Tag: Castle Howard

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More Things To Do in York and beyond as the summer of love arrives early. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 21 for 2023, from The Press

A study of people studying People We Love’s digital portraits in the Chapel at Castle Howard. Picture: Charlotte Graham

LOVE lost and found is all around in Charles Hutchinson’s picks from the shelf marked culture.

Goin’ to the chapel of love: People We Love, Castle Howard, near York, until October 15, 10am to 4pm

AFTER gracing York Minster twice, Pittsburgh, USA, Viborg, Denmark, and Selby Abbey, North Yorkshire, KMA’s latest contemplative digital art installation takes over the Chapel at Castle Howard, a setting that provides a contrast between portraiture old and new. Produced by York-based Mediale and designed by Kit Monkman, People We Love explores “the invisible transaction between a person, a piece of art and the emotion which bonds us all: love”.

A quintet of high-definition screens display portraits of estate staff and volunteers, Castle Howard visitors and Ryedale residents, filmed in March, as they gaze at a picture of someone they love. A picture you never see, but you will feel each unspoken story as the faces tell the tale of a person they love.

Alexandra Mather’s Adina, left, in York Opera’s The Elixir Of Love

Opera of the weekend: York Opera in The Elixir Of Love, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, today at 7.30pm

WILL Nemorino, a simple village farm lad, ever find love without the help of a magic potion? Discover the answer in Donizetti’s comic opera L’Elisere d’Amore, packed with light-hearted music sung in an English translation by Ruth and Thomas Martin with orchestral accompaniment.

Under the direction of Chris Charlton-Mathews, principal roles go to Hamish Brown as the lovelorn, lovable Nemorino; stalwart Ian Thompson-Smith as opportunistic Doctor Dulcamara; David Valsamidies as the boastful Belcore; Alexandra Mather as the intelligent, beautiful Adina and Emma Burke in her York Opera debut as the flirtatious Giannetta. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Harvey Badger, Eddie Ahrens, Hannah Baker and Rachel Hammond in Mikron Theatre Company’s Twitchers

Bird song of the week: Mikron Theatre Company in Twitchers, Scarcroft Allotments, Scarcroft Road, York, Sunday (21/5/2023), 2pm, and on tour until October 21

IN Mikron Theatre Company’s premiere of Poppy Hollman’s Twitchers, Springwatch is coming to RSPB Shrikewing nature reserve, home to raucous rooks and booming bitterns.

Can Jess take inspiration from the RSPB’s tenacious female founders and draw on its history of campaigning to save them? Can she find her own voice to raise a rallying cry for nature in Mikron’s flight through RSPB and birdwatching history, feathered with bird song and humour. No reserved seating or tickets are required, and instead a ‘pay what you feel’ collection will be taken after the show.

Kate Rusby: On song at Harrogate Royal Hall on Monday

Folk gig of the week: Kate Rusby, Harrogate Royal Hall, Monday, 7.30pm

BARNSLEY folk nightingale Kate Rusby rounds off a year of 30th anniversary celebrations with an 18-date spring tour, in the wake of releasing her 30: Happy Returns compendium last May to acknowledge three decades as a professional musician.

Coming later this year will be Kate’s Established 1973 Christmas Tour, visiting York Barbican on December 7, three days after she turns 50: a landmark she will mark with her sixth album of South Yorkshire pub carols and winter songs. Box office: Harrogate, 01423 502116 or harrogatetheatre.co.uk; York, yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Beware the Green Fingers: Fladam’s Flo Poskitt and Adam Sowter launch their debut children’s show at York Theatre Royal

Children’s show of the week: Fladam, Green Fingers, TakeOver Festival, York Theatre Royal, May 27, 3pm

GREEN Fingers is a work-in-progress performance to test out madcap York musical comedy double act Fladam’s first foray into family theatre ahead of its full debut at this summer’s Edinburgh Fringe.

Flo Poskitt and Adam Sowter present a deliciously Roald Dahl-style musical storytelling show for children aged five to 12 about a boy born with bright green hands. Is he really rotten or just misunderstood? Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Amy May Ellis: Back at The Band Room

Homeward bound: Amy May Ellis, The Band Room, Low Mill, Farndale, May 27, 7.30pm

BEWITCHING ambient Yorkshire rose folkster Amy May Ellis makes an overdue return to her “local” moorland venue, where she has opened for Hiss Golden Messenger, Willy Mason, Michael Chapman, Ryley Walker and Howe Gelb since teen days…and always brought the house down.

This time she is touring her debut album, Over Ling And Bell, released on Isle of Eigg’s cult Lost Map Records, home of Pictish Trail and one-time Lost Map Sessions singer and songwriter James Yorkston, with whom Amy has toured. Wanderland and Nessy Williamson support. Box office: thebandroom.co.uk.

Awaiting his coat of many colours: Jonathan Wells in rehearsal for his title role in York Musical Theatre Company’s Joseph And The Technicolor Dreamcoat

Musical of the week: York Musical Theatre Company in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Wednesday to Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee

KATHRYN Addison directs York Musical Theatre Company in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s 1968 debut musical: the biblical journey of Joseph, son of Jacob and one of 12 brothers, and his coat of many colours.

From the book of Genesis to the musical’s genesis as a cantata written for a school choir, Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat has grown into an iconic musical theatre staple. Here husband and wife Jonathan Wells and Jennie Wogan-Wells lead the cast as Joseph and the Narrator. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Richard E Grant: Reflecting on love and loss at the Grand Opera House, York

Talk show of the week: An Evening With Richard E Grant, Grand Opera House, York, Friday, 7.30pm

ACTOR Richard E Grant tells stories from his life, entwining tales from his glittering career with uplifting reflections on love and loss, as told in last September’s memoir, A Pocketful Of Happiness.

