Posted on

What’s On in Ryedale, York & beyond when Wonderland dazzles into the New Year. Hutch’s List No. 47, from Gazette & Herald

Born to pun: Robin Simpson’s Dame Dolly in Aladdin at York Theatre Royal. Picture: S R Taylor Photography

PANTOMIMES, theatrical family adventures and a Wonderland experience are still delighting in 2024 as Charles Hutchinson also looks ahead to 2025.

Still time for pantomime: Aladdin, York Theatre Royal, until January 5 2025

LOOK out for CBeebies’ Evie Pickerill at the double, dashing between the Spirit of the Ring and the Genie of the Lamp in the fifth collaboration between Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster and Evolution Productions script writer Paul Hendy.

Paul Hawkyard’s villain returns to York after a winter away doing panto in Dubai to renew his Theatre Royal double act with Robin Simpson’s dame, playing bad-lad Ivan Tobebooed to Simpson’s Dolly (not Widow Twankey, note). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

In the frame: Phil Atkinson’s bodacious baddie, Hugo Pompidou, in UK Productions’ Beauty And The Beast at the Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick

Still time for pantomime part two: Beauty And The Beast, Grand Opera House, York, until January 5 2025

THE jokes are as cheesy as the French setting of the village of Camembert, brassier and fruitier too in Jon Monie’s script, as George Ure directs the Grand Opera House pantomime for the first time.

Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer is a magically bouncy Fairy Bon Bon; Jennifer Caldwell delights as Belle; Samuel Wyn-Morris is a stentorian-voiced Beast/Prince; comedian Phil Reid’s Louis La Plonk and Leon Craig’s towering dame, Polly La Plonk lead the comic japes with gusto and Phil Atkinson sends up his French-accented dastardly hunk, Hugo Pompidou, to the max. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Bea Clancy’s Harrietty Clock and Marc Akinfolarin’s Pod Clock in The Borrowers at Hull Truck Theatre

“Perfect alternative to pantomime”: The Borrowers, Hull Truck Theatre, until January 4 2025

SET against a backdrop of Christmas in the East Riding of Yorkshire during the 1940s’ Blitz, artistic director Mark Babych’s enchanting production explores themes of adventure, friendship and the joy of love and togetherness in the tale of adventurous, spritely Borrower Arrietty Clock, who lives secretly under the floorboards of a country house.

Her small but perfectly formed family borrows from the humans above, but Arrietty longs for freedom and fresh air. However, the Borrowers have one simple rule: to remain hidden from the “human-beans”, especially bad-tempered housekeeper Mrs Driver and rebellious gardener Crampfurl. When an evacuee, a human boy from neighbouring Hull, arrives in the main house, Arrietty becomes curious… and starts making mistakes. Box office: 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk.

Checks and stripes: Alice’s Christmas Wonderland at Castle Howard. Picture: Charlotte Graham

Madder than the Mad Hatter if you don’t see: Alice’s Christmas Wonderland, Castle Howard, near Malton, until January 5 2025

FALL down the rabbit hall into “an experience like no other”: Lewis Carroll’s Alice in her Christmas Wonderland at Castle Howard, where the CLW Event Design creative team, headed by Charlotte Lloyd Webber and Adrian Lillie, has worked on the spectacular project since January.

The stately home has been transformed into an immersive Christmas experience, dressed in set pieces, decorations and floristry, coupled with projections, lighting and sound by Leeds theatre company imitating the dog. Box office: castlehoward.co.uk.    

Casting a shadow: James Willstrop’s villainous bruiser, Bill Sikes, in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York

Dickens of a good show: Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, 7.30pm on December 28 and 30, plus 2.30pm, December 28 and 29

HELEN Spencer takes the director’s reins and plays Fagin in York company Pick Me Up Theatre’s staging of Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s 1838 novel, described as a “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist”.

Not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!, it does feature John Biddle’s musical arrangements to complement Dickens’s fable of Oliver Twist being born in a workhouse, sold into an apprenticeship and recruited by Fagin’s band of pickpockets and thieves as he sinks into London’s grimy underworld on his search for a home, a family and love. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Party invitation: The poster for Irie Vibes Sound System’s New Year’s Eve Party at The Crescent, York

New Year’s Eve Party: Irie Vibes Sound System, The Crescent, York, December 31, 8pm to 2am

IRIE Vibes Sound System bring the full rig and crew for a joyous night of reggae, roots, dancehall, dub and jungle to the closing hours of 2024 and beyond midnight. MC Sherlock Art will be on hosting duties, bringing the fire, while Lines Of Duty will be delivering their brand of dance music in Room 2, “manipulating long- playing micro-grooves for a full frequency audio experience”. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.

Music talk to note: The Arts Society, Helmsley presents Christmas In Bach’s Leipzig: The Christmas Oratorio of 1734/5, Helmsley Arts Centre, January 6 2025, 7.30pm

IN his illustrated talk, commentator, broadcaster, performer and lecturer Sandy Burnett explores how Johann Sebastian Bach brings the Christmas story alive in his Weihnachtsoratorium or Christmas Oratorio, written for Lutheran congregations in 1730s Leipzig.

An overview of Bach’s life and achievement precedes a close look at this magnificent work, where the  German composer draws on various forms, ranging from recitative, arioso, aria, chorale and instrumental sinfonia through to full-blown choruses infused with the joyous spirit of the dance. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Malton & Norton Musical Theatre’s poster for January’s production of Jack And The Beanstalk

First big show of the New Year at Milton Rooms, Malton: Malton & Norton Musical Theatre in Jack & The Beanstalk, January 18 to 25. Performances: January 18, 1pm and 5.15pm; January 19, 2pm; January 21 to 24, 7.15pm; January 25, 1pm and 5.15pm

MALTON & Norton Musical Theatre pantomime stars promise a family-friendly giant adventure packed with laughs, toe-tapping songs and plenty of audience participation.

Jack, his brave mother and their quirky friends will face off against the towering giant in a magical world full of comedy and surprises in an enchanting tale of bravery and beanstalks. Box office: 07833 759263 or yourboxoffice.co.uk.

Posted on

REVIEW: Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until December 30 ****

Winter gruel charges: The Pick Me Up Theatre ensemble in Oliver Twist

BILLED as “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist”, Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s turbulent tale of courage in adversity was first staged in Yorkshire as Hull Truck Theatre’s Christmas show in 2018.

Yes, ‘Christmas show’, as it comes booted with snippets of Victorian carols, folk  tunes and John Biddle compositions. It is not a musical, and definitely not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s Oliver!, instead being a storytelling piece of theatre with music as an Greek chorus-style ensemble commentary and complement to the unfolding drama.

Producer Robert Readman’s set is dominated by a huge bridge, on a diagonal across the stage that divides the audience into a traverse configuration, used traditionally to heighten a sense of combat or conflict.

Helen Spencer’s Fagin in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist

There would be no taking sides here, however, as everyone will be rooting for young Oliver Twist (Logan Willstrop, sharing performances with Frankie Whitford).

Born in a workhouse to a mother who loses her life, Oliver takes a 70-mile journey to London and is sold into an apprenticeship before being recruited by Fagin’s band of pickpockets and thieves as he sinks into London’s grimy underworld in his search for a home, a family and love.

Readman encloses Theatre@41’s black box Studio in wooden frames with a series of cloth “windows”, making the Victorian milieu all the more claustrophobic and imposing – and be warmed, look out for what will emerge through the cloth, even a Punch & Judy show.

