay What You Feel at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

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Manic Street Preachers booked for York Barbican on October 4 after September 3 release of The Ultra Vivid Lament album

Manic Street Preachers: Returning with 14th studio album and York Barbican date

WELSH rock band Manic Street Preachers will play York Barbican on October 4 on a 14-date 2021 tour with a second Yorkshire gig at Leeds O2 Academy on October 7.

The autumn itinerary will showcase the September 3 release of their 14th studio album, The Ultra Vivid Lament, on Columbia/Sony, preceded by lead single Orwellian, out today (14/5/2021).

In a departure from 2018’s Resistance Is Futile, the new album is the first Manics’ studio set to be conceived initially on piano rather than guitar.

Recording sessions took place in Wales over the winter of 2020-2021, at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth and the Manics’ Door To The River studio in Newport, working with long-time collaborator Dave Eringa before the tracks were mixed by David Wrench, whose credits include Blossoms, Frank Ocean and Arlo Parks.

The Ultra Vivid Lament will feature two guest vocalists: Julia Cumming, from Sunflower Bean, on The Secret He Had Missed and godfather of grunge Mark Lanegan on Blank Diary Entry.

On the subject of new single Orwellian, the Manics say: “The track is about the battle to claim meaning, the erasing of context within debate, the overriding sense of factional conflict driven by digital platforms leading to a perpetual state of culture war.

“As with many songs on the record, it was written on the piano by James Dean Bradfield. Musically, it echoes Abba, the majesty of Alan Rankine’s playing in The Associates and Talk Talk’s It’s My Life with a Lindsey Buckingham guitar solo. It felt like the perfect sonic and lyrical introduction to The Ultra Vivid Lament.”

The poster for The Ultra Vivid Lament Tour, Manic Street Preachers autumn travels

Bradfield, Nicky Wire and Sean Moore say of the album: “The Ultra Vivid Lament is both reflection and reaction; a record that gazes in isolation across a cluttered room, fogged by often painful memories, to focus on an open window framing a gleaming vista of land melting into sea and endless sky.” 

Inspired by the record box of their formative years – Abba, post-Eno Roxy Music, Echo & The Bunnymen, Fables-era REM and David Bowie’s Lodger – the 11 tracks marry introspection with quiet rage, from the opening ambient hum of Snowing In Sapporo to the galloping The Secret He Had Missed, with its push-and-pull duet imagining dialogue between Welsh brother and sister artists Augustus and Gwen John. In between come Diapause’s contemplation and Happy Bored Alone’s stoic wishful thinking. 

The full track listing is: Still Snowing In Sapporo; Orwellian; The Secret He Had Missed; Quest For Ancient Colour; Don’t Let the Night Divide Us; Diapause; Complicated Illusions;
Into The Waves Of Love; Blank Diary Entry; Happy Bored Alone and Afterending.

After their longest enforced break from playing live, the Manics will return to the stage with summer festival appearances and an open-air headline show at The Piece Hall, Halifax on September 10.

On the subsequent tour, the support act will be The Anchoress, the stage name of Welsh-born multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and author Catherine Anne Davies, whose March album, The Art Of Losing, is one of the records of 2021 to discover.

Manic Street Preachers last played York Barbican on May 27 2019 on a tour marking the 20th anniversary of their fifth album, September 1998’s This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours. Tickets for their October 4 return will go on sale on Friday, May 21 at 10am at yorkbarbican.co.uk.



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Bite-sized Q & A with…Ashleigh J Mills on their Love Bites piece at York Theatre Royal

Ashleigh J Mills: Exploring and digesting lived experience of life on the margins

THE Love Season will soon set hearts pulsing at York Theatre Royal, where the Step 3 reopening will make its mark with Love Bites: a love letter to live performance and a toast to the city’s creative talent.

More than 200 artists from a variety of art forms applied for £1,000 love-letter commissions to be staged on May 17 – the first day that theatres can reopen after restrictions are lifted – and May 18.