Grant will be considering the inspiration behind the book – how, when his beloved wife Joan died in 2021 after almost 40 years together, she set him a challenge of finding a pocketful of happiness in every day. The book and now the tour show honour that challenge. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Leon Francois Dumont’s Ring Of Fire: Not one of the “life drawings” but featuring in the Donderdag Collective exhibition nonetheless at Pyramid Gallery, York

York exhibition launch of the week: The Donderdag Collective, Artists And The Human Form, Pyramid Gallery, Stonegate, York, York, today, from 11am, until June 25

FOUNDED in 2011 by a group of artists in York, The Donderdag Collective members – both professionals and keen amateurs – meet at St Olave’s Church Hall, in Marygate Lane, on Thursday evenings to sketch or paint from a life model (‘Donderdag’ being Dutch for ‘Thursday’).

Taking part in this resulting show are: Julie Mitchell; Rory Barke; Bertt deBaldock; Diane Cobbold; Carolyn Coles; Leon Francois Dumont; Jeanne Godfrey; Anna Harding; Adele Karmazyn; Michelle Galloway; Andrian Melka; Kate Pettitt; Swea Sayers; Barbara Shaw and Donna Maria Taylor.

Dame Joan Collins: Going Behind The Shoulder Pads at the Grand Opera House in October

Show announcement of the week: Dame Joan Collins, Behind The Shoulder Pads, Grand Opera House, York, October 2, 7.30pm

TO coincide with the release of her memoir Behind The Shoulder Pads, Hollywood legend, author, producer, humanitarian and entrepreneur Dame Joan Collins, who will turn 90 on May 23, will embark on a tour with husband Percy Gibson by her side.

Returning to the Grand Opera House, where they presented Unscripted in February 2019, they will field audience questions and tell seldom-told tales and enchanting anecdotes, accompanied by rare footage from Dame Joan’s seven decades in showbusiness. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

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Castle Howard delights in stories in fairtyale Christmas installation Into The Woods

The Nutcracker in Into The Woods at Castle Howard. All pictures: Peter Seaward

CASTLE Howard’s winter installation, Into The Woods, A Fairytale Christmas is drawing record numbers.

After the frosted, icy spectacle of Christmas In Narnia last winter, Charlotte Lloyd Webber Event Design and The Projection Studio have returned to transform North Yorkshire’s stateliest home’s grand rooms into a “wonderland of happily-ever-afters, fair maidens, magical forests and faraway kingdoms”, bringing cherished fairy tales to life with a sight-and-sound combination of theatrical installations and state-of-the-art soundscapes.

“All around the house, tales which have drifted through the forests of our memory since early childhood now weave amongst each other to conjure up the world of once-upon-a-time,” say Nicholas and Victoria Howard in the visitors’ guide.

“Reinvented again and again, these fairytales are as much a part of our heritage as the walls of this house and its towering dome. Their names alone are enough to plunge us into the warm milk of childhood memories.

“Weave your way through this magical fairytale world and who knows? Maybe you’ll live happily ever after your visit to a Christmas like no other.”

Creating A Fairytale Christmas’s world of fantasy, inspired by Stepehen Sondheim’s 1987 musical Into The Woods, is the work of a multi-disciplined team, headed by artistic director/interior designer Charlotte Lloyd Webber and design director Adrian Lillie, co-directors of CLW Event Design.

The Christmas table at Into The Woods at Castle Howard

Senior designer Dave O’Donnell, sculptor Mandy Bryson, model and prop designer Mark and the floristry team of Laura Newby and Celina Fallon play their part.

So does the Production Studio duo of video projection designer Ross Ashton and sound designer/audio artist Karen Monid, whose light and sound installation Platinum And Light illuminated the nave of York Minster from October 20 to 27 this autumn, just as their Northern Lights installation had done so in October 2019.

Charlotte and Adrian have known each other for 25 years – originally as an actress/producer and costume designer respectively – and have overseen the magical winter transformations of Castle Howard for six years.

“This gig came about slightly by accident,” recalls Adrian. “We’d come up to do some outdoor Shakespeare, but the programme planning changed. Victoria [Howard] then said, ‘we need someone to design a Christmas installation. Do you know anyone who could do it?’. We thought, ‘well, we could’!

“That first year, we were very conscious of taking it back to the house’s roots, to architect John Vanbrugh’s theatrical roots. We used a lot of dry floristry and delicate fabrics, and we soon found we needed a lot more ‘product’ as it can be sucked up in such grand rooms.

“Year on year, we lay on more and more, and so Into The Woods is our most ambitious installation yet.” Be it Rapunzel’s tower looming over the Great Hall, where her golden braid offers an escape route; Jack’s giant beanstalk, winding its way around a steel construction up to the roof of the Garden Hall, or the 20,000 baubles glittering in room after room.

York artist Emily Sutton’s artwork for the Into The Wood press invitation, publicity leaflet and visitors’ guide

“We use ‘filler’ from the previous year’s story, like on the China Landing, where the materials have been used before, but with a new top layer created for the new theme,” says Adrian of a scene where the mirror forms the archway into the woods.

“We still re-use items from the first year; we use paper and silk, we avoid plastics, so we’re always thinking about sustainability. For the last four years, the big Christmas tree had come from Scotland but to discover there were suitable trees on the Castle Howard estate for this Christmas was wonderful.”

This year, CLW Event Design also created Bamburgh Castle’s Christmas installation, The Twelve Days Of Christmas – whose first version was on display at Castle Howard in 2018 – as the Lloyd Webber-Linnie partnership thrives on ever-growing challenges. “We’ve worked together so long, we finish each other’s sentences,” says Adrian.

“We learn more every year, thinking outside the box, trying to be more outrageous and bringing in the team to get their ideas – and we have an incredibly strong team now, who are so encouraging.”

