Kaiser Chiefs are off to the woods this summer for Dalby Forest return gig

Kaiser Chiefs: striding out for Dalby Forest on June 26

KAISER Chiefs are to return to Dalby Forest, near Pickering, for a Forest Live open-air gig on June 26.

The Leeds band played there previously in 2016, and once more Forestry England’s conservation projects will benefit from the concert takings, as they will from Will Young and James Morrison’s Dalby double-header on June 27.

Tickets go on sale from 9am on Friday (February 7) on 03000 680400 or at forestryengland.uk/music. 

Frontman Ricky Wilson says: “We’re chuffed to be playing a home-county gig in Dalby Forest this summer. We last played there in 2016 as part of Forest Live series and it’s an amazing location to perform deep in the woods, so we hope you can join us on this escapade.”

Chief hits Oh My God, I Predict A Riot, Everyday I Love You Less And Less, the chart-topping Ruby and Never Miss A Beat will be complemented by album selections off Employment; Yours Truly, Angry Mob; Off With Their Heads; The Future Is Medieval; Education, Education, Education; Stay Together and last July’s Duck.

Kaiser Chiefs previously took to the Yorkshire great outdoors to play York Racecourse in July 2016 and Scarborough Open Air Theatre in May 2017.

From December 2018 to March 2019, they brought a new meaning to Pop Art when curating When All Is Quiet: Kaiser Chiefs In Conversation With York Art Gallery. Exploring the boundaries between art and music in this experimental exhibition, they used their position as pop musicians to rethink sound as an art medium.

Did you know?

More than 1.9 million people have attended Forest Live concerts in the past 19 years. Ticket-sale income goes towards Forestry England looking after the nation’s forests sustainably, helping to create beautiful places for people to enjoy, wildlife to flourish and trees to grow.

Pussycat Dolls are playing York Racecourse this summer, don’t cha know, but when?

Pussycat Dolls: prepare for Doll Domination at York Racecourse in July

REVIVED American girl group Pussycat Dolls will perform York Racecourse’s first 2020 Music Showcase Weekend show after the evening race card on July 24.

Eighties’ soul-pop icon Rick Astley was confirmed already for the weekend, signed up to play after the afternoon racing on the Knavesmire course on July 25.

Pussycat Dolls sold more than 54 million records in a run of hits from 2003 to 2010 and returned to the live platform after a nine-year hiatus at last year’s final of The X Factor: Celebrity: familiar territory for band member Nicole Scherzinger, a long-standing judge on the ITV talent show.

Scherzinger is joined in the Pussycat song-and-dance line-up by Ashley Roberts, Kimberly Wyatt, Jessica Sutta and Carmit Bachar. Expect them to sing the chart-topping Don’t Cha and Stickwitu, Beep, Buttons, I Don’t Need A Man, When I Grow Up, Whatcha Think About That and more besides, all coupled with dance routines.

Rick Astley: July 25 concert at York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend

James Brennan, head of marketing and sponsorship at York Racecourse, said: “Announcements don’t come much bigger than being able to say that Pussycat Dolls will be bringing their Doll Domination to York Racecourse for a special Friday night performance to open the Music Showcase Weekend.

“Performances on a Friday evening have always had a special atmosphere with the excitement of the stars on the turf and the stars on the stage combining to make this an event to put in your diary now.”

To book, visit yorkracecourse.co.uk; no booking fee applies and car parking will be free. On the race track that evening, the European Breeders Fund Lyric York Stakes will be the centrepiece of a six-race card.

One York race-day concert is yet to be announced: the Summer Music Saturday on June 27. Watch this space.

Pepper & Honey show about home takes the biscuit as Visionari festival opens

Pepper & Honey: Not Now Collective’s play with live baking opens Visionari’s Studio Discoveries festival at the York Theatre Royal Studio

WHAT happens when the audience selects the shows? Find out at York Theatre Royal from tomorrow in the Studio Discoveries festival of theatre chosen by the Visionari community programming group.