The 22 short pieces selected will be performed each night at 8pm under the overall direction of Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster. Each “bite” will take hold for five minutes.

In the fifth in a series of CharlesHutchPress Q&As, Ashleigh J Mills [they/them] has five minutes to discuss their  Love Bite, In Progress.

ASHLEIGH [they/them] is a Black, non-binary and unapologetically autistic creator, calling themselves Angry Black Changeling on their Twitter account. Politically and poetically minded, their work seeks to explore and digest their lived experience of life on the margins. They believe that within resistance lies creation. They are a work in progress.

How did you hear about Love Bites, Ashleigh?

“Henry Raby, York’s resident punk poet, tagged me in the call out on Twitter. As someone who dips in and out of York’s poetry scene, he probably recognised that it’d be definitely something I’d be interested in! And I was!”

What is your connection with York?

“I moved to York almost eight years ago now. Initially for university, I’ve attended both York St John and the Uni of York in the past. But really, I’ve made my home there. I’ve got partners and a cat and everything!”

What will feature in your Love Bite, In Progress, and why? 

“In Progress is a poem I’ve created as a love letter to words and to the complex and tricksy process of learning who you are and who you’re going to be. I’ve kept a Good Words List for over four years now: a list of words I don’t know, learn and don’t want to forget. Using those words, I’ve created a piece about lockdown-inflicted self-reflections.”

You believe that “within resistance lies creation”.  Discuss further…

“We live in a world of oppressive power structures. I’m a person who is Black, queer, trans, autistic, and disabled. As such, my existence will always function as a form of resistance – whether or not I opt into that.
“I think there are a myriad of ways to navigate straddling so many intersections, but for me, poetry and art is my primary outlet and communication tool. It helps me filter and process my own experiences and find similar community, which is an endlesssly important thing when any one of those facets of my identity can implicitly result in isolation. I believe, as Audre Lorde once wrote, “poetry is not a luxury”.

In lockdown, what have you missed most about theatre?

“I’ve been quite privileged in terms of lockdown and theatre. I’m studying a professional acting MA at ALRA North [Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, in Wigan, Manchester]. While lockdown has undoubtedly impacted us, it’s also been sprinkled with times I’ve been able to get into a (Covid-safe) room and create with my small cohort. It’s been a relief, an adventure and a very stressful time all in one!

“I’ve missed being able to explore new places and theatres and see new experimental and exciting ways of working! However, I’m pleased that accessibility within theatre has come into the mainstream awareness and contention.

“I hope the trend for more accessible theatre continues as more venues begin to reopen their doors. Like poetry, theatre and art should not be a luxury! I hope the future holds a new way of doing things that doesn’t negate the widened access lockdown has inspired!”

What’s coming next for you?

“I’m heading into my final seven months of my actor training. So hopefully I’ll finish that and get a certificate to prove it!

“More seriously, I hope to unearth a way of making art that I can access holistically. I often receive feedback that I’m too intellectual or academic. But really, I feel that this is a symptom of existing as I do. When your existence is politicised, people often assume that when you speak from experience, you’re trying to root a social theory or make it accessible. I’m not. I’m just expressing myself as best I know how.

“In summary, I want to work with new people and find new ways of accessing creativity. I want to act. I want to write. I want to continue exploring this new-found joy of play. There’s much I want to do! So we shall see what the future holds when we get to it.”

What would be the best way to spend five minutes if you had a choice?

“My dream five minutes would be being inside on a rainy Sunday afternoon, with my cat, Franklin, on my lap. I’d have a coffee from the local fancy coffee shop, soft music would play in the background, and I’d be able to just sit, and be, and read a book from my books-to-read shelf without thinking about work, or deadlines, or ‘being productive’.”

