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Look who will be playing at York Early Music Festival in July…

Stile Antico: Long-awaited concert at York Early Music Festival 2021. Picture: Marco Borggreve

YORK Early Music Festival 2021 will have the theme of Encounters for its five-day run from July 12 to 16.

Presented by the National Centre of Early Music (NCEM), the annual festival of classical concerts will include a celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Franco-Flemish genius Josquin des Prez. 

“This year’s festival theme is one of encounters, most vitally between audience and artists, which seems particularly pertinent at a time when the festival can welcome audiences back to an array of York’s wonderful historic venues,” says director Delma Tomlin.

“We’re particularly delighted to announce that we’ll be working in partnership with the Flanders-based Alamire Foundation to present one of the highlights of the festival, a long-awaited concert by vocal ensemble Stile Antico.”

Renowned for their vibrant and expressive performances of music from the Renaissance, Stile Antico will perform in the resplendent surroundings of York Minster on July 13.

Rachel Podger: The Violinist Speaks…and plays at St Lawrence Parish Church, York, on July 13. Picture: Theresa Pewal

Among the guest artists for the 2021 event will be: violinist Rachel Podger; lutenist Jacob Heringman; bass Matthew Brook, working with Peter Seymour; the Monteverdi String Band, led by Oliver Webber; a York favourite, harpsichordist Steven Devine, with Robin Bigwood; The Society Of Strange & Ancient Instruments with their “weird and wonderful” Trumpet Marine Project; EEEmerging artists La Vaghezza, specialising in music from the  17th and 18th centuries, and the ever entertaining Ensemble Clement Janequin.

“The NCEM is also delighted to welcome Spanish Baroque ensemble L’Apothéose back to York as part of the Young Artists Showcase,” says Delma. “L’Apothéose last appeared in the city in 2019 when they won the York Early Music International Young Artists Competition and The Friends of York Early Music Festival prize. This year they will be recording a CD with Linn Records, which was part of their prize.”

Established in 1977, York Early Music Festival celebrates York’s myriad medieval churches, guildhalls and historic houses through “historically informed music-making of the highest international standard”. The festival is considered the jewel in the crown of the NCEM’s annual programme, drawing visitors from across the world.

“At last, we are able to welcome audiences back to York in person and we can’t wait!” says Delma. “ This year’s theme of Encounters celebrates the joy of music-making and being back together again to appreciate these glorious sounds together. 

“We can’t wait to throw our doors wide open again,” says York Early Music Festival and NCEM director Delma Tomlin

“For over a year, our home of St Margaret’s Church, in Walmgate, has been missing the energy and excitement that live audiences bring to us and we can’t wait to throw our doors wide open again. We hope you will join us for this five-day celebration of music and friendship in our beautiful city, bringing you world-class music from stunning surroundings.”

The festival concerts will take place in a Covid-secure, comfortable environment.  “All tickets are unreserved and audience members will be seated on arrival within social bubbles,” says Delma. “Each concert will last about an hour without an interval. Covid advice will be updated according to government guidelines.”

York Early Music Festival also will be available online from July 15 to 18. YEMF ’21 Online will include concerts recorded during the festival alongside commissioned highlights, with guests including The Gesualdo Six and The Rose Consort Of Viols.  Full details and tickets will be released on Wednesday, June 16. 

Tickets for the live festival are on sale at ncem.co.uk

Monteverdi String Quartet: Opening concert of the 2021 festival on July 12

YORK EARLY MUSIC FESTIVAL 2021 LISTINGS

Monday, July 12, 1pm, NCEM, St Margaret’s Church, York: Illustrated talk: Oliver Webber, “Un non so che di frizzante: the madrigal as a cauldron of creativity”.

Monday, July 12, 6.30pm and 8.45pm, NCEM: Monteverdi String Band, with soprano Hannah Ely, The Madrigal Re-imagined.

Tuesday, July 13, 1pm, St Lawrence Parish Church, York: Steven Devine & Robin Bigwood, The Bach Circle.

Tuesday, July 13, 7.30pm, York Minster: Stile Antico, Sine Nomine: Josquin des Prez.

The Society Of Strange & Ancient Instruments: Playing NCEM on July 14

Tuesday, July 13, 9.15pm, St Lawrence Parish Church: Rachel Podger violin, The Violinist Speaks.