Adrian revelled in doing the Long Gallery finale for the first time this year for Prince Charming’s Ball, with its golden coach and lavish gowns, but his favourite is the Music Room, where the Elves must deal with a massive order of party shows for the upcoming ball.

The Wicked Queen Grimhilde, the Snow Queen, the Wolf, Princess Aurora, Red Riding Hood, Rapuunzel and Gretel have all submitted their measurements. “That room has a really lovely feel,” says Adrian. “It required lots of shoe shopping online and buying in sales! For all the joy I had with the costumes, finding the right boots and shoes has been a lot of fun too, capturing each character in their footwear.”

Castle Howard ventures into fairytales for Christmas

Look out for Red Riding Hood’s thigh-high boots, the big bad Wolf’s killer heels in polka dots and the Sugar Plum Fairy’s ballet shoes, gorgeous all of them!

Audio artist Karen Monid took on a new task for Into The Woods. “There are voices in the installation this time [such as Francine Brody for Wicked Queen Grimhelde and Beth Hayward for the Witch], and because each room focuses on a particular tale and character that I could draw on, I then had to pick the right emotion,” she says.

“Charlotte produces her mood board to say what each room represents, and I also had to be aware that it’s a trail with a beginning and an end. Last year it was easier because it was just one story [C S Lewis’s The Chronicles Of Narnia]; this year there are so many stories and characters; at least ten stories, four of them in the first four rooms [Princess Aurora, alias Sleeping Beauty, Red Riding Hood, Hansel & Gretel and Snow White].

“The most difficult was the fourth one [the Castle Howard Bedroom], where Snow White’s mother is essentially dead and the Wicked Queen is very much alive. You think, ‘how do I do that in sound in one room?’. I decided to treat the mother like a ghost, so even though the new queen has moved in, there’s always an echo of the mother she could have had from before, with the angelic quality of the harp playing, which then fades away as more strident music comes in.”

Attention to detail is paramount, from the Goose honking to the elves starting to hammer when an alarm goes off. “The passing of time and the sense of the tempo picking up runs through the installation [leading to the clock striking 12 at Prince Charming’s ball]. If you pick up on the chimes as you walk round, you will find that the time is getting later,” says Karen.

“In Hansel & Gretel’s room [the Castle Howard Dressing Room], the cuckoo clock strikes three; in the ‘creators’ room’ [the New Library] for The Nutcracker, the clock strikes six in a scene with a steam punk edge to it. In the Crimson Dining Room, the Sugar Plum Fairy is a clockwork figure.

The beanstalk climbs to the Garden Hall ceiling in the Into The Woods installation. Look out for the tiny figure of Jack starting his ascent

“That’s why this installation feels so full, with all that detail, like the music changing to reflect the origins of each story, some being French, some German, and only one English, Jack And The Beanstalk.”

Listen to the female voices. “All the good female characters sing, while the bad characters only speak, and they say too many words, like the Witch still talking in the Great Hall while Rapunzel is singing in her tower,” says Karen. “Music is of the heart, connecting with the soul, that’s why they sing.

“I love it when Rapunzel hits her high notes and the glass shatters. ‘Lovely,’ says Rapunzel! That brings a pantomime touch to it, but you always know you’re in their world.”

Ross, who voices the Giant in the Jack And Beanstalk scene, has brought his projection skills to the Octagon Room, as he did last year for Narnia, Aslan the lion and Father Christmas, and now the Long Gallery too.

“We designed a system for the Long Gallery with as little impact on the space as possible, so you’re not aware of the equipment I use, such as the low-key projector stands,” he says.

“It’s something I learnt when projecting onto Buckingham Palace. No-one wants to see the wires or gaffer tape. Now we’ve done this year’s design, we’ll do even more with it next year.”

Attention to detail in Castle Howard’s Into The Woods installation

As in Sondheim’s musical, the characters from different fairytales interact and conjoin in the story, leading to the happy-ever-after vibe of the young characters turning up as their teenage selves for a party.

That ties in with Charlotte’s desire for regeneration, renewal and sustainability in CLW Event Design’s future. “Everyone took stock during Covid, thinking about ‘what are the events that can address the bigger issues [the environment, climate change] in a joyous way, rather than doom and gloom?’,” she says.

“I come from the world of entertainment but entertainment with a purpose, telling a story in a real-life context.

“We have so little manufacturing left in this country, but if we can find glass manufacturers here, bauble makers here, rather then having to import them from China, people who make things out of wood, if we could rely on cottage industries over here, keeping them in work, that would be a good policy for our installations.

“Next year, I’m hoping to really build that up, starting locally, then regionally, then nationally, rather than importing.”

Into The Woods, A Fairytale Christmas enchants at Castle Howard, near York, until January 2 2023. Tickets: castlehoward.co.uk

The “creators room”, evoking The Brothers Grimm, Charles Perrault and Professor Drosselmeyer amid a multitude of Nutcrackers in Castle Howard’s New Library

Castle Howard’s fairtyale Christmas installation goes online for virtual tour

FOR the first time, a virtual tour of Castle Howard’s Christmas installation is available to watch online.

The North Yorkshire stately home, near York, has created a 37-minute video of Into The Woods: A Fairytale Christmas for those who “who can’t visit in person, from international tourists who are still facing travel restrictions to Yorkshire locals unable to get out and about as easily”.

The online video offers a detailed exploration of Into The Woods’ fairytale-themed installation that fills Castle Howard’s grand rooms with decoration, soundscapes and projections.

The tour is presented by CLW Event Design artistic director Charlotte Lloyd Webber, who reveals behind-the-scenes details and the creative team’s inspirations room by room.

Abbigail Ollive, head of marketing, sales and programming, says: “Christmas at Castle Howard is famous for its wow factor, and we welcome thousands of visitors through our doors this time of year.