The man in black: James Willstrop’s Bill Sikes casts his shadow over Oliver Twist

As ever with McAndrew, she combines well-sketched characterisation with detailed, evocative, fast-moving storytelling.

Hull Truck’s Fagin, my dears, was a woman, played by Flo Wilson. In Pick Me Up’s version, the thief chief is still performed by a woman, the show’s director Helen Spencer, but her Fagin is still referred to as “he”.

Spencer, who has had another splendid year astride the York stage, deepens her mezzo-soprano a tad, takes on a heavier physicality within a rags-and-riches coat and has something of the night about her. Having had to miss the first two performances with a “lost voice” she has certainly found it a terrific lead performance.

Playwright Deborah McAndrew

Jennie Wogan-Wells’s abused Nancy is striving against the odds to make her way in a male-dominated world, her light snuffed out by the brutal darkness around her.

Logan Willstrop’s Oliver is full of expression, resilience and enquiry, while the ever-reliable Tracey Rea and Nick Sephton are amusing company as the besotted Widow Corney and Mr Bumble, albeit that Sephton’s towering Bumble has his darker side too, as he slams his cane against the floor with a thunderous thud.

Neil Foster is on contrasting double duty, as the exploitative Mr Sowerberry and the kindly Mr Brownlow, and likewise Rhian Wells makes her mark as Mrs Sowerberry and Mrs Bedwin.

Matthew Warry, one of York’s best developing young talents, is in typically fine form as the cocky Noah Claypole, while Rich Musk’s cuts the mustard as Dr Grimwig.

Neil Foster’s Mr Brownlow in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist

As with Hull Truck’s production, the Artful Dodger is still called “Jack” but is played here by both a lass, Libby Greenhill, and a lad, Reuben Baines, splitting performances. Your reviewer saw Greenhill: a Chaplinesque figure with comic timing and plenty of pluck.

Young Logan is not the only Willstrop in Pick Me Up’s cast. His father James is a tall, gaunt, black of heart, black of coat, pock-marked Bill Sikes: darker still than his Frederick  Frankenstein in Readman’s production of Young Frankenstein in September last year.

Matthew Peter Clare leads the musical forces with typical dash and Spencer directs with drive and focus with excellent use of ensemble as well as individual expression in her principals. All in all, a Dickens of a good show.

Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York. Performances at 7.30pm, December 27, 28 and 30, plus Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2.30pm. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Tracey Rea’s Widow Corney and Nick Sephton’s Mr Bumble in Oliver Twist
Posted on

More Things To Do in York and beyond the last-minute shopping rush. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 52, from The Press, York

Casting a shadow: James Willstrop’s bullying bruiser Bill Sikes in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate

THE myriad delights of Christmas entertainment shine through Charles Hutchinson’s tips to vacate the festive fireside.

Dickens at Christmas, but not A Christmas Carol: Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until December 30. 7.30pm performances on December 21, 27, 28 and 30, plus 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees. No performances on December 23 to 26

HELEN Spencer takes the director’s reins and plays Fagin in York company Pick Me Up Theatre’s staging of Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s 1838 novel, described as a “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist”.

Not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!, it does feature musical arrangements by John Biddle to to complement Dickens’s tale of Oliver Twist being brought up in a workhouse, sold into an apprenticeship and recruited by Fagin’s band of pickpockets and thieves as he sinks into London’s grimy underworld in his search for a home, a family and love. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Harris Beattie and Jonathan Hanks in Northern Ballet’s revival of A Christmas Carol at Leeds Grand Theatre. Picture: Tristram Kenton

Christmas ballet of the week: Northern Ballet in A Christmas Carol, Leeds Grand Theatre, until January 4 2025

FIRST choreographed by Massimo Morricone and directed by Christopher Gable in 1992, Northern Ballet’s retired landmark production of A Christmas Carol is being revisited by director Federico Bonelli to the glee of longtime supporters and new audiences alike.

“Charles Dickens’s classic Victorian tale of redemption, with its message of human kindness and compassion, is something that resonates with us all, especially at this time of year,” says Bonelli. “Its iconic characters lend themselves so well to ballet”, complemented by Lez Brotherston’s colourful sets and costumes and Carl Davis’s festive score. Box office: 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.

Holly Cassidy and Grace Hussey-Burd in a scene from Riding Lights Theatre Company’s winter show A Christmas Cracker. Picture: Tom Jackson

Alternative Nativity play of the week: Riding Lights Theatre Company in A Christmas Cracker, Friargate Theatre, York, today to Christmas Eve, 11am and 1.30pm each day; 6pm, first three days; 4pm, last day

IN Paul Birch’s first play as artistic director of Riding Lights, world-famous storyteller Ebenezer Sneezer is lost, with snow in her wellies and faithful canine companion Cracker full of strange ideas about Christmas.

When caught taking shelter in Mrs McGinty’s barn, she allows them to stay on the condition that Ebenezer brings her glad tidings with her stories. If so, a hot supper awaits. If not, exit pronto. Ebenezer must triumph over not only Mrs McGinty’s frozen heart but also Deadly, a dastardly donkey ready to kick comfort and joy out of his stable. Box office: 01904 613000 or ticketsource.co.uk/ridinglights.

The poster for The Snowman screenings with live orchestra at York Barbican

Christmas film & music event of the week: The Snowman with Live Orchestra, York Barbican, Sunday, 1pm and 4pm

CARROT Productions presents two screenings of Dianne Jackson and Jimmy T Murakami’s animated 1982 film with the accompaniment of a live orchestra of professional musicians.

Raymond Briggs’s story of a young boy’s Christmas snowman magically coming to life for a journey to meet Santa Claus will be shown with The Snowman And The Snowdog at 1pm and The Bear, The Piano, The Dog And The Fiddle at 4pm. Each show includes a fun introduction to the orchestra and a visit from the Snowman himself. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Shed Seven’s Paul Banks and Rick Witter: Performing as an acoustic duo at Huntington Working Men’s Club in the last gigs of their 30th anniversary celebrations this weekend. Picture: David Harrison

Recommended but sold out already: Shed Seven’s Rick Witter and Paul Banks, Huntington Working Men’s Club, York, tonight and Sunday, doors 7pm

AFTER two number one albums in a year, summer shows in York Museum Gardens and their biggest ever tour, Shed Seven end their 30th anniversary celebrations back home in York, where lead singer Rick Witter and guitarist Paul Banks play a weekend of acoustic sets in the intimate setting of a working men’s club.

“We’re finishing the year in the village where Rick and I first met back in 1984, and where all of this began,” says Banks. “What a journey we’ve been on.” Sheds’ bassist Tom Gladwin serves up a DJ set too. Box office for returns only: store.shedseven.com.

Nun better: Freida Nipples hosts her Baps & Buns burlesque Christmas cabaret at Rise@Bluebird Bakery, Acomb

Feast your eyes on: Freida Nipples’ Baps & Buns Burlesque Christmas Cabaret, Rise@Bluebird Bakery, Acomb Road, Acomb, tonight, 8pm; doors open at 7pm

YORK’S queen of burlesque, Freida Nipples, presents drag, comedy and showgirls in her Baps & Buns Christmas Cabaret with festive good cheer after a joyous year of shows at Rise, Acomb’s answer to Paris’s Folies Bergère.