The first of six picks in Visionari’s second season really takes the biscuit when Not Now Collective’s new play of love, loss, heritage and new beginnings, Pepper & Honey,is told through the baking of Croatian pepper biscuits.

Known as paprenjaci, they will be baked live in front of the 11am and 2pm audiences as the story of Ana’s preparations to start a new life in the UK unfolds. Babes-in-arms are welcome at the 11am and 2pm shows – and biscuits are included.

So, what is “home”, ask Not Now Collective. Now that the era of post-Brexit Britain is under way, that question has never been more pertinent, in this case for Ana, a young Croatian woman, as she settles in the UK.

Determined to make it home, she focuses on life in this new land, but she is haunted by the voice of her Grandma, calling for her to stay true to national identity and yearning for Ana to come home.  

Grandma bakes her traditional Croatian pepper biscuits – believed  to bring a loved one back home – but will this be enough to be reunited with her granddaughter? What is “home” to Ana now?

Written by a Croatian playwright and performed by a Croatian actor, Pepper & Honey is a poignant, subtle and timely play about the journey of change, cultural differences, trying not to feel like a foreigner in your adopted country, and the conflict between upholding the traditions of the “old country” and embracing those of the new.

As trailered earlier, Pepper & Honey will be “timed to perfection to deliver a perfect Croatian pepper biscuit, baked live with the help of the audience”. Tickets for all the Visionari Studio Discoveries plays are on sale on 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. The price is £10 per show or £8 when two or more Studio Discoveries shows are booked.

Kneehigh mount Leeds Playhouse protest with Ubu party games and singalongs

Kneehigh’s Ubu!: party and protest rolled into one riotous show . Picture: Steve Tanner

ALFRED Jarry’s ground-breaking political parable Ubu Roi caused riots when first staged in Paris in 1896. Now, Kneehigh’s Ubu! A Singalong Satire promises an equally riotous night out at Leeds Playhouse’s Quarry Theatre from Tuesday to Saturday.

Conceived by Carl Grose, Charles Hazlewood and Mike Shepherd, it smashes together Jarry’s gleefully rude and deliberately childish script with a crowd-pleasing singalong, party games, inflatable animals and contemporary political satire.   

Kneehigh’s Ubu! is a punk-spirited, comedic study of power, protest and populism. “And what better form of popular culture to demonstrate this than mass karaoke?”, ask the Cornish company.

The show is led by Katy Owen’s tiny, tyrannical Pa Ubu and Mike Shepherd’s pouting, preening Ma Ubu, alongside the ever-versatile Kneehigh ensemble: a six-strong cast and the band The Sweaty Bureaucrats.  

Arranged by Hazlewood, the selection of songs is inventive and cannily chosen, ranging from Britney Spears’ Toxic and Edwin Starr’s War to Mark Ronson’s Uptown Funk and The Carpenters’ Close To You, as a festival atmosphere builds.

Writer and co-director Carl Grose explains how Ubu! came to fruition and why the petty protagonist still resonates with modern audiences. “When Alfred Jarry’s play received its premiere at the Théâtre de l’OEuvre in Paris on December 10 1896, there was, so the story goes, a full-on riot,” he says.

Winging it: Kneehigh’s singalong Ubu!. Picture: Steve Tanner

“Audiences and critics alike were confronted with sights and sounds of such outrageousness that pandemonium broke out and the production was shut down after only two performances.”

Grose continues: “Like all great artists, Alfred Jarry was a disrupter, and Ubu was his weapon of mass disruption. A personification of chaos, a lord of misrule, a howling, hysterical metaphor for greed, lies and corruption.

“The main character was designed to be both laughed at and despised, and that’s still the case. He is here to gather us together as his prisoners, his acolytes, his victims – or his potential usurpers.

“He is a reminder that those in power will do their damnedest to make their reality our normality. It’s up to us to collectively remember that there’s nothing normal about Ubu and his ilk.”

Ubu’s behaviour beggars belief, concludes Grose. “He is cruel, nonsensical, cowardly, aggressive and beyond vile in his actions,” he says. “Career mad, he looks totally ridiculous, puts money over humanity in a heartbeat and has a vocabulary that leaves a lot to be desired. What an absurd creation, eh?”

