Category: Music

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More Things To Do in and around York when Wrong is the right choice. Magical List No.79, courtesy of The Press, York

Mind games: Beverley actor Rory Fairbairn as the Mind Mangler in Magic Goes Wrong, on tour at York Theatre Royal from Tuesday

MAGIC is on the cards in the week ahead, and you can’t wrong if you follow Charles Hutchinson’s tips for what else to do and see.

Mayhem in April: Mischief in Magic Goes Wrong, York Theatre Royal, Tuesday to Sunday, 7.30pm (except Sunday); 2pm, Thursday and Sunday, 2.30pm, Saturday

MASTERS of catastrophic comedy Mischief team up with deconstructionist American magicians Penn & Teller for Magic Goes Wrong, their most daring calamitous show yet.

When a hapless gang of magicians strive to stage an evening of grand illusion to raise cash for charity, magic turns to mayhem, accidents spiral out of control and so does their fundraising target. Penn & Teller will not be appearing on stage. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Kristin Hersh: Fronting her Electric Trio at The Crescent

Cult gig of the week: Kristin Hersh Electric Trio, The Crescent, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm

BOSTON songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and author Kristin Hersh, leader of indie rock band Throwing Muses and noise rock power trio 50 Foot Wave, is on the road with her hard-hitting super-group.

Joining Hersh, 55, will be 50 Foot Wave drummer Rob Ahlers and Throwing Muses bassist Fred Abong, who opens the night playing solo, promoting his Yellow Throat album. Expect Throwing Muses’s 2020 album, Sun Racket, to feature alongside material spanning Hersh’s 30-year career. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.

Improvising a musical: Showstoppers Ruth Bratt, left, Lauren Shearing and Pippa Evans with Duncan Walsh Atkins, on keys, and Chris Ash on reeds. Picture: Alex Harvey-Brown

Anything could happen: Showstopper! The Improvised Musical, York Theatre Royal, tonight, 7.30pm

OLIVIER Award winners Showstopper! return to York with…well, you decide! At each show, a new musical comedy is created from scratch as audience suggestions are transformed on the spot into an all-singing, all-dancing production.

From Hamilton in a hospital to Sondheim in the Sahara, you suggest it and The Showstoppers will sing it. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Blues power: Guitarist Joanne Shaw Taylor returns to York Barbican

Blues gig of the week: Joanne Shaw Taylor, York Barbican, Sunday, 7.30pm

WEST Midlands blues guitarist and singer-songwriter Joanne Shaw Taylor plays York as one of five British dates this month, performing songs from 2021’s The Blues Album.

That album showcased covers of 11 rare blues classics first recorded by Albert King, Peter Green, Little Richard, Magic Sam, Aretha Franklin and Little Milton. Expect selections from her albums Reckless Heart, Wild, The Dirty Truth, Almost Always Never, Diamonds In The Dirt and White Sugar too. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Gabrielle Sargent: Soprano soloist for York Guildhall Orchestra’s St George’s Day concert

Celebration of the week: York Guildhall Orchestra’s St George’s Day Concert, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Sunday, 7.30pm

YORK Guildhall Orchestra make their JoRo debut under the baton of conductor Simon Wright, who turns the spotlight on English composers in an Anglophile programme of light music to mark St George’s Day.

“Come down for a springtime evening of joyful music and not a dragon in sight,” says Wright, who will be combining favourite pieces with lesser-known gems. Sullivan, Elgar and Handel feature; so do Strachy’s Party Mood (from Housewives’ Choice), Wood’s Barwick Green (The Archers) and Coates’s By The Sleepy Lagoon (Desert Island Discs). Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

One giant leap for Lee Harris’s Mr Toad during rehearsals for NE Musicals York’s York premiere of The Wind In The Willows The Musical

Family musical of the week: NE Musicals York in The Wind In The Willows The Musical, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, April 27 to May 1, 7.30pm; 2.30pm matinees, Saturday, Sunday

NE Musicals York transform the JoRo theatre into a riverbank and wildwood for director and designer Steve Tearle’s York premiere of Julian Fellowes’ stage adaptation of Kenneth Grahame’s story with a score by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe.

Join Ratty (Finlay Butler), Mole (Jack Hambleton), Badger (Tom Henshaw) and the impulsive Mr Toad (Lee Harris), whose insatiable need for speed lands him in serious bother. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Horse Chestnut Leaves, a watercolour by Selby artist Lynda Heaton, from her Village Gallery exhibition in York

Exhibition launch of the week: Lynda Heaton, Expressions In Watercolour, Village Gallery, Colliergate, York, Tuesday to June 4

SINCE retiring, Selby artist Lynda Heaton has spent much of her time painting in her home studio. “I’m passionate about watercolour painting and love the way the colours mingle and move across the paper, sometimes giving surprising effects,” she says.

“My works come from my imagination or from memories of somewhere I’ve been and the mood of that place.” Other pieces are inspired by the natural world, the colours, textures and rhythms found in nature.

