LAIL Arad first sang a Joni Mitchell song in public at her London school concert at the age of 11. Joni’s biggest British hit, Big Yellow Taxi, was her choice, and it would be her first pick at The Citadel too.
Singer-songwriter Lail first presented The Songs of Joni Mitchell to mark her groundbreaking Canadian counterpart’s 80th birthday, since when she and Manchester-based American singer-songwriter Jesca Hoop have organised two tours and now a summer of special shows and festival appearances.
They have been joined by the varied likes of This Is The Kit’s Kate Stables, cult singer-songwriter Vashti Bunyan, Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, Irish singer and composer Lisa Hannigan, David Bowie band member (1995 to 2004) Gail Ann Dorsey, Scottish folk and dream-pop singer-songwriter Rachel Sermanni, BRIT Award winner Emile Sande and American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Sam Amidon.
The latest addition is former Goat Goal band member and folk singer Naima Bock, whose York appearance was only her second with Lail and Jesca, having met them for the first time to rehearse only the day before her debut.
Rather more settled in the ranks is regular pianist Richard Sears, but he was not the only musician to be seated at last Friday’s concert, played to a full house of Mitchell devotees of differing ages, young and much older, split evenly between women and men.
For each solo number, followed by a song with Richard accompanying her on the keys, Naima brought on a chair, then played her guitar cross-legged in bright socks and afterwards returned the chair to from whence it had come, out of view beyond the door to the side.
“I like sitting down,” she later explained. Certainly it added to her looking and sounding very much at home in this nascent association with “Songs Of”, deeper of voice than Lail and Jesca, when performing Tin Angel and A Case of You in Set One and early Mitchell composition Urge For Going and Shades Of Scarlett Conquering, her best number, in Set Two.
Jesca Hoop: Lail Arad’s collaborator and co-organiser for The Songs of Joni Mitchell shows. The York concert was promoted by Joe Coates and The Crescent
The bright white-walled Citadel was looking spick and span after the £300,000 restoration of its meeting spaces and café, all the more so in the early evening daylight. Built as a place of worship and mission centre for the Salvation Army, and still home to the York City Church, the building’s air or reverence lent itself to the tone of the performance.
Always closer to reverent, never irreverent, but with interpretation rather than impersonation at its root, the approach was typified by Lail slowing down Big Yellow Taxi to a stately glide, eschewing Joni’s trademark laugh at the climax too.
Lail incidentally was wearing a shirt from Saskatchewan, in honour of Joni’s formative years there (playing her first paid gig at the Louis Riel Coffee House in Saskatoon). “I bought it on Vinted,” our host admitted, before performing For Free (which presumably the shirt wasn’t).
Introduced by Lail, Jesca had opened Set One with Morning Morgantown, whose melody had ‘stuck in her head for 38 years’ and was newly released to electric guitar accompaniment. Joined by Richard, Jesca’s take on Lessons In Survival, from her favourite Joni record, 1972’s For The Roses, located that survival instinct.
Richard had one solo number, Little Green, from 1971’s Blue, and by now the concert lighting was taking greater effect, whether bathing the walls in green, blue, pink, red or taxi- yellow.
Your reviewer most enjoyed the climax to each half when Lail, Jesca and Naima (now standing) united in harmony, but switching positions, with Richard to their side, first for Night In The City. “How does the first line go?” said a stage-whispering Jesca, promptly answering her own question by breaking into Rainy Night House.
Lail told a story of mistakenly thinking Joni was singing “’A little money riding on the make-beliefs” on Raised On Robbery, until she married a Canadian who put her straight about the “Maple Leafs”, as Set One closed on a surge of Richard’s boogie-woogie piano.
Naima Bock: Making only her second Songs of Joni Mitchell concert appearance in York. Picture: El Hardwick, for Sub Pop Records
The format remained the same in Set Two, opening with Lail in a cappella mode. “This song is from 1969 but it could have been written today,” she said, introducing the anti-war sentiments of The Fiddle And The Drum, her solo highlight.