Prepare for a Kneehigh antidote to a divided world that makes a stand against divisiveness and brings audiences together through the joyful act of singing

Kneehigh’s Ubu! A Singalong Satire, Quarry Theatre, Leeds Playhouse, February 4 to 8. Box office: 0113 213 7700 or at leedsplayhouse.org.uk.

REVIEW: Martin Dreyer’s verdict on Opera North’s revival of The Marriage Of Figaro

Fflur Wyn as Susanna and Phillip Rhodes as Figaro in Opera North’s The Marriage Of Figaro. All pictures:. Robert Workman

Opera North in The Marriage Of Figaro, Leeds Grand Theatre, February 1 ****

Further Leeds performances on February 8, 14, 19, 22, 26 and 29, then on tour . More details at operanorth.co.uk. Leeds box office: 0844 848 2700 or at leedsgrandtheatre.com

IT is strange how operatic revivals can vary so much from their originals, even when the same director is on hand to oversee them. Jo Davies’s production of Mozart’s opera buffa dates from January 2015. That is before the Me Too movement really took off in October 2017, when the treatment of women in Hollywood began to come under the microscope.

 Its repercussions on this show are fascinating. The two leading men, Count Almaviva and Figaro himself, are by far the most charismatic here. That is partly down to the singers involved. But it also reflects the relative hardness of their ladies, the Countess and Susanna.

These men are having their very manhood challenged, even as they attempt their various conquests. It could help to explain why Quirijn de Lang’s relentlessly dim-witted Count (though the singer himself is clearly quite the opposite) comes across as a failed Don Giovanni, never quite achieving those desired notches on his cane. The man is libidinous beyond belief. Even at the end you wonder how long he can possibly remain faithful to his wife. He nevertheless sings with plenty of self-belief.

Heather Lowe as Cherubino

The New Zealand baritone Phillip Rhodes relaxes into the title role immediately, despite taking it on for the first time. The part could have been made for him. His Figaro retains unclouded optimism in the face of every setback, helped by warm, clear tone and a pair of eyebrows that crinkle with mirth at every excuse.

Opposite him, Fflur Wyn, also new to her role as Susanna, is a calculating creature – the gardener Antonio’s social-climbing niece – rather than a playful minx. Her soprano is light and clean, her diction less so. Nor is clarity Máire Flavin’s strong point as the Countess. Her first aria was too tense to excite sympathy, her second showed what might have been, with fluent control. But she moves beautifully and always has the moral high ground over her wayward husband.

The lower orders are well represented. It comes as no surprise to discover that Heather Lowe, the tousle-haired Cherubino, is a trained dancer. She is exceptionally nimble as well as vocally adept, not least as girl-plays-boy-playing girl.

Jonathan Best makes a diffident old fogey of Bartolo, well partnered by Gaynor Keeble’s earthy Marcellina. Joseph Shovelton is back with his oily Basilio, as is Jeremy Peaker’s rubicund Antonio. Alexandra Oomens is the peppy Barbarina. Even Warren Gillespie’s Curzio makes a mark, here as a censer-swinging priest. Real incense too.

Quirijn de Lang as Count Almaviva and Máire Flavin as Countess Almaviva

 Antony Hermus makes his first appearance in the pit since being appointed Principal Guest Conductor. He is a mixed blessing. His rigid, hyperactive baton ensures taut ensemble, but allows his woodwinds little flexibility; the strength of his accents regularly swamps the singers’ words in ensemble. On the other hand, conducting from the harpsichord, his recitatives flow idiomatically.

 Leslie Travers’s mobile set shows both the downstairs and the upstairs of this society, the former doubling as the outside of the house for the garden scene. Peeling wallpaper and rickety staircases speak of genteel poverty. Gabrielle Dalton’s socially-layered costumes could be from almost any era.

In the wake of Me Too, we should expect certain aspects of the comedy to be soft-pedalled. But there is plenty of amusement at the expense of the men. And that is as it should be. 