Diversity performing Connected in their April 4 performance at York Barbican. Picture: Sarah Hollis

Quick return of the week: Diversity: Connected, York Barbican, Wednesday, 7.45pm

HOT on the heels of their April 4 visit, London street dancers Diversity return to York Barbican due to public demand as part of their 79-show 2022 tour.

In a show created by choreographer Ashley Banjo, the 2009 Britain’s Got Talent winners will be building their routines around the internet, social media, the digital era and how it connects us all. Their Black Lives Matter-inspired dance, premiered on Britain’s Got Talent to a flood of complaints to Ofcom in September 2020, definitely features. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

This woman’s re-work: Sarah-Louise Young in An Evening Without Kate Bush at Theatre@41

An Evening Without Kate Bush but with Sarah-Louise Young, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York,  Thursday, 7.30pm

THE “chaotic cabaret cult”, An Evening Without Kate Bush”, finds Cabaret Whore, The Showstoppers, La Soiree performer Sarah-Louise Young teaming up theatre maker Russell Lucas to explore the music and mythology of one of the most influential voices in British music.

Kate’s not there, but you are, for a show that is as much about fandom as Bush’s songs and wider cultural impact. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

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NE Musicals York’s biggest cast heads to the wild wood for The Wind In The Willows

Lee Harris’s Mr Toad leaps in the air during a rehearsal for NE Musicals York’s The Wind In The Willows The Musical

NE Musicals York take over the Joseph Rowntree Theatre from Sunday to transform the theatre into a riverbank and wild wood for the York premiere of The Wind In The Willows The Musical.

Director Steve Tearle has created the design for the April 27 to May 1 run of the hit book adaptation by Julian Fellowes, the Oscar-winning screenwriter and creator of Downton Abbey, with songs by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, the Olivier award-winning lyricist-and-composer partnership.

Rehearsals are into the final week for Tearle’s staging of Kenneth Grahame’s story of Ratty, Mole, Badger and the impulsive Mr Toad, whose insatiable need for speed lands him in serious bother.

NE Musicals York in an early publicity shot for their York premiere of Wind In The Willows The Musical

When his beloved home comes under threat from the notorious Chief Weasel and his gang of sinister Wild Wooders, Mr Toad must attempt a daring escape, leading to a series of misadventures and a heroic battle to recapture Toad Hall.

“This family musical packed with thrills, comedy and a massive heart is racing into York for the very first time with exuberant choreography by Ellie Roberts and a beautiful, exciting British score brought to life by musical director Sam Johnson,” says Steve. “Look out for the costumes: they’ve been created by NE Musicals too.”

Tearle’s largest-ever cast is led by Lee Harris as Mr Toad, Finlay Butler as Ratty, Tom Henshaw as Badger and Jack Hambleton as Mole. Sam Richardson plays Chief Weasel; Tearle himself will be Kenneth Grahame and the Magistrate.

Tickets for the 7.30pm evening shows and 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees are on sale on 01904 501935 or at josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Director Steve Tearle (centre, back, by a pillar, in a hat) watches Lee Harris, front, and company members in a rehearsal for NE Musicals’ premiere
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York Stage bring out the buns for city premiere of Calendar Girls The Musical

“We’re going to need considerably bigger buns”: York Stage’s promotional picture for Bun

THE true story of the Calendar Girls from Rylstone Women’s Institute has transferred from print to stage to screen.

Best of all is its latest conversion to a musical by composer Gary Barlow and writer and lyricist Tim Firth, two sons of a Wirral village who met as teenagers before Take That and Neville’s Island respectively shaped their career paths.

Premiered at Leeds Grand Theatre in December 2015 under the title of The Girls, the show returns to Yorkshire from tomorrow (22/4/2022) for its York premiere, now restored to the Calendar Girls moniker that leaves no room for confusion.

Calendar Girls: The Musical will be staged by York Stage under the direction of company founder, producer and artistic director Nik Briggs. “I don’t honestly remember when we applied, but it must be over a year we’ve had the performing rights, I think,” he says. 

Jo Theaker and Mick Liversidge in rehearsal for York Stage’s Calendar Girls The Musical. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick

“It’s a very popular show, so companies across the country have been scheduling productions. It’s such a beautiful story that’s based on real life, so it’s a joy to explore and work on.”

That story, should you have been hiding behind sunflowers all these years, revolves around the death of a much-loved husband prompting members of a Yorkshire dales village Women’s Institute “to do things a little differently”, stripping off decoratively for their annual fundraising calendar, blissfully unaware their daring behaviour would trigger such an impact locally, nationally, even internationally.

“The story of the ‘Calendar Girls’ has always inspired me,” says Nik. “Being the only boy on my mum’s side of the family, I’ve grown up surrounded by strong women and have always enjoyed being in the rehearsal room with actresses, creating work that celebrates them and puts their stories front centre.”  