Jesca picked Night Ride Home and California, either side of Naima’s Set Two contributions. “I know about this next song,” she said, in a nod to her roots in Santa Rosa, in rural northern California, and her years in Los Angeles. “I’m just learning to strum, it’s true,” she chided herself after “fluffing” (in her words) a guitar line. “Thank you, that’s very generous,” came her response to the audience clapping as appreciatively as ever.
Jesca went on to highlight how Joni had been the first female singer-songwriter to divulge details of family, friends and loved ones in her lyrics. “Now we have permission to spill out our experiences, when previously it wasn’t normal.” Step forward Charlie XCX, Self Esteem, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish et al.
Jesca’s rendition of Amelia ensued and then it was time for the grand finale, all four together again for Joni’s Woodstock Festival anthem, Woodstock, the song she did not perform at the August 1969 gathering on account of her manager, David Geffen, fearing the heavy traffic would prevent her arrival at the ABC Television Center in New York to perform it on The Dick Cavett Show. Ironically, David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Jefferson Airplane all turned up straight from the festival to join her.
That song “defined not only the festival but the entire generation”, enthused Lail as she took lead vocals, the stage by now resplendent in golden light. She fronted Carey too, where Naima and Jesca’s harmonising was at its most sublime.
Aptly for Both Sides Now, both sides, audience and performers alike, were invited to sing together. All three protagonists took a lead vocal, one each for “I really don’t know clouds at all/love at all/life at all”.
Joni really does know life at all, of course, as Lail, Jesca and Naima’s performances of The Songs of Joni Mitchell testified. Definitely not a “tribute show”, instead they paid her the highest compliment.
Stanley Chow’s poster illustration for The Songs of Joni Mitchell tour with Naima Bock, including The Citadel, York, on July 31
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.
Lail Arad: Singer, songwriter and Joni Mitchell “super-fan” since childhood
THE Songs of Joni Mitchell “celebrates one of the greatest songwriters of all time, through the unique voices of the artists she continues to inspire”.
Step forward London-born singer and writer Lail Arad and California-raised, Manchester-based singer-songwriter Jesca Hoop, who will be joined at The Citadel, in Gillygate, York tomorrow (FRIDAY) by regular pianist Richard Sears and a special guest, former Goat Goal band member and folk singer Naima Bock, in only her second performance with Arad and Hoop.
Arad and Hoop will perform intimate interpretations of their favourite Joni Mitchell songs as the guest list adds Bock and Kay to such past participants as This Is The Kit’s Kate Stables, cult singer-songwriter Vashti Bunyan, Poet Laureate Simon Armitage at Shepherd’s Bush, Irish singer and composer Lisa Hannigan in Dublin, David Bowie band member (1995 to 2004) Gail Ann Dorsey in Paris, Scottish folk and dream-pop singer-songwriter Rachel Sermanni, BRIT Award winner Emile Sande and American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Sam Amidon.
“It started as an idea to mark Joni’s 80th birthday with what was going to be a one-off celebration at the Roundhouse [on April 18] in 2024,” recalls curator Lail Arad. “Then I was asked to take it on tour. Jesca [Hoop] was one of the first musicians I approached, and now we work together to take it on tour.”
Jesca, by the way, already had presented Legend: The Joni Mitchell Story, her award-winning six-part BBC Radio 4 documentary and podcast about Joni’s life, in November 2023.
Two sold-out tours are now being followed in 2026 by a series of “very special shows” and festival apperances. “When you start, you’re not thinking you’re going to take it further, but it’s rolled on organically, and we’re still surprised but we shouldn’t be because what could go wrong with Joni Mitchell’s songs?” says Lail.
Jesca Hoop: The Songs of Joni Mitchell co-organiser and presenter of Legend: The Joni Mitchell Story documentary and podcast
“Jesca and I are both super-fans. I’m one of many in my generation [Lail is 42] who were brought up on Joni’s music, as my parents were fans, and I can’t remember ever not being surrounded by her songs. Then I reclaimed her for myself from the age of 11. That’s when I performed one of her songs for the first time – it was Big Yellow Taxi – at my school in London.”