Phillip Rhodes as Figaro

Review by Martin Dreyer

Six of the best to star in York Stage’s comedy drama Steel Magnolias

“Strong women”: Joanne Theaker, front left, Louise Henry, back left, Sandy Nicholson, Julie-Anne Smith and Kathryn Addison starring in Nik Briggs’s production of Steel Magnolias for York Stage

YORK Stage kick off their 2020 season with Robert Harling’s comedy-drama Steel Magnolias at Theatre @41 Monkgate, York.

Running in the John Cooper Studio from February 19 to 22, this 1987 American play focuses on the camaraderie of six Southern women who talk, gossip, jest and harangue each other through the best of times and comfort and repair one another through the worst.

“Steel Magnolias is alternately hilarious and touching with six female characters that are all as delicate as magnolias yet as strong as steel,” says director Nik Briggs.

Joanne Theaker, Louise Henry, Sandy Nicholson and Julie-Anne Smith in York Stage’s Steel Magnolias

His cast comprises Joanne Theaker as M’Lynn; Louise Henry as Shelby; Julie-Anne Smith as Ousier; Sandy Nicholson as Clairee; Kathryn Addision as Truvy and Carly Morton as Annelle.

Yorkshire actress Joanne Theaker returns to the York Stage company, having led the cast as Maria in The Sound Of Music at the Grand Opera House last April.

Previously, Joanne has played Sister Mary Roberts in Sister Act; Diva in Priscilla Queen Of The Desert – The Musical; Judy in Dolly Parton’s 9 To 5 The Musical and Paulette in Legally Blonde. Elsewhere, she has performed at Hull Truck Theatre in the original casts of John Godber’s Thick As a Brick and Big Trouble In The Little Bedroom and at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, in Neil Simon’s They’re Playing Our Song.

Julie-Anne Smith and Sandy Nicholson have a laugh in the photo-shoot for Steel Magnolias

Louise Henry joins rehearsals after making her professional debut as Snow White in this winter’s Grand Opera House pantomime, Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs. Previously, for York Stage Musicals, she had performed in The Sound Of Music as Liesl last April and Twilight Robbery as Jayne in May. West End actress Julie-Anne Smith last appeared for York Stage Musicals as Violet in 9 To 5 in 2017.

Briggs says: “Bringing Steel Magnolias to the stage, and working with these six women especially, has been a joy. It’s no secret that I love working with strong women, especially in the rehearsal room and you don’t get much stronger than these six.

”Having previously directed many female-led shows – Sister Act, Legally Blonde, 9 To 5, The Sound Of Music, Be My Baby and Little Voice – Steel Magnolias has been on my ‘To Do’ list for a long time.”

Hair-larious: Louise Henry and Joanne Theaker

The women’s closeness drew Briggs to Harling’s piece. “It’s relatable, the salon is a world in itself and the six characters are an adopted family,” he says. “They laugh, cry, argue, support and challenge each other within this world and it really allows for the drama and comedy to flourish and soar.

“We’ve had tears of laughter and tears of sadness over the rehearsal period. This really is a show to see with your closest girl friends and family. Come, laugh and cry together, and if you want to wear pyjamas and bring a large carton of ice cream with you for the ultimate girly ‘night in-out’, we won’t judge!”

Harling was inspired to write Steel Magnolias, his first play, after his sister Susan died of complications from diabetes. Premiered off-Broadway at the WPA Theater in 1987, it quickly transferred to Broadway, where it became an instant sensation, running for three years and spawning the hit movie starring Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis and Shirley MacLaine.

Hair piece: York Stage’s poster image for Steel Magnolias

York Stage in Steel Magnolias, John Cooper Studio, Theatre @41 Monkgate, York, February 19 to 22, 7:30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Tickets: £15, concessions £13, at yorkstagemusicals.com, on 01904 623568 or in person from the York Theatre Royal box office. “We shall be supporting York and District Diabetes UK Group throughout the run,” says director Nik Briggs.