“We wanted to create an enchanting virtual tour that allowed people to experience the magic from their own homes, including local people who can’t get to us; people across the UK who can’t travel to us, and international tourists who are still limited by travel restrictions.”

Profits from the Into The Woods in person and the Virtual Tour experience will be directed towards Castle Howard’s conservation deficit to restore and protect the historic buildings and beautiful landscape stewarded by the estate.

The Virtual Tour is available via castlehoward.co.uk for£8, giving viewers unlimited access to watch the video. No closing date for this online service has been set yet.

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More Things To Do in York and beyond in the rave new world of bingo and festivals à gogo. List No. 96, courtesy of The Press

Wynne Evans: Vocal power amid the Pomp and Circumstance at tonight’s Castle Howard Proms

FROM Proms fireworks to rave bingo, prog-rock veterans to village-green art, Charles Hutchinson seeks variety for the diary.  

Pomp and circumstance concert of the week: Castle Howard Proms, Castle Howard, near York, this evening; gates open at 5pm 

OPERA star, insurance advert institution beyond compare and BBC Radio Wales presenter Wynne Evans returns to the Castle Howard Proms this weekend.

West End singer Marisha Wallace will be his fellow soloist at tonight’s classical concert, where the London Gala Orchestra will be conducted by Stephen Bell. Expect picnics, Prom classics, songs from the musicals, flag-waving favourites, a Spitfire flyover, laser displays and a firework finale. Box office: lphconcertsandevents.co.uk/events/castle-howard-proms-2022.

Life of Bryan: Roxy Magic pay tribute to the Ferry man

Tribute show of the week: Roxy Magic, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, tonight, 7.30pm

AHEAD of reunited art-rock legends Roxy Music playing Glasgow, Manchester and London in October on their 50th anniversary tour, here comes Roxy Magic’s tribute in York.

Led by Bryan Ferry doppelganger Kevin Hackett since 2004, the show lovingly recreates four decades of Roxy music, from art-school retro-futurism, to classic standards via sophisticated, adult-oriented rock. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Abba Symphonic: All the hits, with a bigger band, at Castle Howard

Does your mother know this is happening? Abba Symphonic, Castle Howard, near York, Sunday; gates open at 5pm

ROB Fowler and Sharon Sexton will be among the star performers from the West End production of Mamma Mia! at Sunday’s Abba Symphonic concert.

They will be backed by a full rock band, together with the Heart of England Orchestra, in a greatest hits concert conducted by Grammy Award winner Steve Sidwell. Irish singer-songwriter, performer, raconteur Jack Lukeman will be the support act. Again, take a picnic. Box office: lphconcertsandevents.co.uk/events/abba-symphonic-castle-howard/.

Sam Lee: Not-so-ordinary folk amid the chamber music programme at Welburn Manor. Picture: Andre Pattenden

Folk event of the week: Sam Lee, Songlines, at North York Moors Chamber Music Festival, Welburn Manor marquee, near Kirkbymoorside, Monday, 7pm

FOLK pioneer Sam Lee brings a new perspective to this summer’s North York Moors Chamber Music Festival when performing his Songlines set on Monday.

The festival is built around world-class classical musicians, performing repertoire on the theme of Soundscapes. This year, however, singer, song collector and conservationist Lee and his band will be broadening the focus after he met festival director Jamie Walton at the new Ayriel Studios, in Westerdale, near Whitby, late last year. Box office: 07722 038990 or northyorkmoorsfestival.com.

Spot the difference: The 1975 replace Rage Against The Machine as Leeds Festival headliners. Picture: Samuel Bradley

Last big gathering of the summer: Leeds Festival, Bramham Park, near Wetherby, August 26 to 28

OUT go Friday’s American headliners Rage Against The Machine (leg injury to frontman Zack de la Rocha), Italy’s 2021 Eurovision winners, Maneskin, and American rapper Jack Harlow (both preferring to play at MTV’s Video Music Awards ceremony in America instead). In come English indie combo The 1975, for their first gig in two years, and pop star Charli XCX on Friday and London rapper AJ Tracey on the Sunday.

Friday offers Halsey, Run The Jewels and Bastille; Saturday,  Dave, Megan Thee Stallion, Little Simz, Glass Animals and Joy Crookes; Sunday, Arctic Monkeys, Bring Me Horizons, Wolf Alice and Fontaines DC. Box office: leedsfestival.com.

Re-building Colosseum: Prog-rockers parade their latest line-up at The Crescent

Re-formed legends of the week: Colosseum, The Crescent, York, August 27; doors, 7.30pm

PROG rock giants Colosseum have reunited, fronted by legendary lead singer Chris “Out Of Time” Farlowe, who is joined by fellow long-time members Clem Clempson, on lead guitar, and Mark Clarke, on bass and vocals.

In the line-up too will be new recruits Nick Steed, keyboards, Kim Nishikawara, saxophones, and Malcolm Mortimore, drums, in a gig staged by TV’s Over, York promoters with a flair for the retro.

Colosseum date back to, if not Roman times, but still long-ago 1969, when debut album Those Who Are About To Die Salute You established their compound of rock, jazz and classical music. Box office: thecrescent.com.

Taking shape: Making pots at Fangfest in Fangfoss

Art, not Dracula: Fangfest, Fangfoss Festival of Practical Arts, Fangfoss, near Pocklington, September 3 and 4, 10am to 4pm

MORE than 20 jewellery designers, potters, glass artists, sculptors, felters, handbag makers, painters, photographers, illustrators, printmakers, candle makers, willow weavers and wood carvers are taking part in Fangfest on its return after a pandemic-enforced two-year hiatus.

Look out too for Forest Craft and Play’s drop-in craft activities; acoustic musicians; archery; classic cars; a scarecrow trail and the St Martin’s Church flower festival with the theme of Our Queen. Admission to this outdoor event is free.