Tickets cost Pay What You Feel at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

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Delyth Field and Jacob Fitzgerald win NCEM Young Composers Awards prizes in York

Young Composers Award winner Delyth Field with Palisander at the National Centre for Early Music, York

DELYTH Field and Jacob Fitzgerald have won the 14th National Centre for Early Music Young Composers Award prizes.

Presented in partnership with BBC Radio 3, the finals were streamed last night (13/5/2021) from the NCEM in York. 

Delyth Field won the age 19 to 25 category with “Kagura Suite for Recorders”, inspired by Kagura, the oldest form of dance in Japan.

Jacob Fitzgerald won the age 18 and under category with “murmuration”, composed in response to the natural dance performed by starlings across the skyscape.

Young composers living in the United Kingdom were invited to create a new work for recorder quartet based on dance-forms from across all eras and cultures. Although they were writing for instruments from the Baroque era, they were not limited to dance forms of that period. 

The eight finalists’ compositions were performed by recorder quartet Palisander after a day-long workshop at the NCEM led by composer Christopher Fox, professor of music at Brunel University, working alongside Palisander and the shortlisted composers.

Mollie Carlyle, Delyth Field and Lux Knightley took part in the 19 to 25 category; Jacob Fitzgerald,  Matty Oxtoby, Adam Spry, Shuchen Xie and Shoshana Yugin-Power in the younger final. 

The 2021 panel of judges were BBC Radio 3 producer Les Pratt, NCEM director Dr Delma Tomlin and Palisander.

Young Composers Award winner Jacob Fitzgerald with recorder quartet Palisander after last night’s final

“Kagura Suite for Recorders” and “murmuration” will be premiered by Palisander at St John’s Smith Square, London, as part of the London Festival of Baroque Music, where the September 20 performance will be recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s Early Music Show.

Delma said: “The NCEM Young Composers Award continues to attract composers of the highest calibre from all over the UK and the standard of compositions this year was extremely high.  I’d like to congratulate all our composers for their impressive work, and we hope that they enjoyed this unique and rewarding experience. 

“Due to Covid-19 restrictions, we had to stage last year’s awards online, so we were especially thrilled to be able to welcome young composers to our home of St Margaret’s Church in Walmgate. As always, I would like to say a massive thank-you to my fellow judges and the fabulous Palisander, who will perform the pieces at St John’s Smith Square on September 20.

“Last but not least, I would like thank our partners, BBC Radio 3, for their continued and invaluable support, which enables us to continue presenting these important awards.”

Alan Davey, controller of BBC Radio 3 and classical music, said: “We are proud to support the NCEM’s Young Composers Awards once again as part of Radio 3’s mission to find and support young talent and to promote new music, in this case work inspired by early music.

“The project reflects the excellence of young talent and the quality of work that young composers are producing. We warmly congratulate the winners and look forward to sharing performances of their works later this year on the Early Music Show.”

The streamed performance is available to watch at youngcomposersaward.co.uk/2021 and the Facebook page, @yorkearlymusic.

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Hope springs nocturnal in light installation global project at According To McGee

Hope Is The New Hero, by Jake T, from Rawcliffe and Clifton Without, for the Hope display at the According To McGee gallery in York

HOPE springs nocturnal in a collaboration between young artists from York and around the world at According To McGee from May 19.

Under the title of Hope, the artwork will be on display in light projections in the window of the Tower Street gallery.

Originated by Viborg UNESCO Creative City of Media Arts, the project has been brought to York by Chris Bailey, clerk of York’s Guild of Media Arts, via REACH, the Cultural Education Partnership for the city.

According To McGee co-director Greg McGee, left, and light installation artist Nick Walters

Primary schools jumped at the chance to be involved in a creative response to the pandemic that, mirroring the Coronavirus, has travelled around the world, inspiring thousands of children from China to Mexico.  

Chris enthuses: “This project is exactly what York’s UNESCO designation is all about, responding creatively to the challenges we all face, joining forces with other ‘Creative Cities’ and encouraging the next generation of creative leaders.