“Prepare yourself for an evening of debauchery and glamour in Acomb,” says Freida. “The big question is: are you ready for it?!” Box office: bluebirdbakery.co.uk/rise.

Central Methodist Church: Hosting City Screen Picturehouse’s pop-up Christmas Cinema at Saint Saviourgate, York

Pop-up film event of the festive season: City Screen Picturehouse presents Christmas Cinema at Saint Saviourgate, The Great Hall, Central Methodist Church, St Saviourgate, York, until December 23

CITY Screen Picturehouse, York, has set up a pop-up screen at Central Methodist Church for the Christmas season. Dougal Wilson’s Paddington In Peru (PG) will be shown at 4pm on Sunday, followed by Jon Favreau’s Elf (PG) at 7pm and Monday screenings of Robert Zemeckis’s The Polar Express (U) at 4pm and Frank Capra’s season-closing 1946 chestnut It’s A Wonderful Life (U) at 7pm. Box office: picturehouses.com/YorkXmas.

Ronan Keating: Playing at York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend next summer. Picture: Supplied by York Racecourse

Outdoor gig announcement of the week: Ronan Keating, York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend, July 26

IRISH singer, charity campaigner and breakfast show host Ronan Keating will perform after the Saturday race card as the first act to be confirmed for next summer’s Music Showcase Weekend on Knavesmire. A further act will be announced for the evening meeting on July 25.

Keating, 47, has three decades of hits to call on, from Boyzone boy band days to his solo career, from Love Me For A Reason and When You Say Nothing At All to Life Is A Rollercoaster and If Tomorrow Never Comes. Olly Murs is confirmed already for the new 2025 race day of June 28. For race day tickets, go to: yorkracecourse.co.uk.

Posted on

What’s On in Ryedale, York and beyond at the height of Christmas cheer. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 46, from Gazette & Herald

Helen Spencer’s Fagin in Pick Me Up Theatre’s production of Deborah McAndrew’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York

THE myriad delights of Christmas entertainment shine through Charles Hutchinson’s tips to vacate the festive fireside.

Dickens at Christmas, but not A Christmas Carol: Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until December 30. 7.30pm performances on December 18 to 21, 27, 28 and 30, plus 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees. No performances on December 23 to 26

HELEN Spencer takes the director’s reins and plays Fagin in York company Pick Me Up Theatre’s staging of Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s 1838 novel, described as a “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist”.

Not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!, it does feature musical arrangements by John Biddle to to complement Dickens’s tale of Oliver Twist being brought up in a workhouse, sold into an apprenticeship and recruited by Fagin’s band of pickpockets and thieves as he sinks into London’s grimy underworld in his search for a home, a family and love. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Northern Ballet in A Christmas Carol: Festive favourite makes its return to Leeds Grand Theatre

Christmas ballet of the week: Northern Ballet in A Christmas Carol, Leeds Grand Theatre, until January 4 2025

FIRST choreographed by Massimo Morricone and directed by Christopher Gable in 1992, Northern Ballet’s retired landmark production of A Christmas Carol is being revisited by director Federico Bonelli to the glee of longtime supporters and new audiences alike.

“Charles Dickens’s classic Victorian tale of redemption, with its message of human kindness and compassion, is something that resonates with us all, especially at this time of year,” says Bonelli. “Its iconic characters lend themselves so well to ballet”, complemented by Lez Brotherston’s colourful sets and costumes and Carl Davis’s festive score. Box office: 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.

The poster for HAC Around The Tree, the last show of 2024 at Helmsley Arts Centre

Festive celebration of the week: HAC Around The Tree, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow, 7.30pm

JOIN the Helmsley Arts Centre Singers, 1812 Theatre Company, 1812 Youth Theatre, Ryedale Writers and invited guests for an evening of theatre, music, poetry and prose around the Christmas tree. The bar will be serving mulled wine and mince pies to spark up the festive spirit in Helmsley Arts Centre’s last event of 2024. Box office:  01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Step Into Christmas: Festive hit after festive hit at York Barbican

Christmas songs galore: Step Into Christmas, York Barbican, tomorrow, 7.30pm

THIS feel-good Christmas show brings all the magic of the season to musical life with favourite festive songs, from All I Want For Christmas Is You, Last Christmas, Jingle Bell Rock, Stay Another Day and Let It Snow to White Christmas, Do They Know It’s Christmas, A Winter’s Tale and Merry Xmas Everybody. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Chapter House Choir: Choral music old and new in the Nave of York Minster

Carol concert of the week: Chapter House Choir, Carols By Candlelight, York Minster Nave, Friday, 7.30pm, doors 6.45pm

THE Chapter House Choir, directed by musical director Benjamin Morris, combine with the Chapter House Youth Choir, directed by Charlie Gower-Smith, for this ever-popular candle-lit concert, first performed in 1965 and now held in the Nave. In addition to traditional choral music old and new, festive music will be played by the chamber choir’s Handbell Ringers. For returned tickets only, check yorkminster.org/whats-on/event/carols-by-candlelight/or contact 01904 557256.

Gary Stewart: Presenting tributes to Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours and Paul Simon’s Graceland at York Barbican

Tribute gig of the week: Gary Stewart presents Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours and Paul Simon’s Graceland, York Barbican, Friday, 8pm

SCOTTISH-BORN Easingwold musician Gary Stewart presents Weetwood Mac and his Graceland band in a celebration of two career-defining works, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, from 1977, and Paul Simon’s Graceland, from 1986. “With combined sales of more than 50 million worldwide, both albums have stood the test of time and are cherished to this day,” says Stewart.

“Littered with gossip and controversy, Rumours and Graceland elevated their artists to new heights of popularity, inspiring the popular music canon for decades to come. This evening celebrates a time of artistic discovery and re-creates the excitement of the era, with these seminal albums lovingly interpreted by some of today’s finest touring musicians.” Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Mike Newall: Laidback storytelling at York Barbican

Comedy gig of the week: Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club Christmas Special, York Barbican, featuring Mike Newall, Friday, 8pm

MANCUNIAN Mike Newall, who appeared on Britain’s Got Talent, takes top billing on with his laidback storytelling, Swiss clock timing and tack-sharp turn of phrase. “He’s like your best, most humorous friend – only funnier,” says promoter and master of ceremonies Damion Larkin. Two support acts feature too. Box office: lolcomedyclubs.co.uk or yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Holly Cassidy with the puppet of Cracker in A Christmas Cracker at Friargate Theatre, York. Picture: Tom Jackson

Alternative Nativity play of the week: Riding Lights Theatre Company in A Christmas Cracker, Friargate Theatre, York, December 21 to 24, 11am and 1.30pm each day; 6pm, first three days; 4pm, last day

IN Paul Birch’s first play as artistic director of Riding Lights, world-famous storyteller Ebenezer Sneezer is lost, with snow in her wellies and faithful canine companion Cracker full of strange ideas about Christmas.

When caught taking shelter in Mrs McGinty’s barn, she allows them to stay on the condition that Ebenezer brings her glad tidings with her stories. If so, a hot supper awaits. If not, exit pronto. Ebenezer must triumph over not only Mrs McGinty’s frozen heart but also Deadly, a dastardly donkey ready to kick comfort and joy out of his stable. Box office: 01904 613000 or ticketsource.co.uk/ridinglights.