Wednesday, July 14, 1pm, NCEM: The Society Of Strange & Ancient Instruments, The Trumpet Marine Project.

Wednesday, July 14, 7.30pm, NCEM: La Vaghezza, Sculpting The Fabric.

Wednesday, July 14, 9.30pm, Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, York: Jacob Heringman, lute, Inviolata: Josquin des Prez.  

Jacob Heringham: Playing Merchant Adventurers Hall on July 14. Picture: Guy Carpenter

Thursday, July 15, 11am, NCEM: Illustrated talk: John Bryan, Josquin des Prez: the first of the “great composers”?

Thursday, July 15, 1pm, Matthew Brook & Peter Seymour, Amore Traditore – Cantatas for bass and harpsichord.

Thursday, July 15, NCEM, 6.30pm and 8.45pm: Ensemble Clement Janequin,  Mille Regretz: Josquin des Prez.

Friday July 16, 1pm, NCEM: L’Apothéose, The Family Stamitz.

L’Apothéose: Closing concert of York Early Music Festival 2021
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Boy George heads for coast as Culture Club confirm Scarborough Open Air Theatre gig

Clubbing together: Culture Club founder members Boy George, Roy Hay and Mikey Craig will perform at Scarborough Open Air Theatre this summer

BOY George and Culture Club are off to the Yorkshire seaside to play Scarborough Open Air Theatre on August 14.

Bexleyheath-born frontman and fashion innovator George O’Dowd, who turns 60 on June 14, will perform alongside original band members Roy Hay and Mikey Craig in a “stunning live band”.

Tickets go on sale for the 8,000-capacity show via scarboroughopenairtheatre.com on Friday (21/5/2021) at 9am.

Since their inception in 1981, Culture Club have sold more than 150 million records worldwide, clocking up such hits as Do You Really Want To Hurt Me, fellow chart topper Karma Chameleon, I’ll Tumble 4 Ya, Time (Clock Of The Heart), Church Of The Poison Mind, Victims, It’s A Miracle, The War Song, Move Away and I Just Wanna Be Loved.

Poster Boy: Boy George fronts the artwork for Culture Club’s August 14 concert at Scarborough Open Air Theatre

In 1984, Culture Club picked up the Grammy Award for Best New Artists and the BRIT Awards for Best British Group and Best British Single.

Boy George’s New Romantic luminaries became the first group since The Beatles to have three top ten hits in the United States from a debut album (1982’s Kissing To Be Clever).

Scarborough Open Air Theatre (OAT) venue programmer Peter Taylor, of promoters Cuffe & Taylor, says: “I’ve wanted to bring Boy George and Culture Club to Scarborough OAT for some time, so I’m delighted we’ve been able to make this happen for this summer.

“George remains one of the most colourful and iconic pop stars in British history, a true music star around the world. Culture Club’s live shows are a true spectacle and this is going to be a really special night.”

For full details of Scarborough OAT’s summer season, go to scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

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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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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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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…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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Martin Simpson and The Dunwells to enter twilight zone for Primrose Wood Acoustics. Katie Spencer and Rachel Croft to support

Martin Simpson: Headlining Primrose Wood Acoustics in Pocklington on July 1. Picture: Geoff Trinder

POCKLINGTON Arts Centre will go down in the woods on July 1 and 8 to present Primrose Wood Acoustics, two outdoor concerts at twilight in a beautiful Pocklington sylvian setting.

Virtuoso Scunthorpe-born guitarist and singer-songwriter Martin Simpson will headline the first 7pm event at Primrose Wood, supported by Yorkshire singer-songwriter Katie Spencer.

A week later, the second twilight session will feature Leeds indie-folk/Americana band The Dunwells and opening act Rachel Croft, the York singer-songwriter.

The acoustic concerts are being staged by Pocklington Arts Centre (PAC) after a series of online events and outdoor exhibitions by York artists Karen Winship and Sue Clayton held during the pandemic. 

Primrose Wood Acoustics not only will mark the first time PAC has taken concerts into the outdoors – giving audiences a chance to experience live music within a unique and Covid-secure setting – but also will be the first concerts to be hosted by the East Yorkshire venue since the first lockdown last March. 