John Bramwell: Heading to Ellerton Priory next month. Picture: Ian Percival

If you book for one low-key gig, make it: John Bramwell, Ellerton Priory, near York, September 24; doors, 7pm

FROM the team behind shows by Super Furry Animals’ Gruff Rhys and The Beta Band’s Steve Mason in Stockton on the Forest Village Hall comes a “super-intimate” gig by I Am Kloot’s John Bramwell.

Ellerton Priory, should you be wondering, is the Parish Church of St Mary, a beautiful, small, 16th century church in the East Riding village of Ellerton, between York, Selby and Pocklington. Tickets are on sale via thecrescentyork.com.

Rave on! Welcome to the new age of bingo in Bongo’s Bingo at York Barbican

House music with a difference: Bongo’s Bingo, York Barbican, October 8; doors, 6pm; last entry, 7:30pm; first game of bingo, 8pm

MAKING its York debut this autumn in the shadow of the demolished Mecca Bingo, Bongo’s Bingo “rejuvenates a quintessentially quaint British pastime with an immersive live show featuring rave rounds, nostalgia-soaked revelry, dance-offs, audience participation and crazy prizes in a night of pure and unadulterated escapism”.

Looking for a full house, promoter Jonny Bongo says: “We’ve been waiting to come to York for a long time, so this is really special for us. We’ve heard the locals are really up for a party, so this is going to be a lot of fun.”

Magic and music, mischief and mayhem combine in this bingo rave experience. Box office: bongosbingo.co.uk.

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REVIEW: Martin Dreyer’s verdict on Ryedale Festival’s Triple Concert, Castle Howard

The Gesualdo Six: Performed in the Chapel at Castle Howard. Picture: Ash Mills

Ryedale Festival: Triple Concert, Ashley Riches; The Gesualdo Six; Joseph Shiner and the Barbican Quartet, Castle Howard, July 27

TICKETS were once again like gold dust for the triple concert in three locations at Castle Howard. Ashley Riches sang in the Long Gallery, accompanied by Joseph Middleton, the Gesualdo Six appeared in the Chapel, and clarinettist Joseph Shiner and the Barbican Quartet played in the Great Hall. This was the satisfying order in which I heard them.

Riches, who hails from this part of the world but has gone onto widespread conquests, boasts a dark basso quality to his baritone and put it to excellent use in his wide-ranging exploration of the animal world, A Musical Zoo.

His German group began pleasingly with Schubert’s Die Forelle (The Trout) and Brahms’ injunction to the nightingale to pipe down, but his legato only took full shape in Strauss’ lament for the thrush that dies in its cage.

Where his German in Wolf’s Der Rattenfänger (The Ratcatcher) was a touch wayward, his French group was on a much higher plane. Fauré’s waltz-dialogue between butterfly and flower was utterly charming, as were the solitary, rhapsodic cricket of Ravel and De Sévérac’s serene owls.

So, to England, with another nightingale soothing away the sorrows of King David, in Howells’ setting of Walter de la Mare. Its solemnity was instantly dispelled by Vernon Duke’s treatment of Ogden Nash’s musical zoo, where Riches was a veritable chameleon in his colourings of the epigrams, with an American accent into the bargain.

The Gesualdo Six under Owain Park, who also delivers a deep bass, gave a programme of slow music suitable for the Anglican office of compline, the last service of the day. It proved confusing because they omitted three-quarters of the Hildegard plainsong printed in the programme and merged the two following pieces so that their boundaries were unclear.

That aside, they were as impressive as ever, neatly blended and precisely tuned. Tallis’s evening hymn Te Lucis led nicely into Byrd’s Miserere Mihi, Domine, which was followed in turn by Look Down, O Lord, by Jonathan Seers – British, but little-known here because of being based in Germany for many years – whose setting of the Elizabethan William Leighton was a model of anguished harmony.

Nicolas Gombert’s relentlessly remorseful Media Vita started in the deepest, darkest tones. Park’s own Hail, Gladdening Light fell short of the famous setting by Charles Wood, but The Wind’s Warning, a setting of Ivor Gurney by Alison Willis, complete with whooshing gusts, was powerful. Some tortuous harmony in night settings by Reger and Rheinberger was safely negotiated. Beautiful though this programme was, it needed a little more variety for full effect.

So, to Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet in the Great Hall. Joseph Shiner’s clarinet was both lithe and intimate. The way, for example, that he melted back into the first movement recapitulation was exquisite and there was also a special serenity when the slow movement theme reappeared.

The minuet’s second trio had a special swagger, contrasting with the quartet’s account of the first one, where the clarinet is silent. Shiner played games with the early variations in the finale, so that when the break came – with the Adagio interlude – it was all the more effective, and the closing bars breathed wonderfully.

The strings were very much in cahoots with him and maintained a fine balance throughout. A lovely conclusion to a rewarding evening.

Review by Martin Dreyer

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Elvis is back in the building in Baz Luhrmann’s movie. Did he take care of business? Chalmers & Hutch decide

The poster artwork for Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis

WHAT we saw in Austin Butler’s Elvis and Tom Hanks’s Colonel Parker is revealed in Episode 97 of culture vultures Graham Chalmers and Charles Hutchinson’s arts podcast, Two Big Egos In A Small Car.

Under discussion too are: Beatle Paul at 80 at Glastonbury; Graham’s charmed DJ skills on a Knaresborough dancefloor and Chemical Brothers’ thunderous rave at Castle Howard.

To listen, head to: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1187561/11013513

Meanwhile, in Episode 96…

The artwork for A Light For Attracting Attention, the debut album by The Smile, alias Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood and Sons Of Kemet drummer Tom Skinner

CHAMERS & Hutch check out Thom Yorke’s Smile. Graham makes Danish news then dissects David Hepworth’s book on the rise and fall of rock’n’roll stars, Uncommon People. Charles demystifies the York Mystery Plays, “on the waggon” for 2022.