The Snowman: Two screenings with a live orchestra at York Barbican

Christmas film event of the week: The Snowman with Live Orchestra, York Barbican, Sunday, 1pm and 4pm

CARROT Productions presents two screenings of Dianne Jackson and Jimmy T Murakami’s animated 1982 film with the accompaniment of a live orchestra of professional musicians.

Raymond Briggs’s story of a young boy’s Christmas snowman magically coming to life for a journey to meet Santa Claus will be shown with The Snowman And The Snowdog at 1pm and The Bear, The Piano, The Dog And The Fiddle at 4pm. Each show includes a fun introduction to the orchestra and a visit from the Snowman himself. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Posted on

Helen Spencer takes on double challenge of playing gang boss Fagin and directing Oliver Twist for Pick Me Up Theatre

Helen Spencer’s Fagin in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York

IN a new twist, the opening of Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, is being delayed by a day through cast illness.

All being well, the curtain will now rise on the York company’s winter production on Wednesday night.

At the show’s helm both on stage and off is Helen “Bells” Spencer, who is not only playing Fagin in Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s 1838 novel, but also has taken over the director’s seat from producer and designer Robert Readman five weeks ago.

“Robert started rehearsals while I was still rehearsing Last Five Years [Black Sheep Theatre Productions and Wharfemede  Productions’ November musical at the NCEM], so I wasn’t available until that was over, and then, after a while, he asked me to step in, taking over his vision.

“I’ve worked with Robert a lot over the last couple of years, so I know how his mind works. When Pick Me Up had to pull the original dates for Young Frankenstein, I took over the reins with Andrew Isherwood to re-mount the production, but this is a slightly different situation from that one, as we’re still working to Robert’s ideas.

Playwright Deborah McAndrew

“We have a lot of mutual respect, so I can crack on, but it’s certainly a challenge that so many young people are in it. We have two ‘teams’: two Olivers, two Dodgers, two Roses, two Bets and ‘Children’s’ roles too; there are about 12 young people in all, ranging from eight to 17, so I’m working with a big age differences in the young cast.”

Not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!, McAndrew’s stage adaptation “on the surface looks like an easy show, but it’s definitely not,” says Helen. “It’s incredibly complex, and one of the things that makes it harder is that no-one knows the songs in the way they do with Oliver! – and there are no recordings, bar for one song.”

Devised at the Bolton Octagon and staged at Hull Truck Theatre in December 2018 as “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist!”, McAndrew’s adaptation is an ensemble piece. “There’s a Greek-style chorus commenting on what’s happening and actors taking on different roles, so it’s quite a different way of working to what most people are used to in musical theatre,” says Helen.

“It’s not like coming on, singing a solo and going off, so the logistics have been more complex, especially when you have no familiarity with the score. I feel like what we got was the script and the basic score and we’ve tried to create our version with the actors we have and the musicians we have.

“I’m really glad I haven’t seen it before as we just want to do a version that makes sense to us, with the core adult cast pulling together to create the ensemble, and some of the adversity we’ve experienced has worked to our advantage.”

Into the dark: James Willstrop’s Bill Sikes

Readman has designed the set with a bridge across the stage. “We’ve been lucky to get into the theatre early enough to work on the show with the set in place. It  will look fantastic, very atmospheric, and not what people might expect at all,” says Helen.

“The show will have Christmassy moments but it will have a darkness to it too to allow characters like James Willstrop’s Bill Sikes to be really horrible, which has been a real joy in rehearsals.

“When you think of actors like James, Jennie Wogan-Wells [who plays Nancy] and me, we’re very happy to do musical theatre, with James as the classic leading man, Jennie as the bright-eyed leading lady, and me doing comic parts, so I think people will be surprised to see us in these darker roles – though I used to do straight acting roles before musical theatre and I always enjoyed playing serious parts.”

Helen will play Fagin, who runs a band of pickpockets and thieves in London’s grimy Victorian underworld, where Oliver is the new recruit in his search for a home, family and love. “I suppose the most obvious thing to say is that I’m a female and the original was not,” she says.

“We had a discussion about whether I should play it as a woman, or a women playing a man, and we decided to lean into being a female taking on a male part, so all the references are still to ‘he’ and ‘him’. I’m playing him as an old man.

Tracey Rea’s Widow Corney and Nick Sephton’s Mr Bumble in a scene from Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist

“We decided to see how it would feel, and it does feel right. The way the script has been written, it is right to do it this way, rather than make it wholly appropriate to a woman. It’s so exciting to play a male character, which I would never do normally.

“To have the chance to do that, having a face-off and a bit of fisticuffs with Sikes, it’s so liberating, even though he’s an older, frailer man, because if you were an older woman you wouldn’t deliver it that way.”

Describing the music, Helen says: “What strikes me is that they’re not conventional songs; they are more conversational songs, no big numbers, but there are a couple of fun chorus bits. It’s very much about creating the atmosphere in the scenes, rather than through big numbers and big choreography.

“What we need is the actors’ expertise because the songs are difficult and the text is difficult, and that’s been a challenge for even our most experienced cast members, but everyone has risen to it.”

Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, December 18 to 30, 7.30pm, except December 23 to 26 and 29; Saturday and Sunday matinees, 2.30pm. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Who’s in Pick Me Up Theatre’s cast for Oliver Twist?

Frankie Whitford: Playing Oliver Twist in Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York

Oliver Twist – Frankie Whitford/Logan Willstrop; Fagin – Helen Spencer; Mr Bumble – Nick Sephton; Widow Corney – Tracey Rea; Mr Sowerberry and Mr Brownlow – Neil Foster; Mrs Sowerberry and Mrs Bedwin – Rhian Wells; Noah Claypole – Matthew Warry; Charlotte Sowerberry – Ruby Salter; Artful Dodger – Libby Greenhill/Reuben Baines; Nancy – Jennie Wogan-Wells; Bill Sikes – James Willstrop; Bet – Rosie Musk/Tempi Singhateh; Rose – Isla Whitford/Rosie Musk; Dr Grimwig – Rich Musk; Children – Lao Singhateh, Matilda Foster, Tempi Singhateh and Bea Wells.

Posted on

REVIEW: Pick Me Up Theatre in Nativity! The Musical, Grand Opera House, York, ends Saturday ****

Pick Me Up Theatre in an ensemble scene in Nativity! The Musical

WHY revive Nativity! The Musical only two years after Pick Me Up Theatre first staged Debbie Issit’s cheery, nicely cheesy family show at the Grand Opera House?

“It was such a success last time that I secured the rights the day after we closed in 2022! I just love the show so much,” reasons producer Robert Readman.

This time he hands the directorial reins to Lesley Lettin, from the Attitude Dance Club, who handles the choreography too (as she did in 2022 under the name Lesley Hill).

All but two of the adult cast are new, Alison Taylor serving another term as enervated St Bernadette’s Roman Catholic School head teacher Mrs Bevan and Jonny Holbek switching from flouncing  local theatre critic Patrick Burns to supercilious Gordon Shakespeare, the pretentious theatre director from posh rival school Oakmoor Prep.

Every one of the 48 children is a debutant too, divided into St Bernadette’s Team Maddens and Team Poppy and  Oakmoor Prep’s Team Shake and Team Speare. Adam Tomlinson is on musical director duty (Sam Johnson in 2022).

‘Tis the Nativity! season, the climax to the Michaelmas term, in Debbie Isitt and Nicky Ager’s musical adaptation of their hit 2009 British comedy, the first in a frantic franchise of four festive films.