For Calendar Girls, he is doing so with a cast fronted by Jo Theaker (as Annie); Julieann Smith (Chris); Rosy Rowley (Cora); Tracey Rea (Celia), Sandy Nicholson (Jessie) and Juliet Waters (Ruth), alongside Mick Liversidge (John) and Andy Stone (Rod).

Here come the Girls: York Stage’s ‘Calendar Girls’ pose for a snap in the rehearsal room as Rosy Rowley points the phone camera. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick

Nik did not make it to the Leeds Grand premiere. “I actually missed it in Leeds and the West End, so I’ve not seen it before,” he says. “I was especially gutted to miss it as the original cast included York Stage’s very own Josh Benson, but work and travel commitments just kept getting in the way when it was on! That’s the one bad thing about working in theatre; you miss a lot of shows!”

Nevertheless, Nik’s York Stage work since 2014 has given York debuts to West End and Broadway hits aplenty, and he is delighted to be adding Calendar Girls to that list. “Gary Barlow and Tim Firth have created a stunning score,” he says.

“It’s filled with pop ballads as you’d expect, but they’ve also created rousing Yorkshire anthems and jazzy big band show pieces too. Their ability to tell a story through song is really beautiful. They keep things simple and allow the emotion and acting to speak volumes.

“They’ve made a show with storytelling at its heart: there’s no big choreography or special effects, just an extraordinary story about a group of ordinary women that goes from heart-warming to heart-wrenching in an instant.”

“Having Yorkshire actors playing these roles in a theatre in York creates a real gravitas to the story,” says York Stage producer and director Nik Briggs

Calendar Girls wholly suits the musical format, Nik asserts. “It’s famously said, in musical theatre, ‘when it’s not enough to say it, you sing it’! The loss of a loved one creates some of the biggest emotions in a person, so it’s an ideal story to tell through the medium of musical theatre.

“The story is timeless too. Loss, grief and what huge life experiences like that can do to a person never changes, so audiences of all generations can relate to it.”

Nik, who is joined in the production team by musical director Jessica Douglas, has designed the set too. “It’s really evocative of Yorkshire and allows the production to move quickly and with pace, as intended,” he says.

The obligatory sunflowers will be omnipresent, but does Nik like this over-the-top flower? “I do. Who can say they don’t smile when they see one?! There must be close to 500 in this production, so it’s a good job I like them,” he says.

“The colour scheme of the marketing and the sunflowers connection to the story unintentionally now also evokes strong emotions, with the awful conflict we’re seeing in Ukraine, as the colours and flower are both national symbols of the country.”

Sandy Nicholson, left, Tracey Rea and Jo Theaker rehearsing Calendar Girls The Musical. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick

Staging a Yorkshire story on home soil definitely has an impact on its telling, posits Nik. “Having Yorkshire actors playing these roles in a theatre in York creates a real gravitas to the story. It could work anywhere, but it’s just a bit more special done here as it’s a proper Yorkshire tale,” he says. 

“As a native Geordie, who has now lived ‘down south’ here in Yorkshire for nearly half of my life, I still find myself blown away by the beauty of the region. Whether I’m out in the Yorkshire countryside with the green hills and dry-stone walls, in the middle of a quaint village with babbling streams and chocolate-box houses, or in the beautiful towns and cities with their impressive, intricate architecture, I can’t help but be awestruck by the charm that surrounds me.”

Coming next for York Stage will be their York Theatre Royal debut in Little Shop Of Horrors from July 14 to 23, followed by Kinky Boots at the Grand Opera House from September 16 to 24.

“We’ll end the year with our annual youth show at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre,” says Nik. “This year it’ll be Bring It On by Lin Manuel Miranda, so that’ll be very popular with the teens who all love Encanto and Hamilton!”

York Stage in Calendar Girls: The Musical, Grand Opera House, York, April 22 to 30.  Box office: 0844 871 7615 or at atgtickets.com/York.

Copyright of The Press, York

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Sam Carter finds himself in Home Waters on solo tour at Black Swan Folk Club tonight

Sam Carter: Performing solo at Black Swan Folk Club tonight

BBC Folk Award winner Sam Carter plays the Black Swan Folk Club, Peasholme Green, York, tonight on his Home Waters spring tour.

Rutland-born, narrative-driven songwriter Carter has been called the “finest English-style fingerpicking guitarist of his generation” by fellow folkie Jon Boden.

Over 15 years, he has toured the world, appeared on Later…with Jools Holland in 2012 and recorded and performed with folk luminaries Richard Thompson, Eliza Carthy, Martin Simpson and Nancy Kerr.

Now based in Sheffield, Carter released Home Waters on his own Captain Records label in May 2020, having earlier made the albums How The City Sings (2016), The No Testament (2012) and Keepsakes (2009) and two EPs, Live At The Union Chapel and his 2008 debut, Here In The Ground.

Sam Carter with the album artwork for Home Waters

When Carter envisioned Home Waters as “a search for a sense of belonging and stability in unfamiliar territory”, he could not have known how prescient that would turn out to be.