Pre-apocalyptic comedy alert!! But where will The Last Quiz Night On Earth be held?

Look at the pub name! Where else could The Last Quiz Night On Earth be held? Well, Pocklington Arts Centre, actually

QUICK question. Did you see Chip Shop Chips, Box Of Tricks Theatre Company’s show at Pocklington Arts Centre last year?

Yes? So, presumably you will want know when they will be returning to Pock and what in?

The answers are Friday, March 20 in The Last Quiz Night On Earth, an immersive, innovative new play by Alison Carr for theatre devotees and pub quiz enthusiasts alike, who are promised “a very different experience of live performance”.

PAC director Janet Farmer says: “The last time Box Of Tricks visited here, they wowed and wholly entertained us with Chip Shop Chips, an immersive theatre experience that our audiences still talk about. 

“So, we can’t wait to welcome them back to the venue with their brand new show. It looks set to be an absolute blast!”

In the Box Of Tricks locker already are the award-winning Manchester company’s shows SparkPlug, Narvik and Under Three Moons. Now they follow two sold-out tours of Chip Shop Chips with Carr’s pre-apocalyptic comedy, The Last Quiz Night On Earth. 

Next question. What happens? “It’s the final countdown. Landlady Kathy invites audiences to the last quiz night on earth with Quizmaster Rav. He is the host with the most,” say Box Of Tricks.

“But with time ticking, some unexpected guests turn up out of the blue. Bobby wants to settle old scores and Fran wants one last shot at love. Expect the unexpected to the bitter end and plenty of drama as the show gets quizzical.”

Hannah Tyrrell-Pinder directs the play, with design by Katie Scott. Pub landlady Kathy will be played by Meriel Scholfield, who has appeared in Coronation Street, Last Tango In Halifax, Holby City and Doctors, while Shaban Dar will take the role of pre-apocalyptic Quizmaster Rav.

Playwright Alison Carr’s past works include Caterpillar and Iris; her latest play, Tuesday, has been commissioned for the National Theatre’s 2020 Connections programme.

Next question. Why did she write The Last Quiz Night On Earth? “I wanted to combine the known and the unknown, the safe and the downright terrifying,” she answers. 

“My vision was to create something that audiences don’t just sit and watch but are part of – but not in a scary way. 

“Personally, the thought of audience participation makes me feel sick, but a quiz is something we can all do, whether we’re a general knowledge expert or the neatest so we can do the writing.” 

The play was “so much fun to research and write,” she says. “I have to admit, I know a lot about asteroids now, and the answers to a fair amount of quiz questions. I’m so excited to have Box Of Tricks bring it to life and to share it with audiences.”

Director Hannah Tyrrell-Pinder adds: “I’m really excited to be working with Alison Carr on her first play for Box Of Tricks. 

“Alison is a writer of real talent, crafting plays of depth, wit and real emotional warmth. The Last Quiz Night On Earth is a unique piece: a pre-apocalyptic comedy bringing people together through the power of trivia for a great night out.

“Following our success touring Chip Shop Chips to the heart of communities, I’m really looking forward to revisiting some wonderful places and spaces as well as discovering new locations with this play.” 

Last questions. Pocklington show time? 7.30pm. Ticket price? £12.50, under 21s, £10, and Friends Rates. Box office number? 01759 301547. Online? pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

“Fourth funniest” comedy duo Max & Ivan to fulfil Commitment at Selby Town Hall

Max & Ivan: Commitment to Selby

THE Guardian’s fourth best comedy show of 2019, Max & Ivan’s Commitment, will play Selby Town Hall on February 7.

“I’m delighted that Selby is the only Yorkshire date on their UK tour and am genuinely very excited to see the show in our little venue,” says Chris Jones, Selby Town Council’s arts officer.

“It’s one of the most talked-about comedy shows of last year, receiving a slew of four and five-star reviews for its Edinburgh Fringe debut, and an agent for an entirely different comedian told me last week that it was one of the best things she’d seen…and that doesn’t happen very often.”

