Tag: Merchant Taylors’ Hall

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REVIEW: Steve Crowther’s verdict on Helen Charlston, Paul Agnew & Sergio Bucheli, A Gentle Air, York Early Music Festival 2026, Merchant Taylors’ Hall, York, July 9

Mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston performing by candlelight at Merchant Taylors’ Hall, York. Picture: Ben Pugh

A GENTLE  Air was an exploration of the 17th-century French air de cour, centred on the songs of Honoré d’Ambruys and Sébastien Le Camus.

The programme opened with d’Ambruys’ Le doux silence de nos bois, a pastoral love song in which nature provides a peaceful refuge for lovers. You could almost feel the audience melt – and I’m not referencing the extreme temperature – as mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston sang the opening delicate stanza:

“The soft silence of our woods

is now broken only by the songs

of the birds that Love gathers here.”

Her tone was rich, the delivery expressive and nuanced, mirroring the underlying tenderness of the poetry.

Self-pity replaces pastoral serenity in Le Camus’ Je veux me plaindre:

“I would complain

of your harshness,

and what do I have to fear

would constrain me,

since I am dying?”

Tenor Paul Agnew embraced its emotional extremes, milking the expressive dissonances while balancing speech-like declamation with genuine lyricism.

The dialogue between the two singers deepened in the paired Lambert settings. Charlston’s Ombre de mon amant, a lament to the ghost of a dead lover, was sung with extraordinary stillness and beauty of tone, her expressive ornamentation intensifying the emotional restraint of the music.

Agnew’s response, Vos mépris chaque jour, remained rooted in the wounded dignity of a steadfast love confronted by apparent cruelty. The way he deftly negotiated the subtle harmonic shifts mirrored the text’s shifting emotions, while the contrast between the two voices reinforced the sense that the programme was unfolding as a continuing dramatic exchange rather than a succession of isolated airs.

Tenor Paul Agnew and theorbo player Sergio Bucheli at Merchant Taylors’ Hall. Picture: Ben Pugh

Throughout these exchanges, Sergio Bucheli’s theorbo acted as more than accompaniment, binding the individual airs into a coherent emotional narrative.

Alas, as they might have said, his moment to shine as solo performer was compromised. The change of instrument to the more delicate lute was cut short with one of the strings snapping whilst tuning – presumably a casualty of the heat?

Nevertheless, I really did enjoy his performance of Robert de Visée’s Suite in D minor. The fuller, richer sonority of the theorbo and graceful delivery suited the melancholic atmosphere of the programme thus far.

Marc-Antoine Charpentier took the programme into more introspective territory with Tristes déserts, sombre retraites. Agnew sang it with a real sense of pathos. The poignant suspensions and intensity gave the performance genuinely psychological depth.

Of the three Charpentier airs, the chaconne, Sans frayeur dans ce bois, proved the most moving. Bucheli’s gently recurring ground bass provided an emotional anchor, allowing Charlston’s elegant vocal line to unfold with increasing expressive freedom. The ornamentation was beautifully judged.

I wasn’t entirely convinced by Bucheli’s Shakespeare quotation (“I can suck melancholy out of a song, as a weasel sucks eggs”) but his account of de Visée’s Suite in G major was very persuasive. I should confess that I haven’t heard any of his music before, but the rich resonance of the theorbo, refined ornamentation and elegant dance rhythms in Bucheli’s performance made for a very rewarding listen.

The festival described the programme as being “inspired by the poetry of love”, inviting listeners into the delicate world of the French air de cour. Taken as a whole, A Gentle Air could be heard as one extended love duet.

Rather than presenting a succession of solo airs, the programme unfolded as a dialogue between two complementary voices. Helen Charlston and Paul Agnew frequently answered, echoed and completed one another.

Theorbo player Sergio Bucheli playing at July 9’s A Gentle Air concert. Picture: Ben Pugh

Their shared emotional journey traced  the stages of a relationship: desire, anticipation, tenderness, jealousy, complaint, separation and reconciliation, giving the programme an emotional continuity that transcended the individual songs.

Bucheli’s theorbo became more than an accompanying instrument. It bridged the emotional worlds between the two singers, almost assuming the role of an unseen narrator or confidant.

Fittingly, the final song of the programme – Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Je vous revois – resolved their emotional journey. After so many songs of longing, rejection, jealousy, solitude and, yes, melancholy, this was one of the programme’s few unequivocal moments of fulfilment:

“I see you once more, everything yields

to the utter delight

of meeting once again the object of

one’s love.”

The song was sung with elegance, poise and beautifully shaped phrasing. In the line “everything yields to the utter delight…” came emotional release.