Alex Hogg’s Mr Maddens . left, and Adam Sowter’s Mr Poppy in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Nativity! The Musical

Producer Readman sums up this comforting show’s appeal as a combination of “British humour, children being themselves, pathos and daftness, and a romantic, happy end”. Lettin promised “more lights and more sparkle” for 2024, and shining performances duly abound.

BAFTA Award-winning Isitt’s musical takes the form of a Nativity play within a play, framing her stage adaptation around her original story of flustered, by-the-book teacher Mr Maddens (Alex Hogg) and his unconventional, idiot savant new assistant Mr Poppy (Adam Sowter) struggling with unpredictable children, unruly animals and an underwhelmed head mistress, Taylor’s Mrs Bevan, when striving to stage St Bernadette’s musical version of the Nativity in Coventry.

As ever seeking to outdo the cutting-edge, arty, costly show mounted at the neighbouring Oakmoor Prep by his scornful, ex-childhood friend, Holbek’s smug Gordon Shakespeare, Maddens ups the ante by boasting that Jennifer Lore (Alexandra Mather), his still-missed ex-girlfriend, now working as a Hollywood producer, will be coming to the show with a view to turning it into a film.

Unfortunately, Maddens is lying: he and Jennifer don’t talk any more (and so might she be lying too?!). Doubly unfortunately, Mr Poppy, Mrs Bevan and the local media’s enthusiasm only makes matters worse.

Hogg’s hangdog Mr Maddens is weary, self-destructively driven, to the point of being harsh on the children, but beneath the cold front, he is caring too, and a romantic at heart, although a deflated one. In Holbek’s hands, beastly bête noir Gordon Shakespeare has become even more priggish, self-satisfied, preening and dangerously obsessive. You will love his loathsome air, and his clash of personality and theatre styles with Hogg’s more prosaic Mr Maddens is the stuff of theatrical civil wars across the land.

Lesley Lettin: Director and choreographer of Pick Me Up Theatre’s Nativity! The Musical

Adam Sowter, one half of York musical duo Fladam with Flo Poskitt, is the very definition of irrepressible as Mr Poppy with his Midlands accent, spiky hair and daft lad enthusiasm. His Mr Poppy snaps, crackles and pops, and he plays keyboards  flamboyantly to boot. 

You would not be surprised to see him turn up as the silly-billy cheeky-chappie in a pantomime, such is his bond with younger and older audience members alike.

Crucially too, the exuberance of Sowter’s Mr Poppy rubs off on St Bernadette’s  suddenly excited and motivated pupils, stirring their imaginations with his own inner child, while playing puppy to Cracker the dog (Branwell) too.

Just as the new Wicked film calls for an acknowledgement of the right to be different,  individual and expressive, so Mr Poppy’s positivity makes the case for why the arts, forever undervalued, should matter more in schools, championing  the unconventional among the conventional, as much among teachers as pupils. Taylor’s Mrs Bevan comes around to that way of thinking at the very last, just as retirement beckons.

Hot on the heels of appearing in York Stage’s Company earlier this month, Alexandra Mather is a spot-on choice to play Jennifer Lore, who foregoes love to pursue the Hollywood dream, only for that dream, spoiler alert, to be dashed by endless compromise in the one darker side to Isitt’s story.

Hollywood dream performance: Alexandra Mather’s Jennifer Lore

Possessor of an operatic mezzo-soprano voice often in demand from York Opera, Mather sings splendidly and dramatically in a show that revels in such film favourites as One Night One Moment and She’s The Brightest Star, bolstered by extra Christmas-spirited Isitt-Nicky Ager compositions  for the stage version.

Lettin’s direction is assured, strong on humour and pathos too, while her choreography is exemplified by the ensemble setpiece Sparkle And Shine, the dancing always full of character with plenty of scope for individual highlights as well as teamwork in Nativity play tradition.

The teams of children throw themselves wholeheartedly into Isitt’s theatrical fun and games, school tropes and the climactic bonkers Nativity play in the Coventry cathedral ruin Look out for the Stars (Eliza Clarke and Ellen Dickson) , Ollies (Taylor Carlyle and Hughie Clelland) and Angel Gabriels (Finlay Walter and Dan Tomlin, flying high above the stage).

Adam Tomlinson leads his band with customary flair, precision and Weetabix energy through George Dyer’s orchestrations, and although your reviewer may be biased, who could not delight in James Willstrop’s acerbic local paper theatre critic, Coventry’s answer to Frank Rich, one of a series of scene-stealing cameos from the former squash champ in an ultimately superior show to 2022.

Pick Me Up Theatre in Nativity! The Musical, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday.  Performances: 7.30pm nightly plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Note of disappointment: James Willstrop’s local theatre critic, Patrick Burns, puts poison pen to paper
Posted on

Pick Me Up Theatre to launch revival of Nativity! The Musical with 48 school children in cast at Grand Opera House. UPDATED with interviews 25/11/2024

Adam Sowter: Christmas jumper at the ready to play Mr Poppy in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Nativity! The Musical

PICK Me Up Theatre have revealed the full cast for Nativity! The Musical in the return of the York company’s hit show from two years ago at the Grand Opera House, York, from Friday.

Adam Sowter, of musical duo Fladam, will be effervescent assistant Mr Poppy alongside Alex Hogg as downtrodden teacher Mr Maddens, Alexandra Mather as Hollywood-bound Jennifer Lore, Jonny Holbek as dastardly, pretentious Mr Shakespeare and James Willstrop as the acid-tongued critic Patrick Burns and Hollywood producer Mr Taylor.

They will be joined by David Todd as Lord Mayor, Alison Taylor as headmistress Mrs Bevan, Victoria Lightfoot as TJ’s Mum and Branwell as Cracker the dog.

Jonny Holbek’s dastardly, supercilious Gordon Shakespeare. In 2022, he played Patrick Burns, the acerbic theatre critic

Forty-eight children chosen from across Yorkshire will play the students of rival schools St Bernadette’s and posh Oakmoor Preparatory School.

Adapted for the stage by Debbie Isitt, creator of the 2009 to 2018 film franchise (Nativity!, Nativity 2!, Nativity 3: Dude, Where’s The Donkey?! and Nativity Rocks!), the musical follows St Bernadette’s Roman Catholic Primary School, where exasperated teacher Mr Maddens and his buoyant new assistant, Mr Poppy, attempt to mount a musical version of the Nativity.

What could possibly go wrong when they promise it will be adapted into a Hollywood movie in order to outdo Oakmoor Prep?

Alex Hogg’s lovelorn primary school teacher Mr Maddens

The show features songs from the first film, such as Sparkle And Shine, Nazareth, One Night One Moment and She’s The Brightest Star. The book, music and lyrics are by Debbie Isitt and Nicky Ager; orchestrations are by George Dyer.

Pick Me Up’s revival is directed and choreographed by Attitude Dance Club owner Lesley Lettin, joined in the production team by musical director Adam Tomlinson and producer Robert Readman.

Here Lesley Lettin and Robert Readman discuss Nativity plays past and present, Christmas jumpers and tea towels with CharlesHutchPress

Lesley Lettin: Lover of the Christmas jumper

Why revive the show?

Lesley: After the huge success from the 2022 production and the sheer volume of talented kids available around York currently, we had to revisit Nativity again.  It’s a perfect way into Christmas and an alternative option to the traditional pantomime.”