Katie Spencer: Deeply personal songs of nostalgia, loss and love. Picture: Tom Arran

PAC director Janet Farmer says: “During the pandemic, we’ve been doing a lot of walking in the Pocklington area including Primrose Wood. With its natural clearings and proximity to the town centre, we immediately thought it would provide the perfect outdoor stage with a difference, so the idea of Primrose Wood Acoustics was born. 

“As we prepare to re-open the venue, we’re very much looking forward to being able to bring some truly unique events to our audiences. This is going to be something quite special.”

Martin Simpson travels the length and breadth of Britain and beyond to give intimate solo performances full of passion, sorrow, love, beauty, tragedy and majestic fingerstyle guitar playing.

Simpson, 68, who recorded his first album, Golden Vanity, in 1976, is equally at home playing English traditional folk, American folk and blues and his own compositions on acoustic and slide guitar and banjo to boot.

Support act Katie Spencer writes songs imbued with the northern landscapes of her Yorkshire home and the warmth and idealism of the early 1970s’ folk and songwriter movements. Originally from Hull, she draws on the grainy imagery of the industrial docks and sea-fronts in her deeply personal songs of nostalgia, loss and love. 

The boys Dunwell: Brothers Joseph and David of Leeds band The Dunwells

The Dunwells, formed by brothers Joseph and David Dunwell in Leeds in 2009, combine heartfelt lyrics with American-influenced indie-folk song structures, as heard on their 2012 debut album, Blind Sighted Faith, and six subsequent albums and EPs.

The Dunwells have performed at both PAC and Platform Festival, at Pocklington’s Old Station, and have toured the United States extensively, not least appearing at SXSW music festival in Austin, Texas. They last released a studio album, Something In The Water, in September 2019, followed by the live recording Live At Aire Street last December.

Support act Rachel Croft’s song-writing is cinematic, moody and classic, wherein atmospheric backdrops frame her vocals as she blends folk, rock and soul styles.

Rachel’s new EP, Reap What You Sow, will drop this summer, exploring a more potent, bluesy style.

Concertgoers can access the location from both main entrances to Primrose Wood via Burnby Lane and The Balk, with the concerts being staged close to the Burnby Lane (YO42 2QB) entrance.

Tickets cost £15 for July 1 and £12.50 for July 8 at pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

Rachel Croft: Exploring a “more potent, bluesy style” on her summer EP. Picture: Amy D’Agorne

CharlesHutchPress puts questions to York singer-songwriter Rachel Croft as she prepares for the twilight hour in Primrose Wood.

Where and when did you last play a gig?

“The last real gig was at Highfield House in Driffield, back in October 2020 – a lone event I was lucky enough to share with Blair Dunlop and Gary Stewart. Before that, I think it was last March, sharing the night with Joe Shepard at the NCEM in York.” 

Have you played in woodland previously? 

“I haven’t played a gig as such in a woodland but I’ve recorded and performed in a few woodlands for music videos. Really atmospheric! 

“Only Dreams had woodland in it, and the new video for Reap What You Sow, directed by James Buck, will have a part shot in woodland too.”

What do you feel about playing at the twilight hour: a magical time of day or a harbinger of the dark night to come?!

“Playing outdoors in the twilight hour sounds just right for some of my songs. I like to write atmospheric music, and I think this will be the perfect setting to finally share them with people!

“I think sunset can be a nostalgic time in a way, thinking about the day that’s done and the start of night. Certainly, it could add to the moodiness of some of my songs too.” 

“Playing outdoors in the twilight hour sounds just right for some of my songs,” says Rachel. Picture: Amy D’Agorne

You have a new EP on the way, Reap What You Sow. When and how will you release it?

“The EP is due this summer. I’ll stagger a single and then the rest of the songs later on in the season, along with videos and live performances hopefully. We’re still finishing them, so once we have them completed, I can set a date and get cracking. I’m really excited to share these songs; they’re my best work so far. Stay tuned!” 

Where and when was the EP recorded?

“It was recorded here in York, at Young Thugs Studios [in South Bank Social Club, Ovington Terrace], and has been ongoing for probably six months now, what with so much uncertainty and all my usual funding methods gone, which made things interesting!