The success of this dramatic conception rested not only on the repertoire but also on the performers themselves. Agnew and Charlston brought contrasting yet wholly complementary strengths, creating a partnership of balance, musical empathy and emotional conviction.

Helen Charlston has completed her three-year tenure as an artistic advisor to the York Early Music Festival, and this specially curated concert was a fitting and memorable way to sign off.

Review by Steve Crowther

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REVIEW: York Georgian Festival, The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t, Merchant Taylors’ Hall, Aldwark, York, tonight, 7.30pm ***

Geoff Turner’s Sir Thomas Graspall in The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t. Picture: Gareth Buddo

IMAGINE the joy of Sarah Cowling, York tour guide and Churches Conservation Trust volunteer at Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, when research led to the discovery of the writings of Mr Joseph Peterson.

Parish records show that Peterson gave his living as “comedian” in the register at his son Joseph’s baptism in January 1738. Actor, writer and comedian would be more accurate, given that Peterson’s career blossomed at the Norwich Theatre Company from 1746 after working for Thomas Keregan’s company in York.

Yet before his exit stage left to Norfolk, York-born Peterson wrote expressly for his home city, and now Cowling is directing Holy Trinity’s revival of his first theatrical romp in a traverse staging at Merchant Taylors’ Hall, where it is thought the hour-long comedy might have been first performed.

There will be only one performance, tonight at 7.30pm, sold out alas, but last night’s dress rehearsal played to pretty much a full house too, so it had the atmosphere more befitting a first night.

Wood is everywhere: doors, dark panels on the walls, the floor, but thankfully not in the acting, led by Nick Patrick Jones’s Mr Joseph Peterson, introducing his piece of 18th century theatrical shenanigans in couplets, in the manner of Shakespeare’s Puck.

Jones will reappear as Peterson’s most exaggerated character, the coxcomb Sir Fopling Conceit, a narcissist as foppish and vain as his name, surely heading for a fall.

He is not alone in Peterson’s parade of vainglorious peacocks: step forward Geoff Turner’s Sir Thomas Graspall, in his case headed for a pratfall via the Raree Show of the title: a tented peep show that invites him to look inside. The Fox trap’t indeed.

Step forward with even more braggadocio Joe Standerline’s thunderous foxhunting enthusiast Squire Timothy, as quick on the bottom slaps as outrageous boasts.

They will be outwitted in a battle of wits by the womanly wiles of Mad Alice (York tour guide Alicia Stabler) in the guise of Betty, together with Joy Warner’s Corinna and Andrea Mitchell’s Belinda.

Further undermining the pompous posturing are the earnest machinations of Zander Fick’s Belamour and Matt Tapp’s Manly.

Standerline pops up too as Peterson’s answer to Shakespeare’s Fool, the self-explanatory Smart, albeit in a cameo, but one where he has fun with a hammy French accent and moustache.

Peterson crams into his hour all the tropes of Georgian theatre:  the wigs and the topical wit; the daft names and even dafter characters; villainous uncles, astute servants and absurdist foreigners; physical buffoonery, clashing swords and verbal spats; putdowns and comeuppances; unhappy exits and the obligatory happy ending.

Then add Georgian style to compliment the foppery and frippery, further boosted by the perky musicality of Nicky Gladstone’s violin and Chantal Berry’s keyboard.

The last word goes to Jones’s Peterson, who is unnecessarily apologetic about the standard of his debut work. What’s more, it won’t be the last word if Sarah Cowling has her way. “There’s a whole catalogue of these funny little York-grown Georgian shows,” she says. “I really hope we can unearth more.”

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York Georgian Festival revives Joseph Peterson’s 18th century comic romp The Raree Show at Merchant Taylors’ Hall

Geoff Turner’s Sir Thomas Graspall in Mr Joseph Peterson’s The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t. Picture: Gareth Buddo

IN a celebration of 18th century theatre and the lives of York’s Georgian players and comedians, The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t will open the York Georgian Festival 2025. 

Presented by Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, at Merchant Taylors’ Hall, Aldwark, on August 7, the hour-long 7.30pm performance promises entertainment, wit and historical intrigue.

Think of all the delightful clichés of 18th century theatre: mannered acting; plays with double titles; characters whose names give away their personalities;wicked uncles, clever servants, comedy foreigners; physical comedy and happy endings.

“Joseph Peterson’s The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t delivers all of this with a hearty dose of charm,” says director Sarah Cowling, York tour guide and Churches Conservation Trust volunteer at Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, who is fascinated by York’s Georgian theatrical scene.