Lail would go on to pick Mitchell’s highest-charting UK single – number 11 in August 1970 – for her lead vocal on 2025’s The Songs of Joni Mitchell Vol. 1 EP, where Hoop took the lead on Morning Morgantown, Kate Stables did so on A Case Of You and the trio united in harmony for Raised On Robbery. “It was very interesting to go back to Big Yellow Taxi after 30 years because I do it very differently now,” she says.
“Whether you are 11 or 21, or 42 now, the fact that Joni did something so new, writing such personal songs, giving so much of herself, even though that is common now, draws you to her songs. She opened up, she was giving, and there was something that was so vulnerable about her songwriting, but it’s also full of humour and irony.
“It’s such exceptional writing, and that’s why every generation has claimed her. Joni is an A-plus all-rounder, outstanding as a songwriter, singer, arranger and instrumentalist – she’s a fantastic pianist as well as guitarist.
“If anyone needs a reminder of how new she was [in the Sixties and Seventies], male songwriters around her were very worried for her about how open she was, but in turning herself outwards, that resonated with other people, though people around her were shocked, maybe jealous too.”
Lail recalls the footage from Martin Scorsese’s documentary of Joni performing an in-progress version of Coyote at Gordon Lightfoot;s house, with Bob Dylan and The Byrds’ Roger McGuinn in the audience, during Dylan’s 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue tour, inspired by her whirlwind affair with playwright Sam Shepard.
The poster for The Songs Of Joni Mitchell, Friday’s concert at The Citadel, York
“You can see in that moment how everyone’s jaw was dropping because she’s just so good, and it’s said that Dylan wrote Blood On The Tracks [his 1975 marital break-up album] after hearing Joni’s Blue.”
Lail has been delighted by the ever-expanding list of guest performers at the Songs of Joni Mitchell concerts. “People don’t want to say ‘No’ to the opportunity, thinking ‘Can I take on this daunting challenge?’, but then saying ‘Yes’,” she says.
“No-one needs to hear Joni done in her way, as that can’t be bettered, but the idea is to strip back songs to do their own rendition, to bring something new to it, and because the songwriting is so good, it’s a real joy to see how the songs work when they’re broken down.
“We have a fantastic pianist in Richard Sears, rather than a house band as we worried that would put the artist in the position of being like a frontman. In my case, my guitar playing is limited, compared to Joni’s, but sometimes that’s a plus because it’s nice to figure out how to present a song yourself.”
Some Joni songs have been retained ever since the Roundhose debut, “but we like to bring new songs into the set to keep it fresh”. “Sometimes we switch the singer, and the guests always have new Joni songs too, so there’s a growing pool of songs and artists,” says Lail.
“Recently I’ve fallen in love with For Free, and I love hearing ones that I haven’t done being sung by other artists who join us.”
The Songs of Joni Mitchell, with Jesca Hoop, Lail Arad, Richard Sears and Naima Bock, The Citadel, Gillygate, York, tomorrow (31/7/2026), doors 7pm for 7.45pm start. Box office: https://www.seetickets.com/event/the-songs-of-joni-mitchell/the-citadel/3605104.
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
Danny Horn’s Ray Davies leading The Kinks in Sunny Afternoon, on tour at the Grand Opera House, York, from next Tuesday. Picture: Manuel Harlan
SUNNY Afternoon’s Kinks songs for dark nights, Dibley comedic delights and drag diva Velma Celli’s frock rock catch Charles Hutchinson’s eye.
Musical of the week: Sonia Freidman Productions and ATG Productions present Sunny Afternoon, Grand Opera House, York, November 11 to 15, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Friday and Saturday matinees
RETURNING to York for the first time since February 2017, four-time Olivier Award winner Sunny Afternoon charts the raw energy, euphoric highs, troubling lows, mendacious mismanagement and brotherly spats of Muswell Hill firebrands The Kinks, with an original story (and nearly 30 songs) by frontman Ray Davies.