Recorded pre-pandemic in a converted church in rural Northumberland by producer and multi-instrumentalist Ian Stephenson, Carter’s live acoustic guitar and vocals sit at the heart of the recordings.

Many of his performances were left unadorned, while Stephenson’s cinematic string arrangements created rich emotional landscapes on other numbers.

Carter embarked on the first leg of the Home Waters tour last autumn, accompanied by the specially assembled Home Waters String Quartet. The tour coincided with the release of the album Home Waters Live and the premiere of Carter’s accompanying lockdown concert film, Home Waters In Concert. For the tour’s spring second leg, he is in solo mode.

Doors open tonight (21/4/2022) at 7.45pm; tickets cost £12.10 on 01904 658338 or on the door.

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Kinks Kovered! Two Big Egos In A Small Car podcasters interview author Martin Hutchinson in Episode 86

The cover artwork for Martin Hutchinson’s On Track…The Kinks Every Album, Every Song, published by Burning Shed Books

ON Track…The Kinks Every Album, Every Song is the labour-of-love deep dive from music journalist, comedy writer and TV quizzer Martin Hutchinson.

In Episode 86 of Two Big Egos In A Small Car, culture podcasters Graham Chalmers and Charles Hutchinson [no relation] interview Martin about why he chose The Kinks for his debut book and what research he undertook.

Graham and Martin then discuss why The Kinks and Ray Davies stood out, assessing their standing in rock history and why they were never rated as an albums band at their Sixties and Seventies’ peak.

Martin reveals his favourite Kinks songs and albums and speculates whether Ray and brother Dave will ever make up and tour again.

To listen, here is the link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1187561/10431451

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CBeebies’ favourite Justin Fletcher promises fantastic family fun in The BIG Tour show at York Theatre Royal

CBEEBIES superstar and children’s favourite Justin Fletcher presents an all-singing, all-dancing spectacular extravaganza in Justin Live! The BIG Tour at York Theatre Royal on Thursday and Friday.

Over 20 years, Justin has become a TV institution, piling up BAFTA award-winning appearances on Something Special, Justin’s House, Jollywobbles, Gigglebiz and Gigglequiz, as well as providing character voices for Tweenies, Boo, Toddworld and Shaun The Sheep, latterly voicing Shaun in the Aardman movie Farmageddon. 

Tickets for his 11am and 2.30pm performances, presented by Imagine Theatre, are on sale on 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Here Justin discusses his new live show and his inspirations with CharlesHutchPress.

What inspired you to make your first step into children’s entertainment?

“As a child, I used to watch Playschool with Johnny Ball, Derek Griffiths and Floella Benjamin and loved acting out the stories. During my three-year course at drama school, I was inspired by Philip Schofield and Chris Jarvis in the CBBC Broom Cupboard and thought I’d like to perform in some family theatre and television.

“I put a show reel together and managed to secure an audition for the theatre tour of Playdays, which was the show that took over from Playschool, and I landed the part of Mr Jolly. That was the very first part I played, which started my career in family entertainment.”

Who was your inspiration when growing up?

“I was very much inspired by the comedy duo Laurel and Hardy. I used to watch their slapstick routines over and over again. They had such an amazing chemistry between them.”

How has the world of family entertainment changed over the years and have you had to adapt your approach?

“The choice of family entertainment on television is now huge, whereas when I was a child there was a very limited number of programmes available to watch. However, having a good, strong, story-based script and engaging characters is still the key to having a successful programme.”

Although best known for your TV shows, you have produced and performed in plenty of theatre shows too. How important is live theatre for children and what do you enjoy most when playing to a theatre full of young people?

“Creating many family theatre productions over the last two decades has been incredibly important to me and hugely enjoyable. There’s nothing like performing on stage and meeting the families that support you and your television shows.

“Children’s theatre is so important, as it’s quite often their first live show experience. We’re hoping to inspire the next generation of theatregoers.”

Justin Fletcher’s map of destinations for The Big Tour

What do you enjoy about touring a live show?

“We have an amazing production team who work extremely hard to prepare the show before it goes out on the road. We’re like one big family. From the performers to the lighting and sound operators, the catering team, and the backstage crew, we’re all working together to put on the production. 

“We also support each other whilst out on the road, which is really important when you’re away from home for fairly long periods of time. Touring provides a fantastic opportunity to experience so many different towns and theatres across the country and to meet so many new friends along the way.”

How did you start the creative process for writing Justin Live! The BIG Tour show and what inspired you?

“It always starts with a storyline. Once you have that in place, I think about the music content. Music is a vital element of all my shows, and I try to write some original songs myself, as well as featuring some of the much-loved traditional songs too.”

The BIG Tour will be full of slapstick. Why is this form of comedy timeless?

“Slapstick comedy has such wide appeal. It’s great when children and their families laugh out loud watching comedy routines by performers like Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. It’s a timeless format and you can’t beat the sound of belly laughter coming from the audience from children and adults alike.”

What interactive fun and games can audiences expect in the BIG Tour show?

