Tag: grand opera house york

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Trainspotting The Musical tour cancelled after poor box office. Grand Opera House ticket holders refunded for Nov no-show

Lewis Kidd’s Mark Renton in the London run of Trainspotting The Musical at Theatre Royal Haymarket. Picture: Matt Crockett, supplied by Neil Redding PR

TRAINSPOTTING The Musical has been derailed before setting off on a tour that would have disembarked at the Grand Opera House, York, in November.

“Closed” reads the notice on the GOH website after poor reviews of the London premiere and equally poor ticket sales nationwide, not least in Edinburgh, the setting for Irvine Welsh’s story, where the tour’s opening week at the Edinburgh Playhouse from October 19 to 24 had attracted only 19 per cent ticket sales, according to a Facebook post by performer and resident director Keiran Brown.

Tickets for the York run from November 10 to 14 will be refunded. Ticket holders are being contacted by their point of purchase.

The world premiere will continue its London debut at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until September 5, as planned. All tour details have been removed from the official website.

A statement from the production company says: “The forthcoming UK tour of Trainspotting The Musical, which was due to begin on 19 October, has been cancelled.

“We are very grateful to our cast, crew and creative team for their dedication to the production, but the current economic climate has resulted in lower than expected ticket sales. Ticketholders will be contacted by their point of purchase with full refund details. We apologise for any inconvenience and disappointment this may cause.”

The poster for the now-cancelled tour of Trainspotting The Musical

Presented by Phil McIntyre Live, the musical is written by Welsh, based on his 1993 debut novel that was turned into an iconoclastic film by Danny Boyle in 1996 with a script by Welsh, centred on rapscallion heroin addict Mark Renton and his dysfunctional circle of friends navigating the chaotic highs and brutal lows of addiction, poverty and aimlessness in Leith as they struggle to break free from smackhead self-destruction.

Directed and developed by Caroline Jay Ranger – who was at the helm of John Cleese’s Fawlty Towers The Play, whose tour played the Grand Opera House in May – the musical features music and lyrics by Stephen McGuinness and Welsh. Their score includes tracks associated with the original film alongside new material written for the stage.

Boyle’s Trainspotting was the highest-grossing UK film release of 1996, won the BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay and was later ranked in the British Film Institute list of the 100 greatest British films of the 20th century.

The 2026 musical carried the billing: “Thirty years on from the film that changed everything…this show is expected to transport you back to the Nineties”, declaring that  that “Renton, Sick Boy, Begbie, Spud, Tommy and Kelly, the industrial drug-crazed working-class heroes, are back”.

The Grand Opera House site website’s show details stated: “In 1996, CHOOSE LIFE sounded like a challenge. Thirty years on, the landscape has shifted, but the hunger hasn’t. Addiction hasn’t disappeared – it’s shifted. It’s quieter now, more embedded. Less needle, more screen. Less escape, more repetition. The same restless search for something to fill the space.

“The musical highlights the world we see changing around us, the obscene concentration of wealth, economic and political power in the hands of so few people. It addresses the modern culture of powerlessness. Art the singing-and-dancing Trojan horse that delivers direction and relevance.

Robbie Scott: Cast as Mark Renton for UK tour of Trainspotting: The Musical. Robbie, from Aberdeen, missed out on the West End opening after breaking his back in rehearsals and will miss out on the show altogether. Picture: Matt Crockett, supplied by Neil Redding PR

“This isn’t nostalgia, it’s closer than that. The past isn’t revisited – it lingers. The musical doesn’t tidy it. It sits with it. Listens to it. And lets it sing. New songs, classic songs, a musical like never before. Not for the easily confronted. It’s funny, loud, dynamic, and brings a dark dangerous energy never experienced before on the West End stage.”

In April, Welsh proclaimed: “I believe the musical has a bigger, loudly beating human heart than either the book or the film. People need to think about the world we’re living in, and we offer that inspection, but they also really need to sing their hearts out and laugh their heads off – it’s what being human is all about.”

On Monday morning, before the tour cancellation notice served later in the day, he revealed to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme listeners: “We are in difficult times and we’ve been looking at the numbers and sums. We knew it would be difficult to take a production of that scale on the road. We’ve got 30 cast members. Basically people just don’t have the money. It’s not a great time to be putting a new show on the road.”

Reflecting on the shellacking from West End critics, encapsulated in a one-star Guardian review, Welsh told Today presenter Amol Rajan: “I’m not the kind of writer that is loved by the critics. I tend to be a polarising force. I think it’s the way I go about these things and the way I write.”

Arifa Akbar’s verdict in the Guardian had lamented: “Sadly, the drug-addled escapades and illegal highs here look about as dangerous as a double-dose of Gaviscon.”  She deemed McGuinness and Welsh’s songs to be “forgettable at best, or best forgotten in the case of one with a country and western twang”, concluding that “it all seems so tame and commercial for this bunch of anti-capitalists. A bad trip indeed.”

The tour publicity ended: “There are no clean answers here. Only incredible music and flashes of clarity, humour, and the uneasy sense of recognition. CHOOSE LIFE.”

Alas, the tour producers have had to choose premature death instead.  

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What’s On in Ryedale, York and beyond. Hutch’s List No. 31, from Gazette & Herald, from July 29 onwards

Christina Bianco’s June Carter Cash and Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny Cash in The Ballad Of Johnny & June. Picture: Pamela Raith Photography

JOHNNY and June’s country musical, The Queen and Margaret Thatcher’s handbag clashes, a rare Blueflies gig and The Streets’ masterpiece in full perk up Charles Hutchinson for the week ahead.

Musical of the week: The Ballad Of Johnny & June, The Johnny Cash Musical, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm matinees on July 29 & 30 and August 1

THIS thrilling musical from Jersey Boys director Des McAnuff celebrates the love, music and mayhem of country music couple Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Electrifying chemistry marks the performances of  Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny and Christina Bianco’s June in a story observed through the eyes of Ryan O’Donnell’s John Carter Cash, their son. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Blues gig of the week: Ryedale Blues Club presents The Blueflies, Milton Rooms, Malton, July 30, 8pm

ENDURING and beloved York blues and funk band The Blueflies – Miles Gilderdale, guitar and vocals, Gavin Ewing, bass and co-songwriter, and Paul Stipetic , drums – perform only rarely these days. Expect a night packed with outstanding musicianship, ace songs and the kind of atmosphere that only a combo with 40 years of musical muscle memory can create. Booking in advance is recommended on 01653 696240 or at themiltonrooms.com.

Neil Delamere: If it ain’t broke it, should he fix it at Pocklington Arts Centre? Not the seat, presumably

Tall tales of the week: Neil Delamere, Reinventing The Neil, Pocklington Arts Centre, July 30, 7.30pm

COMEDIC adventurer Neil Delamere returns with a new stand-up show, packed with tall tales and humorous stories. Join The Blame Game panellist and Celebrity Chase contestant as he ponders the eternal question: if it ain’t broke, should he fix it? Box office: 01759 or 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk. 

Stanley Chow’s poster illustration for The Songs of Joni Mitchell at The Citadel, York

Interpreters of the week: The Songs of Joni Mitchell, with Jesca Hoop & Lail Arad, The Citadel, York, Friday, doors 7pm, show 7.45pm

JESCA Hoop & Lail Arad, acclaimed singer-songwriters in their own right, perform intimate interpretations of their favourite Joni Mitchell songs, accompanied by Richard Sears on piano and special guest Naima Bock. Hoop presented Legend: The Joni Mitchell Story, the award-winning six-part BBC radio documentary and podcast on the Canadian singer-songwriter. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.