The script is by Joe Penhall, who says: “As a band The Kinks were the perennial outsider – punk before punk.” Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
MarcoLooks: Exhibiting at Inspired – York Artists & Designer Makers Winter Fair at York Cemetery Chapel
Christmas presence of the week: Inspired – York Artists & Designer Makers Winter Fair, York Cemetery Chapel, Cemetery Road, York, today and tomorrow, 10am to 5pm
NINE York artists and designers will be selling their work for the Christmas season in the divine setting of York Cemetery Chapel. Among them will be collagraphy printmaker Sally Clarke, jewellery designer Jo Bagshaw, artist Adrienne French, printmaker Petra Bradley and illustrator MarcoLooks . Enjoy a winter walk in the beautiful grounds too. Free entry, free parking.
Clive Marshall RIP: York Railway Institute Band and York Opera perform in his memory at The Citadeltonight
Marshalling forces: York Railway Institute Band and York Opera, Clive Marshall Memorial Concert, The Citadel, Gillygate, York, tonight, 7.30pm
YORK Railway Institute Band and York Opera members come together tonight for a charity musical tribute to much-loved colleague Clive Marshall (1936-2025). Expect soaring choruses, heartfelt arias and the very best of operatic overtures in tonight’s programme of popular classics, in aid of St Leonard’s Hospice, where Clive spent the final days of his life in March this year.
He was chairman of the RI band, leading the trombone section for many years, and first performed for York Opera in 1968, going on to play multiple character roles and stage direct myriad productions too. Box office: https://tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera/1793750 or on the door.
At your service, in the French style: Nicki Clay’s Reverend Geraldine Granger in MARMiTE Theatre’s The Vicar Of Dibley
Village drama of the week: MARMiTE Theatre in The Vicar Of Dibley, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, November 11 to 15,7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
NICKI Clay is going doubly Dibley for MARMiTE Theatre in the new York company’s debut production of The Vicar Of Dibley, having played Geraldine Granger for The Monday Players in Escrick in May.
Martyn Hunter directs Ian Gower and Paul Carpenter’s cherry-picking of the best of Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer’s first two TV series, bringing together all the favourite eccentric residents of Dibley as the new vicar’s arrival shakes up the parish council of this sleepy English village. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Velma Celli: Rock Queen, with a nod to David Bowie’s Aladdin Sane slash make-up, at York Theatre Royal
Drag night of the week: Velma Celli: Rock Queen, York Theatre Royal, November 12, 7.30pm
YORK’S international drag diva deluxe Velma Celli follows up her iconic October 1 appearance in Coronation Street soapland with an “overindulgent evening celebrating and re-imagining the best of rock classics” with her band.
The alter ego of West End musical star Ian Stroughair, who has shone in Cats, Fame, Rent and Chicago, cabaret queen Velma’s live vocal drag act has been charming audiences for 14 years, whether at Yorktoberfest at York Racecourse, her Impossible Brunches at Impossible York, or in such shows as A Brief History Of Drag, My Divas, God Save The Queens, Equinox, Velma Celli Goes Gaga, Show Queen and Divalussion (with Christina Bianco). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
The poster for Toby Lee’s 2025 tour show, An Evening of Blues & Soul, at The Crescent
Blues gig of the week: Toby Lee & James Emmanuel plus Isabella Coulstock, An Evening of Blues & Soul, The Crescent, York, November 12, 7.30pm
BLUES prodigy Toby Lee’s musical journey started at only four years old when his grandmother bought him a yellow and green ukulele. This little instrument went everywhere with him, and he played it constantly, mainly tunes by Elvis and Buddy Holly. At eight, he received his first electric guitar for Christmas while staying at a Cornish. By chance, staying there too was Uriah Heep’s Mick Box, who duly gave him tips and picks. From that moment, Lee knew precisely what he wanted to do when he grew up.