“When children and their families come to see my shows, I don’t try to create a show that is simply to be watched, I create a show that they can be a part of. I love audience participation and almost every song we do is interactive and we always end with a big party that everyone can join in with.”

What are your favourite songs in the show?

“I love the action songs that we usually start the shows with. You can’t beat seeing the audience join in with classic songs such as Head, Shoulders, Knees And Toes, If You’re Happy And You Know It and The Hokey Cokey.

“Then, in a heartbeat, we can fill the auditorium with magical stars and all join in singing and signing Twinkle Twinkle. That’s the beauty of live theatre, you never quite know what’s coming next!”

Why should people come to Justin Live! The BIG Tour?

“It’s been a very long time since we’ve been able to tour. I can’t wait to get out on the road and to meet all of our friends once again.”

How would you sum up the show in three words?

“Fantastic family fun!”

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a-ha, Christina Aguilera and Sam Fender to play Scarborough Open Air Theatre

The sun always shines on a-ha in Scarborough in July

NORWEGIAN synth-pop trio a-ha will head to the East Coast on their 2022 World Tour to play Scarborough Open Air Theatre on July 3.

Forty years since forming in Oslo, vocalist Morten Harket, guitarist Pal Waaktaar-Savoy and keyboardist Magne Furuholmen will be playing Europe, the United States and South America in 2022.

a-ha made their breakthrough in 1985 with the chart-topping Take On Me and The Sun Always Shines On TV from debut album Hunting High And Low, since when they have released ten studio and two live albums, plus an MTV Unplugged album. Take On Me has been viewed 1.4 billion times on YouTube and repeatedly voted into MTV fans’ Top Ten Best Music Videos of all time.

a-ha The Documentary, a film that follows the Scandinavians over four years, will be released in British cinemas on May 27 to coincide with their series of UK arena shows.

a-ha: New album in October

The documentary charts a-ha’s rise to the peak of their popularity, portraying the challenging creative and personal dynamics of three strong individuals who achieved their dreams.

After their world tour, a-ha will not be taking time out. Instead, in October, they will release True North, their first collection of new songs since 2015’s I on their debut for Sony Music/RCA.

True North will be not only an album, but a film too, capturing a-ha while recording the songs over two early November 2021 days in Bodø, the Norwegian city located 25km inside the Arctic Circle, in a project completed with the Norwegian Arctic Philharmonic.

Venue programmer and promoter Peter Taylor, of Cuffe and Taylor, says: “a-ha are true pop pioneers, visionaries and one of the most loved bands of the last 40 years.

“Their 2022 tour sees them headline many huge venues, including the Hollywood Bowl, so we’re delighted to be bringing them to the UK’s very own iconic open-air arena, right here on the beautiful Yorkshire coast.”

Christina Aguilera: Follows Britney and Kylie in playing Scarborough Open Air Theatre

AMERICAN singer, songwriter, producer and entrepreneur Christina Aguilera, 41, will play Scarbrough OAT on August 2 as one of three UK shows this summer, with Liverpool and London to follow on August 3 and 5.

Promoter Peter Taylor says: “Christina Aguilera is a music superstar and true global icon and we’re absolutely thrilled she is coming to Scarborough this summer.

“Christina is only playing a handful of shows in the UK, so to bring her here is another major coup for Scarborough Open Air Theatre and the Yorkshire coast.

“First Britney [Spears], then Kylie [Minogue] and now Christina – three incredible women on the global stage – all headlining this special venue. Roll on August 2; this is going to be one of the must-see shows of the summer.”

More than 20 years after her self-titled debut album, New Yorker Aguilera has sold more than 43 million records worldwide, collected 18 million Spotify listens, received three billion YouTube views and achieved five American number one singles, making her the fourth female artist to top the charts over three consecutive decades (1990s, 2000s, and 2010s).

In 2010, Aguilera received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and she holds the honour of being the only artist under the age of 30 to be included in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 100 greatest singers of all time.

Aguilera’s British dates follow the release of her single Pa Mis Muchachas, a much anticipated return to her Latin roots in a Spanish-language celebration of Latina sisterhood that features  Latin music superstar Becky G, explosive Argentinian rising star Nicki Nicole and Spain-based songwriter and rapper Nathy Peluso. Expect to hear it alongside Dirrty, Ain’t No Other Man, Fighter and Genie In A Bottle on August 2.

Sam Fender: Opening concert of Scarborough Open Air Theatre’s 2022 programme

NORTH Shields singer-songwriter Sam Fender will travel down the East Coast to open Scarborough Open Air Theatre’s 2022 season on May 27 on his biggest ever UK Tour.

The double BRIT Award winner, who turns 28 next Monday, will be airing songs from his two chart-topping albums, last October’s Seventeen Going Under and his 2019 debut, Hypersonic Missiles.

This year he added the Brit Award for Best British Alternative/Rock Act to his 2019 Critics’ Choice Award.

Fender will follow his Scarborough concert with summer headline festival sets at Tramlines, Truck and Victorious and a London outdoor show at Finsbury Park.