 Liz Garland, left, and Meriel Scholfield in rehearsal for the Stephen Joseph Theatre production of Handbagged. Picture: Tony Bartholomew 

Political drama of the week: Handbagged, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, Friday to August 29

MOIRA Buffini’s 2014 Olivier Award-winning play imagines what happened behind closed palace doors when two of the 20th century’s most powerful women, Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, locked handbags. Meeting once a week for 11 years, one believed there was no such thing as society; the other committed her life to serving it.

Spanning 1979 to 1990, Handbagged asks if The Queen and the Iron Lady ever found common ground or did their stiff upper lips reign supreme? Hannah Tyrrell-Pinder directs the SJT cast of Pandora Clifford, Liz Garland, Alexandra Mathie, Deven Modha, Simon Darwen and Meriel Scholfield. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.

Four Forty Theatre: Breakneck character changes and mischief-making in A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Shakespeare show of the week: Four Forty Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Friday, 7.30pm

FOUR Forty Theatre (or 440 Theatre, as their website uses both names) tackle Shakespeare’s romantic romp of a chaotic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with their trademark irreverence, wit and theatrical ingenuity, directed by Dominic Gee-Burch, formerly of fellow high-speed Shakespeare humorists Oddsocks Productions.

Lovers are enchanted, fairies feud and a troupe of hapless players rehearse their way into disaster, all in a single moonlit night. Inventive staging, breakneck character changes and playful dismantling of tradition mark out Four Forty Theatre’s mischief-making take on Shakespeare’s best-loved comedy: part affectionate homage, part riotous reinvention. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Saxophonist Snake Davis and guitarist Gareth Moulton: Best buddies’ bonding session at Helmsley Arts Centre

Duo of the week: Snake Davis with Gareth Moulton, Helmsley Arts Centre, Friday, 7.30pm

THE Snake Davis and Gareth Moulton duo is back on the road, featuring saxophonist-to-the-stars Davis and Manchester-born, Macclesfield-based  singer-songwriter and guitarist Moulton, his best buddy, with the promise of new material and a new album.

Davis has performed with Paul McCartney, James Brown, Tina Turner, The Eurythmics and Amy Winehouse and has featured on more than 400 recordings by 60 artists, including Lisa Stansfield’s Change, M-People’s Search For A Hero and Take That’s Million Love Songs. Moulton is lead guitarist with Cutting Crew and “moonlighting” singer and guitarist with Wang Chung and has recorded and toured with Heather Small, Jim Diamond, Paul Young and Go West. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Mike Skinner of The Streets: Playing A Grand Don’t Come For Free in full at Scarborough Open Air Theatre

Coastal gigs of the week: Scarborough Open Air Theatre presents The Streets, A Grand Don’t Come For Free, Saturday; Sex Pistols featuring Frank Carter, Sunday, gates 6pm

FOR the first time, The Streets’ Mike Skinner is performing his landmark 2004 album A Grand Don’t Come For Free in full on tour. One of the most influential British records of the 21st century, the multi-platinum-selling chart topper delivered era-defining singles Dry Your Eyes, Fit But You Know It and Blinded By The Lights while taking a cinematic journey through the love, loss, chaos, heartbreak, hope and raw emotion of everyday life with poetic wit and honesty.

Original Sex Pistols members Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock are joined by vocalist Frank Turner on Sunday to mark “50 years of chaos and celebration” since the punk iconoclasts’ brace of Summer 1976 gigs at Manchester’s Lesser Free Trade Hall. The Stranglers and The Undertones are special guests. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

Paul Smith: Radiating comic warmth twice in a week at York Barbican

York comedy gigs of the week: Hot Water Comedy Club presents Paul Smith, Happy, York Barbican, Saturday and August 5, 7.30pm

PAUL Smith, resident MC and compere of Liverpool’s Hot Water Comedy Club, is heading to York for two nights in his biggest, boldest tour show, Happy: fearless stand-up at full throttle, brimful of observations, true stories and audience interaction. Pulling tales from  real life, Smith finds joy in the chaos, laughter in the everyday and comedy in absolutely everything. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

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REVIEW: The Ballad Of Johnny & June, The Johnny Cash Musical, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday ****

Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny Cash and Christina Bianco’s June Carter Cash duetting in The Ballad Of Johnny & June, on fire at Grand Opera House, York, this week. Picture: Pamela Raith Photography

ONE comment stood out in Drama Desk Award nominee Christina Bianco’s interview with CharlesHutchPress ahead of her return to York to play June Carter Cash in The Ballad Of Johnny & June.

“The film [James Mangold’s 2005 biopic Walk The Line] is only about 60 per cent accurate, whereas it’s so special that this show comes from the family,” she said.

The Johnny Cash Musical is directed and co-authored by Jersey Boys director (in tandem with Robert Cary), but the key voice belongs to Johnny and June’s only son, story consultant John Carter Cash, whose books Anchored In Love: An Intimate Portrait of June Carter Cash and House of Cash: The Legacies of My Father, Johnny Cash, inform the script so richly.

What’s more, Ryan O’Donnell’s John Carter Cash narrates the musical, breaking down the fourth wall to engage in informal, home-spun conversation with the Stallls, full of homilies on the thorn pricks of love and marriage as he reflects on the truths behind “country music’s greatest romance”.  

After sold-out seasons at La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego, California, and  the Citadel Theatre, Edmonton, Canada, Christopher Ryan Grant has crossed the Big Pond to play Johnny Cash on tour, joined by UK-based New Yorker Bianco, whose acting, singing and impersonating skills were last seen in York as the multi-voiced LV in Jim Cartwright’s tragic-comedy The Rise Of Little Voice at the Theatre Royal in July 2022.

Not that she delivers an impersonation of June here. “I feel a great responsibility to present her as accurately as possible, without doing an impression,” she told CharlesHutchPress. Her performance is all the more truthful for focusing on emotional depth, her June in full bloom in the face of Johnny’s hurricane, while her singing grows ever stronger, the more  the show progresses.

The subtitle may be The Johnny Cash Musical, but McAnuff and Cary’s show gives equal time to Johnny and June, even if Ryan’s swarthy, black-eyed Johnny is the last to arrive on stage, the Man in Black held back for maximum impact.

Grant looks the part, physically imposing, moving with a swagger, crystallised in the way he holds his guitar, and then there is that deep-as-a-well Arkansas voice: the rolling thunder of his basso profundo, suited equally to warmth, flirting, righteous fire and darkness in songs that address sorrow, fickle morality and redemption with room for humour too (typified by A Boy Named Sue).

As many as 33 songs feature, some sung by O’Donnell’s affable John in storytelling mode, others by characters denoted as Man and Woman 1, 2 and 3, playing wives, husbands, members of Cash’s Tennessee Three and more besides. Anne Marie Wojna is particularly striking as Johnny’s wife Vivian, who inspired I Walk The Line, rooted in his vow not to stray or consume pills.

As O’Donnell’s narrator reveals, those vows were broken. Cash is drawn to pills & alcohol, as much as to June, although the veracity of how they first met is played out three ways by the show’s end, because Johnny and June may be unreliable witnesses, and so John Carter Cash lets us play judge and jury.

This warts’n’all musical, like Jersey Boys before it, features such career landmarks as Ring Of Fire (with Johnny challenging June’s claim of writing his biggest hit), his Folsom Prison and San Quentin concerts, his television specials and his late-career revival with Trent Reznor’s Hurt.

