“A chance to take on a role like this feels like heaven,” says Sue Cleaver as she looks forward to playing Mother Superior in Sister Act The Musical in her return to the stage after more than three decades
CORONATION Street star Sue Cleaver will swap the cobbles for the convent, the Rovers Return for rosary beads, when she plays the Mother Superior in Sister Act The Musical on tour.
The British and Irish itinerary will take in the Grand Opera House, York, from May 6 to 11 next spring.
‘‘I’m thrilled to be stepping into the habit and joining the incredible company of Sister Act on tour,” says Sue, 60. “It’s been over 30 years since I’ve been on stage, but theatre has always been my first love. A chance to take on a role like this feels like heaven.”
She is best known forplaying Eileen Grimshaw for 23 years in Corrie, her soap opera role bringing her the Favourite Female Soap Star gong at the TV Now Awards and Best Soap Actress in the TV Quick and TV Choice Awards, along with being nominated twice for Most Popular Actress at the National Television Awards.
Sue Cleaver: Coronation Street stalwart, I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here contestant, Loose Women guest panellist and soon-to-be Mother Superior in Sister Act The Musical
Her further television credits include City Central, Dinnerladies, This is Personal: The Hunt For The Yorkshire Ripper, Peak Practice, Casualty, Band Of Gold and A Touch Of Frost. In 2022, she appeared in the 22nd series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!, finishing ninth.
Sue will join the Sister Act company in Brighton before playing Manchester, Cork, Belfast, Glasgow,York and Birmingham.
In the cast too will be Landi Oshinowoas Deloris Van Cartier, Alfie Parker as Eddie Souther and Ian Gareth-Jones as Curtis Jackson, alongside Isabel Canning, Julie Stark,Phillip Arran, Wendy-Lee Purdy, Callum Martin, Esme Laudat, Amber Kennedy, Joseph Connor, Ceris Hine, Eloise Runnette and Sheri Lineham. Further casting for the tour will be be announced.
Based on Emile Ardolino’s 1992 American comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg, Sister Act is a testament to the universal power of friendship, sisterhood and music, built around the story of Deloris Van Cartier, a disco diva whose life takes a surprising turn when she witnesses a murder.
“I’m thrilled to be stepping into the habit and joining the incredible company of Sister Act on tour,” says Sue
Under protective custody, she is hidden in the one place she will not be found: a convent! Disguised as a nun and under the suspicious watch of Cleaver’s Mother Superior, Oshinowo’s Deloris helps her fellow sisters find their voices as she unexpectedly rediscovers her own.
Sister Act The Musical isdirected by Bill Buckhurst and choreographed Alistair David, with set and costume design by Morgan Large, lighting design by Tim Mitchell, sound design by Tom Marshall and musical supervision by Stephen Brooker.
Produced by Jamie Wilson and Whoopi Goldberg, the show features original music by Tony and eight-time Oscar winner Alan Menken (Disney’s Aladdin, Enchanted), lyrics by Glenn Slater and book by Bill and Cheri Steinkellner, with additional book material by Douglas Carter Beane.
Tickets for the York nun run are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.
Six pack; Jake Quickenden, left, Ben Onwukwe, Neil Hurst, Danny Hatchard, Bill Ward and Nicholas Prasad in The Full Monty. Picture: Ellie Kurttz
MARKING the 25th anniversary of Peter Cattaneo’s Sheffield film, The Full Monty is stripped for stage action in a national tour of Simon Beaufoy’s spin-off play that arrives in York tomorrow.
As the group of lads on the scrapheap tries to regain dignity and pride, the story of downs, more downs and ups, defiant humour and heartbreak will resonate anew amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Leaving their hat on at the Grand Opera House this week will be Danny Hatchard’s Gaz, Jake Quickenden’s Guy, Bill Ward’s Gerald, Neil Hurst’s Dave, Ben Onwukwe’s Horse and Nicholas Prasad’s Lomper.
Completing the cast will be Oliver Joseph Brooke; Katy Dean; Laura Matthews; Badapple Theatre favourite Danny Mellor; Adam Porter Smith; Suzanne Procter; Alice Schofield and Leyon Stolz-Hunter. The young actors sharing the role of Nathan on tour will be Cass Dempsey, Theo Hills, Rowan Poulton and Jack Wisniewski.
Directed by Michael Gyngell, The Full Monty tour marks the first co-production and partnership between the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham and Buxton Opera House.
Choreography and intimacy direction is by Ian West; set and costume design by Jasmine Swan; lighting design by Andrew Exeter and sound design by Chris Whybrow.
Making plans: A scene from The Full Monty as the lads audition Horse, right, for their strip act. Picture: Ellie Kurttz
Here, television stars Danny Hatchard (from EastEnders and Not Going Out), Jake Quickenden (Dancing On Ice winner and I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! runner up) and Bill Ward (from Emmerdale and Coronation Street) discuss the joy of taking to the stage in this autumn’s 25th anniversary touring production.
The Full Monty is experiencing a resurgence, first in the Disney+ TV series and now this tour show. Why has stood it stood the test of time?
Danny: “Is there a more iconic working-class comedy than The Full Monty? I’d argue not. Especially one that covers so many incredibly important topics that are still very relevant today. Fathers’ rights, depression, suicide, impotence, homosexuality, unemployment, body image.
“Tackling important subjects like these whilst adding a sprinkle of nostalgia and a dash of humour takes the audience on a two -hour emotional rollercoaster filled with tears and belly laughter. This show is not only a cocktail of excellence, but also hugely relatable to both men and women.”
Jake: “It’s a story for everyone and it has everything – love, humour, sensitive subjects, the lot. So many people can relate to the characters. They draw on relationships that affect everyone: ex-wife; ex-wife’s new husband; kid that lives with mum; lads; being skint, the list goes on and on.
“It means that’s everyone who watches it can feel like it’s speaking to them, and then of course, there is the brilliant humour, the dancing and everything that goes with it!”
Bill: “Because at its core it revolves around a number of universal, timeless themes: male brotherhood, love, overcoming loss and adversity, and ingenious solutions to universal recognisable problems. This is essentially about six men who’ve lost not only their jobs, but their sense of identity and their dignity too, and what they’re prepared to do to get them back.”
Hitting their stride: Bill Ward’s Gerald, left, Danny Hatchard’s Gaz, Neil Hurst’s Dave, Nicholas Prasad’s Lomper and understudy Leyon Stolz Hunter’s Horse invest their all in the strip routine finale from The Full Monty. Picture: Ellie Kurttz
The Full Monty is a comedy but one that explores tough issues around male body image and mental health too. In which ways are these themes relevant today?
Danny: “They’re almost indistinguishable. If anything, times are harder now on men (and women) than they ever have been, especially regarding body image and mental health. Social media being the main driving force of that. Every day people post their idea of ‘perfection’ all over the internet, and naturally we compare.
“I’d say The Full Monty is just as important now as it was 25 years ago. There used to be more of a sense of community and care for one another, and I feel social media is pushing us further and further away from our natural way of communicating. The Full Monty will make you feel part of a community again. Who doesn’t want to experience that?”
Jake: A lot of people ask this [question] and do you know, I think The Full Monty led the way with a lot of these conversations. It was ’97 when then film came out, men didn’t really share their issues with each other, and it was still pretty taboo to be open about mental health and being gay.
“This story reminds us of lots of things that are more accepted today but still very important: talk to people if you are feeling down – there is always another way out other than suicide.
“Being yourself in the world is nothing to be ashamed of. Your body is the only one you have; love it no matter how it looks; everyone likes something different. Just because you are old doesn’t mean you can’t do something…there are just so many messages in here for everyone.”
Bill: “There are so many things in this play that resonate today. Simon Beaufoy, the writer, came to see us during rehearsals, and he was very clear it wasn’t a comedy at all. ‘A play with jokes’, is how he described it.
“It is of course very funny indeed, but the comedy actually comes from the very real tragedy that all these characters are facing in their lives…different circumstances, different starting points, but real grief and tragedy nevertheless.”
Jake Quickenden now: Playing Guy in The Full Monty, on tour at the Grand Opera House, York from tomorrow. Picture: Ellie Kurttz
In keeping with the brotherhood between the men in the play, how well have you bonded with your fellow cast members?