Robert: “It was such a success last time that I secured the rights the day after we closed in 2022! I just love the show so much.”

What will be the major differences from last time?

Lesley: “A whole new cast with the exception of Alison Taylor’s Mrs Bevan and Jonny Holbek, More lights and more sparkle!

Alison Taylor: Returning to the role of St Bernadette’s head teacher Mrs Bevan

“Since knowing Adam Sowter from The Full Monty The Musical days back in 2009,  I knew he would be the perfect Mr Poppy. Alex Hogg, a seriously good performer who has been on the York stage a number of times, plays a super Mr Maddens, and watch out for celestial Jonny Holbek as Gordon Shakespeare.

“Our kids are all new this time round – both groups. Their performances are truly brilliant and trust me, the stages in York are well equipped with ridiculously brilliant talent in the years ahead! Look out for our Stars (Eliza Clarke and Ellen Dickson) , Ollies (Taylor Carlyle and Hughie Clelland) and Angel Gabriels (Finlay Walter and Dan Tomlin).”

Does Nativity! The Musical work better than the original film?

Lesley: “If you love the movie, you will love the musical and if you love the musical, you will love the movie! They both represent the brilliance of Debbie Isitt perfectly.”

James Willstrop: Waspish words as Patrick Burns, theatre critic for the Coventry Evening Telegraph

What do you recall of your own Nativity play experiences as a child?

Lesley: “Well, I played the donkey in my school Nativity so I couldn’t bring what I brought to the school stage to the Grand Opera House stage unfortunately. It would have been a more memorable experience had my school had our own Mr Poppy!”

Robert: “I never appeared in a Nativity play at school/church, but my brother Mark was a very nasty  King Herod in Bubwith Church in 1969!”

What is the best use for a tea towel:  the washing up or Nativity costume?

Lesley: “It’s got to be costume. Either the dishwasher or my husband will do the drying at home!”


Alexandra Mather’s Jennifer Lore: Drawn to the bright lights of Hollywood

Robert: “Neither, they make fantastic puppets. See artist Sarah Young (who I trained with in Brighton in the 1980s) and her tea towel puppet kits online.”

Do you like Christmas jumpers? If so, why?  If not, why not?

Lesley: “Yes, they are the best! Christmas is my favourite time of the year and the beauty of doing this show early is I don’t have to wait till December for the countdown to start – and I’m sure everyone leaving the theatre after Nativity! will be getting their trees up and putting their jumpers on too!”

Robert: “I’ve only worn one twice – both at the Grand Opera House for Nativity! I get far too warm in any jumper.”

Adam Tomlinson: Musical director for Nativity! The Musical

What would be your Christmas message to the world?

Lesley:  “Christmas is a gentle reminder that love, generosity and hope have the power to sparkle and shine in the darkest of days.” 

Robert: “Relax, do one act of kindness to a stranger, don’t stress, answer the door to carollers. I used to hide as a child/teenager/now…”

Pick Me Up Theatre in Nativity! The Musical, Grand Opera House, York, November 22 to 30. Performances: 7.30pm nightly, except November 25; 2.30pm, November 23, 24 and 30. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Posted on

More Things To Do in York & beyond when an urbane spaceman comes travelling. Hutch’s List No 47, from The York Press

Shed Seven: Heading out on their 30th anniversary lap of honour. Picture: Barnaby Fairley

AS Shed Seven bring their 30th anniversary celebrations to a climax, Charles Hutchinson says “Let’s go” for a week of theatre, comedy, Christmas, film and musical highlights.   

On the road again: Shed Seven, 30th Anniversary Tour, Hull City Hall, November 19 and Leeds O2 Academy, November 30

ON the back of topping the album charts for a second time in 2024 with Liquid Gold (after a Matter Of Time in January), York indie champs Shed Seven head out on their 30th Anniversary Tour.

The 23-date itinerary opened at Sheffield Octagon on Thursday night, with further Yorkshire gigs to follow at Victoria Theatre, Halifax, on November 18, Hull City Hall on November 19 and Leeds O2 Academy on November 30. Tickets update: the best advice is to head to shedseven.com to check for late availability.

Paddy Young: Headlining the Rye Humour bill at Helmsley Arts Centre. Picture: Lucas Smith

Variety night of the week: Rye Humour, Comedy vs Climate Change, Helmsley Arts Centre, tonight, 7.30pm

RYE Humour’s variety bill of up-and-coming comics will be headlined by Chortle Best Newcomer winner Paddy Young, a stand-up with Scarborough roots. The 2023 BBC New Comedy Awards finalist and Edinburgh Comedy Awards Best Newcomer nominee has attracted 100 million views online for his sketches with Ed Night. His comedy special, filmed by American record label 800 Pound Gorilla Records, will be released shortly. 

This gig has been developed in collaboration with the Ryevitalise Landscape Partnership scheme, as part of a project that uses humour to explore environmental issues based around North Yorkshire’s rivers. Any questions about the evening, or accessibility, will be answered at events@comedyvsclimatechange.org.uk. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Lucy Beaumont: Off-beat stories, unusual anecdotes and bizarre journeys through modern-day womanhood at Grand Opera House, York

Hullarious gig of the week: Lucy Beaumont Live, Grand Opera House, York, tonight, 8pm

HULL humorist, BAFTA nominee and Taskmaster star Lucy Beaumont is determined to let loose and let slip on her rollercoaster world with off-beat stories, unusual anecdotes and bizarre journeys through modern-day womanhood.

From the co-host of the chart-topping podcast Perfect Brains with Sam Campbell and creator of Meet The Richardsons comes a look at life through the Lucy lens. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

York Christmas Market: Stalls galore

York Christmas Market, Parliament Street and St Sampson’s Square, York, until December 22, 10am to 7pm; Yorkshire’s Winter Wonderland, York Designer Outlet, St Nicholas Avenue, York, until January 5, from 10am

YORK Christmas Market lines Parliament Street and St Sampson’s Square with 75 chalets selling crafts, artisan products and seasonal food and drink. Four fifths of the traders come from Yorkshire, giving a showcase to local businesses. Look out for the vintage carousel in King’s Square too.

Yorkshire’s Winter Wonderland’s magical festivities at the York Designer Outlet combine an outdoor ice rink and funfair with Santa’s Grotto and Alpine café The Chalet.

Disney’s Frozen: Screening in aid of the Joseph Rowntree Theatre

Film event of the week: Fundraising Films, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Frozen (PG), tomorrow, 2.30pm; Love Actually, tomorrow, 7.30pm

THIS weekend’s fundraiser for the Joseph Rowntree Theatre opens with a special chance for all the family to see Elsa, Anna, Sven, Olaf et al in  Disney’s Frozen adventure in Arendelle.

In the evening, Christmas romance is in the air in Love Actually (15), the timeless Richard Curtis comedy stuffed with interlocking love stories. Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, Colin Firth and Liam Neeson lead the stellar cast. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk

Urbane spaceman: Garrett Millerick at Theatre@41, Monkgate

Angriest gig of the week: Garrett Millerick Needs More Space, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, tomorrow, 8pm

IN Garrett Millerick Needs More Space, comedy’s “angriest optimist” returns for an honest and mostly historically accurate exploration of space travel as he examines his totally insignificant place in the universe and how little we actually know about anything.