There is no mention of the cotton farmers’ son’s four years in the American Air Force, nor of  producer Rick Rubin’s key contribution to his American Recordings late renaissance, but the tragic death of his brother and Sam Phillips’ early influence at Sun Records do feature, while the typeface on the list of locations and city names above Robert Brill’s wood-dominated set design mirrors the American Recordings album covers.

Throughout, the ‘ballad’ of Johnny & June plays out as a love affair that damaged but fed each other, as son John asks June to admit to her prescription drug habit in later years and Grant’s Johnny has to address his demons, encapsulated in his soul-baring rendition of Hurt.

Connagh Tonkinson’s band is terrific throughout, especially Morgan Rees’s trumpet, while  Byron Easley’s delightfully diverse choreography, Sarafina Bush’s costumes, Peter Fitzgerald’s sound design and Sean Nieuwenhuis’s projections all add to the sound and fury signifying everything in the volatile yet boundless love of Johnny and June.

The Ballad Of Johnny & June runs at Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Thursday and Saturday matinees. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

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The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time to play Grand Opera House in October with teenager Chris now female

The full cast for Melting Pot and Birmingham Rep’s tour of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time, playing Grand Opera House, York, from October 27 to 31

ALEX Keenan and Imi Price will become the first women to portray fearful yet fearless teenager Chris Boone in Melting Pot and Birmingham Rep’s bold new interpretation of The Curious Incident In The Night-Time, booked into the Grand Opera House, York, for October 27 to 31.

Directed by Ned Bennett, this fresh perspective on one of contemporary theatre’s most iconic characters will honour the heart of the original story while inviting audiences to experience Simon Stephens’ adaptation of Mark Haddon’s novel through a new lens.

The story combines the intrigue of a whodunit with a coming-of-age story, wherein 15-year-old schoolgirl Chris Boone is gifted with a brilliant mind for numbers but is unsettled by the unpredictability of people and everyday life, distrusting strangers deeply, never venturing alone beyond the end of her road.

Novelist Haddon never called Chris autistic or attributed Asperger Syndrome to the character, but she does not like to be touched, is incapable of lying, can count binary numbers to infinity and has powers of logic beyond conventional reasoning or normal patterns of behaviour.

When a neighbour’s dog is discovered killed, Chris comes under suspicion. Determined to prove her innocence, Chris becomes both detective and suspect, drawn into a mystery that grows darker and more complex with every clue uncovered.

Charlie Brooks as Teresa Phillips in her York debut at the Grand Opera House in 2017 in Alan Ayckbourn’s How The Other Half Loves

What begins as the search for a culprit soon reveals secrets closer to home, forcing Chris to confront truths that will test her courage, family and understanding of trust, independence and the wider world.

Keenan and Price will alternate the lead role on tour, joined by Charlie Brooks and Joe McFadden as Chris’s parents Ed and Judy.

Brooks is best known for her long-running soap opera role since 1999 as wildcat Janine Butcher, caught up in cocaine addiction, murder and prostitution in EastEnders. Rumours began yesterday that Janine is to return after four years [on release from prison] for “two explosive episodes in the autumn”.

Brooks made her York debut in October 2017 in Alan Strachan’s revival of Alan Ayckbourn’s 1969 comedy of matrimonial mishaps How The Other Half Loves, playing Teresa Phillips on tour at the Grand Opera House. “Teresa is fiery and strong, like Janine, but I think the similarities end there,” she said at the time.

McFadden has appeared in the BBC’s The Crow Road and Holby City and ITV’s Heartbeat and was the 2017 Strictly Come Dancing Glitterball winner to boot. He played film director Jason in the Original Theatre Company’s production of Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d at York Theatre Royal in October 2022 and was last seen on a Yorkshire stage as Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption at Leeds Grand Theatre in May this year.

Joe McFadden’s Jason, the film director, in Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d at York Theatre Royal in October 2022, playing opposite Sophie Ward

Completing the ‘Curious Incident’ cast will be Bridgette Amofah as Siobhan; Alex Murdochas Mrs Alexander/Posh Woman/Voice One; Matthew Bulgo as Roger (Mr Shears)/Duty Sergeant/Voice Two/Mr Wise/Man Behind Counter/Drunk One and Jerone Marsh Reid as Mr Thompson/Man with Socks/London Policeman/Voice Three.

Carla Garratt will play Punk Girl/No. 40/Voice Five/Information; Tom Clegg, Reverend Peters/Uncle Terry/Voice Four/Station Policeman/Station Guard; Robert Penny, Voice Seven, and Sera Mustafa, Mrs Gascoyne/Woman on Train/Shopkeeper/Police Officer One/Voice 6. All will perform ensemble roles too.

Alongside Ned Bennett in the production team will be set & costume designer Eleanor Bull; lighting designer Laura Howard; composer & sound designer Giles Thomas; video designer Hayley Egan; movement director Jenni Jackson; costume supervisor  Izzy Pellow; props supervisor Eve Hall; casting director Abby Galvin and associate director Anastasia Osei-Kuffour.

The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time premiered at the National Theatre, London, in 2012 and has been seen globally by more than five million people. The National Theatre’s inaugural tour visited the Grand Opera House, York, in January 2015. York company Pick Me Up Theatre staged the play in April 2025 at Theatre@41, Monkgate.

Pick Me Up Theatre in Andrew Isherwood’s production of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, in April 2025

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More Things To Do in and around York. Hutch’s List No. 30, from The York Press

Tom Grennan: Performing after this afternoon’s race card on Knavesmire

VETERANS James Taylor and Tom Jones on the coast, Knavesmire’s music showcase, York Proms and Johnny and June’s country musical stand out in Charles Hutchinson’s recommendations for the week ahead.

Race day concert of the week: York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend, Knavesmire, Tom Grennan, today

BEDFORD singer-songwriter Tom Grennan is today’s post-racing performer, drawing on such hits as Little Bit Of Love, Let’s Go Home Together, Remind Me, Here and How Does It Feel, plus songs from his number one albums Evering Road, What Ifs & Maybes and Everywhere I Went Led Me To Where I Didn’t Want To Be and top-five debut Lighting Matches. Tickets: yorkracecourse.co.uk; no booking fees; free parking on race day.

Tom Jones: Returning to Scarborough Open Air Theatre tomorrow

Coastal concerts of the week: Scarborough Open Air Theatre, An Evening with James Taylor and His All-Star Band, today; Tom Jones, with Stone Foundation, tomorrow; gates open at 6pm

MASSACHUSETTS singer, songwriter and guitarist, Laurel Canyon folk luminary, six-time Grammy winner and Rock and Roll and Songwriters Halls of Fame inductee James Taylor, 78, draws on six decades of songs, from his self-titled 1968 debut to 2021’s 19th studio album, American Standard, tonight.

Tom Jones, or Sir Tom Jones since 2006, to be more formal, returns to Scarborough this weekend aged 85 to perform such favourites as It’s Not Unusual, What’s New Pussycat?, Delilah, Green, Green Grass Of Home, A Boy From Nowhere, Kiss, Mama Told Me Not To Come and Sex Bomb. Joining Sir Tom will be the eight-piece soul collective Stone Foundation. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

Hannah Maxwell: Fiercely hopeful exploration of human connection in the Information Age at Theatre@41, Monkgate. Picture: Christa Holka

Fringe shows of the week: Halfway To Edinburgh at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, presents Hannah Maxwell: Turn Your ****ing Phones Off (Work in Progress), today,6.30pm; Kate McCabe and Adam Perrott, The Name Of The Dame, tomorrow, 7.30pm

PERFORMED in traverse with an immersive technical design by Benji Huntrods, theatre-maker Hannah Maxwell’s Edinburgh Fringe-bound new performance artwork is a dark, absurd and fiercely hopeful exploration of human connection in the Information Age, expounding playfully on the rise of Big Tech, attention-hacking innovations and surveillance capitalism, while recounting Maxwell’s personal struggles with phone addiction and her bid for a life in analogue.