Danny: “The casting team have done an incredible job. I love and respect every member of this cast very much. They say time flies when you’re having fun. Well, two hours feels like 20 minutes on stage with this lot. We’re all just a bunch of good mates having a wonderful time. Every scene feels effortless, and I trust them all implicitly.”
Jake: “I don’t want to sound clichéd but literally everyone is so close. Usually, you get little cliques grow but we genuinely all get on so well, and because a lot of the scenes include all of us, we just have a laugh and get closer and closer every day.
“Then there are all the memories we’re making as we tour the UK and all those different theatres, hotels, lunch breaks end up building to create this huge happy family. Plus, we are all hilarious, which helps!”
Bill: “This is a wonderful cast and crew. Hugely talented and lovely too. We’re a very happy band of sisters and brothers.”
What do you hope this week’s audiences will take away from seeing this production?
Danny: “Pure unadulterated happiness.”
Jake: “The main thing is: be yourself, never give up, never listen to what anyone thinks and just do you! The story is sad at times, but every character overcomes their worries in some way and ends with success! It’s a feel-good show, which keeps people laughing even when they are crying.”
Bill: “This is a very beautiful, heartwarming and at times very moving story. It’s also very, very funny indeed and an absolute riot at the end. A properly banging night out at the theatre.”
Jake Quickenden then: Striking a pose in hot pants in his role as cowboy Willard Hewitt in Footloose The Musical at York Theatre Royal last year
Did you know?
JAKE Quickenden last appeared on a York stage as hunky cowboy Willard Hewitt, stripping to his golden pants in Footloose The Musical at the Theatre Royal in April 2022.
BILL Ward’s last appearance on a York stage came during the Theatre Royal’s Haunted Season, cast opposite fellow Coronation Street star Wendi Peters in Philip Meeks’s The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow in October 2021. He played not only village elder statesman Baltus Van Tassel, but also a naughty 90-year-old female cook, a hard-drinking coach driver and a crazy, delusional Dutch captain.
The Full Monty, Grand Opera House, York, Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday and Saturday matinees. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.Also: Alhambra Theatre, Bradford, November 14 to 18, 7.30pm plus 2pm Wednesday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees; 01274 432000 or bradford-theatres.co.uk.
The men from Full Monty say yes to supporting York mental health charity Menfulness in fund-raising drive
The Full Monty cast with representatives from the York charity Menfulness in the foyer bar at the Grand Opera House, York
THE Full Monty cast has met up with the men’s mental health charity, Menfulness, ahead of the first night of this week’s run in York.
The Grand Opera House is supporting the York charity by collecting donations at bars and kiosks card payment points throughout the week to provide funds for urgent counselling for men at crisis point.
Menfulness is an inclusive social wellbeing group that supports and promotes improvements in men’s lives through activities and counselling. The group is “led by five blokes from York who, like most of us, have struggled with mental health and the pressures of life”.
“Our goal is to bring men together to socialise, exercise, enjoy themselves, talk and let off steam in a non-judging, friendly and supportive environment,” says the charity. “These are all essential for wellbeing and health, both physical and mental.
“Menfulness is not only changing lives, it’s saving lives. And we aim to be the leaders of a cultural shift in which men can talk, where we don’t have to man up, where it’s OK not to be OK, and where support is plentiful, accessible and affordable.”
To find out more about the charity, head to: menfulness.org
Alan Sharp’s Warwick, James Tyler’s Lancaster, James Lee’s Gaveston, Emma Scott’s Young Mortimer and Cassi Roberts’s Kent at work on York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II. Picture: John Saunders
AT the heart of phase two of York Shakespeare Project over the next 25 years is the mission to stage not only all of Shakespeare’s plays, but also the finest works of his contemporaries.
The Bard’s first rival in focus will be playwright, poet and translator Christopher “Kit” Marlowe, writer of The Tragicall History of Dr Faustus; Tamburlaine The Great; Dido, Queen Of Carthage; Edward II; The Massacre At Paris and The Jew Of Malta.
York Shakespeare Project (YSP) will stage his intimate historical tragedy Edward II (a.k.a. The Troublesome Reign and Lamentable Death of Edward the Second, King of England) under the direction of Tom “Strasz” Straszewski at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, from October 17 to 21 at 7.30pm plus a 2.30pm Saturday matinee.
Edward II is king at last. Determined to shower his loved ones with gifts, he summons his exiled lover, Piers Gaveston, 1st Earl of Cornwall. In the face of a king, court and country intoxicated by their passions, the Queen takes her own lover, whereupon the nation is torn apart in a merciless divorce. Their child watches from the shadows, desperate to mend this broken family and nation or bring them to heel.
“Like Marlowe himself, we wanted to focus less on historical accuracy or psychological realism, and instead as a fantasia of power and love. This is a fearful England,” says the director.
Tom Straszewski: director of York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II
Here Tom Straszewski discusses kings and queens, sexuality and social mobility, drag and cancel culture with CharlesHutchPress
What attracted you to directing Marlowe’s Edward II, Strasz?
“I’d just come off the back of directing Lincoln and York’s Mystery Plays and was looking for the next challenge. Edward II came at the perfect moment – something more intimate, but still engaging with a community cast and their own ideas for the play.
“YSP were good enough to trust me with their first non-Shakespeare play. I knew I wanted to treat it as a queer play, not just in terms of the love between Edward and Gaveston, but as something that challenges what it means to be powerful.”
How will you bring contemporary resonance to this age-old story of the struggle for love and power?
“The historical Edward II has tended to be portrayed as a weak king. He lost to the Scots, he wasn’t interested in taking over more land in France, there was a Europe-wide famine…but it’s been horribly tied to debate over his sexuality.
Cassi Roberts, back left, as Kent, Emma Scott as Young Mortimer, James Lee as Gaveston, Thomas Jennings as Lightborn, Stuart Lindsay as the Bishop, Emily Hansen as Pembroke and Alan Sharp as Warwickin rehearsal for York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II. Picture: John Saunders
“The cast were generally wary of judging Edward by medieval standards. Did we really want to judge him for failing to conquer other countries? What we found was a king whose downfall isn’t in rejecting his love for Gaveston or failing to make war, but failure to keep his community safe.
“What’s resonated with many of us is the dramatic increase in transphobia over the last few years. Because of that, we’ve framed power and love as two ways of finding safety. For the nobles, having power lets them keep their loved ones safe. Edward protects Gaveston because he loves him, because it’s the right thing to do – whatever the cost.”
How did you bring drag into your considerations on how to present Edward II?
“It draws on the glamour of royalty. Drag queens, drag kings, it’s about finding something powerful in how you present yourself to the world. So we call our production a fantasia. A work of the imagination, of imagery and visions, rather than pure plot.
“Originally it meant ‘to shine’, and that’s something we’ve engrained in the play: a world of shining gold and dripping pearls, and the seductive shimmer of power and passion. Underneath all that are ordinary people, striving for something glorious.”
Cassi Roberts as Kent, left, and Emma Scott as Young Mortimer. Picture: John Saunders
What drew you to casting YSP Jack Downey, James Lee and Danae Arteaga Hernandez in the principal roles of Edward II, Gaveston and Queen Isabel? “When we first auditioned, we were looking for an ensemble who could all work together. We didn’t know who might be in each part, as long as they brought curiosity and bravery. As we got into the guts of the play, it became clear that James and Jack played off each other.
“There’s something of the current monarch in Jack’s portrayal – torn between his real love on one side, and the rejected wife on the other. James’s Gaveston allows Edward to be gentle, to shrug – for a moment – the weight of kingship off his shoulders.
“Danae has been a real revelation as Queen Isabel, particularly paired with Emma Scott’s Young Mortimer. She’s constantly described as weeping or mourning, but Danae’s found the power behind that.
“I’m also delighted that familiar faces have returned, often bringing something surprising, something I hadn’t seen them do before. Emily Hansen’s found a steely core in Pembroke’s moderation. Harry Summers’ Elder Mortimer gives a wonderfully tender paean to love between men, behind his desire to bash some heads in.”
James Lee’s Gaveston, left, and Jack Downey’s Edward II
How does Jack Downey interpret Edward II? “Jack’s Edward uses weakness as a weapon. He threatens to give his crown away, knowing nobody wants the responsibility. He’ll lie down in the middle of the stage and see if people will really dare to brutalise him. And they back down! He wins!