To listen, head to: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1187561/10899683

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More Things To Do in and around York for June 18 to June 26, as the Romans invade again. List No. 87, courtesy of The Press

Cherie Gordon in Everyday, on tour at York Theatre Royal in Deafinitely Theatre’s 20th anniversary tour. Picture: Becky Bailey

FROM the Pride parade to Roman festivities, Americana musicians to English prog legends, defiant deaf theatre to bracing art, Charles Hutchinson savours a diverse diary ahead.

Empowering play of the week: Everyday, Deafinitely Theatre, York Theatre Royal, Tuesday and Wednesday, 7.30pm

FOUR people come together to perform a ritual of community and catharsis. Gathering up true stories of deaf women and non-binary people’s experiences of surviving abuse, they form a witches’ coven like no other, replete with a cauldron of newt’s eyes and butterflies, deep scars, and blazing signs.

Commissioned by New Diorama Theatre, Deafinitely Theatre’s playful, urgent, defiant world premiere by writer-director Paula Garfield combines British Sign Language and oral English as it draws on interviews to explore domestic abuse and mental health in the deaf community. Box office: 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Davina De Campo: Performing at York LGBT Pride at Knavesmire

Fiesta of the week: York LGBT Pride, June 18, from high noon

THE York Pride Parade leaves from outside York Minster at Duncombe Place. Best advice: arrive at 11.45am, ready for departure at 12 noon, with the parade arriving at Knavesmire (Tadcaster Road end) between 1pm and 1.30pm.

On the main stage, hosts Miss Sordid Secret and DJ Kira introduce live music and entertainment from Nadine Coyle, Davina De Campo, Duncan James, Marcus Collins and Jo O’Meara. York Pride is a free family-friendly event, but donations are welcome.

Dolphin Hotel, by David Finnigan, at According To McGee, York

Exhibition launch of the week: Contemporary Painting: Elementals and Synthesis by Freya Horsley and David Finnigan, According To McGee, Tower Street, York, June 18 to July 11

EXHIBITING Freya Horsley, from York, alongside David Finnigan, from Scarborough, is “not so much a duo show, more like two exhibitions in one gallery,” says According To McGee co-director Greg McGee.

“Freya and David are far removed in terms of subject and mark making, but there’s enough intersection to be able to build an event like this.”

Horsley’s Elementals works focus on seascapes full of bristling light and spray, serenity and inner-lit joy; Finnigan’s four new Synthesis paintings are geometric abstractions influenced by sound and modulation. 

Sunday’ll be the day for That’ll Be The Day! at Grand Opera House, York

Tribute gig of the week: That’ll Be The Day!, Grand Opera House, York, June 19, 7pm

THIS long-running show, now into its 36th year, celebrates the golden age of rock’n’roll and pop from the 1950s through to the 1980s.

That’ll Be The Day combines comedy sketches and impersonations with stellar vocals and musicianship, fronted by director, producer and vocalist Trevor Payne. Box office: 0844 871 7615 or at atgtickets.com/York.

Courtney Marie Andrews: Third time lucky for Phoenix singer-songwriter as she returns to Pocklington at last

Americana gig of the week: Courtney Marie Andrews, Pocklington Arts Centre, June 19, 8pm

AMERICAN singer, songwriter, poet, musician and now artist Courtney Marie Andrews makes her long-awaited return to Pocklington this weekend.

Phoenix-born Courtney, 31, twice had to postpone the follow-up to her December 2018 gig. The focus was expected to be on the 2021 Grammy-nominated Old Flowers, but now that she has announced the October 7 release of ninth album Loose Future on Fat Possum, hopefully she will showcase new material too. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

Yes, it is Yes: Playing Close To The Edge at York Barbican

Progressing to the past: Yes, York Barbican, Wednesday, 8pm

PROG rock pioneers Yes’s Album Series Tour 2022 celebrates the 50th anniversary of Close To The Edge, the September 1972 album inspired by Siddharta and their “state of mind” at the time.

Wednesday’s concert combines the iconic album in full with further Yes classics, performed by Steve Howe, guitars, Geoff Downes, keyboards, Jon Davison, vocals, Billy Sherwood, bass guitar, and Jay Schellen, drums and percussion. Legendary Yes artwork artist Roger Dean opens the show with a video wall of images and graphics and a reflection on his long history with the band. Tickets remain valid from the postponed May 19 2021 date. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

The Felice Brothers, James, second from left, and Ian, right, with band members Will Lawrence and Jesske Hume

If you are yet to discover…The Felice Brothers, Pocklington Arts Centre, Thursday, 8pm

THE Felice Brothers, the folk rock/country rock band from the Hudson valley of upstate New York, are led by Ian and James Felice, joined on this tour by Will Lawrence on drums and Jesske Hume on bass.

Inspired equally by Woody Guthrie and Chuck Berry, they began in 2006 by playing subway platforms and sidewalks in New York City and have since released ten albums, the latest being 2021’s From Dreams To Dust. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

Charge! The Eboracum Roman Festival is on its way

Festival of the week: Eboracum Roman Festival, June 25 and 26, all day

THE Legions of Rome take over York Museum Gardens for a packed weekend of outdoor festivities featuring a Roman Living History Encampment between 10am and 5pm each day; the Kids Army and Roman-themed family activities run by Playful Anywhere from 11am to 3pm on both days. Entry is free.

Head inside the Yorkshire Museum to discover Roman treasures, especially the new exhibition The Ryedale Hoard: A Roman Mystery.  

Authors of Roman fiction and non-fiction will chat and sign books in the Tempest Anderson Hall from 10am to 4pm each day.