Dames, detectives, stylish hats and ‘car chases’ combine in comedians Kate McCabe and Adam Perrott’s hour-long film-noir parody. “If you like Airplane and Police Squad, the oeuvre of Mel Brooks, dicey puns and sight gags, this show is probably for you,” they say. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Totally Visible Theatre Company in a scene from Invisible, to be spotted at Friargate Theatre tonight

Bonds of friendship of the week: The Totally Visible Theatre Company in Invisible, Friargate Theatre, York, tonight, 7.30pm

FIVE women meet up on a Saturday morning, as they have done every week for years, but this time they have a plan. Fast forward one year and their lives have changed irrevocably.

Celebrating the bonds of friendship and the fascinations and pitfalls of contemporary life, Invisible is a frank, fast-paced, all-female comedy-drama that ruminates on how older women are perceived in society, the relationships they forge and, most importantly, their “invisibility” in writer-director Jane Barrie’s exploration of sisterhood, motherhood and the effects of upbringing. Box office: 01904 655317 or ridinglights.org/friargatetheatre.

Ashley Stillburn: York-born tenor making his York Proms debut tomorrow

Picnic concert of the week: York Proms, York Museum Gardens, tomorrow, 5.30pm

RUN by classical chart-topping York soprano Rebecca Newman and now in its ninth year, York Proms features music from the world of classical and opera, film soundtracks and show songs. Increasing the orchestra size this summer enables the inclusion of John Williams cinema compositions.

The soloists are York-born tenor and West End musical actor Ashley Stillburn in his York Proms debut and British/Irish soprano Jennifer Coleman, making her third appearance. Tickets update: Available today but NOT tomorrow at yorkproms.com/collections/tickets-2026.

Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny Cash and Christina Bianco’s June Carter Cash in The Ballad Of Johnny & June, on tour at Grand Opera House, York, next week. Picture: Pamela Raith Photography

Musical of the week:The Ballad Of Johnny & June, The Johnny Cash Musical, Grand Opera House, York, July 28 to August 1, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday matinees

THIS thrilling musical from Jersey Boys director Des McAnuff celebrates the love, music and mayhem of country music couple Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Electrifying chemistry marks the performances of Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny and Christina Bianco’s June in a story observed through the eyes of Ryan O’Donnell’s John Carter Cash, their son. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

In addition, the trio gives a special pop-up performance of songs from the show at Forty Five Vinyl Cafe, the Nashville-inspired concert venue, record store and coffee house in Micklegate, on July 29 at 1pm.

“Tribute” show of the week: Songs Of presents The Songs of Joni Mitchell, with Jesca Hoop & Lail Arad, The Citadel, York, July 31, doors 7pm, show 7.45pm

JESCA Hoop & Lail Arad, acclaimed singer-songwriters in their own right, perform intimate interpretations of their favourite Joni Mitchell songs, accompanied by Richard Sears on piano and special guest Naima Bock. Hoop presented Legend: The Joni Mitchell Story, the award-winning six-part BBC radio documentary and podcast on the Canadian singer-songwriter. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.

Jesca Hoop: Intimate interpretations of Joni Mitchell songs at The Citadel

Political drama of the week: Handbagged, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, July 31 to August 29

MOIRA Buffini’s 2014 Olivier Award-winning play imagines what happened behind closed palace doors when two of the 20th century’s most powerful women, Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, locked handbags. Meeting once a week for 11 years, one believed there was no such thing as society; the other committed her life to serving it.

Spanning 1979 to 1990, Handbagged asks if The Queen and the Iron Lady ever found common ground or did their stiff upper lips reign supreme? Hannah Tyrrell-Pinder directs the SJT cast of Pandora Clifford, Liz Garland, Alexandra Mathie, Deven Modha, Simon Darwen and Meriel Scholfield. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.

Alexandra Mathie, left, and Pandora Clifford in rehearsal for Handbagged at Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough. Picture: Tony Bartholomew

Shakespeare show of the week: Four Forty Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, July 31, 7.30pm

FOUR Forty Theatre (or 440 Theatre, as their website uses both names) tackle Shakespeare’s romantic romp of a chaotic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with their trademark irreverence, wit and theatrical ingenuity, directed by Dominic Gee-Burch, formerly of fellow high-speed Shakespeare humorists Oddsocks Productions.

Lovers are enchanted, fairies feud and a troupe of hapless players rehearse their way into disaster, all in a single moonlit night. Inventive staging, breakneck character changes and playful dismantling of tradition mark out Four Forty’s mischief-making take on Shakespeare’s best-loved comedy: part affectionate homage, part riotous reinvention. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Four Forty Theatre: Mischief-making in the woods in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Joseph Rowntree Theatre

Art event of the week: Carolyn Coles & Mike Marshall, Beyond The Nab, St Mary’s Church, Sandsend, near Whitby, today, tomorrow & Monday, 10am to 5pm

ARTISTS and fossil collectors Carolyn Coles and Mike Marshall are sharing their love of the north east coastline in Beyond The Nab at St Mary’s Church, Sandsend, near Whitby.

Held at this beautiful church located at the end of the Sandsend Valley at the bottom of Lythe Bank, the special four-day event takes place in one of Yorkshire’s prettiest valleys, noted for its picturesque, high-end stone cottages, rich local history, tied to the Mulgrave Estate, and ancient woodlands leading to the ruins of Mulgrave Castle.

On show and sale are contemporary paintings with a traditional twist, sculptured fossils, evocative photography, jet jewellery, cards and prints, with both York seascape artist Carolyn Coles and East Coast fossil legend Mike Marshall on hand to guide you through the works.

South Bank Studios artist Carolyn will be demonstrating painting techniques while Mike, who runs Yorkshire Coast Fossils, will be glad to identify any fossil you bring along. A pop-up cafe will serve light refreshment in aid of the church, championed by volunteer Helen Lloyd.

Mike Marshall looking out to sea

Carolyn explains the idea behind the event as a “brilliant medley of art and heritage, combining contemporary art and sculpture with traditional techniques”. “We talked about coming together professionally as our work is a perfect compliment and we have such a shared love of the area,” she says.

Carolyn has had a busy 2026, joining wildlife sculptor Karen Fawcett and PICA Studios ceramicist Emily Stubbs in The Sky’s The Limit exhibition at Pyramid Gallery, York, from late-January to mid-March and taking part in York Open Studios in April.

“My dream is to open a studio and gallery and live by the coast, so this event is a huge pleasure to hold,” she says.

York artist Carolyn Coles enjoying painting in plein air at Sandsend

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Christina Bianco has Cash in the palm of her hand in The Ballad Of Johnny & June, on tour at Grand Opera House next week

Christina Bianco in the role of June Carter Cash in The Ballad Of Johnny & June. Picture: Michael Wharley

AFTER sold-out seasons at La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego, California, and  the Citadel Theatre, Edmonton, Canada, Christopher Ryan Grant is playing Johnny Cash on tour in The Ballad Of Johnny & June. Next stop, Grand Opera House, York, from June 30 to June.