“I hope that, once this dreadful virus is just a memory, the relationships these young people have built with children in other countries will continue to thrive.”

Anabela Couto’s artwork, from Braga

Gallery co-director Greg McGee says: “Chris e-introduced me to Henrik Holmskov, from Viborg, and the project just sounded so optimistic and creative, just what we all needed at this time. The idea of opening it up to participants from all over York made perfect sense and was instantly met with enthusiasm.

“Our charity, New Visuality, had been wrapping up projects funded by York wards Heworth Without, Dringhouses and Woodthorpe, Guildhall, Rawcliffe and Clifton Without, and for the young people from these areas to now see their artwork projected in a city-centre gallery is a huge boost.”

Here comes the science bit: “The window projections will be based around carefully curated events using the newly released platform ‘SuS’, a smart solution to publishing artwork to a pool of digital screens from anywhere using mobile or desktop devices from SplashBY,” explains Greg.

Chen Sihan, Changsha, for the According To McGee light installation

SplashBY founder Pritpal Rehal chips in: “I’m more than happy to facilitate and play a small part in this global project to promote artistic creativity of Hope for all to see.”

Here comes the Maths part: “The evenings will feature projections of 350 artworks selected from all 3,000 images from cities in 33 countries around the world,” reveals Greg. 

Digital artist Nick Walters is delighted to be linking up with the McGee gallery and New Visuality again for Hope after his installations for York Mediale and York Design Week.

Danna Marcela Viverod, Laura Hinestroza, for the upcoming Hope display

“The location of the window is so iconic, directly opposite Clifford’s Tower,” he says. “I like the looser time-frame to this project and I’m looking forward to showing the illuminated artworks, perhaps alternating the transparency of the sheets, tweaking how long the images will flicker on screens.

“It’s a good chance for us to show passers-by what York does well, which is fuse creativity with innovative technology.” 

The Hope projections will launch on Wednesday, May 19 and continue on May 20 and 21, then run on Wednesday to Friday for the next two weeks at 6pm to 9pm each night.

Visuel, by Laerke Bitsch Lynngard, from Viborg
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News BULLetin…

Bull boutique: York band to set up pop-up market stall tomorrow

BULLet point: “If you find yourself in York tomorrow (15/5/2021), you may see a bit of BULL activity in and around Shambles Market as the York band will be serving up a BULL Boutique to sell all things BULL and also from their friends from Young Thugs Records. They’ll be busking around the city throughout the day.”

A case of Bull in a kinda shop.

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Bite-sized Q & A with…Butshilo Nleya on his Love Bites piece at York Theatre Royal

Butshilo Nleya: Zimbabwean playwright uses words, music and dance to explore the language of cultures, migration, identity and diversity

THE Love Season will soon set hearts pulsing at York Theatre Royal, where the Step 3 reopening will make its mark with Love Bites: a love letter to live performance and a toast to the city’s creative talent.

More than 200 artists from a variety of art forms applied for £1,000 love-letter commissions to be staged on May 17 – the first day that theatres can reopen after restrictions are lifted – and May 18.

The 22 short pieces selected will be performed each night at 8pm under the overall direction of Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster. Each “bite” will take hold for five minutes.

In the fourth in a series of CharlesHutchPress Q&As, Zimbabwean-born playwright Butshilo Nleya has five minutes to discuss his Love Bite, Ekhaya, Love Them Both?

How did you hear about Love Bites, Butshilo?

“I found out about Love Bites on Twitter. Twitter is my go-to place for call-outs and updates.” 

What is your connection with York?

“I came to York to pursue a degree in theatre and stayed. I have been drawn to cities like York in my travels; Bath, Norwich and York has welcomed my family and me.” 

What will feature in your Love Bite, Ekhaya, Love Them Both?, and why? 

“Ekhaya will feature a short film by Sunnie Hsia, some live drumming and a letter from a passer-by searching for home.” 