Blending personal experiences with social commentary, while avoiding political partisanship in his hour-long show, Millerick – creator and star of the BBC sitcom series Do Gooders – looks to the stars to find solutions to our earthy complications. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Ivo Graham: Hoping to avoid banana skins at York Theatre Royal

Up to the task: Ivo Graham: Grand Design, York Theatre Royal, November 20, 7.30pm

WHAT (yoghurt and) banana skins await old Etonian and Oxford grad Ivo Graham next? No ball games, no blind alleys, no backstage printers this time, but one of the best stand-ups of his generation out to prove he’s “not just Taskmaster’s yardstick for failure”. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Adam Sowter: Playing Mr Poppy in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Nativity! The Musical at the Grand Opera House, York

Musical of the week: Pick Me Up Theatre in Nativity! The Musical, Grand Opera House, York, November 22 to 30, 7.30pm nightly, except November 25; 2.30pm, November 23, 24 and 30

PICK Me Up Theatre’s Nativity! The Musical returns to York after a smash-hit run two years ago, this time with director and choreographer Lesley Lettin’s cast featuring 48 children hand-picked from all over Yorkshire to play students from rival schools.

Adapted for the stage by Debbie Isitt from her films, the show follows St Bernadette’s Primary School teacher Mr Maddens (Alex Hogg) and his assistant, Mr Poppy(Adam Sowter) as they strive to mount a musical version of the Nativity, promising it will be adapted into a Hollywood movie in order to outdo rival school Oakmoor Prep. Look out for Alexandra Mather as Jennifer, Jonny Holbek as Mr Shakespeare, James Willstrop as the acid tongued Critic and Cracker the dog as Branwell. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Posted on

Finn East heads back to school to play Dewey Finn in York Stage’s School Of Rock

Finn East’s Dewey Finn and Eady Mensah’s Tomika rehearsing for York Stage’s School Of Rock: The Next Generation

AS the new school term begins, what perfect timing for York Stage to open School Of Rock: The Next Generation at the Grand Opera House, York, today.

“It really is the perfect show to start September,” says director of operations Kevin Coundon. “There will be no back-to-school blues for those going to the School of Rock.”

Produced and directed by Nik Briggs, the riotous musical is based on the 2003 film, re-booted with a book by Julian Fellowes, lyrics by Glenn Slater and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Finn East, an actor noted as much for his comic craft as his musical chops, takes “the Jack Black role” of Dewey Finn, a failed rock musician desperate for money, who chances his arm by faking his credentials to be a substitute teacher at a stuffy American prep school.

Jettisoning Math(s) in favour of propelling his students to become the most awesome rock band ever, will he be found out by the parents and headmistress, leaving Dewey to face the music?

“I’d say it’s the biggest role I’ve played, popularity wise, though the biggest stage part I’ve played was Bill Snibson, the cheeky Cockney geezer, in Me And My Girl for Pick Me Up Theatre [Grand Opera House, May 2019],” says Finn.

Finn East (Dewey Finn) and Megan Waite (Principal Rosalie Mullins) in rehearsal for School Of Rock: The Next Generation

“But Dewey is definitely a challenging part for me that’s more well known and draws more attention. I’ve had lots of compliments about getting it, and I’m pleased that everyone is on my side for it.

“There isn’t too much pressure that goes with it, but there is the pressure, I guess, that people see me as a ‘bit of a Jack Black’, but I’m not too worried about doing my own thing, though I naturally fall into his style.”

Finn did not go to last November’s York premiere of School Of Rock by York Light Youth, but he has seen the Paramount film. “But not for a while, though I have it in my DVD collection. That one is in the ‘Director’ section under Richard Linklater as I’m quite the film buff!

“When I studied musical theatre at York College, we went to the West End musical at the Gillian Lynne Theatre – and I loved it!

“I don’t know anyone who’d be as brave as Dewey to do what effectively is identity fraud, but there is a lot in the show’s message that school can bring a lot more out of you by letting you grow instead of squeezing children into a machine.”

Looking back to his schooldays at Warter, near Pocklington, Finn says: “I was very academic to begin with but social at the same time, even at primary school. I was pretty much the school clown: a bit of a comedian, but I always focused on my work too.”

For those about to rock: York Stage’s young musicians in School Of Rock: The Next Generation

He first picked up a guitar – Dewey Finn’s instrument – at the age of five. “I played fingerstyle blues stuff, but I didn’t practise loads, though I did go to lessons, but then I really picked it up in my teens, when I started hanging out with my friend Will Dreyfus, playing with him at open-mic nights at Plonkers and Sotano,” says Finn.

“My guitar playing is all right. I play with a plectrum now. I’m more a chords player, when I’m singing. I’ve never been much of a guitar soloist, which you might find out at the end of Act Two!

“It’s very different playing guitar in this show, as I’ve never really had a band before. Now it’s my band with a bunch of kids, and that’s different from playing in pubs – and I’m also performing in character.”

Joining Finn’s Dewey in the band will be Charlie Jewison’s guitarist Zack, Daniel Tomlin’s keyboard player Lawrence, Matilda Park’s bassist Katie and Zach Denison’s drummer Freddie.

“We didn’t play together until maybe a month into rehearsals and then had quite a few pure band rehearsals,” says Finn, who is full of admiration for his young cohorts. “Matilda only picked up the bass after rehearsals began, having previously played other string instruments, getting tuition from Georgia Chapman.

“The guitarist, Charlie, from Leeds, already has his own band. School Of Rock is the first time he’s done a show like this, but he’s used to playing guitar live on stage.

Guitar face-off: James Robert Ball (Ned Schneebly) and Finn East (Dewey Finn) duelling in School Of Rock rehearsals

“Our musical director Shack [Stephen Hackshaw] had already done School Of Rock at his school, and when we needed a drummer, he asked the parents of the boy who’d played drums in that show, Zach, if he could do our show and they said ‘yes’. He’s really talented.

“It’s quite a challenge, with ‘real’ school just started again and having to travel over here to rehearse and perform, but you can really tell Charlie and Zach just love playing their instruments.”

Both Matilda and keyboardist Dan Tomlin were in York Stage’s April production of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, as was Finn. “Even during the rehearsals, Dan was always on the piano, getting kids to sing with him,” he says. “He’s so much fun, and he loves getting into character too.”

York Stage is giving these children, along with the young ensemble, the chance to express themselves artistically, much to Finn’s delight. “I would say the kids that Dewey teaches are so talented at music and yet that’s brushed aside as a hobby because parents want them to be accountants or in a dull, high-paid job,” he says.

“At first the kids don’t understand why they’d want to play music when there are ‘more important’ things to do, but they grow to love it, to be hooked on it.”

The poster for Twilight Robbery, in which Finn East appeared in a double act with Josh Benson

Finn knows that feeling. “The first theatre show I did was Oliver!, playing one of Fagin’s gang, for York Light Opera Company, and I loved being on stage,” he says.

He acquired an agent at the age of 18 “for a while” after he performed in Joseph McNiece’s heist musical comedy Twilight Robbery for the Scaena Theatre Company and The Boff Ensemble at The Barn Theatre, Oxted, in Surrey in February 2018.

“I did that production after I’d done The Wizard Of Oz with Pick Me Up Theatre, when Joe [McNiece] played The Tin Man. He’d just finished a course in playwriting and directing and he’d written Twilight Robbery with Matthew Spalding, who composed the music.

“He asked me to do the show – he’s from Surrey, so that’s why we did it there – and I played a double act with [York actor] Josh Benson, my very good friend, which was great fun.”