“Then he starts playing the game on the other’s terms: starts wars, executes his prisoners, abandons his friends for his own safety. That’s when it falls apart. “And what Emma Scott has brought to Young Mortimer is a noble who recognises this, responds to it – she doesn’t rant and bully people, but tries to lead them along with a smile (and the threat of her knife behind it).”
How are today’s issues of cancel culture, celebrity and social mobility woven into your Edward II?
“If our play is a fantasia, we looked at other forms of power and display than the monarchy – and celebrity is chief among them. How we present ourselves and who lies behind it are often different. For Gaveston, he’s met the right people, helped out his friends, risen above his poor background.
Stuart Lindsay as the Bishop, left, Charlie Barrs as Maltravers and Thomas Jennings as Lightborn. Picture: John Saunders
“Gaveston’s enemies don’t see it that way. His crime is not loving the king, but getting rich off it, and they don’t see what he’s done to deserve it. They’ve suffered to keep their people safe. He hasn’t.
“Gaveston and Edward fail to control the narrative, and so they lose their supporters, their fans I guess! The play constantly references the medieval wheel of fortune: if you rise, you must fall. And we can see how quickly someone can rise and fall today.”
What will the set and costume design be?
“All the actors have brought their own designs to the mix, based on their understanding of the characters. Expect to see a little Hollywood glamour, mirrored vanities, gold and pearls. Makeup as a source of power. Underneath it, the decay of the fall.”
York Shakespeare Project’s poster for Edward II
Where will music fit into your production? “Music comes out in moments of power and desire. Serenades to the king, a power number gearing up for war, a bit of techno. We’ve drawn on what suits the moment. Each of Edward’s lovers sing to him. For example, The Ink Spots’ I Don’t Want to Set The World On Fire: its refrain of ‘Believe me’ is key to it all.”
And finally, Strasz, how do you “rate” his rival Marlowe by comparison with Shakespeare?
“You don’t! You shouldn’t! They were collaborators; they almost certainly worked on Henry VI together; there are phrases and situations that they share. Maybe Shakespeare’s later works have a certain tenderness that Marlowe’s early plays lack, but then Shakespeare had decades of experience beyond Marlowe’s death.
“Marlowe’s not interested in broad comedy, although his insults are witty. But I think he’s willing to let his lead characters let loose at the world. Shakespeare’s characters enjoy the rise to power. Marlowe’s better at the fall.”
Tickets are available at tickets.41monkgate.co.uk or by emailing the box office at boxoffice@41monkgate.co.uk.
Tony Froud: Chair of York Shakespeare Project
Only One Question for: York Shakespeare Project chair Tony Froud
Why will York Shakespeare Project feature works by Shakespeare’s contemporaries in its second cycle of productions?
“AS we embarked on phase two, we wanted to stretch ourselves afresh, in a way matching the great ambition of the original project’s aim (to do all the plays in 20 years). Producing all of Shakespeare’s plays again is a mighty task in itself and will offer new challenges in presenting the texts in new ways for different times.
“But we were mindful that Shakespeare did not exist in a vacuum. Many of his contemporaries were great playwrights in their own right, and there are so many exciting Elizabethan and Jacobean plays that we want to share over the next 25 years.”
Made in Sheffield, on tour in York: Simon Beaufoy’s The Full Monty, packed with a star cast at the Grand Opera House
GHOSTS in gardens, men in hats and nowt else, kings in trouble, Halloween scares and pumpkins galore offer an autumn harvest for Charles Hutchinson and you to pick.
Yorkshiremen of the week: The Full Monty, Grand Opera House, York, Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Wednesday and Saturday matinees
CELEBRATING the 25th anniversary of Peter Cattaneo’s Sheffield film, The Full Monty takes to the stage in a national tour of Simon Beaufoy’s play, wherein a group of lads on the scrapheap try to regain their dignity and pride in a story of ups and downs, humour and heartbreak, resonant anew amid the cost-of-living crisis.
Leaving their hat on will be Danny Hatchard’s Gaz, Jake Quickenden’s Guy, Bill Ward’s Gerald, Neil Hurst’s Dave, Ben Onwukwe’s Horse and Nicholas Prasad’s Lomper. Box office: atgtickets.com/york
Fiddler Ryan Young: NCEM concert
Fiddler of the week: Ryan Young & David Foley, National Centre for Early Music, York, Monday, 7.30pm
FIDDLER and 2022 MG ALBA Musician of the Year nominee Ryan Young brings new and exciting ideas to traditional Scottish music with his spellbinding interpretations of very old, often forgotten tunes. Joining him in York will be guitarist David Foley. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
James Lee’s Gaveston, left, and Jack Downey’s Edward II in rehearsal for York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II. Picture: John Saunders
Play of the week: York Shakespeare Project in Edward II, Theatre@41, Monkgate, Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
PHASE two of York Shakespeare Project offers the chance over the next 25 years to see works by Shakespeare’s rivals, led off by Christopher “Kit” Marlowe’s intimate historical tragedy Edward II under the direction of Tom “Strasz” Straszewski.
Expect themes of cancel culture, social mobility and celebrity to pour out of this modern interpretation of Marlowe’s 1952 work, starring Jack Downey as Edward II, James Lee as his lover Gaveston and Danae Arteaga Hernandez as his wilful Queen, Isabel, in this “fantasia of power and love”. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Fascinating Aida: Forty years of sassy satireencapsulated at York Barbican
Cabaret return of the week: Fascinating Aida – The 40th Anniversary Show, York Barbican, Wednesday, 7.30pm
DILLIE Keane, Adèle Anderson and Liza Pulman, “Britain’s raciest and sassiest musical cabaret trio”, celebrate 40 years of Fascinating Aida travels in their typically charming, belligerent, political, poignant, outrageous and filthy new show. Much-loved favourites, such as Dogging and Cheap Flights, will be combined with fresh satirical numbers. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Meanwhile, actress, presenter and writer Miriam Margolyes’s Oh Miriam! Live show on Monday has sold out.
Something wicked this way comes: Ian Thomson-Smith’s Macbeth and Sharon Nicholson-Skeggs’s Lady Macbeth in York Opera’s Macbeth
Opera of the week: York Opera in Verdi’s Macbeth, York Theatre Royal, Wednesday and Friday, 7pm; Saturday, 4pm
JOHN Soper directs York Opera in its autumn production of Giuseppe Verdi’s 1847 opera Macbeth, starring the highly experienced duo of baritone Ian Thomson-Smith as Macbeth and soprano Sharon Nicholson-Skeggs as Lady Macbeth.
Sung in English, it stays true to Shakespeare’s original play, complete with witches, ghosts, cut-throats and the political scheming of the Scottish court. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Lloyd Cole: Two sets in one show, one acoustic, the other electric, at York Barbican
Gigs of the week: Lloyd Cole, Tuesday, 8pm; Paul Carrack, Thursday, 7.30pm at York Barbican
LLOYD Cole plays two sets in one night on Tuesday, the first acoustic and solo, the second electric, with a band featuring two of his Commotions compadres, Blair Cowan and Neil Clark, as he showcases his 12th solo album, On Pain.
Sheffield singer, songwriter, guitarist and keyboard player Paul Carrack, the soulful voice of Ace, Squeeze and Mike + The Mechanics hits, returns to one of his most regular joints on Thursday. How long has this been going on? Oh, a long, long time. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Paul Carrack: Returning to York Barbican
Halloween days and nights: Hallowtween and Hallowscream, York Maze, near Elvington, York until November 4
HALLOWTWEEN is billed as the “UK’s only Halloween event for families with children aged ten to 15”. Venture inside four of York Maze’s Hallowscream scare houses but without the monsters that inhabit them at night for the shocks and thrills of Corny’s Cornevil, The Singularity, The Flesh Pot and a new haunted house.
Hallowscream fright nights promise fear and fun in five live-action scare houses, plus a new stage show, bar and hot food. Box office: hallowtween.co.uk or yorkmazehallowscream.co.uk.
The Bride, in Museums Gardens, part of the Ghosts In The Garden free sculpture trail in York. Picture: Gareth Buddo
Trail of the season: Ghosts In The Garden, haunting York until November 12
THE eerie sculptures of Ghosts In The Gardens return for the third time for haunted York’s spookiest season, as unearthly monks, a noble knight, Vikings, painters, archers, even a phantom peacock, pop up in translucent 3D wire mesh form.