Now 20, he has shared stages with Buddy Guy, Billy Gibbons, Peter Frampton, Slash, Lukas Nelson, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and his hero, Joe Bonamassa, at the Royal Albert Hall, as well as touring as Jools Holland and His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra’s special guest. On Tuesday, he is joined by James Emmanuel and Isabella Coulstock. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Beth McCarthy: Heading back home to York to play Big Ian’s A Night To Remember at York Barbican. Picture: Duncan Lomax, Ravage Productions
Charity event of the week: Big Ian’s A Night To Remember, York Barbican, November 12, 7.30pm
BIG Ian Donaghy hosts a “night of York helping York” featuring a 30-strong band led by George Hall with a line-up of York party band HUGE, Jess Steel, Beth McCarthy, Heather Findlay, Graham Hodge, The Y Street Band, Simon Snaize, Annie-Rae Donaghy, fiddler Kieran O’Malley, Samantha Holden, Las Vegas Ken and musicians from York Music Forum, plus a guest choir.
Proceeds from this three-hour fundraiser go to St Leonard’s Hospice, Bereaved Children Support York, Accessible Arts & Media and York dementia projects. Tickets update: Balcony seats still available at yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Staff woes: William Ilkley, left, Levi Payne and Dylan Allcock in John Godber’s Black Tie Ball, on tour at the SJT, Scarborough
One helluva party of the week: John Godber’s Black Tie Ball, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, November 12 to 15, 7.30pm plus 1.30pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees
ON the glitziest East Yorkshire fundraising night of the year, everyone wants to be there. The Bentleys are parked, the jazz band has arrived, the magician will be magic, but behind the bow ties, fake tans and equally fake booming laughter lie jealousies and avarice, divorces and affairs, as overdressed upstairs meets understaffed downstairs through a drunken gaze.
The raffle is ridiculously competitive, the coffee, cold, the service, awful, the guest speaker, drunk, and the hard -pressed caterers just want to go home. Welcome to the Brechtian hotel hell of John Godber’s satirical, visceral comedy drama, as told by the exasperated hotel staff, recounting the night’s mishaps at breakneck speed in the manner of Godber’s fellow wearers of tuxedos, Bouncers. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.
Amit Mistry: Topping the Funny Fridays bill
Comedy gig of the week: Funny Fridays, Patch@Bonding Warehouse, Terry Avenue, York, November 14, 7.30pm to 9.30pm
African rhythms of the week: N’Faly Kouyaté, National Centre for Early Music, York, November 12 , 7.30pm
Guinean multi-instrumentalist N’Faly Kouyaté: Starting his Finishing tour at the NCEM
AFTER gracing stages across the world with Afro Celt Sound System, avant-garde griot N’Faly Kouyaté has embarked on a profoundly personal journey that finds him opening his autumn UK tour in York, playing the National Centre for Early Music for the first time.
This masterful Guinean multi-instrumentalist, multi-linguist, inspired vocalist and living bridge between ancestral heritage and future sounds returns with his September 12 album Finishing, whose songs stir the soul, provoke reflection, elicit smiles and set bodies moving.
Finishingis billed as a “a spiritual call to action – an artistic manifesto shaped by the soul of a griot and the conscience of a world citizen”
Conceived during nine reflective months along the banks of the Bafing River in Guinea, then recorded in Brussels, this album is both a deeply personal reflection and a universal cry for justice, compassion and balance.
“Finishing is my musical answer to a world searching for meaning,” says N’Faly. “It is the echo of my ancestors carried by today’s rhythms, a call to reflection and action. I wanted every note to be a question, every chorus a step towards a fairer, more conscious future.”
Hailing from the illustrious Konkoba Kabinet Kouyaté lineage – he is a member of the Mandingue ethnic group of West Africa; his father was the griot Konkoba Kabinet Kouyaté, who lived in Siguiri, Guinea – N’Faly is a master of the kora and balafon, a genre-defying composer and a cultural custodian with a mission.
His journey has taken him from Guinea to the Royal Conservatory of Belgium in 1994, where he formed the ensemble Dunyakan, onwards to global stages with the Grammy-nominated Afro Celt Sound System and now his solo projects, all speaking to his ability to weave past and future into the sound of now.