Performed by comedy duo Max Olesker and Ivan Gonzalez, Commitment is the true story of how Max, as Ivan’s Best Man, attempted to reunite Ivan’s teenage band – Voodoo 7:2, the premier “art rock post-punk funk” group in mid-Noughties Liverpool – for one final gig.

“It’s a show about dreaming big, growing up, and trying – but ultimately very much failing – to make it in the band,” says Chris.

“Directed by multiple Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Kieran Hodgson, it melds fast-paced visuals – including a wealth of embarrassing adolescent photos – with razor-sharp gag writing, classic double-act dynamics and a smattering of virtuoso multi-character performances.

“At its heart, the show is a storytelling hour about Max & Ivan’s real-life friendship and the lengths Max will go to in order to pull off the best night of Ivan’s life.” 

Olesker and Gonzalez have performed at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival; the SXSW (South By Southwest) festival in Austin, Texas; UCB Sunset in Los Angeles and Brooklyn’s Union Hall in New York, as well as touring throughout Britain.

Among their past work is the super-show The Wrestling, where the world’s best comedians step into the ring and wrestle alongside enormous professional wrestlers in Edinburgh and Melbourne.

At last year’s Edinburgh Fringe, they debuted Max & Ivan’s Prom Night, an anarchic, interactive, 1950s’ high-school prom show-cum-party, to a sell-out, thousand-strong crowd in Assembly High, a purpose-designed location. 

Max & Ivan created, wrote and starred in the BBC Radio 4 sitcom The Casebook Of Max & Ivan, attracting such guest stars as Matt Lucas, June Whitfield, Reece Shearsmith and Jessica Hynes, as well as appearing in BBC Two comedy W1A as Ben and Jerry.

“Max & Ivan’s Commitment tour is one of The Times’s picks of 2020,” says Chris. “I’m aware that Max & Ivan are not yet household names, but I would love as many people as possible to catch this 8pm show.”

Tickets cost £14 on 01757 708449 or at selbytownhall.co.uk or £16 on the door from 7.30pm.

Cosmic Collective open Heaven’s Gate to imagine UFO worshippers’ final hour

 ‌

Cosmic Collective Theatre’s Anna Soden, Joe Feeney, Lewes Roberts and Kate Cresswell in Heaven’s Gate

FOUR‌ ‌cups‌ ‌of‌ ‌Apple‌ ‌Sauce.‌ ‌Four‌ ‌canvas‌ ‌camp‌ ‌beds.‌ ‌One‌ ‌Comet.‌ ‌Heaven’s‌ ‌Gate‌ ‌is‌ ‌closing‌ ‌and‌ ‌the‌ ‌Away‌ ‌Team‌ ‌are‌ ‌ready‌ ‌for‌ ‌Graduation, but whatever you do, don’t say the C-word. Cult.

Premiered by the new York company Cosmic Collective Theatre at last summer’s Great Yorkshire Fringe in York, ‌ ‌the 55-minute Heaven’s Gate opens its debut Yorkshire tour at Harrogate Theatre’s Studio Theatre tonight.

Written by company co-founder Joe Feeney, this ‌intergalactic‌ ‌pitch‌-black‌ comedy ‌imagines‌ ‌the‌ ‌final‌ ‌hour‌ ‌of‌ ‌four‌ ‌fictionalised‌ ‌members‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌real-life ‌ ‌‌UFO-theistic‌ ‌group, Heaven’s Gate.‌ ‌

“As‌ ‌they‌ ‌prepare‌ ‌for‌ ‌their‌ ‘Graduation’‌ ‌to‌ ‌the‌ ‌‘Kingdom‌ ‌of Heaven’, initially the excitement is palpable, but soon the‌ ‌cracks‌ ‌start‌ ‌to‌ ‌appear,” says Joe, an alumnus of York Theatre Royal Youth, along with fellow cast member Anna Soden.‌