Unconventional Designs have created a free trail of 39 sculptures, installed at Museum Gardens, The Artists’ Garden, Treasurer’s House, Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, Middletons Hotel, St Anthony’s Garden, Barley Hall, Shambles, Clifford’s Tower, The Judge’s Lodging, DIG, Castle Museum Mill, Edible Wood and Library Lawn.
Professor Dan: Tricks and Treats at the Pumpkin Festival at Piglets Adventure Farm
Children’s festival of the month: Pumpkin Festival at Piglets Adventure Farm, Towthorpe Grange, Towthorpe Moor Lane, York, October 14, 15, 21, 22 and 28 to 31, then November 1 to 3
HERE comes the Pumpkin Patch (with a free pumpkin for every paying child), Pumpkin Carving Marquee, Catch The Bats Quiz, Professor Dan’s Tricks and Treats Magic Show at 12 noon and 2pm, The Bat-walk Fancy Dress Parade at 3.30pm, Gruesome Ghosts of York in the Maize Maze and Spooky Animal Encounters.
From November 1 to 3, the attractions will be Professor Dan’s eye-popping Magic Show (same show times), Gruesome Ghosts of York in the Maize Maze and Spooky Animal Encounters. Tickets: pigletsadventurefarm.com.
Out of luck: Bev Jones Music Company has had to call off Guys And Dolls, starring Chris Hagyard
Postponed: Bev Jones Music Company in Guys And Dolls, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, October 18 to 21.
LUCK won’t be a lady next week after all. Cast illness has put paid to the Bev Jones Music Company’s first production since Covid-blighted 2020. Claire Pulpher was to have directed a York cast led by tenor Chris Hagyard in Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows’ 1950s’ musical. Plans are afoot to stage the show next summer instead. Ticket holders are being contacted by the JoRo box office team.
Catrin Finch, right, and Aoife Ni Bhriain: NCEM preview of debut album Double You
Duo of the week: Catrin Finch & Aoife Ni Bhriain, National Centre for Early Music, York, Friday, 7.30pm
AFTER her award-winning collaborations with Seckou Keita and Cimarron, Welsh harpist Catrin Finch has formed a virtuoso duo with Dublin violinist Aoife Ni Bhriain, who commands both the classical world and her traditional Irish heritage.
Inspired by a multitude of influences and linked by the cultures of their home countries, they follow up last November’s debut at Other Voices Cardigan with a select few concerts previewing the extraordinary and original material from their October 27 debut album, Double You. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
Paloma Faith: New album, new tour, both entitled The Glorification Of Sadness, in 2024
Looking ahead: Paloma Faith, The Glorification Of Sadness Tour 2024, York Barbican, May 12
NEXT spring, Paloma Faith will play York for the first time since her York Racecourse Music Showcase set on Knavesmire in June 2018, promoting her sixth studio album, next February’s The Glorification Of Sadness.
Her new songs will be “celebrating finding your way back after leaving a long-term relationship, being empowered even in your failures and taking responsibility for your own happiness”, following last year’s split from French artist Leyman Lachine. Hull Bonus Arena on May 3 awaits too. Box office: from 10am on October 20, ticketmaster.co.uk and seetickets.com.
In Focus: Chronicled and Summer Art finalists’ exhibitions at Spark: York, Piccadilly, York, today and tomorrow
Spark summer art under-15s competition winner Emily Saunders with her mother Samantha and Spark:York resident artist and judging panellist Leon François Dumont
SPARK:YORK, the creative community space in Piccadilly, York, is hosting two exhibitions this weekend, both exploring themes powerfully relevant to our communities today.
Chronicled is a pop-up show organised by the University of York’s Ukrainian Society, showcasing works by Kyiv street photographer Dima Leonenko.
His dynamic vision of everyday life in the Ukrainian capital during the Russianfull-scale invasion is reflected through his film photos. ”When I see a character or a scene that catches my attention, I just press the button and capture it,” he says.
On show from 12 noon to 10.30pm today and tomorrow, Dima’s exhibition will be accompanied by an interactive project that allows visitors to immerse themselves in the “war-life reality’’ of the Ukrainian people. The event takes place in Spark:York’s co-working space downstairs, with a drinks welcome, from 6pm to 8pm tonight.
The poster for Kyiv street photographer Dima Leonenko’s Chronicled exhibition at Spark:York today and tomorrow
Spark:York also will be showcasing artworks submitted to its summer art competition, set up to encourage York-based artists to imagine the city’s future 100 years from now and share their ideas, fears and hopes surrounding the impact of climate change on this historic city.
Leon François Dumont, Spark:York resident artist and judging panel member, says: ”In this art exhibition, we’ve witnessed a remarkable outpouring of creativity from both young and adult artists.
“From a city transformed by shipping containers to a bubble-like dome preserving York under water, these artworks by the finalists are a testament to the power of imagination.”
The exhibition can be viewed in Spark:York’s Show studio upstairs today and tomorrow from 12 noon to 9pm. Guests are invited to contribute to a time capsule created on the day by leaving a message and a memento for the people of York in 2050, the year of the UK’s net zero target. Spark: York hopes to pass the time capsule on to the City of York Council for safekeeping.
The VRAC (Vape Recycling Awareness Campaign) art installation SUCKERED – not – SUCCOURED in the making for display at Spark:York this weekend
At the front of Spark:York will be an art installation by VRAC (Vape Recycling Awareness Campaign), a York campaign group that has been been working with Spark:York over the past 18 months to collect used vapes that would otherwise end up being discarded, either in landfills or down drains, polluting waterways and ground water with toxic metals. An estimated 1.5 million per week are discarded in this way.
Group founder Mick Storey says: ”The SUCKERED – not – SUCCOURED installation, using some 3,000 used vapes, conveys a message about our responsibility to all our young people and the future generations yet to come who will inherit whatever future it is we leave behind us.”
Spark:York “hopes that both exhibitions can open a discussion around the future of our communities, as well as provoke reflections and meaningful actions that can help build a better world for us all”.
Entry to both exhibitions is free. For more information, head to: www.sparkyork.org/
NEWS ALERT: 26/10/2023
The York In 100 Years exhibition has moved to Spark:York’s pop-up space, where it will be on display until November 5.
Lowri Clarke, winner of the 15-plus categrory of the Spark summer art competition
Paul Crewes: The new chief executive at the helm of York Theatre Royal
WHAT a sight to greet new chief executive Paul Crewes at Tuesday’s opening night of Frantic Assembly’s pulsating reinvention of Kafka’s Metamorphosis: a full house at York Theatre Royal, with excited school groups to the fore.
Appointed in June, after Tom Bird flew off to Sheffield Theatres in January, Paul took up his post last week, when Rambert’s Death Trap marked his arrival with two Ben Duke works full of the turbulence of life and death.
Metamorphosis? Death? New life? Re-birth? Paul will give himself time, letting his feet settle under his desk in St Leonard’s Place, before making his mark on the way forward post-Covid, post-Bird, post-De Grey Rooms.
His official statement put it this way: “I am thrilled to have now joined the great team at York Theatre Royal. Over the next few weeks and months, I’m looking forward to meeting our audiences, participants, creatives, members, donors and partners and hearing from them what makes this fantastic theatre so important in the life of our wider community.
“I will continue to build on all that work – supporting great artists and practitioners as well as attracting and growing new audiences. This is an exciting time at York Theatre Royal and I’m looking forward to getting started.”
Impact on the wider community. Supporting artists and practitioners, locally, nationally and internationally. Cultivating new audiences. Exciting time to arrive. These are the bullet points, the right goals, at the right time.
No wonder his appointment made so much sense to the York Citizens’ Theatre Trust board of trustees, whose chair, Ann Green CBE, said at the time of his appointment: “Paul has a huge breadth and depth of knowledge and experience, and a passion for the positive role theatre can play in community life.
“Building on all the fantastic work the team have created in recent years, we are all excited to be embarking on a new, fresh and confident chapter in the life of York Theatre Royal together.”