The Chemical Brothers: Get ready for Block Rockin’ Beats at Castle Howard

Big beat of the week: The Chemical Brothers, Castle Howard, near York, nearer Malton, June 26; gates open at 5pm 

HEY boy, hey girl, electronic pioneers The Chemical Brothers are taking to the stately-home grass this summer as Manchester big beat duo Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons, both 51, galvanize rave diggers.

Expect such dancefloor nuggets as the chart-topping Setting Sun and Block Rockin’ Beats, Hey Boy, Hey Girl, Let Forever Be, It Began In Afrika, Star Guitar, Galvanize, Do It Again. Got To Keep On and Go. Camping will be available. Box office: castlehoward.co.uk.

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More Things To Do in York and beyond as city welcomes Ukrainian dancers and bees buzz. List No. 86, courtesy of The Press

Poised for Theatre Royal performance: Kyiv City Ballet dancers, heading from Paris to York

FROM Ukrainian dancers to the ukulele, hairdryer music to German comedy, a new but ancient story to medieval street plays, Charles Hutchinson has a fiesta of ideas for venturing out.

Cultural/political event of the week: Kyiv City Ballet, York Theatre Royal, Tuesday, 7.30pm, sold out

AT the invitation of Theatre Royal chief executive Tom Bird, the dancers of Kyiv City Ballet are to perform in Britain for the first time since taking up temporary residence in Paris after Russia invaded Ukraine. All ticket sale proceeds from the sold-out show will be donated to UNICEF’s Ukraine Appeal.

Under the direction of Ivan Kozlov and Ekaterina Kozlova, a company dance class will be followed by excerpts from  Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, contemporary pieces and a premiere. 

To bee or not to bee: The Mind Of A Bee is the subject of Lars Chittka’s online talk on June 14 at 8pm at the York Festival of Ideas

Festival of the week: York Festival of Ideas, today to June 24

UNDER the banner of The Next Chapter, more than 150 free in-person and online events promise to educate, entertain and inspire in a festival of speakers, performers, panel discussions, family fun activities and guided tours.

Topics span archaeology to art, history to health and politics to psychology, from the natural history of slime to female Rugby League players; secret Beatles lyrics to the mind of a bee; Holgate Mill to Frankie Howerd. Head to yorkfestivalofideas.com to download a brochure.

Thomas Truax with The Hornicator, left, and Mother Superior, two of his wonderfully weird instruments

Double bills of the week: Songs Under Skies, Mayshe-Mayshe & Thomas Truax, Monday; Testament and Maddie Morris, Wednesday, National Centre for Early Music, York, both 7pm

SONGS Under Skies takes over the gardens of St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate, for the third time for two nights of outdoor live music by four musicians making their NCEM debuts.

Mayshe-Mayshe, alias Alice Rowan, blends dreamy art-pop with rich storytelling, her songs incorporating choral vocals, vintage synths and the occasional hairdryer. Thomas Truax, an American musician with a mad scientist’s brain, utilises weird self-made instruments in songs about insects, trees, technology and all things lunar.

Lyrical rapper, human beatboxer and composer Testament is joined BBC Radio2 Young Folk Award winner Maddie Morris, from Leeds, whose protest songs address LGBTQ rights, feminism and trauma issues. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.

Formidable on four strings: George Hinchcliffe’s Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

Anarchy in the Ukulele? George Hinchcliffe’s Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, York Theatre Royal, Wednesday, 7.30pm

QUESTION: Who is to blame for the worldwide phenomena of ukulele orchestras and ukulelemania? The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, that’s who!

Led by George Hinchliffe, these independent rock-stars of the “bonsai guitar” promise entertainment, joy, fun, strum and artistry on four strings on all manner of cover versions from the pop, rock and musical worlds beyond. Box office: 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

How the land lies: Storyteller Alexander Flanagan Wright deep in thought in the the field behind Stillington Mill

Storytelling premiere of the week: Alexander Flanagan Wright, Monster, Work In Progress, At The Mill, Stillington, near York, Thursday and Friday, 7.30pm. UPDATE: 13/6/2022: POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. Ticket holders will be refunded.

A BLOKE in a fancy suit is stood in the Nevada desert. A warrior holding the head of Medusa is stood on top of a hill. The sky is lit bright with the neon lights of Vegas. We are trying to set foot in places no-one has ever been.

So runs the introduction to Alexander Flanagan Wright’s Monster, wherein he sets out to tell a story about finding places that we should never have found, about the difference between discovery and ownership, and the need to be a hero.

“Some of that story happens now. Some of it happens millennia ago. All of it is to do with people,” he says, welcoming instant feedback at the story’s close. Box office: atthemill.org.

Roarsome! The Tyrannosaurus Rex rocks up in Dinosaur World Live

Children’s show of the week: Dinosaur World Live, York Theatre Royal, June 17, 4.30pm; June 18 and 19, 11am and 2pm

DARE to experience the dangers and delights of this interactive family show for age three upwards as intrepid explorers discover a prehistoric world of remarkably lifelike dinosaurs in a mind-bending 50-minute Jurassic adventure whose arrival in York just happens to coincide with the big-screen opening of Jurassic World Dominion.
Watch out for the flesh-eating, giant Tyrannosaurus Rex and the supporting cast of a Triceratops, Giraffatitan, Microraptor and Segnosauris. A 15-minute meet and greet post-show offers the chance to be up close and personal with these creatures. Box office: 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Wringing endorsement for German comedian Henning Wehn

Comedy top-up? Just say Wehn: Henning Wehn, It’ll All Come Out In The Wash, York Barbican, Friday, 8pm

HENNING Wehn, Germany’s Comedy Ambassador and former marketing ideas man for Wycombe Wanderers Football Club to boot, plays York Barbican for the first time since his impatient Great Yorkshire Fringe gig in July 2019, Get On With It!