“Is‌ ‌Heavenly‌ ‌Father‌ ‌really‌ ‌waiting‌ ‌for‌ ‌them‌ ‌in‌ ‌a‌ ‌spaceship?‌ ‌Is‌ ‌the‌ ‌Earth‌ ‌actually‌ ‌about‌ ‌to‌ ‌be‌ ‌recycled?‌ ‌Was‌ ‌castration‌ ‌obligatory‌ ‌or‌ ‌not?‌ ‌Is‌ ‌Turkey‌ ‌Potpie‌ ‌an‌ ‌underwhelming‌ ‌last‌ ‌supper?‌” ‌ ‌

Cosmic‌ ‌Collective‌ ‌Theatre‌, who enjoyed a sold-out run at the‌ ‌Drayton‌ ‌Arms‌ ‌Theatre‌, ‌London, after the York premiere, will follow up today and tomorrow’s 8pm Harrogate performances with shows at The‌ ‌Carriageworks,‌ ‌Leeds, on February 5 and 6 at 7.30pm; York Theatre Royal Studio, February 7, 7.45pm; Hull Truck Theatre Studio, February 14,  8pm, and Slung Low at Holbeck Theatre, Leeds, February 16, 5pm.

‌They‌ ‌will be‌ ‌playing ‌York‌ ‌Theatre‌ ‌Royal‌ ‌as‌ ‌part‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌Visionari Studio Discoveries festival, a week of shows put together by the theatre’s community programming group.‌ ‌

Performing there ‌has‌ ‌particular‌ ‌resonance‌ ‌for‌ ‌‌Joe‌ and Anna. “This‌ ‌is‌ ‌incredibly‌ ‌special‌ ‌for‌ ‌us,” says Joe. “I’ve been ‌‌involved‌ ‌with‌ ‌York‌ ‌Theatre‌ ‌Royal‌ ‌for‌ ‌more than‌ ‌20‌ ‌years. I was a ‌Youth‌ ‌Theatre‌ ‌member‌ ‌for‌ ten-plus years and‌ ‌have worked‌ ‌as‌ ‌crew‌ ‌backstage‌ ‌on‌ ‌and‌ ‌off‌ ‌since‌ ‌2010.‌

Cosmic Collective Theatre in rehearsal for Heaven’s Gate

“‌As‌ ‌an‌ ‌actor, I’ve ‌ ‌performed‌ ‌across‌ ‌the‌ ‌country‌ ‌and‌ ‌internationally, but‌ ‌nothing‌ ‌will‌ ‌compare‌ ‌to‌ ‌performing‌ ‌at‌ ‌home‌ ‌in‌ ‌our‌ ‌wonderful‌ ‌theatre. It’s honestly‌ ‌a‌ ‌dream‌ ‌come‌ ‌true.”‌ ‌

Anna‌‌ ‌agrees: ‌‌“I‌ ‌wouldn’t‌ ‌be‌ ‌working‌ ‌in‌ ‌this‌ ‌industry‌ ‌if‌ ‌it‌ ‌wasn’t‌ ‌for‌ ‌York‌ ‌Theatre Royal Youth‌ ‌Theatre,‌ ‌which‌ ‌continues‌ ‌to‌ ‌be‌ ‌the‌ ‌greatest‌ ‌youth‌ ‌theatre‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌country!” she says. “‌To‌ ‌return‌ ‌all‌ ‌these‌ ‌years‌ ‌later‌ ‌and‌ ‌perform‌ ‌here‌ ‌as‌ ‌a‌ ‌professional‌ ‌actor‌ ‌is‌ ‌beyond‌ ‌a‌ ‌pleasure‌ ‌and‌ ‌a‌ ‌privilege.”‌ ‌ ‌

Cast‌ ‌members‌ ‌Lewes‌ ‌Roberts‌ ‌and‌ ‌Kate‌ ‌Cresswell‌ ‌share‌ ‌this‌ ‌excitement‌.  “We‌ ‌met‌ ‌Joe‌ ‌and‌ ‌Anna‌ ‌when‌ ‌we‌ ‌trained‌ ‌together‌ ‌at‌ ‌Mountview and‌ ‌have‌ ‌been‌ ‌visiting‌ ‌York‌ ‌ever‌ ‌since.