At 62, Paul’s vast experience in theatre and the arts as a chief executive, producer and artistic advisor takes in organisations both in Great Britain and the United States. From 2015 to 2021, he was artistic director of the Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts in Los Angeles, where theatre, dance, music and film vied for attention.
Before that, he was executive producer and chief executive officer of Kneehigh, the Cornish company that went national and international in a model of groundbreaking, exhilarating, innovative theatre expansion.
Earlier, Bristol Old Vic, Paines Plough, London Contemporary Dance Theatre, Plymouth Theatre Royal, the Lowry, Salford, Phoenix Dance Theatre and the West Yorkshire Playhouse (2001-2004) in Leeds all benefited from his producing skills, and he had three years as director of technical training at RADA too.
“I started my career at the Bristol Old Vic and I shall probably end it here in York,” says Paul. “I love the history of these theatres.”
He was born in Brixton, South London in May 1961, where his Methodist minister father was the chaplain at Brixton Prison in the Sixties. “He got to know the Richardsons, Charlie Kray, Ronnie and Reggie too, and the youth club he ran was raided daily by the police,” recalls Paul.
He went on to study English and History at Roehampton Institute, part of London University, where he served as social secretary of the students’ union in his second year. “I loved creating events, whether a ball, a party or a theatre show, working with a very small budget,” he says.
He did “get his head down” in his 3rd year, albeit while being social secretary for the rugby club – sport is his other great love – and was then elected to the sabbatical post of students’ union treasurer, “looking after everything” and mothballing his plan to study teacher training in English and PE at Westminster College, Oxford.
Ken Baker’s vision for education in Margaret Thatcher’s Government prompted him to write a dissertation on why he would not be going into teaching. “At that point, I didn’t feel ready to teach,” he says.
He was, however, developing the skills that would take him into producing for theatres, having already stage managed a school production of Max Frisch’s Andora that played the Edinburgh Fringe, even picking up a review in the Scotsman. “That’s quite an experience for a 17-year-old,” he says.
“At university, I directed a play, Ball Boys, a two-hander by David Edgar, and had such a great time doing it. I never saw theatre as a career, but as a hobby, so when I entered that world in 1985, I wasn’t planning for the long term.
“But then came the sudden realisation that if I’m going to do something, it must be something I enjoy, and that I should train in it from the very bottom, beginning at the end of the pier at Great Yarmouth, working on four shows seven days a week.”
His career was up and running, with the focus on producing and gradually overseeing the creativity that comes into the building. “Whether it’s programming or production managing, for the last 24 years, I’ve been involved in the producing side, working with great creative teams. For me, it’s always been about working with the team, and that will continue at Theatre Royal, brokering and guiding and at times being guided too, but ultimately with control in my hands.”
He thrives on such responsibility. “People are brought up being afraid to make mistakes, and that’s part of the problem with the arts, where they’re scared of failing, where you have to create prototypes, but if you’re not frightened of failing, then something more exciting will come out of it.”
Kneehigh’s success would be a case in point, and now York Theatre Royal should benefit from his artistic and commercial vision.
Suffering under a surfeit of chairs: Felipe Pacheco’s Gregor Samsa in Frantic Assembly’s Metamorphosis. Picture: Tristram Kenton
SHOULD Frantic Assembly transfer Franz Kafka’s absurdist novella Metamorphosis from page to stage?
Artistic director Scott Graham’s initial reaction was No, but its themes of the crushing burden of debt, subsequent dysfunctional family relations, monotonous work for low pay, fear of isolation and an unhealthy obsession with identity made it as much a story for our time as of 1912.
That surely made it ripe for a company noted for the heft of its emotional truths? Then add wave upon wave of Kakfa surrealism to bring out Frantic Assembly’s other trademark: movement. The physicality to complement all that mental turbulence.
Now Graham needed a writer, one to work in tandem with him in creating a 21st century reinvention of Metamorphosis, its world of social immobility, dashed expectations, repetitive restraints, impoverishment and exploitation, but still with the look of the early 20th century (courtesy of Jon Bauser’s design and Becky Gunstone’s period costumes).
Lemn Sissay OBE, esteemed poet, broadcaster and speaker, was his pick but again the first inclination was No. However, he too felt the tug of Kafka’s torrid tale, seeing within its desperation, a chance to depict Gregor’s transformation as the embodiment of the woes of modern capitalism.
Two forces are at play in Graham’s production, movement and language, not always in union, however.
Ruling the roost: Joe Layton’s Chief Clerk piling on the financial pressure in Frantic Assembly’s Metamorphosis as Hannah Sinclair Robinson’s Grete, left, Louise May Newberry’s Mrs Samsa and Troy Glasgow’s Mr Samsa look aghast. Far left, Felipe Pacheco’s Gregor’s day is going from bad to worse. Picture: Tristram Kenton
Movement first, the more satisfying, more successful component. Bauser’s set, with its sloping ceiling, cut-off-at-the-knees floor, silken walls and sparse furnishings, conspires with Ian William Galloway’s video designs, Helen Skiera’s soundscapes, Stefan Janik’s unnerving compositions and Simisola Majekodunmi’s all-important lighting to be disorientating for audience and Brazilian-English actor and movement practitioner Felipe Pacheco’s Gregor Samsa alike.
The Samsa house, or more precisely, Gregor’s room within it, is constantly, subtly, deceptively, on the move, as if a magician with dexterous sleight of hand is at work. The physicality of the stage in motion is as imvital here as human movement. Or insect movement, in the case of poor Gregor.
As a sidenote, the sense of a house on the move, of tectonic shifts, is more effectively portrayed than in Les Enfants Terribles’ Theatre Royal visit last month with The House With Chicken Legs.
Your reviewer recalls lighting last being used so strikingly, as a character in itself, in the Lyric Hammersmith’s Ghost Stories at the Grand Opera House in pre-Covid March 2020.
Here, in one extraordinary scene, as Pacheco’s Gregor swings on the wiring from the detached ceiling light, the light in his hand keeps switching on and off. Off, back on, and he has moved again. Again and again.
This is movement and meaning in perfect symmetry, with Pacheco as spry as a Buster Keaton or Harold Lloyd, but not comical, more like Jeff Goldblum in The Fly.
What lies on the other side of the door? Hannah Sinclair Robinson’s Grete, left, Troy Glasgow’s Mr Samsa, Louise May Newberry’s Mrs Samsa and Joe Layton’s Chief Clerk fear the worst for the insect inside in Frantic Assembly’s Metamorphosis. Picture: Tristram Kenton
By comparison with the visual, the verbal is uneven, sometimes playful, other times earnest or abstract; sometimes snappy, other times, weighty and wordy in monologues for Troy Glasgow’s wastrel, hypocritical, hyper-critical Mr Samsa and his compliant wife (Louise Mai Newberry).
Shards of humour pierce the surrealist surface, but the overall tone is disquieting, discomfiting. For all the poetic verve and political vigour, momentum is lost, rather than gained, post-interval, when more interaction would have been beneficial (like in the scenes with Joe Layton’s Chief Clerk), rather than the fragmented, episodic structure of lone voices.
In the best decision, Gregor’s transformation to an insect is depicted not as an overnight sensation, but as a gradual consequence of his debilitating, repetitive daily routine as a clothing salesman, with all the pressures of being the sole breadwinner, That works wonderfully well across the first half, captured in Pacheco’s Groundhog Day grind, climaxing with Gregor encased in four chairs, looking not unlike a beetle for the only time.
Likewise, the metamorphosis of Gregor’s young sister, Hannah Sinclair Robinson’s Grete, takes on more prominence in Sissay’s account, wherein she hates the discipline of having to play the violin yet craves the spotlight. How very 21st century! Her face-pulling solo scene by the mirror is a stand-out, one that finds Sissay, Graham and Sinclair Robinson conveying character as one.
That scene is typical of a production with moments and ideas of theatrical brilliance rather than creative cohesion. Last autumn’s bar-room Othello was superior, but Frantic Assembly are always worth seeing, for those exciting highs, the visual fire storms, the brutal, yet beautiful physicality.
Performances: 7.30pm tonight and tomorrow; 2.30pm and 7.30pm, Saturday. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Elaine MacNicol in The Widow’s Path in Elysium Theatre Company’s Reiver: Tales From The Borders, on tour at Theatre@41, Monkgate, and the Grey Village Hall, Sutton-on-the-Forest
ELYSIUM Theatre Company presents Matthew Howden, Elaine MacNicol and Steven Stobbs in artistic director Jake Murray’s touring production of Reiver: Tales From The Borders at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, tonight at 7.30pm.