On his return, Wehn gives everything a good rinse as he wrings sense out of the nonsensical. “An unbiased look at a certain virus might be inevitable but I have no agenda,” says Wehn. “I just happen to be always spot on. It’s a curse.” Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Duran Duran: Playing the stately pile of Castle Howard

Open-air gig of the week: Duran Duran, Castle Howard, near York, Friday, supported by Dry Cleaning; gates open at 5pm

FRESH from one outdoor engagement by the Buckingham Palace gates with guest guitarist Nile Rodgers at last Saturday’s Platinum Party At The Palace, Duran Duran play another in Castle Howard’s grounds.

The Birmingham darlings of New Romantic synthpop will be complementing last weekend’s brace of Notorious and Girls On Film with such Eighties’ favourites as Planet Earth, Save A Prayer, Rio and Hungry Like the Wolf. Could last October’s 15th studio album, Future Past, feature too? Tickets update: still available at castlehoward.co.uk or ticketmaster.co.uk.

Taking the chair: Paul Morel in Oddbodies’ one-man King Lear

Shakespeare shake-up of the week: Oddbodies’ King Lear, Helmsley Arts Centre, June 18, 7.30pm

ARMED with only a drum, a guitar, a knife and a chair, Oddbodies’ inventive, irreverent one-man account of Shakespeare’s King Lear is told from The Fool’s point of view by writer-performer Paul Morel.

Directed by John Mowat, he brings all the characters from this sad and sorry tale to glorious life, from the bipolar Lear to the bastard Edmund, haughty Goneril to poor deluded Gloucester, oily Oswald to sweet Cordelia and mad Tom, in a fast, funny, poignant and ultimately heart-breaking production full of physical ingenuity and visual flair. Box office: 01439 771700 or at helmsleyarts.co.uk.

2022 York Mystery Plays artistic director Tom Straszewski, pictured with Jess Murray, who is directing The Appearance Of Jesus To Mary Magdalene for the Guild of Media Arts and Guild of Scriveners

Street plays of the month: Guilds of York present York Mystery Plays, York city centre, June 19 and 26, 11am onwards; The Mysteries In The Market, Shambles Market, June 22 and 23, 7.30pm

EIGHT plays from the York Cycle of Mystery Plays will be wheeled around York city centre on wagons for Sunday performances, processing from College Green (free) to St Sampson’s Square (free), St Helen’s Square (free) and King’s Manor (ticketed).

Those plays include York Guild of Building’s Creation To The Fifth Day; the Company of Butchers and Riding Lights Acting Up’s The Crucifixion and Death Of Christ, the Guild of Media Arts and Guild of Scriveners’ The Appearance Of Jesus To Mary Magdalene and the Company of Merchant Adventurers’ The Last Judgement, directed by Alan and Diane Heaven, no less.

In addition, a selection of five plays will be staged in special Midsummer midweek performances at the Shambles Market (ticketed, limited to 100). Box office: yorkmysteryplays.co.uk.

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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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The Chemical Brothers go outdoors at Castle Howard for big beat summer concert

The Chemical Brothers: Block rockin’ beats at Castle Howard this summer

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 at a June 26 gig in the North Yorkshire stately home’s grounds, near Malton, where gates will open at 5pm.

Formed by the two university friends in 1989, The Chemical Brothers have chalked up 13 million record sales with such dancefloor nuggets as the chart-topping Setting Sun and Block Rockin’ Beats, Hey Boy, Hey Girl, Let Forever Be, It Began In Afrika, Star Guitar, Galvanize, Do It Again. Got To Keep On and Go en route to multiple Grammy awards.

In total, Rowlands and Simons have delivered nine studio, one live, five compilation, two remix, five mix, one soundtrack and two videos albums, six extended plays, 15 promotional singles and 32 music videos.

Their latest album, April 2019’s No Geography, secured two more Grammys. Last year, Rowlands and Simons released the single The Darkness That You Fear and produced new mixes for their Radio Chemical project for Sonos Radio and the multi-sensory centrepiece of Electronic – From Kraftwerk To The Chemical Brothers.

Made in tandem with live visual creators Smith & Lyall, Electronic became the most successful exhibition in the history of London’s Design Museum.

The Chemical Brothers will be Castle Howard’s second concert of Summer 2022, following New Romantics’ heartthrobs Duran Duran on June 17.

Camping at Castle Howard will be available for both events. To book tickets, go to: castlehoward.co.uk.

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Duran Duran to play outdoor concert at Castle Howard on June 17

Duran Duran: Castle Howard concert

DURAN Duran will play the first show in a new concert series in the grounds of Castle Howard, near York, on June 17.

This will be their second outdoor gig in North Yorkshire in nine months, after closing the 2021 summer season of Scarborough Open Air Theatre concerts last September.

Emerging from the New Romantic synthpop scene in the early 1980s, the Birmingham band have gone on to sell 100 million records and chalk up 21 British Top 20 singles and 18 American hits.

Songs such as Planet Earth, Girls On Film, Save A Prayer, Rio, Hungry Like the Wolf, The Reflex, The Wild Boys, Is There Something I Should Know and A View To A Kill have brought them nine gold, six platinum and three multi-platinum records, eight lifetime achievement awards, two Grammy awards, two Ivor Novello awards and two BRITs.

Singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor are noted for fusing art, technology and fashion with pop hooks, while still looking to innovate and re-invent their sound after 42 years together.

Last October, they released their 15th studio album, Future Past, featuring collaborations with Giorgio Moroder, Mark Ronson, Graham Coxon, Erol Alkan, Tove Lo, Mike Garson, Ivorian Doll and CHAI, on their first studio recordings since Paper Gods in 2015.

Tickets for Duran Duran and special guests are on sale via castlehoward.co.uk or at ticketmaster.co.uk.

The concert poster for Duran Duran at Castle Howard