Roll on to 2024, as Finn contemplates his future. “I’m still thinking about training to get some ‘proper credentials’,” he says. “As much as I love theatre, film interests me the most, though you don’t get to experience that immediate audience reaction you do in theatres. Film is what I love watching and what I’d love to be involved in.”

York Stage presents School Of Rock: The Next Generation, Grand Opera House, York, September 13 to 21; Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm; Saturdays, 2.30pm; Sunday, 4pm. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Copyright of The Press, York

Who’s in the York Stage cast and production team for School Of Rock?

York Stage cast members in rehearsal for School Of Rock: The Next Generation

Cast:

Dewey Finn – Finn East
Principal Rosalie Mullins – Megan Waite
Ned Schneebly – James Robert Ball
Patti DiMarco – Amy Barrett

The adult company is completed by Florence Poskitt, Matthew Clarke, Stuart Hutchinson, Jess Burgess, Ashley Ginter, Julie Fisher, Cyanne Unamba Oparah, Phil Charles Green, Declan Childs, Oliver Lawery, Theo Ryder, Kalina O’Brien and Evie Latham.

Dewey’s Band, performing live every show:


Zack (guitarist) – Charlie Jewison
Lawrence (keys) – Daniel Tomlin
Katie (bass) – Matilda Park
Freddie (drums) – Zach Denison

Plus two teams of ten students.

Production team:

Director/Producer – Nik Briggs
Musical director – Stephen Hackshaw
Choreographer – Danielle Mullan-Hill

Posted on

REVIEW: Pick Me Up Theatre in Sunday In The Park With George, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until Saturday ****

Adam Price’s George and Natalie Walker’s Dot in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Sunday In The Park With George. Picture: Kevin Greenhill

FRENCH post-Impressionist painter Georges Seurat obsessed over every little last detail, making a point of everything.

The same applies to Robert Readman’s production of one of his favourite musical works, Stephen Sondheim and playwright-director James Lapine’s Sunday In The Park With George, a 1984 collaboration inspired by Seurat’s pointillist painting, Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte.

Two years in the making, that 1884-1886 work forms the wraparound artwork for Pick Me Up Theatre’s programme. Unfold it, and you find Sondheim’s lyrics to Finishing The Hat, the most significant song in capturing the artistic temperament and drive of Seurat and Sondheim alike.

Director-designer Readman has given Sunday In The Park With George a traverse setting within the black-box John Cooper Studio. At either end is a blank canvas for projections of such Seurat works as 1884’s Bathers At Asnières, an oil painting of a suburban, placid Parisian riverside on a monumental scale soon to be matched by Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of Grand Jatte.

Libby Greenhill’s Louise, left, Sanna Jeppsson’s Yvonne and Natalie Walker’s Dot in Sunday In The Park With George. Picture: Kevin Greenhill

Work-in-progress drawings by Kevin Greenhill (also the production’s photographer) depict Seurat’s sketches and character studies as Adam Price’s George (Seurat) is consumed by his craft of painting: a craft that brought him no monetary reward in a life curtailed by a fatal illness at 31, not one painting having sold before his death.

This is an exquisite directorial touch by Readman, happily and visibly restored to full throttle after “unforeseen circumstances” forced him to call off last autumn’s Halloween double bill of Young Frankenstein and The Worst Witch at the Grand Opera House.

In between the two canvas bookends runs another strip of blank canvas, a walkway or catwalk to be peopled by all the figures in Seurat’s painting coming to life in the imagination of Lapine and Sondheim (much like Johannes Vermeer’s Girl With A Pearl Earring doing likewise in Tracy Chevalier’s historical fiction novel), as if the writers had eavesdropped on conversations in the park.

Host Readman has his audience seated to either side of the stage at circular tables topped with paper “tablecloths” decorated with dots. We feel like we are in the park too.

Adam Price’s George and Natalie Walker’s Marie in the American Act Two of Pick Me Up Theatre’s Sunday In The Park With George. Picture: Kevin Greenhill

Dots are everywhere. Even Seurat’s long-suffering mistress/lover/muse is called Dot, a made-up name, it would seem, but typical of the wit at work in this fictionalised account of the months leading up to the completion of Seurat’s painting.

In a canny piece of casting, Readman has brought together real-life husband and wife Adam Price and Natalie Walker as his leads. They have performed as a duo and sang together in Pick Me Up’s Dad’s Army but this is the first time they have taken roles together in a musical, and their natural chemistry shines through their performance as the damaged central couple.

Dot wants Seurat to express his love, especially once she is pregnant, but he is drawn only to the canvas, to shining his light on Parisian life, putting her only in the spotlight in the painting.

They sing beautifully, Walker especially in the ballads, Price in expressing his artistic modus operandi, his dot-dot-dot technique being matched at one point by the staccato notes emanating from musical director Matthew Peter Clare’s keyboard.

Pick Me Up Theatre’s cast representing figures in Seurat’s pointillist painting Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte. Picture: Kevin Greenhill

As Seurat alienates the French bourgeoisie, snubs his fellow artists and neglects his lover, we meet all manner of Parisian folk in the park: an Old lady (Beryl Nairn), who turns out to be his oft-exasperated mother; his cigar-smoking agent Jules (James Willstrop), who behind his back shows no enthusiasm for his work; Yvonne (Sanna Jeppsson), who is even more snobbishly dismissive; and Craig Kirby and Rhian Wells’s befuddled American couple, Mr and Mrs.

Look out too for Mark Simmonds’s haughty, Germanic Franz; Ryan Richardson’s surly Boatman; Neil Foster’s self-righteous Soldier and Alexandra Mather (a late replacement for the indisposed Emma Louise Dickinson) and Nicola Holliday as a pair of anything but angelic Celestes. Tracey Rea’s Frieda, Michael Tattersall’s Louis, Libby Greenhill’s Louise and Logan Willstrop’s Boy cut a dash too.

After the interval, the musical takes a turn for the more personal for Sondheim in a parallel modern story where Price’s Seurat becomes George, a ‘chromolume’ American artist as underappreciated and fractious as Seurat was in his lifetime as Sondheim “explores the reverberations of Seurat’s actions over the next 100 years”.

At the time, Sondheim was increasingly dischuffed by the reaction to his musicals, just as Woody Allen had a fan say “I especially like your early, funny ones” to Allen’s character, film director Sandy Bates, in 1980’s Stardust Memories when weary of critics giving that verdict on his later works.

Nicola Holliday’s Celeste and Neil Foster’s Soldier. Picture: Kevin Greenhill

This is a somewhat overwrought piece of point-scoring by Sondheim amid all the pointillism of Seurat, but archly amusing all the same, adding to the enjoyment of a superb performance by leads and supporting players alike, responding to Readman’s relish for the musical.

Will Nicholson and Adam Coggin’s lighting and sound is top notch, and Matthew Peter Clare’s palpably energetic musical direction brings out the best in his seven-piece band.

Readman’s design skills are always a strong suit, but particularly so here, full of playfulness and artistry, such as in the cut-outs of dogs from Seurat’s painting, later matched by black-and-white full-size cut-outs of George part two in his suit, tie and pumps in the American gallery.

Do please spend Wednesday, Thursday, Friday or Saturday in the park with George. You’d be dotty to miss out.

Pick Me Up Theatre in Sunday In The Park With George, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York; 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Georges Seurat’s Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte in the Pick Me Up Theatre show poster