Tickets for Scarborough OAT gigs are on sale at scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

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More Things To Do in and around York as chocolate spreads the love over Easter break. List No. 78, courtesy of The Press

WHAT’S in the chocolate box of Eastertide delights? Charles Hutchinson unwraps the goodies in store, from a sweet-flavoured festival to a musical premiere, a Led Zeppelin legend to two Big shows.

My cocoa shoe: Edible high heels at York Chocolate Festival

Festival of the week: York Chocolate Festival, oozing chocolate in Parliament Street, York, until Easter Monday, 10am to 5pm

RUN by York Food Festival and Make It York, York Chocolate Festival returns over the Easter weekend for the first time since 2019 in celebration of York’s heritage as the Chocolate City.

More than 40 stalls are complemented by workshops, demonstrations by chocolatiers, a chocolate sampling trail and chocolate pairing sessions with wine and whisky for adults. Look out for stands selling specialist origin chocolates, eggs, cakes, truffles, brownies, macarons, chocolate-flavoured drinks and liqueurs, even savoury outliers such as chilli jams, artisan pizzas and pies. Entry is free; some events are ticketed.

Robert Plant and Suzy Dian fronting Saving Grace, on tour at Grand Opera House, York

York gig of the week: Saving Grace with Robert Plant and Suzy Dian, supported by Scott Matthews, Grand Opera House, York, tonight, 7pm

SAVING Grace, the folk-blues co-operative led by Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant, play York tonight, followed by a further Yorkshire gig at Halifax Victoria Theatre on April 26.

Singer and lyricist Plant, now 73, will be joined on the April and May tour by Suzi Dian (vocals), Oli Jefferson (percussion), Tony Kelsey (mandolin, baritone, acoustic guitar) and Matt Worley (banjo, acoustic, baritone guitars, cuatro). Box office: 0844 871 7615 or atgtickets.com/York.

Celebrating the music of The Dubliners: Seven Drunken Nights rolled into one Sunday in York

Irish jig of the week: Seven Drunken Nights – The Story of The Dubliners, Grand Opera House, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm

FROM their roots in O’Donoghue’s Pub in Dublin, Seven Drunken Nights raises a toast to the 50-year career of The Dubliners, telling the story of the Irish folk band that took the world by storm.

Irish musicians, singers and storytellers will evoke the atmosphere, theatre and cultural history of Ireland while invoking the spirit of Ronnie Drew, Luke Kelly, Barney McKenna, John Sheahan, Ciaran Bourke and Jim McCann on a tour that will take in 20 countries in 2022 and 2023. Box office: 0844 871 7615 or atgtickets.com/York.

Bonding together: The BBC Big Band perform the 007 hits, shaken and stirred, at York Theatre Royal

Bond and band in harmony: The BBC Big Band, The Music Of James Bond…and Beyond, York Theatre Royal, Tuesday, 7.30pm

THE BBC Big Band are joined by guest vocalists Emer McPartlamd and Iain Mackenzie for a celebratory concert inspired by the music of James Bond film franchise.

Theme songs by York composer John Barry feature prominently in a set list sure to include Diamonds Are Forever, Thunderball and Goldfinger, alongside Monty Norman’s James Bond theme.

Expect a selection of more contemporary songs from the 007 musical library too, performed in the BBC Big Band’s inimitable style. Box office: 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

BIG news: CBeebies’ Justin Fletcher is heading for York Theatre Royal on the BIG Tour

Children’s show of the week: Justin Fletcher in Justin Live, The BIG Tour, York Theatre Royal, Thursday and Friday, 11am and 2.30pm

CBEEBIES superstar and children’s favourite Justin Fletcher presents an all-singing, all-dancing spectacular extravaganza on The BIG Tour.

Justin is a TV institution, piling up BAFTA award-winning appearances on Something Special, Justin’s House, Jollywobbles, Gigglebiz and Gigglequiz, as well as providing character voices for Tweenies, Boo, Toddworld and Shaun The Sheep, latterly voicing Shaun in the Aardman movie Farmageddon. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Normal service resumed: Grayson Perry presents his rearranged Harrogate performance of A Show For Normal People on Friday

Who-knows-what-to-expect arty gig of the week: Grayson Perry in A Show For Normal People, Harrogate Convention Centre, Friday, 7.30pm

IN his own words, despite being an award-winning artist, Bafta-winning TV presenter, Reith lecturer and best-selling author, Grayson Perry is a normal person – and just like other normal people, he is “marginally aware that we’re all going to die”.

Cue A Show For Normal People, Grayson’s enlightening, eye-watering evening where existentialism descends from worthiness to silliness. “You’ll leave safe and warm in the knowledge that nothing really matters anyway,” he promises.

At a show rearranged from last autumn, Grayson asks, and possibly answers, the big questions on a night “sure to distract you from the very meaninglessness of life in the way only a man in a dress can.” Box office: harrogateconventioncentre.co.uk.