Joining him as June Carter Cash will be Drama Desk Award nominee Christina Bianco, the American actress, singer and impersonator last seen in York playing the multi-voiced LV in Jim Cartwright’s tragic-comedy The Rise Of Little Voice at York Theatre Royal in July 2022.

Christina had hankered after the role of the reclusive LV for a decade and what a performance she delivered, mastering an Oldham accent, suitably quiet and diffident yet full of stage presence as she brought the house down with her myriad voices.

“I had the time of my life there because York was one of those places where, when I opened a book, I thought it looked so beautiful, so magical,” she recalls. “Then when Ian [York-born actor and fellow cast member Ian Kelsey] took me around all the sights, it was hard to take it all in, so this time I have a list of things I’d like to see and others I want to go back to.”

Christina Bianco on her guided tour of York with Ian Kelsey, her fellow actor in The Rise And Fall Of Little Voice at York Theatre Royal, in July 2022

Christina has been living in the UK for “coming up five years now”. “In fact, it was just before ‘Little Voice’ that I made the move with my husband Bill and our dog Jeff Vader, who’s an adorable Schnauzer/Poodle mix,” she says.

“He’s almost 17 years old, so I guess I started the ‘oodle’ mix trend, though I didn’t know I was trendy at the time! I’m a life-long New Yorker but Jeff Vader’s life has been improved by living in the UK.”

Now Christina is enjoying starring in the new musical co-created and shaped by the recollections of John Carter Cash, Johnny and June’s son, whose role in the show will be played by Ryan O’Donnell, who narrates the story from the son’s perspective.

In that story, love is a burning thing, and no-one burned brighter than Johnny and June. He was a small-town musician and storyteller with a volcanic voice that stirred the soul. She was a multi-talented performer and a music pioneer. The pair married in 1968 and remained together until June’s death in 2003.

“I feel a great responsibility to present June as accurately as possible, without doing an impression,” says Christina

“I’d heard of the show when it was at La Jolla Playhouse, where I had a couple of friends in the cast,” says Christina. “I’m a big fan of Johnny and June Carter Cash, with my dad being a DJ, so I had my eye and ear on it when it was being built, but then I did sort of forget about it.

“But then I remember sitting in my dressing room when playing the Narrator in Joseph And The Amazing Dreamcoat – an absolute dream come true, doing my eight shows a week,  when the Narrator does more than usual, playing other roles, working my booty off – and I was thinking it would be great to do more of an acting role next.”

Whereupon she received Des McAnuff and Robert Cary’s script for The Ballad Of Johnny & June from the show’s producers, Trafalgar Theatre Productions. “It was so true to Johnny and June’s story, and the fact the piece has the blessing and input of John Carter Cash makes it a show like none other,” says Christina. “The film [James Mangold’s 2005 biopic Walk The Line] is only about 60 per cent accurate, whereas it’s so special that this show comes from the family.”

No doubt that is music to the ears of John Carter Cash, who has said: “It has meant a great deal to me to be involved in bringing this new musical to the stage and see my parents Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash’s story told with such care, heart and honesty.

“Johnny and June’s music was inseparable from their lives, and this musical captures that truth through powerful story telling by a brilliant company, set to their genre-defining music. I have loved working with the creative team, and my family and I are both delighted and proud that audiences across the UK and Ireland get to see this celebration of their legacy.”

Christina Bianco with Christopher Ryan Grant, her fellow American co-star in The Ballad Of Johnny & June. “We got on like a house on fire immediately, bringing out the New Yorker in me. We just seemed to fit together perfectly,” she says. Picture: Michael Wharley

In turn, Christina is delighted to be working with two-time Tony Award-winning director Des McAnuff, whose credits include Jersey Boys, The Who’s Tommy and Summer: The Donna Summer Musical.

“Des and musical director and arranger Ron Melrose, who worked with Des on Jersey Boys, are names I have respected and revered all my working life, and nothing can prepare you for the first meeting,” she says.

“You know the music well, but there was a pressure to get it right, every word, every line, and it went so well that I was sure I wasn’t going to get the part! But it turned out I got the job very early on, and it did feel like a marriage made in heaven.

Christopher Ryan Grant’s Johnny Cash and Christina Bianco’s June Carter Cash in a scene from The Ballad Of Johnny & June. Picture: Pamela Raith Photography

“I then met Christopher Ryan Grant – who my friends in America said had been so marvellous as Johnny – at the photo-call last November and we got on like a house on fire immediately, bringing out the New Yorker in me. We just seemed to fit together perfectly.”

As for playing June, Christina says: “Without giving too much away, the story focuses a lot on June, her story. Like Johnny, she had her problems with addiction [prescription pills in later life], though people didn’t know that, but it’s in John Carter Cash’s book. I feel a great responsibility to present her as accurately as possible, without doing an impression.”

Summing up a show that is as much a play with music as a musical, Christina says: “Like any good musical, it will have you singing along, it will make you laugh, make you cry and hopefully leave you thinking there’s hope in the story of love and redemption – and  who doesn’t need that?”

The Ballad Of Johnny & June – The Johnny Cash Musical, Grand Opera House, York, July 28 to August 1, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

The latest tour poster for The Ballad Of Johnny & June, The Johnny Cash Musical

NEWSFLASH

ON July 29 at 1pm, the Grand Opera House has organised a pop-up performance by The Ballad Of Johnny & June principal cast members Christina Bianco (June Carter Cash), Christopher Ryan Grant (Johnny Cash) and Ryan O’Donnell (John Carter Cash) at Forty Five Vinyl Cafe, Micklegate, York’s Nashville-inspired home of concerts by American country acts, record store and coffee house.

“They will play a short selection of songs from the show, which we are really excited about,” says marketing and communications manager Lucy Perrins.


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What’s On in Ryedale, York and beyond. Hutch’s List No. 30, from Gazette & Herald

Stephen Webb’s Dr Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, doing the Time Warp again at the Grand Opera House, York

TOM Jones on the coast, Knavesmire’s music showcase weekend, a not-so-sweet Transylvanian transvestite and a French farce promise variety aplenty in Charles Hutchinson’s week ahead.

Musical of the week: The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday, tonight and tomorrow, 8pm; Friday & Saturday, 5pm and 8.30pm

STEPHEN Webb leads the cast as Dr Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show’s latest return to the Grand Opera House, joined by comedian Jackie Clune as the Narrator. Directed by Christopher Luscombe, Richard O’Brien’s outré musical tells the story of squeaky-clean American college sweethearts Brad and his fiancée Janet’s very frank encounters at the freaky doctor’s Transylvanian castle after their car breaks down.

Cue an adventure full of fun, frolics, frocks and frivolity, bursting with timeless songs and outrageous outfits as O’Brien combines science-fiction, horror, comedy and music while encouraging audience participation. Those audiences are sure to dress up in the most outrageous fancy dress. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Lou Bass’s artworks for Bring Me Sunshine at Helmsley Arts Centre

Exhibition of the week: Bring Me Sunshine, Paintings by Lou Bass and Adam King, Helmsley Arts Centre, until September 4

SCARBOROUGH artists Lou Bass and Adam King have teamed up for a joint exhibition, Bring Me Sunshine. A regular North Yorkshire Open Studios participant at Beeforth’s Hive, Lou’s vibrant paintings are brought to life with help from playful and poignant characters, such as Donkey, Crow, Angry Man, Bandit Cat, Dog and Fox, as she explores emotions and situations through simple narratives.