“We ‌may‌ ‌not‌ ‌have‌ ‌been‌ ‌born‌ ‌here‌ ‌but‌ ‌we’re ‌honorary‌ ‌citizens; it’s our‌ ‌home‌ ‌from‌ home. Performing‌ ‌at York’s Great Yorkshire Fringe ‌last‌ ‌summer‌ ‌was‌ ‌brilliant,‌ ‌and‌ ‌to‌ ‌be‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌Theatre‌ ‌Royal‌ ‌this‌ ‌year‌ ‌is‌ ‌just‌ ‌next‌ ‌level.” ‌

‌Cosmic‌ ‌Collective‌ ‌Theatre’s cast‌ ‌boast‌s ‌impressive‌ ‌credits. ‌Feeney‌ ‌has‌ ‌returned‌ ‌home from‌ ‌Belgium‌, ‌where‌ ‌he‌ ‌played‌ ‌Captain‌ ‌Stanhope‌ ‌in‌ ‌MESH‌ ‌Theatre’s‌‌ ‌revival‌ ‌of‌ ‌Journey’s‌ ‌End.‌ ‌ 

Soden played ‌Fairy‌ ‌Poppins in this winter’s‌ ‌Liverpool‌ ‌Everyman‌ ‌pantomime, Sleeping‌ ‌Beauty; Roberts‌ ‌can‌ ‌‌be‌ ‌seen in‌ ‌BBC One’s‌ ‌The‌ ‌Tuckers; ‌Cresswell‌ ‌has‌ ‌been‌ ‌treading‌ ‌the‌ London boards‌ ‌in‌ Hansel‌ ‌And‌ ‌Gretel‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌Royal‌ ‌Opera‌ ‌House,‌ ‌Covent‌ ‌Garden.

‌Harrogate tickets are on sale on 01423 502116 or at harrogatetheatre.co.uk; Carriageworks, 0113 376 0318 or carriageworkstheatre.co.uk; York, 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk; Hull, 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk; The Holbeck, slunglow.org/event/heavens-gate/.  ‌

 Please note: Heaven’s Gate ‌contains‌ ‌references‌ ‌to‌ ‌abuse‌ ‌and‌ ‌suicide and has ‌mild swearing.‌ ‌Age recommendation: 15 plus.

What, again, Alan? Yes, Not Again, Alan! tour books third night at York Carrbican

Loud hailer ! Alan Carr announces a third night at York Barbican

WHAT, again, Alan? Tickets have sold so quickly for Alan Carr’s first tour in four years, that Not Again, Alan!, is now, Yes, Again and Again and…Again, Alan, at York Barbican.

Carr, ever-chatty son of former York City footballer Graham Carr, will play three successive Christmas nights in York, newly adding December 17 to December 18 and 19.

Tickets are on sale on 0203 356 5441, at yorkbarbican.co.uk or in person from the Barbican box office.

Since his last comedy travels, chat-show host Carr has “managed to find himself in all sorts of dramas”, apparently. Such as? “Between his star-studded wedding day and becoming an accidental anarchist, from fearing for his life at border control to becoming a reluctant farmer, three words spring to mind…Not again, Alan!” says his tour publicity. “Join Alan on tour as he muses upon the things that make his life weird and wonderful.”

Carr pile-up: Alan Carr to play York Barbican again and again and again

Not Again, Alan! will be Carr’s fourth UK solo show in four-year cycles in the wake of Yap, Yap, Yap’s 200 dates in 2015 and 2016, Spexy Beast in 2011 and Tooth Fairy in 2007. He last brought his chat, chat, chat to York on the Yap, Yap, Yap! itinerary on July 11 2015 at the Barbican.

Later this year, Carr will host Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow on ITV, wherein five all-time favourite game shows will be supersized and reinvigorated for a new audience: Play Your Cards Right, Take Your Pick, Strike It Lucky, Bullseye and The Price Is Right. In 2020 too, Carr will return to the judges’ panel on the second BBC series of RuPaul’s DragRace UK.