York Stage Musicals’ poster for the York premiere of Calendar Girls The Musical

Musical of the week: York Stage Musicals in Calendar Girls, Grand Opera House, York, Friday to April 30

THE true story of the Calendar Girls from Rylstone Women’s Institute has been turned into a beautifully poignant musical by writer Tim Firth and composer Gary Barlow.

Join York Stage Musicals as they bring the show to York for the first time. “Be prepared to laugh and cry throughout a truly memorable evening filled with unforgettable songs that prove there is no such thing as an ordinary woman,” says producer Nik Briggs. Box office: 0844 871 7615 or at atgtickets.com/York.

The Chemical Brothers: Big beats and dance moves at Castle Howard this summer

Rave of the North Yorkshire summer: The Chemical Brothers at Castle Howard, near Malton, June 26

HEY boy, hey girl, electronic pioneers The Chemical Brothers will take to the grass at Castle Howard this summer.

Manchester big beat duo Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons, both 51, will galvanize rave diggers in the North Yorkshire stately home’s grounds where gates will open at 5pm for the night ahead of Setting Sun, Block Rockin’ Beats, Hey Boy, Hey Girl, Let Forever Be, Galvanize, Go et al. Box office: castlehoward.co.uk.

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Rumours spread and rebellion rises as York Theatre Royal’s new season makes a stand

The Tragedy Of Guy Fawkes playwright David Reed outside the Guy Fawkes Inn in York. Picture: Matthew Kitchen

“THE theatre has always been a place where rebellion thrives,” says chief executive Tom Bird as York Theatre Royal sets its Rumours And Rebels season in commotion.

Two legendary York figures, Guy Fawkes and the Coppergate Woman, will come to life as the spotlight is turned on those who resist, rebel and stand up to injustice, corruption and persecution this summer and autumn.

“We wanted to talk about opposition and intrigue and how ‘sticking it to the man’ manifests itself, which is often in the form of rumours first,” says Tom. “We knew we were going to be doing this strand of work with rebellion shot through it, but we also wanted a nod to the fact that rebellion can start in a more subtle phase with rumour.

“We already had rebellion in the diary with Guy Fawkes, Julius Caesar and Red Ellen, which all start with ‘talk’, and I was thinking about how you’re naturally quite wary of making heroes of people who are seen as terrorists, so I didn’t want the season to be too on the nose in celebrating rebellion without also saying it’s a complicated business.

“Look at Guy Fawkes; we think of him as a York hero but actually he wanted to blow up hundreds of people.”

Long in the planning for its York Theatre Royal world premiere, York-born writer David Reed’s “explosive new comedy about York’s most infamous rebel”, The Tragedy Of Guy Fawkes, will run from October 28 to November 12, directed by Gemma Fairlie as Monty Python meets Blackadder.

“We’ve had the script since before I came here in December 2017,” says Tom. “David [one third of the The Penny Dreadfuls comedy trio] is a local writer; the script is brilliant and funny, and the pre-sale of tickets is fantastic.”

Co-director Juliet Forster, left, and playwright Maureen Lennon with JORVIK Viking Centre’s model of The Coppergate Lady

Further explaining the Rumours And Rebels season title, Tom says: “The other reason for ‘Rumours’ is the impact of social media, where it feels like we’re surrounded by an unsolicited swirl of rumour that could lead to action, even to direct rebellion, like you saw with Trump’s supporters marching on Capitol Hill.

“Uncurated rumours bother us a lot, and that’s why we’re curating the summer and autumn programme under this title to highlight the importance of curation when news has stopped being that and so many people no longer trust experts.  Theatre is a place for resistance and for celebrating it since Athenian times.”

Standing alongside Reed’s Guy Fawkes tragi-comedy in the season ahead will be Maureen Lennon’s community play The Coppergate Woman, wherein a Valkyrie woman with the answers rises again to move among the people of York, a goddess resisting the havoc wrought by pandemic, from July 30 to August 6.

These in-house productions will be preceded by Northern Stage, Nottingham Playhouse and Royal Lyceum Theatre’s touring production of Red Ellen, Carol Bird’s epic story of inspiration Labour MP Ellen Wilkinson, who was forever on the right side of history, forever on the wrong side of life, from May 24 to 28.

“We’re super-excited about Red Ellen, which had been planned by Lorne Campbell before he left Northern Stage to move to the National Theatre of Wales. After The Ballad Of Johnny Longstaff, this is another unsung political hero to be celebrated by Northern Stage.”

Flicking through the brochure, in Shakespeare’s Globe’s Julius Caesar, on June 10 and 11, the protagonists fear power running unchallenged as Diane Page directs this brutal tale of ambition, incursion and revolution; in Conor McPherson’s Girl From The North Country, from September 5 to 10, the chimes of freedom flash through a story rooted in Bob Dylan’s songs;  in Pilot Theatre’s revival of Noughts & Crosses, from September 16 to 24, the love between Selby and Callum runs counter to the politics of their segregated world.