The Reivers were lawless families who terrorised the Anglo-Scottish border for 400 years from Newcastle to Edinburgh, Carlisle to Dumfries, until King James I broke their power. Living by blackmail, extortion, protection and theft, they grew to become some of the most powerful families of their time: the Nixons, the Armstrongs, the Charltons, the Maxwells and many more.
Steeped in the folklore and history of the northern borders, writer Steve Byron weaves three tales of ordinary people caught up in the Reivers’ web, a farmer, a lawman and a young woman, as they take a stand against their murderous ways in a world of violence and injustice.
In Blackmail, an innocent farmer is forced to take a stand against the bullying threats of a powerful Reiver family. In Godforsaken Place, a southern lawman exiled to the north by the corrupt London authorities tries to save a Reiver child from a terrible fate.
In The Widow’s Path, a Scottish woman sold into servitude as a child pursues the murderers of her husband. She will not rest until she has overturned the Reiver order to gain her revenge.
As law and order do battle with corruption and greed, will good triumph over evil, or will evil win the day?
Simon Cartwright’s Frankie Howerd and Mark Farrelly’s Dennis Heymer in Howerd’s End. Picture: Steve Ullathorne
Tomorrow night, at 7.30pm, Mark Farrelly’s play Howerd’s End goes to the heart of York-born comedian Frankie Howerd’s secret. A secret called Dennis Heymer, his lover, friend and anchor, with whom he had a clandestine relationship from the 1950s until Frankie’s death in 1992.
From the writer of Quentin Crisp: Naked Hope and The Silence Of Snow: The Life Of Patrick Hamilton comes a show packed with humour in a glorious opportunity to encounter Frankie in full-flight stand-up mode, but also unafraid of the truth.
Howerd’s End portrays a shared, defiant journey through closeness, love, grief and all the other things that make life worth living. Come and say farewell to a legend… and learn the art of letting go as Farrelly’s Dennis is joined by Simon Cartwright’s Frankie in a touring production directed by Joe Harmston.
Ria Lina: Riawakening makes it three nights in a row at Theatre@41 on Friday at 8pm. In the aftermath of a global pandemic, comedian and scientist Ria Lina has undergone a Riawakening and now sees the world differently.
In her debut tour show, she tackles the issues of coming out of a pandemic, the new normal, divorce, dating in a new digital world, motherhood and what it really means to be a woman today.
Fearless and provocative, Ria is the only Filipina comedian working on the British stand-up circuit and has appeared on Live At The Apollo, Have I Got News For You, House Of Games, The Last Leg and Celebrity Mastermind.
Tickets are on sale at tickets.41monkgate.co.uk. Durham company Elysium Theatre’s Reiver: Tales From The Borders also visits the Grey Village Hall, Sutton-on-the-Forest, near York, on October 28 at 7.30pm; tickets, 01347 811428. Ria Lina plays The Wardrobe, Leeds, on October 19, 7.30pm; box office, thewardrobe.seetickets.com.
Laura Kaye Thomson, Ewan S Pires and Finn Kebbe in Concete Youth’s The Whispering Jungle. All photos: Charles Flint
THE Whispering Jungle, Concrete Youth’s new multi-sensory theatre production for young audiences with profound and multiple learning disabilities, plays York Theatre Royal Studio on Thursday and Friday.
The 50-minute show was developed off the back of Concrete Youth’s pioneering ASMR Project, an international research project that brought together British, American and Singaporean academics, artists and professionals to explore for the very first time the impact of autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) on people labelled with these disabilities.
What can humans do to make the world better for rainforest animals, ask Concrete Youth in The Whispering Jungle. Laura Kaye Thomson sets to work, brush in hand
The ASMR Project’s research findings from 750 people led to this stage production being developed by Hull company Concrete Youth in association with Mercury Theatre, Colchester, supported by Arts Council England, Hull City Council and Back To Ours.
Bringing together ASMR, sensory play and sensory puppets, the immersive The Whispering Jungle invites the audience to help the animals of the rainforest realise that home really is wherever you are with your family.
Ewan S Pires in a scene from The Whispering Jungle
In the story, the Turtle (Ewan S Pires), the Monkey (Finn Kebbe) and the Bird (Laura Kaye Thomson) have all lost their home after men in big, bright, yellow jackets chopped down all the trees.
Now the animals are forced to fend for themselves, make their own new homes and pick up the pieces of the mess left behind by humans. How will they cope on their own? What can humans do to make the world better for rainforest animals? And why is the Turtle so clumsy?
Hard hats at the ready for Ewan S Pires, left, Laura Kaye Thomson and Finn Kebbe
Discover the answers in performances at 11am and 1.30pm on both days. Tickets can be booked on 01904 623568or viaboxoffice@yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. Watch the tour trailer at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_M3EINUA1yg.
The Whispering Jungle was devised by the company with music, lyrics and musical direction by Frew, lyrics and direction by Belle Streeton, set design by Lu Herbert, sound design by Tom Smith, puppet design by Amy Nicholson and lighting design by Jessie Addinall. Daniel Smith is the creative producer and associate director.
Finn Kebbe playing the Monkey in Concrete Youth’s The Whispering Jungle
James Lee, left, as Gaveston and Jack Downey as Edward IIin rehearsal for York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II. All reheasal pictures: John Saunders
AT the heart of phase two of York Shakespeare Project over the next 25 years is the mission to stage not only all of Shakespeare’s plays, but also the finest works of his contemporaries.
Next week, the Bard’s rival in focus will be playwright, poet and translator Christopher “Kit” Marlowe, writer of The Tragicall History of Dr Faustus; Tamburlaine The Great; Dido, Queen Of Carthage; Edward II; The Massacre At Paris and The Jew Of Malta.
York Shakespeare Project (YSP) will stage his intimate historical tragedy Edward II (The Troublesome Reign and Lamentable Death of Edward the Second, King of England) under the direction of Tom “Strasz” Straszewski at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, from October 17 to 21 at 7.30pm plus a 2.30pm Saturday matinee.
Strasz previously directed The Merry Wives Of Windsor in 2012 and The Two Noble Kinsmen in 2018, now joining Paul Toy, Mark France and Ben Prusiner as three-time directors for YSP.
“We were delighted that Tom emerged from a strong field to be chosen as the director of the first non-Shakespeare play of YSP’s new project,” says chair Tony Froud.
“Strasz brings great knowledge and wide experience of directing Elizabethan and Jacobean drama and promises an innovative interpretation of Marlowe’s fascinating text.”
Cassi Roberts, left, as Kent and Emma Scott as Young Mortimer
Edward II is king at last. Determined to shower his loved ones with gifts, he summons his exiled lover, Piers Gaveston, 1st Earl of Cornwall. In the face of a king, court and country intoxicated by their passions, the Queen takes her own lover, whereupon the nation is torn apart in a merciless divorce. Their child watches from the shadows, desperate to mend this broken family and nation or bring them to heel.
“This is a play about power and love – who has it, who gives it, who takes it, and who suffers for it,” says Tony. “For this production, we began by exploring the play through creative workshops, editing a script that reflects the people in the room. No characters were cast until after this process.”
Strasz’s cast will be led by Jack Downey as Edward II, James Lee as Gaveston and Danae Arteaga Hernandez as Isabel. Joining them will be Emma Scott as Young Mortimer; Effie Warboys, Princess Edie; Adam Kadow, Spenser; Cassi Roberts, Kent; Alan Sharp, Warwick, and James Tyler as Lancaster/Gurvey.
So too will be Stuart Lindsay as The Bishop; Elizabeth Painter, Margaret de Clare; Charlie Barrs, Maltravers; Harry Summers, Mortimer Senior; Tom Jennings, Lightborn; Emily Hansen, Pembroke, and Robyn Jankel, Philippa of Hainault.
Drawing on personal responses to the script and their own experiences, Strasz’s cast members bring a fresh and modern perspective to Marlowe’s 1592 work. “Like Marlowe himself, we wanted to focus less on historical accuracy or psychological realism, and instead as a fantasia of power and love. This is a fearful England,” says the director, who was at the helm of York Mystery Plays productions in 2018 and 2022.