After working in Africa, Europe and the USA since 2002, how are you finding working in York, when addressing the themes of place, home and the multiplicity of cultures in your writing?

“York is … ‘white’ and my work focuses on the question/quest of finding home and how to encourage a sense of home. There are pockets of difference and diversity and I hope that I can celebrate that in my writing.” 

In lockdown, what have you missed most about theatre?

“Everything about theatre but most of all, sitting in a space with people, watching what I can only describe as the magic of storytelling.” 

What’s coming next for you?

“I’m working with Theatre Temoin and writing for their NHS Yarns project. EXCITING.”

What would be the best way to spend five minutes if you had a choice?

“If I had an extra five minutes a day, I would spend them with my family who laugh at my dad jokes and ground me.” 

Tickets cost Pay What You Feel at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

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Bite-sized Q & A with…Erika Noda on her Love Bites piece at York Theatre Royal

Erika Noda: “A true and honest account of what it can be like for someone of dual heritage in a predominantly white city” in her Love Bite, Ai

THE Love Season will soon set hearts pulsing at York Theatre Royal, where the Step 3 reopening will make its mark with Love Bites: a love letter to live performance and a toast to the city’s creative talent.

More than 200 artists from a variety of art forms applied for £1,000 love-letter commissions to be staged on May 17 – the first day that theatres can reopen after restrictions are lifted – and May 18.

The 22 short pieces selected will be performed each night at 8pm under the overall direction of Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster. Each “bite” will take hold for five minutes.

In the third in a series of CharlesHutchPress Q&As, Japanese English actor Erika Noda has five minutes to discuss her Love Bite, Ai, her semi-autobiographical debut solo writing project.

How did you hear about Love Bites, Erika?

“I work as a youth theatre assistant at York Theatre Royal and heard about Love Bites from Kate Veysey, the director of youth theatre. I then went online and looked it up straightaway.” 

What is your connection with York?

“I was born in York and lived here most of my life. My family, on my mum’s side, can be traced back generations in the city. I know my four-times great grandad came to York from Rosedale and was a nightwatchman before he became a police sergeant and lived with his family in Micklegate Bar.” 

What will feature in your Love Bite, Ai, and why? 

“A true and honest account of what it can be like for someone of dual heritage in a predominantly white city. With the Black Lives Matter movement and the escalation of hate crimes against East and Southeast Asian people this past year, it made me think about my own experiences of microaggression and racism, as well as the importance of self-acceptance and self-love.

“It’s important to bring awareness to microaggression because many people are unknowingly hurting others through their words and actions.” 

What has been the best and the worst about growing up with dual heritage?

“I’d say the worst part is the racist comments and microaggressions. Through doing this project, I’ve come to realise how deeply emotionally affected I am by what people have said or done.

“It’s so degrading and belittling, it’s like a pin stabbing you in the heart; it hurts but you can survive if it happens once or twice, but if it keeps happening over and over eventually you collapse and you don’t know if you’ll get up again. 

“Some of the best things about being dual heritage, for me, is that I’ve been immersed in different cultures since I was born. I was two years old when I first went to Japan and was eating with chopsticks from the age of eight.

“I love how it enables me to understand other people’s experiences and ways of life. I’ve also been fortunate that I’m able to travel and experience other parts of the world and cultures for myself.” 

In lockdown, what have you missed most about theatre?

“I miss being on stage and taking theatre to those who may not usually get the opportunity to experience it. After graduating from East 15 Acting School I co-founded a theatre company that specialised in creating sensory shows and workshops for children and young people with complex needs.

“We had planned to tour in Summer 2020 but due to the pandemic it had to be cancelled and an online digital story was created instead. 

“I miss the adrenaline rush and feeling of having just done a performance and how rewarding it can be. I also miss watching theatre and being transported to another world.”   

What’s coming next for you?