Andrea Mitchell’s Belinda. Picture: Toni Wainwright

“Joseph Peterson, a parishioner from Goodramgate, described in the parish register as ‘comedian’, wrote this piece specifically to delight and amuse the citizens of York – the city he ‘reveres’. When it was first performed in 1738, it is very likely that it was performed in the very hall we will be performing in on August 7: Merchant Taylors’ Hall.

“Very likely”, Sarah? “The source I had for proof that the piece was performed in York has proven unreliable. It is ‘most likely’ that it was performed here in York – as it was written for the city and the original Dramatic Personae are all from York – but I cannot find the playbill or proof. It is ‘most likely’ that it was performed in Merchant Taylors’. Indeed some of the original actors are known to have performed in there,” she says.

“After success at last year’s Georgian Festival with a read-through of Peterson’s masterpiece, Merchant Taylors’ have been kind enough to offer use of the hall for this year’s ‘off-book’ production.”

Peterson’s theatrical romp is billed as “a tale of a ward trapped into marriage against her late father’s wishes; divided couples reunited; sword fights; terrible French accents; clever tricks and a satisfying ‘happily ever after’”.

 Nick Patrick Jones’s Sir Fopling Conceit. Picture: Gareth Buddo 

“The driving force behind this production is the fascinating figure of Mr Joseph Peterson, an actor, parishioner of Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, and writer,” says Sarah. “Peterson was so dedicated to his craft that he added new meaning to the phrase ‘dying on stage’ – later in life, quite literally dying mid-performance.

“The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t is very much a vehicle for Mr Peterson. He wrote it, he introduces it, appears in it and wraps up the proceedings.”

Born in 1710, Peterson married Margaret Whare in St Michael le Belfrey at the age of 22. In January 1738, their son Joseph was baptised at Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, hence his listing as a ‘comedian’ in the parish records.

“He was a key member of Thomas Keregan’s company of actors, performing in productions such as Twin Rivals, The Shepherd’s Opera and The Trepan or Virtue Rewarded,” says Sarah.

Joy Warner’s Corinna. Picture: Gareth Buddo

“Before the establishment of York Theatre Royal, one of the venues used for theatre in York was the Merchant Taylors’ Hall, where we will stage our lively production, mirroring where The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t may have been performed nearly 300 years ago.”

18th century life on stage was often unpredictable. In 1746, Peterson left York theatre for the Norwich Theatre Company, where he continued to thrive. “However, in October 1758, while performing Measure For Measure at Market Cross Theatre in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, he collapsed mid-performance. His last words were, ‘reason thus with life if I do lose thee I lose a thing that none but fools would keep a breath thou art…’, says Sarah.

“He died in the arms of fellow actor Mr Moody. Curiously, Mr Moody had previously experienced another actor’s death in his arms on stage in Harrogate!”

What can next Thursday’s audience expect? “It might help to know that A Raree Show is essentially a peep show – images in a box, not necessarily risqué. In our production, the Raree Show refers to various current events (current to the 1730s), adding a satirical edge to the performance.”

The cast for last summer’s York Georgian Festival read-through of The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t

Funds raised from this charity performance will be used to conserve the First World War Roll of Honour from Bedern National School, displayed at Holy Trinity Church, Goodramgate. “The performance of the work, written by a former more than 100 years ago,” says Sarah.

Summing up next Thursday’s performance, she concludes: “We invite our audience to step into the 18th century and revel in the theatrical artistry of The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t. With its captivating storyline and historical insights, this production is sure to be an unforgettable highlight of the York Georgian Festival.

“The show has sold out, which is brilliant, but there’s a whole catalogue of these funny little York-grown Georgian shows. I really hope we can unearth more.” 

York Georgian Festival: Holy Trinity, Goodramgate, presents Joseph Peterson’s The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t, Merchant Taylors’ Hall, Aldwark, York, August 7, 7.30pm; doors 7pm. SOLD OUT. Booking link for returns: tps://bit.ly/3EnRhEY.

Who’s in the cast for The Raree Show of The Fox Trap’t?

York tour guide Mad Alice: Making cameo appearance in The Raree Show or The Fox Trap’t

Sir Thomas Graspall, played by Geoff Turner; Squire Timothy and Smart, Joe Standerline; Manly, Matt Tapp; Belamour, Zander Fick; Sir Fopling Conceit and Mr Joseph Peterson, Nick Patrick Jones; Servant and Mrs Peterson, Aileen Bloomer; Belinda, Andrea Mitchell; Corinna, Joy Warner, and Betty, Mad Alice (in a cameo by The Bloody Tour of York guide Alicia Stabler).