Cassi Roberts, left, back, as Kent, Emma Scott as Young Mortimer, James Lee as Gaveston, Thomas Jennings as Lightborn, Stuart Lindsay as the Bishop, Emily Hansen as Pembroke and Alan Sharp as Warwick
“Edward, his court and his child all try to protect themselves, but without uniting together they’re vulnerable. Edward is usually portrayed as a weak king, but we found this to be untrue: Marlowe presents him as somebody who fights fiercely to protect his loved ones, despite his hatred of war and the devastation it brings.
When his lover, Gaveston, is brutally murdered, he finally becomes the king the medieval nobles want him to be – warmongering, merciless, elitist – and it’s to everybody’s cost.”
For James Lee (Gaveston), the play touches on contemporary issues of cancel culture, celebrity and social mobility, with his character destroyed for daring to reach above his station.
“I think Marlowe would get a real kick out of how relevant his characters are. In a world of tabloids and gossip, characters like Gaveston rise and fall every day,” he says. “Social mobility is championed and demonised. We’re never allowed to forget the roles we are supposed to play, regardless of our dreams.”
To aid accessibility for deaf and hard-of-hearing audience members, all performances will include closed captions.
Tickets are available at tickets.41monkgate.co.uk or by emailing the box office at boxoffice@41monkgate.co.uk.
The poster for York Shakespeare Project’s Edward II
Dr Hannah Thomas, special collections manager at the Bar Convent Living Heritage Centre, with Father Edward Oldcorne’s crucifix from the Hide & Seek: The Aftermath of the Gunpowder Plot exhibition, opening today. Picture: Frank Dwyer
AN historic crucifix, a Wolds art trail, 40th anniversaries at the quadruple and a York-made horror double bill promise a heap of interesting encounters for Charles Hutchinson and you alike.
Exhibition launch of the week:Hide & Seek: The Aftermath of the Gunpowder Plot, Bar Convent Living Heritage Centre, Blossom Street, York, today until November 16
THE only surviving item from thousands seized in raids on Catholic houses after the 1605 Gunpowder Plot goes on show in York. The late 16th/early 17th century crucifix belonged to Father Edward Oldcorne (1561-1606), who was hanged, drawn and quartered despite being innocent of involvement. His crime: he attended school in York with infamous plotter Guy Fawkes and committed the treasonous act of becoming a Catholic priest.
On display will be new research into the crucifix, more information on Oldcorne and the men he was caught alongside, and an exploration of how priest hiding holes were constructed within the fabric of buildings. Tickets: barconvent.co.uk.
Andy And The Oddsocks: Songs, slapstick and silliness from Andy Day, centre, and co at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Alex Lake
Children’s gig of the week: Andy And The Odd Socks, York Theatre Royal, today, 1pm
STRAIGHT off the telly and onto the live stage, Andy And The Odd Socks bring their madcap mix of songs, slapstick and silliness to life with a 70-minute show to entertain families of all ages.
Fronted by Andy Day, CBeebies regular and 2021 York Theatre Royal panto star as Dandini in Cinderella, their sock’n’roll makes for the ideal first concert for children. Andy And The Odd Socks are patrons for the Anti-Bullying Alliance, by the way. Tickets update: filling up fast; 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Michael Mears and Riko Nakazono in Essential Theatre’s The Mistake
Studio show of the week: Essential Theatre in The Mistake, York Theatre Royal Studio, tonight, 7.45pm
DIRECTED by Rosamunde Hutt, Michael Mears’s Spirit of the Fringe award-winning play explores the events surrounding the catastrophic ‘mistake’ that launched the nuclear age, followed by a post-show discussion.
1942. On a squash court in Chicago, a dazzling scientific experiment takes place, one that three years later will destroy a city and change the world forever. Two actors, one British (Mears), one Japanese (Riko Nakazono), enact the stories of a brilliant Hungarian scientist, a daring American pilot and a devoted Japanese daughter, in a fast-moving drama about the dangers that arise when humans dare to unlock the awesome power of nature. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Delta Saxophone Quartet: Playing Steve Martland and The Soft Machine works at York Late Music’s concert tonight
Season start of the week: York Late Music, Franko Bozak, 1pm; Delta Saxophone Quartet, 7.30pm, Unitarian Chapel, St Saviourgate, York, today
FRANKO Bozac showcases the reasons why the accordion should not be underestimated in his afternoon programme, featuring a collaboration between composer James Williamson and visual artist Romey T Brough.
Celebrating their own ruby anniversary, the Delta Saxophone Quartet mark York Late Music’s 40th year by performing Steve Martland, The Soft Machine and new works. Box office: latemusic.org or on the door.
Elijah Dsenis-Constantine, as Tony, and Rebecca Ulliott, as Maria, in Be Amazing Arts’ West Side Story at the JoRo
Musical of the week: Be Amazing Arts in West Side Story, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, today and tomorrow, 2.30pm and 7.30pm
MALTON company Be Amazing Arts present Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s musical transition of Shakesespeare’s Romeo And Juliet to modern-day New York City, where two young idealistic lovers find themselves caught between warring street gangs, the “American” Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks.
Arthur Laurents’s book remains as powerful, poignant and timely as ever, charting the lovers’ struggle to survive in a world of hate, violence and prejudice in this innovative, heart-wrenching landmark Broadway musical. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Ceramicist Gerry Grant: Taking part in Pocklington Area Open Studios 2023 at Venue 4, Fangfoss Pottery, with illustrator Sarah Relf
Art event of the weekend: Pocklington Area Open Studios 2023, today and tomorrow, 10am to 5pm
TAKING in Pocklington, villages with ten miles of the East Yorkshire market town, the Yorkshire Wolds and North Derwent Valley, Pocklington Area Open Studios 2023 features 28 artists in 14 venues.
This compact art trail features paintings, ceramics, textiles, jewellery and photography, with the chance to meet diverse painters and makers, many in their own studios, who will preview their latest works for sale, discuss their creative processes, potential commissions and upcoming workshops and courses.
Venue 1: Park Lane End Studio, Park Lane, Bishop Wilton: Colin Pollock, oils, acrylics and watercolour; Judith Pollock, printmaking and mixed media.
Venue 2: The Studio, The Old School, Skirpenbeck: Lesley Peatfield, fine art and abstract photography; Richard Gibson, sculptures.
Venue 3: Rocking Horse Studio, Rocking Horse Yard, Fangfoss: Shirley Davis Dew, painting; Sue Giles, textile art exploring Japanese Shibori techniques of dyeing; Richard Moore, handmade ceramic tiles.
Venue 4: Fangfoss Pottery, The Old School, Fangfoss,: Gerry Grant, ceramics; Sarah Relf, drawing and illustration.
Venue 5: I Woldview Road, Wilberfoss: Mo Burrows, jewellery; Bernadette Oliver, acrylic, ink and collage; Tori Foster, jewellery.
Venue 6: 4 Archibald Close, Pocklington: Peter Schoenecker, 2D and 3D art works.
Venue 7: 35 St Helens Road, Pocklington: Mary Burton, acrylics and pastels; Lee Steele, ceramics; Ingrid Barton, mixed media.
Venue 8: Newfold House Granary Studio, Newton upon Derwent: Chris Cullum, textile arts.
Venue 9: Tullyframe, Main Street, Barmby Moor: Penny De Corte, ceramic art; Avril Cheetham, jewellery.
Venue 11: Church Farm, Town Street, Hayton: Noreen Thorp, pastel, watercolour and mixed media, Lynda Heaton, watercolour and mixed media.
Venue 12: Hayton Studio, Manor Farm, Town Street, Hayton: Peter Edwards, mixed media; Harry Hodgson, mixed media.
Venue 13: Plum Tree Studio & House, Pocklington Lane, Huggate: Belinda Hazlerigg, paintings, printmaking, silk scarves and ceramics.
Venue 14: 3 Stable Court, Londesborough: Tony Wells, ceramics.
For the brochure, map and artist details, head to: pocklingtonareaopenstudios.co.uk/info.html.Free entry.