Painter and printmaker Adam has been painting for more than 35 years, holding exhibitions and doing residencies throughout Yorkshire. Educated at Leeds Met, York St John and Huddersfield, he led the Foundation Art and Fine Art degree courses when lecturing at Harrogate College before painting full time. His work is marked by a fresh approach to image making, combining simplicity with sophistication and a sureness of composition.

Andrew O’Neill: Looking to Escape at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, on Friday. Picture: Andrew O’Neill

Fringe shows of the week: Halfway To Edinburgh at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, presents Dylan Howells in Forget About Me (Work In Progress), tonight, 7.30pm; Joe Sellman-Leava in Copycat (Work In Progress), tomorrow, 7.30pm; Andrew O’Neill: Escape, Friday, 8pm

IN a remote, northeast village, something lurks in the bathroom: something Dylan struggles to remember, which even his dad’s deadly DIY skills can’t fix, as designer-performer Dylan Howells weaves psychological illusions and fragmented memories into a magical, chilling tale of a home that won’t stay still.

Part magic show, part ghost story, tonight’s show Forget About Me isn’t your typical conjuring act: mind-bending mentalism and spine-tingling effects blur the line between reality and fiction in a twisted tale designed to get under your skin.

DOES AI spell the end of humanity, or the dawn of a new utopia, ponders Fringe First winner Joe Sellman-Leava tomorrow. He might be a technophobe, but he is determined to find out by using innovative design and a whirlwind of uncanny impressions to tell the story of a teacher, a student and a copycat dictator to examine the links between art, fascism and rapid technological change. 

HOW do we get out of this mess, asks cult comedian Andrew O’Neill on Friday in his surreal, political show, Escape, about the ways in which we disagree with each other, while suggesting some ways we can find our way out. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Jorja Cartwright’s German flight attendant Gretchen in rehearsal for Rowntree Players’ Boeing Boeing

Farce of the week: Rowntree Players in Boeing Boeing, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, tomorrow to Saturday, 7.30pm

MARC Camoletti’s high-flying 1960s’ French farce Boeing Boeing is cleared for take-off in Hannah Shaw’s English-language production for Rowntree Players. Meet self-styled Parisian lothario Bernard, who has Italian, German and American fiancées, each one a beautiful airline hostess with frequent “layovers.”

He keeps “one up, one down, and one pending” until unexpected schedule changes bring all three to Paris, and to Bernard’s apartment, at the same time. Shaw’s cast features Max Palmer as Bernard, Lizzie Lawton as Robert, Rebecca Thomson as Berthe, Jorja Cartwright as Gretchen, Bethan Olliver as Gloria and Val Debenedetti as Gabriella. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Welsh pop legend Tom Jones: Returning to Scarborough Open Air Theatre on Sunday

Coastal concerts of the week: Scarborough Open Air Theatre, An Evening with James Taylor and His All-Star Band, Saturday; Tom Jones, with Stone Foundation, Sunday; gates open at 6pm

MASSACHUSETTS singer, songwriter and guitarist, Laurel Canyon folk luminary, six-time Grammy winner and Rock and Roll and Songwriters Halls of Fame inductee James Taylor, 78, draws on six decades of songs, from his self-titled 1968 debut to 2021’s 19th studio album, American Standard, on Saturday night.

Tom Jones, or Sir Tom Jones since 2006, to be more formal, returns to Scarborough this weekend at 85 to perform such favourites as It’s Not Unusual, What’s New Pussycat?, Delilah, Green, Green Grass Of Home, A Boy From Nowhere, Kiss, Mama Told Me Not To Come and Sex Bomb. Joining Sir Tom will be the eight-piece soul collective Stone Foundation. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.

Holly Taymar: Performing Eva Cassidy’s songbook at Helmsley Arts Centre

Tribute show of the week: Holly Taymar Sings Eva Cassidy, Helmsley Arts Centre, Friday, 7.30pm

YORK singer-songwriter Holly Taymar delivers a warm, authentic performance that blends Eva Cassidy’s folk, jazz and blues material in renditions of Fields Of Gold, Songbird, Over The Rainbow and Autumn Leaves.

In a show of appreciation for Eva’s life and career, rather than imitation, Taymar combines intimate guitar accompaniment, mesmerising stage presence, melody and emotional truth. Singer-songwriter David Swann supports. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Craig David: TS5 DJ set after Friday evening’s race card at York Racecourse

Race day concerts of the week: York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend, Knavesmire, York, Craig David presents TS5, Friday, and Tom Grennan, Saturday

SOUTHAMPTON singer-songwriter and DJ Craig David presents his TS5 DJ set on Music Showcase Friday’s double bill of racing and old-skool anthems, from R&B to Swing Beat, Garage to Bashment, plus current House hits, when he combines his song and MC skills.

Tom Grennan: Saturday live set at York Racecourse

BEDFORD singer-songwriter Tom Grennan is Saturday’s post-racing performer, drawing on such hits as Little Bit Of Love, Let’s Go Home Together, Remind Me, Here and How Does It Feel, plus songs from his number one albums Evering Road, What Ifs & Maybes and Everywhere I Went Led Me To Where I Didn’t Want To Be and top-five debut Lighting Matches. Tickets: yorkracecourse.co.uk; no booking fees; free parking on race day.

York tenor Ashley Stillburn: Making his York Proms debut on Sunday

Picnic concert of the week: York Proms, York Museum Gardens, Sunday 5.30pm

RUN by classical chart-topping York soprano Rebecca Newman and now in its ninth year, York Proms features music from the world of classical and opera, film soundtracks and show songs. Increasing the orchestra size this summer will enable the inclusion of iconic John Williams cinema compositions.

The soloists are York-born tenor and West End musical actor Ashley Stillburn in his York Proms debut and British/Irish soprano Jennifer Coleman, making her third appearance. Tickets update: Still available at yorkproms.com/collections/tickets-2026.

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Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap set for return to Grand Opera House next June

The poster for the 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap, playing Grand Opera House, York, next summer

THE world’s longest-running play, Agatha Christie’s thriller The Mousetrap, will return to the Grand Opera House, York, from June 21 to 26 2027 on its 75th Anniversary Tour.

Christie’s iconic play first played the Cumberland Street theatre on the Diamond Anniversary Tour when the mouse first escaped its London trap in 2013 and last visited York in March 2023 on its 70th anniversary travels.

Producer Brian Fenty has announced that Nicholas Bailey and Susan Penhaligon will star as Major Metcalf and Mrs Boyle respectively in Christie’s 1952 murder mystery, famed for its silent clues, shifting shadows and the best-kept secret in theatre history. Watch this space for news of further casting and the creative team.

Nicholas Bailey: Cast as Major Metcalf in 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap

A shocking murder rattles London. Far from the chaos, a remote country guesthouse welcomes seven strangers seeking refuge, but when a police sergeant battles through a deadly snowstorm with a warning no-one expects, it becomes clear the threat is already within their walls.

Every whisper hides a clue, every story masks a lie, and as suspicion tightens its grip, one question chills the room: who among them is capable of murder?

Nicholas Bailey is best known for his portrayal of Dr Anthony Trueman in BBC One’s EastEnders since 2000, returning to the role on several occasions, most recently in 2025.

The 2023 cast for Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap on its last visit to the Grand Opera House, York

Bailey has enjoyed a varied career across stage, screen and radio. His theatre credits include Richard Eyre’s King Lear (National Theatre), Macbeth (Mercury Theatre, Colchester), Dreamgirls (West End), Jackie – The Musical (UK tour), Mother Courage And Her Children (UK tour), Life Is A Dream (Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, Barbican Centre and BAM, New York) and Julius Caesar (Royal Exchange).