“In terms of acting and creating, I don’t have any set plans yet, but I’ll be keeping an eye out for the next opportunity. Also, I’m working at an immersive art gallery that’s been closed due to lockdowns and now it’s able to open so I expect I’ll be busy there this summer.” 

What would be the best way to spend five minutes if you had a choice?

“Other than watching Love Bites, I would have a brew and a catch-up with my friends because I haven’t seen them in ages.” 

Tickets for Love Bites cost Pay What You Feel at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

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Bite-sized Q & A with…Gus Gowland on his Love Bites piece at York Theatre Royal

Lister scene: Gus Gowland’s Love Bite, The Streets Of York, will celebrate Gentleman Jack Anne Lister’s unofficial wedding at Holy Trinity Church, Goodramgate

THE Love Season will soon set hearts pulsing at York Theatre Royal, where the Step 3 reopening will make its mark with Love Bites: a love letter to live performance and a toast to the city’s creative talent.

More than 200 artists from a variety of art forms applied for £1,000 love-letter commissions to be staged on May 17 – the first day that theatres can reopen after restrictions are lifted – and May 18.

The 22 short pieces selected will be performed each night at 8pm under the overall direction of Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster. Each “bite” will take hold for five minutes.

In the second in a series of CharlesHutchPress Q&As, musical theatre writer/composer Gus Gowland has five minutes to discuss his work, The Streets of York.

How did you hear about Love Bites, Gus?

“I always keep an eye on what is happening at York Theatre Royal so I was aware of their Love Season. I first saw the call-out for artists on the theatre’s Twitter.

“I’ve been keen to work at the Theatre Royal for a while and this was such a wonderful opportunity to be part of the reopening and share the space with a huge number of artists. It was too exciting an opportunity to miss!”

What is your connection with York?

“I moved here just over two years ago with my partner, Max May. He took a job as chief executive officer of Rural Arts, a charity based in Thirsk, and is from Yorkshire so it’s been lovely for me to get to know his hometown. Since being here I’ve really fallen in love with it. There’s so much art being made here that makes it feel exciting.”  

What will feature in your Love Bite, The Streets Of York, and why?

“My Love Bite is a musical theatre song, inspired by the unofficial wedding of Anne Lister (alias Gentleman Jack), which took place at Holy Trinity Church, in Goodramgate, in 1834.  It’s a fascinating moment, seen through the eyes of Lister herself (as performed, brilliantly, by Dora Rubinstein).

“I love that this incredible moment in LGBTQ+ history happened right here in York. It felt apt to be able to honour and acknowledge Lister whilst also paying homage to the very streets we all know so well.”

Dora Rubinstein: Playing Anne Lister in Gus Gowland’s The Streets Of York

What changes would you make to the streets of York?

“Right now, I’m loving all the outside seating that has popped up everywhere, so I’d make sure that was a permanent feature.”

In lockdown, what have you missed most about theatre?

“Oh gosh, where do I start? I’ve missed sharing an experience with other people. I’ve missed watching a story unfold in front of me, with the electricity of live performance. I’ve seen a huge amount of online theatre and it’s brilliant but there’s nothing that can replace that sensation of sitting in a theatre with an audience, collectively gasping, crying, laughing, at the show in front of you.” 

What’s coming next for you?

“I’m releasing an EP of original songs, co-written with Craig Mather, called In Motion. We met when Craig was in my musical Pieces Of String and wrote these songs via Whatsapp during Lockdown 1 and it’s very exciting to be sharing them with the world. That will be on all streaming sites from today (14/5/2021). 

“I’m also working on revisions to Pieces Of String and have a few other shows bubbling under that will hopefully be in a theatre before long.” 

What would be the best way to spend five minutes if you had a choice?

“Probably listen to a song. Right now, it would be anything by Ben Platt or MUNA [electronic pop group from Los Angeles]. That way I can be transported to a memory, a different place or time, just through the magic of the music.”

Tickets for Love Bites cost Pay What You Feel at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

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