Hannah Sinclair Robinson’s Grete and a suspended Felipe Pacheco’s Gregor Samsa in Frantic Assembly’s Metamorphosis, on tour at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Tristram Kenton
Touring play of the week: Frantic Assembly in Metamorphosis at York Theatre Royal, Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinee
POET, author, broadcaster and speaker Lemn Sissay has adapted Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis for Frantic Assembly, visceral purveyors of theatre full of physicality, movement and emotional truths, who last toured Othello to York.
Gregor Samsa finds himself transformed from breadwinner into burden in this absurd and tragic story, wherein humans struggle within a system that crushes them under its heel in Kafka’s existential depiction of the limitations of the body and mind, imagination and aspiration. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Howard Jones: Songs old and new at York Barbican on Wednesday
Sing something synth-full: Howard Jones: Celebrating 40 Years 1983-2023, York Barbican, Wednesday, doors, 7pm
SINGER, songwriter and synth player Howard Jones, 68, is marking the 40th anniversary of his revolutionary debut single, New Song, performing in a five-piece with Kajagoogoo’s Nick Beggs on bass and Robert Boult on guitar. Expect a “sonic visual feast” of hits and fan favourites and a support spot from Blancmange.
“I think my ’80s’ work still resonates through the generations because of the positive message in the lyrics,” says Jones. “I’ve always believed that music can give the listener a boost, especially when things in life prove challenging. Things can only get better when we realise the power of our own actions and engagement.” Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Mike Scott: Leading The Waterboys for the seventh time since 2012 at York Barbican
More 40th anniversary celebrations: The Waterboys, York Barbican, Thursday, 7.30pm
MIKE Scott has made a habit of playing York Barbican, laying on his Scottish-founded folk, rock, soul and blues band’s “Big Music” in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018 and October 2021.
Since then, The Waterboys have released 15th studio album All Souls Hill in 2022; re-released 2000’s Rock In A Weary Land, 2003’s Universal Hall and 2007’s Book Of Lightning on vinyl; appeared on Sky Arts’ The Great Songwriters and announced a six-CD box set of This Is The Sea for early 2024. Joining Scott will be Memphis keyboard player “Brother” Paul Brown, British drummer Ralph Salmins and Irish bassman Aongus Ralston.
Level 42’s Living It Up tour date on Friday the 13th is unlucky for some – it has sold out – but tickets are still available for fellow Eighties’ combo The Waterboys at yorkbarbican.co.uk.
The horror, the horror: Book Of Monsters and Zomblogalypse, made in York, screened in York on Friday the 13th
Spooky screening of the week: Book Of Monsters and Zomblogalypse, Spark: York, Piccadilly, York, Friday, 6pm to 11pm
YORK’S horror filmmaking community gathers this Friday The 13th for a special double screening of Dark Rift Horror’sBook Of Monsters and MilesTone Films’Zomblogalypse.
Both York-made indie films have enjoyed award-scooping film festival tours, with Dark Rift’s follow-up feature, How To Kill Monsters,now screening internationally.
Meet the filmmakers, cast and crew of each movie, including directors Stewart Sparke, Hannah Bungard, Miles Watts and Tony Hipwell and star Lyndsey Craine. Add in signings, photo opportunities with cast and props, and merchandise to buy, including both films on Blu-ray, official posters, art cards and other fun stuff. Box office: ticketpass.org/event/EGUKTC/dark-rift-double-bill. 18-plus only.
In Focus: How York composer James Williamson, artist Romey T Brough and Croatian accordionist Franko Bozac collaborated for Late Music premiere and Blossom Street Gallery exhibition
Croatian accordionist Franko Bozac: Premiering James Williamson’s Romey Collages at York Late Music today
YORK composer James Williamson’s composition, Romey Collages, will be premiered by accordionist Franko Bozac as part of the 2023 York Late Festival season today.
The work is a collaboration between James and artist Romey T Brough that emerged from him seeing her work at Blossom Street Gallery, Blossom Street, York.
Romey, who lived and worked in York for many years, now resides at her studio in the Hertfordshire countryside. Her latest collages will be on show at Kim Oldfield’s gallery until October 29 under the exhibition title of A Collaboration in Music and Colour
“It’s a really interesting exploration of the relationship between the audible and visual,” says Kim.
Croatian accordion virtuoso Franko Bozac will be making his Late Music debut at St Saviourgate Unitarian Chapel this afternoon, when Romey Collages will be showcased.
York composer James Williamson delivering Romey T Brough’s collaborative collages to Blossom Street Gallery
Composer James Williamson says: “This set of five pieces is a direct response to a set of monoprint collages by Romey. I first came across her work in 2016 in Blossom Street Gallery, where one of Romey’s collages was displayed on the wall and it immediately caught my eye.
“The collage was a vibrant display of repeated strips of colours, each strip with its own character, yet similar to the one before and after; a kind of self-similarity.”
At the time, James was working towards his PhD in composition, which drew on minimalist visual art and a fascination with the Deleuzian idea of difference and repetition and how might this apply to composing.
“To cut a long story short, I contacted Romey through the gallery to learn more about her work. We immediately connected over a coffee and thought it would be a great idea to collaborate on a project,” says James.
“Romey then created a series of five collages that drew inspiration from music, with each work having a musical title: Chaconne, Aubade, Nocturne, Pastorale and Berceuse. I then responded to these works and created a set of five pieces, each one being a musical interpretation of the works and their titles.
Chaconne Midday, mono’collage, by Romey T Brough
“Like most of my recent work, I use one or two ideas in each piece. I flesh these ideas out using repetition of singular fragments or phrases, juxtaposed by other contrasting fragments, similarly to Romey’s collages.”
Around the same time, James was contacted by Franko Bozac to commission a new piece. “I thought it would be great to tie the two projects together. I have always loved the accordion for its sound and versatility, and rather fittingly, when the bellows open up, it reminds me of collages themselves.”
In turn, Romey recalls: “I had a phone call from Kim, when I was exhibiting my monoprint collages in Blossom Street Gallery, saying that a young composer was interested in meeting me as he composed music the way I created my collages.
“I was very intrigued, and we met up for coffee outside York Theatre Royal. I hadn’t heard any of James’s compositions but was amazed by how we both could understand each other’s creative processes, and when he suggested a collaboration I was delighted to agree.”
Artist Romey T Brough at work on her mono’collages
On the bus back to her York studio, she thought of moods of the day from dawn to night. “Early the next day I travelled to Monks Cross on a very misty morning and Aubade/Dawn came to me,” she says. “The rest followed on, culminating in Nocturne/Night, inspired by the view from my studio through an established beech hedge of car headlights flashing past.
“I have since then indulged in listening to James’s compositions and created more collages inspired by his work. It’s been an exciting collaboration for me, and I hope to continue creating music-inspired images.”
Describing her modus operandi, Romey says: “My monoprints are created by painting with acrylic paint onto glass; the image is then transferred to paper. The glass is wiped clean each time a print is taken, therefore each one is unique.
“The collages are a development following on from the photographic ones I occasionally create. I am fascinated by how reorganising strips of my monoprints can bring more intensity to the colours and evoke memories and emotions.”
Berceuse Twilght, mono’collage, by Romey T Brough
DrJames Williamson: the back story
STUDIED at University of Huddersfield and Royal Academy of Music, completing PhD in Composition at University of York.
His works have been performed by: Psappha; Aurora Orchestra; Hebrides Ensemble; London Sinfonietta; CoMA London; Croatian Philharmonic Orchestra; Lunar Saxophone Quartet; Delta Saxophone Quartet; Quatuor Diotima; Ligeti String Quartet; University of York Symphony Orchestra; RAM Symphony Orchestra; Kate Ledger (piano); Anna Snow (voice); Ian Pace (piano), Franko Bozac (accordion) and Stephen Altoft (19-division trumpet).
Broadcasts include BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction and Hear And Now, Beethoven FM (Chile) and Radio 3 Beograd.
Nocturne Night, mono’collage, by Romey T Brough
Romey T. Brough: the back story
STUDIED initially at Harrow Art School in Middlesex, north of London. Awarded various certificates including national Diploma in Design.
Studied overseas in Italy in Positano, winning a scholarship. Studied with Professor Spadini at Rome Academy.
Work exhibited regularly at Royal Academy, London, and is in archives of Tate Gallery, London, and galleries and collections throughout UK, Japan, Australia and United States of America.