In Frantic Assembly’s reimagined 21st century Othello, from October 18 to 22, Othello faces a barrage of racial persecution in Shakespeare’s tragedy of paranoia, sex and murder; the year ends with the Theatre Royal’s third pantomime collaboration with Evolution Productions, where Peter Pan joyously stands up to the tyranny of time, from December 2 to January 2.

York Theatre Royal chief executive Tom Bird

Delighted to welcome Shakespeare’s Globe, Tom says: “I left the Globe to move here, and as the Roman Quarter project gets underway in Rougier Street, we were interested in doing a Roman-themed work.

“We’d known for a while this would be a rebellion season, and the Globe knew we were keen to link up with them, so they gave us a couple of options. National companies are getting really good at that, and it’s great to have the Globe back for the first time since they did Henry VI.”

Tom says the season fell into place partly through the stars aligning. “If Frantic Assembly’s Othello is on tour, you take it,” he says. “It fitted perfectly with our own choices of Guy Fawkes and [York company] Pilot Theatre reviving Sabrina Mahfouz’s adaptation of Malorie Blackman’s Noughts & Crosses.

“The first tour did really well, there’s since been the TV series, and it’s a story really loved by young audiences as a Romeo & Juliet for the 21st century. It’s a no-brainer to bring it back.”

Bringing a “big show” to York Theatre Royal is not easy, says Tom, given the seating capacity of 750, but that does not deter him from seeking to do so. Take the double Olivier Award-winning West End and Broadway hit Girl From The North Country, written and directed by The Weir playwright Conor McPherson.

He reimagines the songs of Bob Dylan in a universal story of family and love set in the heartland of America in 1934, when a group of wayward souls cross paths in a time-weathered guesthouse in ‘nowheresville’ [Duluth, Minnesota]. As they search for the future and hide from the past, they find themselves facing unspoken truths about the present.

“God we had to fight to get it but I’m seriously glad we did,” says Tom. “It premiered at The Old Vic and it’s one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. Bob Dylan had been badgered for years about doing a jukebox musical, and he said, ‘only if it’s a bit weird’. Luckily, he was involved in Conor getting to do it.

Girl From The North Country: “Doing a Conor McPherson on a Bob Dylan jukebox musical”

“It’s a marriage made in heaven! He does a Conor McPherson on a Bob Dylan jukebox musical: it’s an incredible, haunting story with a cast of odd characters you’d find travelling on a Greyhound bus, when you gather all this eccentricity in America and you can’t escape them, set to Dylan’s songs.

“Everyone knows Bob Dylan songs are sung better when Dylan doesn’t sing them, and for this show, they take a genuine cross section of songs from across his career, not only the Sixties.”

Among further highlights, York Stage will make their Theatre Royal debut in a 40th anniversary production of Howard Ashman and and Alan Menken’s musical Little Shop Of Horrors, from July 14 to 13, and Original Theatre will present Susie Blake as Miss Marple in Rachel Wagstaff’s new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d, from October 4 to 8.

“I’d been a bit worried whether a murder mystery is still what people want as we’ve seen that move from drawing-room plays to musicals in audience tastes, but The Mirror Crack’d has gone like a train at the box office,” says Tom.

Summing up the philosophy behind Rumours And Rebels, he concludes : “It’s not easy to have a themed season when we put on such diverse work here, but when we see ways to do seasons with connected themes we will do it, like the Theatre Royal did with seasons focusing on Yorkshire and women before I came here.

“By having a theme, hopefully it will encourage people to see more plays in the season having enjoyed one.

“Overall, for me, what we’re eliminating from York Theatre Royal is the middle-of-the-road. When we bring in touring shows, we might as well go ‘big’, bringing in new audiences; when we produce plays, we’re going to do new work like The Tragedy Of Guy Fawkes and The Coppergate Woman, not Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, which might be my favourite play but wouldn’t get an audience.”

For the full programme and tickets details for Rumours And Rebels at York Theatre Royal, go to: yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. Box office: 01904 623568.

Copyright Of The Press, York

Susie Blake as Miss Marple in Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d

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Miles And The Chain Gang to release single Love Is Blind (Billy Bragg Said) in May

Miles Salter: Leader of The Chain Gang

YORK band Miles And The Chain Gang’s new single, Love Is Blind (Billy Bragg Said), is coming soon.

“Recorded and mixed by Jonny Hooker at Young Thugs Studios in York, the song will be released in May and has been compared to ‘a bar brawl between Squeeze and Springsteen’s E Street Band,” says frontman Miles Salter.

“There’s a great video by Dave Thorp to accompany the track, which will be on all the usual platforms, Spotify, Apple, YouTube etc.”

Writer, musician and storyteller Salter is working with a “re-wired” Chain Gang, the new line-up featuring Daniel Bowater on keyboards and accordion, Steve Purton on drums, Mat Watt on bass and Mark Hawkins on lead guitar.

“We’re lining up summer dates, including gigs in Helmsley, Harrogate, Doncaster and York, with more details to follow,” says Miles.

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