His television credits include Coronation Street, Casualty, Doctors, Death In Paradise, House Of Anubis and Holby City and he played Carl Lawrence in BBC Radio 4’s long-running rural drama The Archers from 2012.

Susan Penhaligon first came to prominence in the landmark television drama Bouquet Of Barbed Wire drama before becoming a household name as Helen Barker, younger sister to Dame Judi Dench’s linguist Laura Dalton in the ITV sitcom A Fine Romance from 1981 to 1984.

Susan Penhaligon: Cast as the volatile Mrs Boyle in the 75th Anniversary Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap

Her television credits include Emmerdale, Doctors, Casualty, Bergerac, Doctor Who, Upstairs, Downstairs and the BBC’s adaptation of Dracula.

Penhaligon has appeared extensively on stage in the West End and across the UK, with credits including The Real Thing (Strand Theatre), Three Sisters (Albery Theatre), Of Mice and Men (Mermaid Theatre), Broken Glass (West Yorkshire Playhouse) and UK tours of Cabaret, The Importance Of Being Earnest, And Then There Were None and Fisherman’s Friends – The Musical. Her film work includes The Land That Time Forgot, Patrick, Count Dracula, Soldier of Orange and The Uncanny.

She last appeared on the York stage in April-May 2019 in Moira Buffini’s political drama Handbagged, playing The Queen (Elizabeth II) opposite Sarah Crowden’s Margaret Thatcher, at York Theatre Royal.

Susan Penhaligon as The Queen, with Sarah Crowden as Margaret Thatcher, in Handbagged at York Theatre Royal in 2019

For the chance to Step into Monkswell Manor and solve the great British murder mystery that has kept the world guessing for generations, tickets are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.

Did you know?

On March 19 2025, The Mousetrap celebrated its 30,000th performance in the West End and was presented with a Guinness World Records certificate for the world’s longest theatrical run. 

Sharing its name with the play within the play in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Agatha Christie’s murder mystery opened in 1952 and continues to enthral audiences at London’s St Martin’s Theatre, now booking into its 75th year in 2027.

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REVIEW: The Rocky Horror Show, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday ****

Stephen Webb’s Dr Frank N Furter: Third time at Grand Opera House, York. Picture: David Freeman

MARCH 2022, October 2024, now July 2026. The time to do the Time Warp again at the Grand Opera House comes around ever more quickly. Once it was every three years, then 31 months, now 21.

No doubt Rocky Horror aficionados will be delighted by that acceleration, making their pilgrimage to Richard O’Brien’s schlock-horror rock’n’roll musical comedy sextravaganza time and time again to enact the time-honoured rituals established since 1973 in gothic fancy dress.

Likewise, new converts as wide-eyed and innocent as O’Brien’s American sweetheart college nerds Brad Majors and Janet Weiss sign up for their rites-of-passage initiation to the cult of Rocky Horror.

This time, Stephen Webb is doing a Time Warp of his own, back in Dr Frank N Furter’s fishnets on tour, having played the role at the Grand Opera House in 2019 and 2022. The swagger, the grace and the fruity decadence are now accompanied by a doomed sense of impending tragedy, especially in his rendition of Don’t Dream It, Be It.  

Christopher Luscombe is still on directorial duty too, cracking the whip – like Frank in Act Two – to sustain its fast and increasingly furious pace, to push the tongue ever further into the cheek, to make it a visual and sensual feast in tandem with set designer Hugh Durrant.

Nothing can rectify the dip in quality of songs in Act Two or the mad rush to the finishing line, more in keeping with a Jacobean tragedy’s pile-up of dead bodies, but the 2026 production has increased momentum. On opening night, too, it overcame a sudden stoppage, when Bethany Amber Perrins had to take over from Daisy Steere as Columbia after a 20-minute hiatus. As ever, the show must go on, and indeed it did, quickly re-establishing its rhythm.

For any newcomers, the storyline opens with newly engaged, squeaky-clean American college couple  Brad (James Bisp) and prim prom queen Janet (2022 returnee Haley Flaherty) losing their way in a storm and then their cherry under the seductive allure of Webb’s castle-dwelling transvestite scientist, Dr Frank N Furter, all framed in a bravura send-up of horror and sci-fi B-movies, heightened by O’Brien’s raucous pastiche of Fifties’ rock’n’roll music.

His show is driven by song, set-piece, outre characters and carnal pleasure, not quite disguising the flimsy plot with its shameless riff on Frankenstein in Frank N Furter’s desire to forge a new life in the form of glitter-dusted beefcake Rocky (Morgan Jackson).

All the while, the audience plays its part, not only in its dress code of Fifties’ waitress outfits, scientist cloaks, Frank N Furter fishnets and tattoos, gold shorts and blond wigs,  but in participating in the ritual interjections, focused heavily on the salacious and salty shout-outs (after rice, confetti, lighter flames and water pistols were given the red card).

Most are directed at the unflappable Narrator, on this occasion the actor, stand-up comedian and author Jackie Clunes, who consistently outwitted the audience, especially in her anatomical proclamations and acerbic topical asides. She shows originality in her retorts and quips, contrasting with the often crude “scripted abuse” from the stalls, although one shout of “Prince Andrew” made you crave more such impromptu cries.

For the rituals to work at their best, they need more participants than at Monday’s more-reserved- than-usual show, where the insults sometimes could not be discerned if watching from the Dress Circle. Clunes, nevertheless, worked the crowd skilfully, ever responsive but one thought ahead too.

What strikes you more and more after 50 years is how the sartorially and sexually audacious Rocky Horror fits with our gender-fluid times far more than in its earliest form, with its themes of transvestism, freedom of self-determination and homosexuality chiming ever louder alongside the old chestnuts of infidelity, the price of ambition and loss of innocence.

The Rocky Horror Show, Grand Opera House, York, tonight, Wednesday and Thursday, 8pm; Friday & Saturday, 5pm and 8.30pm. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

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More Things To Do in York and beyond. Hutch’s List No. 29, from The York Press

Danger, danger for a ranger at close quarters with a dinosaur’s teeth in Dinosaur Adventure Live: Danger On T-Rex Mountain at York Theatre Royal

DINOSAUR adventures and Knavesmire’s music showcase weekend, a not-so-sweet Transylvanian transvestite and a French farce promise variety aplenty in Charles Hutchinson’s week ahead.

Children’s show of the week: Dinosaur Adventure Live, Danger On T-Rex Mountain, York Theatre Royal, today, 2.30pm

SIXTY-FIVE million years in the making, Dinosaur Adventure Live brings a fusion of family-friendly storytelling, puppetry and roarsome science to the stage as the ancient world of dinosaurs crashes back to life for gasps, giggles and occasional jump-scares.

From a shadowy raptor on the loose to baby dinosaurs that you can feed (carefully!), Mike Newman’s show blends humour, thrills and hands-on learning into an interactive stage experience. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Liz Foster: Exhibiting her abstract artworks in Arnup Studios’ first collective show at Pyramid Gallery

Exhibition launch of the week: Arnup Studios at Pyramid Gallery, Stonegate, York, today, 11am to 2pm, then running until September 27

CERAMICIST Hannah Arnup, landscape and natural world artist Michelle Galloway, abstract artist Liz Foster, plein-air and studio artist Kate Pettitt, British wildlife ceramicist Penny Phillips and handmade jewellery designer Emma Welsh will be on hand at today’s opening of Holtby-based Arnup Studios’ first collective exhibition at Pyramid Gallery. Gallery opening hours are 10am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday.