“All the musicians on the tracks are from around here and I’m really lucky to know so many talented people.” 

What are the song titles and themes and were any influenced by pandemic times?

“I’m keeping the song titles on the down-low for now, except Reap What You Sow, the title track and first single. There are five songs, though, and as a collection they represent a storm, sort of. The build-up, the energy, the wreckage left behind, and then the rebuild, leaving it behind. 

“All the songs are from the lockdown, and I think they helped me to release a lot of pent-up frustration and emotion. I’ve never felt that, until this point, I’ve really released anything that shows the most of me, not just one side.

“It feels really liberating; I’ve always loved music like this but never before felt like I could be that artist. And then, well, it was the pandemic, so I thought I might as well have a go.”

“I’ve also started using my lower voice more in the songs, which I think really suits this change of sound,” says Rachel

The EP will “explore a more potent, bluesy style”: how will that manifest itself and what has drawn you to the blues?

“The bluesy style is mainly in two of the songs, where I was playing with some different chord variations and was influenced a lot by cinema, film music, and the jazz music I play with the Croft Mullen Band here in York [in a residency at The Phoenix Inn, George Street], alongside writing my own music.

“It’s been really nice to bridge that gap between styles. It’s got a lot of electric sounds in it too, but I love the vintage Nancy Sinatra feel of parts of the songs, how that weirdly works with quite fierce guitars at points.

“I’ve also started using my lower voice more in the songs, which I think really suits this change of sound. I can’t wait for everyone to hear it.”

What have you discovered about yourself in lockdown?

“I have learned that by having all the joyful distraction taken away, I can be more productive with song-writing. I can choose to sit down, and write, if I try. I never thought I could do that before lockdown. It’s been a great time for my music; I’ve never written so much, but maybe that’s because music seems to come easiest when you’re not totally happy.” 

What else is in the diary for you for 2021? Hopefully more shows?

“I’ll be playing at Wickham Festival [Hampshire], Lindisfarne Festival [Northumberland], Northern Kin Festival [Stanhope, Bishop Auckland] and Beverley Fringe, all going well, and I’ve got a few concerts booked here in York and further afield that I’m looking forward to announcing to my socials soon! I’m just happy to get to play to real actual humans again!” 

NEWS JUST IN: 14/5/2021

RACHEL Croft will open series two of the acoustic Songs Under Skies concerts in a double bill with Wounded Bear in the National Centre for Early Music gardens at St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate, York, on June 1. Gates, 6.30pm; socially distanced concert, 7pm to 8.30pm. Box office: tickets.ncem.co.uk.

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Mission Impossible! Velma Celli finds new wonderbar home for York drag residency

“It’s happening!” says Velma Celli as York cabaret star moves residency to Impossible, York, from May 21. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick, Kirkpatrick Photography

YORK’S drag diva deluxe Velma Celli is on the move.

Out goes the Covid-suspended monthly camp cabaret Friday nights at The Basement, City Screen, York.

In comes a resplendent residency from May 21 at Impossible, York, Tokyo Industries’ new tea-room, cocktail bar, restaurant and speakeasy enterprise in the old Terry’s café in St Helen’s Café, latterly home to Carluccio’s restaurant.

“It’s happening!” says an excited Velma Celli, the exotic international drag alter-ego of musical actor Ian Stroughair, last seen on a York stage in December as the villainous Fleshius Creepius in York Stage’s debut pantomime, Jack And The Beanstalk, at Theatre @41, Monkgate.

How the other half lives: Exit alter-ego Velma Celli, enter Ian Stroughair, musical actor, playing Fleshius Creepius in York Stage’s pantomime Jack And The Beanstalk last winter. Picture: Kirkpatrick Photography

“Velma has a new residency!! My very first live gig at the utterly fabulous Impossible, York. May 21st.  Doors 7pm. Show 8pm! My very special guest is [York soul sister] Jessica Steel (obvs). More special West End guests to be announced! Grab those tickets as it will sell out!”

Tickets are on sale at https://www.ticketweb.uk/event/the-velma-celli-show-impossible-york-tickets/10900325, priced at £22 for VIP front cabaret table seats and £16.50 for reserved seating.

