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Barron night’s scathing comedy to scald Selby as Sara keeps her Enemies Closer

Sara Barron: Selby date. Picture: Karla Gowlitt

CAUSTIC American comedian Sara Barron follows up her Theatre@41, Monkgate, gig in York with a prompt return to North Yorkshire to keep her Enemies Closer at Selby Town Hall on Friday.

In her no-holds barred 8pm gig, blisteringly cynical Barron examines kindness, meanness, ex-boyfriends, current husbands, all four of her remaining friends and two of her 12 enemies.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, she shaped her scathing brand of comedy on the New York circuit and is now playing her debut British tour on the back of Edinburgh Fringe performances since 2018 and television turns on Live At The Apollo, 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Would I Lie To You? and Frankie Boyle’s New World Order.

Barron has appeared on Hypothetical, Richard Osman’s House Of Games, Alan Davies’s As Yet Untitled, Comedy Central’s Roast Battle and Hello, America too, while her radio credits include The News Quiz, The Now Show and Woman’s Hour on BBC Radio 4. As a writer, she has published two essay collections and been featured in Vanity Fair and on This American Life.

Selby Town Council arts officer Chris Jones says: “Sara is one of the hottest prospects and sharpest writers on the circuit right now. Her deliciously dark material pulls no punches and she looks set to reach the highest echelons of the comedy world. This could well be another ‘I saw them here first’ moment at Selby Town Hall.”

Tickets for Sara Barron: Enemies Closer are on sale at £14 on 01757 708449 and at selbytownhall.co.uk or £16 on the door from 7.30pm.

Barron has posted a trailer, by the way, such is her unbridled excitement at the prospect of visiting Selby for the first time. Take a look at: youtube.com/watch?v=AutocIpagNo

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Selby Town Hall plays host to first night of Paines Plough’s premiere of Sessions

Joseph Black in the role of Tunde in Paines Plough’s premiere of Ifeyinwa Frederick’s Sessions

LIVE theatre returns to Selby Town Hall for the first time since 2019 with the September 29 visit of Paines Plough.

Described by the Daily Telegraph as “the de facto national theatre of new writing”, the London company will be presenting Sessions, the second play by one of Britain’s most hotly tipped young writers, Ifeyinwa Frederick, on the first date of its nationwide tour co-produced with Soho Theatre.

Tunde’s 30th birthday is fast approaching, prompting him to start therapy as he has been unable to head to the gym for weeks and a recent one-night stand ended in tears – his.

A raw, funny and bittersweet deep-dive into the complexities of masculinity, depression and therapy, Sessions interrogates the challenge of opening up and accepting our own vulnerabilities.

Playwright Ifeyinwa Frederick is a fervent believer in the power of storytelling and human connection, a combination that fuels her work as both a writer and entrepreneur. Her debut play, The Hoes, was shortlisted for the Tony Craze Award, Verity Bargate Award and Character 7 Award.

Alongside her theatre work, Ifeyinwa is a restaurateur, co-founding the world’s first Nigerian tapas restaurant, for which she won a Young British Foodie Award and was included on Forbes’ list of 100 Female Founders in Europe.

On the rise: Playwright and restaurateur Ifeyinwa Frederick

“Paines Plough are one of Britain’s finest creative institutions” says Selby Town Council arts officer Chris Jones. “For more than 40 years they have consistently produced exceptional quality, envelope-pushing theatre from some of the UK’s most gifted writers, such as Mike Bartlett, James Graham and Kae Tempest.

“We’ve been working with the company over the past three years as part of a funded project to improve small-scale theatre touring in England, to help more companies make the leap to touring, to bring more high quality work to small venues and to broaden audiences with new and diverse work.

“So I’m thrilled that Paines Plough are returning to Selby Town Hall with Ifeyinwa Frederick’s latest play, giving audiences the chance to see some of the best new writing in the country right here in Selby.”

Joseph Black takes the role of Tunde under the direction of Philip Morris, with design by Anna Reid, lighting by Simisola Majekodunmi, sound and composition by Asaf Zohar and movement by Yassmin V Foster.

Tickets for Wednesday’s 8pm performance cost £13 on 01757 708449 or at selbytownhall.co.uk or £15 on the door.

“The play covers some challenging subject matter, and I know it will be brilliant, because everything Paines Plough do is,” concludes Chris.