Justine Warner with exhibits from today’s showcase of experimental textiles and mixed media at Laburnum Cottage, Sheriff Hutton 

Art showcase of the week: Experimental Textiles and Mixed Media, Laburnum Cottage Art Studio, West End, Sheriff Hutton, near York, today, 10am to 5pm

NORTH Yorkshire Open Studios textile and mixed-media artist, Landscape Artist Of The Year 2022 contestant, teacher and workshop tutor Justine Warner plays host to an exhibition of one year of student work, showcasing skills, workbooks and final pieces based on a wide range of experimental textile techniques that employ exciting and unusual materials in creative ways.

Look at how Bondaweb, Lutradur, soluble fabrics, metal, foils, gel printing, transfer printing, batik, tetra pack printing, block printing and heat-shrink can be used and  speak with some of the students who experimented with them.

Rowan Armitt-Brewster’s introverted office worker Thomas struggling with his bothersome briefcase in Skedaddle Theatre’s A Brief Case Of Crazy

Silent love story of the week: Skedaddle Theatre & Shoddy Theatre present A Brief Case Of Crazy, York Theatre Royal Studio, today, 2pm & 7pm

INSPIRED by the timeless genius of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Mr Bean,Rowan Armitt-Brewster, Samuel Cunningham and Lennie Longworth’s physical comedy A Brief Case Of Crazy is a silent love story with a very loud heart, told through slick choreography, mime, clowning and puppetry.

Meet Thomas, an awkward, introverted office worker with a quiet crush on his equally shy colleague, Daisy. His quest for love must contend with a boisterous boss named Simon and a rather bothersome briefcase that drags an awkward introvert into extraordinary events. Will his quest for love fail? Or will he discover that what’s on the inside counts most? Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. Age guidance: Five upwards.

Dominic Goodwin in a triptych of his myriad roles in Twice Nightly

Recalling variety’s golden days: Pyramus and Thisbe Productions present Dominic Goodwin in Twice Nightly, Friargate Theatre, York, tonight, 7.30pm

RYEDALE writer, performer and pantomime dame Dominic Goodwin is touring his first one-man comedy show, directed by York director and actor Thomas Frere.

Twice Nightly follows the story of struggling comedian Freddie Francis in 1956 as the final curtain hovers over variety. Many acts of the time are highlighted, including Norman “Over The Garden Wall” Evans (said to be an influence on Les Dawson) Stockton comic Jimmy James, wartime star Robb Wilton and the iconic Max Miller. Box office: York, 01904 655317 or ridinglights.org/friargatetheatre.

CMAT: Songs of identity, grief and beauty standards at Scarborough Open Air Theatre tonight 

Coastal gig of the week: CMAT, Scarborough Open Air Theatre, today, gates 6pm

CMAT, alias Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson, burst on to the music scene six years ago with her debut single Another Day (KFC). The Dublin-born, County Meath-raised singer and songwriter has since released three bitingly humorous, emotionally honest albums, 2022’s If My Wife New I’d Be Dead, 2023’s Crazymad, For Me and 2025’s  Mercury Prize-nominated Euro-Country, her exploration of identity, grief and beauty standards, exemplified by Take A Sexy Picture Of Me. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.co.uk.

Stephen Webb’s Dr Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, doing the Time Warp again at the Grand Opera House next week. Picture: David Freeman 

Musical of the week: The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Grand Opera House, York, July 20 to 25, Monday to Thursday, 8pm; Friday & Saturday, 5pm and 8.30pm

STEPHEN Webb leads the cast as Dr Frank N Furter on The Rocky Horror Show’s latest return to the Grand Opera House, joined by comedian Jackie Clune as the Narrator. Directed by Christopher Luscombe, Richard O’Brien’s outré musical tells the story of squeaky-clean American college sweethearts Brad and his fiancée Janet’s very frank encounters at the freaky doctor’s Transylvanian castle after their car breaks down.

Cue an adventure full of fun, frolics, frocks and frivolity, bursting with timeless songs and outrageous outfits as O’Brien combines science-fiction, horror, comedy and music while encouraging audience participation. Those audiences are sure to dress up in the most outrageous fancy dress. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Lenny Pearce: Techno for toddlers at York Barbican 

Techno dance moves for children: Lenny Pearce, Toddler Rave World Tour Part 2, York Barbican, July22, 3.30pm

LENNY Pearce is a force in family entertainment, captivating a global audience as the pioneer of Toddler Techno. Driven from his passion as a father, and his strong commitment to his home life, Lenny makes songs and videos and performs live shows where he spins children’s favourites, remixed into modern hits that keep young ones and parents alike dazzled. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Andrew O’Neill: Looking to Escape at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York. Picture: Andrew O’Neill 

Fringe shows of the week: Halfway To Edinburgh at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, presents Joe Sellman-Leava in Copycat (Work In Progress), July 23, 7.30pm; Andrew O’Neill: Escape, July 24, 8pm

DOES AI spell the end of humanity, or the dawn of a new utopia, ponders Fringe First winner Joe Sellman-Leava. He might be a technophobe, but he is determined to find out by using innovative design and a whirlwind of uncanny impressions to tell the story of a teacher, a student, and a copycat dictator to examine the links between art, fascism and rapid technological change. 

HOW do we get out of this mess, asks cult comedian Andrew O’Neill in his surreal, political show, Escape, about the ways in which we disagree with each other, while suggesting some ways we can find our way out. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Airline hostesses at the treble: Bethan Olliver as Gloria, left, Val Debenedetti as Gabriella Jorja Cartwright as Gretchen in Rowntree Players’ Boeing Boeing 

Farce of the week: Rowntree Players in Boeing Boeing, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, July 23 to 25, 7.30pm

MARC Camoletti’s high-flying 1960s’ French farce Boeing Boeing is cleared for take-off in Hannah Shaw’s English-language production for Rowntree Players. Meet self-styled Parisian lothario Bernard, who has Italian, German and American fiancées, each one a beautiful airline hostess with frequent “layovers.”

He keeps “one up, one down, and one pending” until unexpected schedule changes bring all three to Paris, and to Bernard’s apartment, at the same time. Shaw’s cast features Max Palmer as Bernard, Lizzie Lawton as Robert, Rebecca Thomson as Berthe, Jorja Cartwright as Gretchen, Bethan Olliver as Gloria and Val Debenedetti as Gabriella. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Craig David: TS5 DJ set at York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend next Friday

Outdoor concerts of the week: York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend, Knavesmire, York, Craig David presents TS5, July 24, and Tom Grennan, July 25

SOUTHAMPTON singer-songwriter and DJ Craig David presents his TS5 DJ set on Music Showcase Friday’s double bill of racing and old-skool anthems, from R&B to Swing Beat, Garage to Bashment, plus current House hits, when he combines his song and MC skills.

Bedford singer-songwriter Tom Grennan is Saturday’s post-racing performer, drawing on such hits as Little Bit Of Love, Let’s Go Home Together, Remind Me, Here and How Does It Feel, plus songs from his number one albums Evering Road, What Ifs & Maybes and Everywhere I Went Led Me To Where I Didn’t Want To Be and top-five debut Lighting Matches. Tickets: yorkracecourse.co.uk; no booking fees; free parking on race day.

Tom Grennan: Performing next Saturday’s Music Showcase Weekend at York Racecourse