“Basically, it’s replacing the shows at The Basement, where we don’t know when it will reopen for shows under Covid guidance as it’s a small space,” says Ian, as he switches from the impossible to Impossible, York.

The debut poster for Velma Celli’s new residency

“I met the Impossible general manager, Stephanie [Powell], in December, meeting her between Jack And The Beanstalk shows, and then suddenly she knocked on the window saying, ‘I’ve been trying to contact you!’.

“And so the first Velma Celli Show there will be on May 21, up the stairs, in the fabulous Impossible Wonderbar setting overlooking the square, with more monthly shows to be announced later. This one will be fun, comedic, with stand-up, impressions, the usual mix of rock, pop and the blues, plus Jess and guests.”

The Velma Celli Show residency will not be Velma’s only gig in the first-floor Impossible Wonderbar. “On June 5, we’ll be holding the first Drag Brunch, with Velma, surprise guest drag queens, bottomless cocktails and brunch,” says Ian, looking forward to hosting the “ultimate diva brunch in homage to all the queens”, from Whitney to Tina Turner plus many more besides.

Brunch date: Velma Celli will be joined by guest drag queens at Impossible, York, on June 5

That day, there will be two 90-minute sittings, the first from 12 noon, the second from 2.30pm. Tickets June 5 are on sale via info@impossibleyork.com or on 01904 864410.

After being London based for so long – like so many musical performers – Ian first moved back to York for Lockdown 1 when the pandemic sent him home from a Velma Celli Australian tour, and he plans to settle back in his home city permanently from May, travelling to London for three days a week when necessary.

Streamed concerts, first from a Bishopthorpe kitchen and latterly from a riverside abode by the Ouse Bridge, have kept Velma Celli’s voice in spectacular working order, sometimes accompanied by soul-singing York hairdresser Jessica Steel, leading light of Big Ian Donaghy’s fundraising A Night To Remember shows at York Barbican and salon owner of Rock The Barnet in Boroughbridge Road.

West End star Ian has appeared in such musicals as Cats, Fame, Chicago and Rent – not forgetting a sassy cameo for Velma Celli on EastEnders – but had to forego a long run in Funny Girls in Blackpool last year, thwarted by Killjoy Covid.

Ian Stroughair: Musical actor, drag queen , pantomime star

The pandemic strictures put paid to his international travels too, but already he has had two Covid-19 vaccine jabs to enable Ian to plan a week’s travel to Mexico for a Velma Celli show in Cancun.

“Thank god for that because the next cruise is not until October. I lost all the cruise-ship shows last year, and I’d already lost five cruise bookings this year, when in one day I lost three more cruise bookings,” he reveals.

In the diary too is Velma Celli’s participation in The Love Season at York Theatre Royal, performing one of Velma’s regular cabaret shows, re-titled Love Is Love: A Brief Of History Of Drag specially for the May 29 occasion.

Joining Velma that night will be two guest acts, Jordan Fox, Ian’s co-star in Jack And The Beanstalk, and Jessica Steel, backing singers Kimberley Ensor and Grace Lancaster, musical director Ben Papworth, drummer Clark Howard and guitarist Al Morrison.

“I last performed there in Kes, when I was 14, exactly 24 years ago, and sadly I’ve never been back,” says Ian. “I’ve tried to do shows there but it’s never happened, so it’s great to be back now. I love what Tom [chief executive Tom Bird] is doing there.”

When the ships are down: As it stands, Velma Celli will not do a cruise gig until October

Ian has taken A Brief History Of Drag to New York and Australia and on a British tour, as well as staging performances in London and York. “I’ve been doing it for four years now on and off, and I’m so glad the Theatre Royal wants the show,” he says.

“I wrote it when I was stuck in Africa for a few weeks. I thought, ‘let’s write a show’ and it ended up being about how I got into drag and a celebration of the impact of drag in theatre, music, film and popular culture.”

Yet for all the flamboyance of the imposingly tall Velma Celli, for all of Ian’s love of performing, he has a surprising admission to make: “I don’t like fame and celebrity,” he says. “I repel it!”

Tickets for Velma Celli’s 8pm show on May 29 at York Theatre Royal are on sale at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568. For the latest Velma Celli trailer, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a005o6eGZWI. Hit it!

Love is the drag: Velma Celli’s celebration of the art of the drag queen