Should you be asking “what is a griot?”, let N’Faly explain.”The griot is an advisor to the people and the king in West Africa,” he says. “The griot is from the Mandingue kingdom; Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso.
“The king of this kingdom was the ancestor of Salif Keita, the Malian singer-songwriter. The griot is like the Bard in Celtic culture because we advise the king, the people, and if there’s a war somewhere, the griot comes to make peace.
“I continue the griot social class. I am griot, my father and my ancestors were griots. You can’t become griot; but you are born griot.”
How does this influence Finishing, N’Faly? “We griot, we advise all society. With this album you imagine the artist finishing his dream to end all these horrible things in the world,” he says. “My dream was that if all these troubles could be finished, we could be happy. What a finishing that would be. For the people, we’re asking for the finishing of all this horror in our world.”
Finishing is an album rooted in a wish for healing. “We can use music to say to the political world ‘what we need is peace and love’,” says N’Faly, who spreads that message by singing songs in Mandinka (the language of Mandingue), Soussou, Pular, French and English as he dares to imagine a world where war, lies, theft and violence suddenly stopped.
The cover artwork for N’Faly Kouyaté’s Finishing album
Each track on Finishing pulses with urgency and purpose. Free Water, a collaboration with reggae luminary Tiken Jah Fakoly, is a passionate plea for water protection, while Khili Kanè condemns the corrosive effects of slander.
Mandela stands as a reverent salute to the late South African statesman and peacemaker, and Kolabana, featuring Senegalese hip-hop icon Didier Awadi, takes aim at global indifference in the face of crisis.
Elsewhere, songs such as Mökhöya, Halala and Kawa reflect on the quiet erosion of human value – mutual aid, dignity and humility – reminding us that these virtues are not nostalgic relics, but essential foundations for a liveable future.
“In my concerts I explain the words of all the songs and I use the job of my ancestors to play traditional music as well as modern,” says N’Faly, whose trademark “Afrotronix” sound is a fusion of AfroBeat, AfroTrap, AfroPop, RnB, Jazz and traditional Mandingue instrumentation as electronica meets djembe and kora.
“I am the protector of culture and tradition, and for me, we can use technology to serve tradition. If you want to interest young people, you have to sing in the language they want to hear and use the instruments and style of who they like – and statistically, much of my audience is aged 18 to 44 and upwards to 66-70.”
N’Faly will be joined on the NCEM stage by his wife, Muriel Kouyaté and Jay Chitul after rehearsing together in Brussels. Bring your dancing shoes,” he advises. Finishing will be on sale at the concert, along with T-shirts. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
Did you know?
N’FALY Kouyaté’s collaborators range from Peter Gabriel and Sinead O’Connor to Tayc and Robert Plant, affirming how he is as comfortable in ancient traditions as he is on the modern sonic frontier.
“When I finished my studies in Belgium, I started to work with Afro Celt Sound System, whose albums were produced by Peter Gabriel, and we worked with him many times, recording at Real World studios in Bath and performing on stage with him.” says N’Faly.
He undertook an acting role in William Kentridge’s musical The Head And The Load, performing in Miami, Amsterdam, London and New York.
Clive Marshall RIP: Trombone player, character actor, director, chairman, designer, set builder, English and drama teacher, hockey player and club president
YORK Railway Institute Band and York Opera members will come together for one night only on Saturday (8/11/2025) for a charity musical tribute to much-loved colleague Clive Marshall (October 12 1936-March 11 2025).
Expect soaring choruses, heartfelt arias and the very best of operatic overtures in this 7.30pm concert of popular classics at The Citadel, Gillygate, York, all in aid of St Leonard’s Hospice, where Clive spent the final days of his life in March this year.
Clive, who trained as a teacher at St John’s Teacher Training College in York, was chairman of the York Railway Institute Band, leading the trombone section for many years, and first performed for York Opera – or City Opera Group, as it was then called – in 1968, going on to play multiple character roles and stage direct myriad productions too. He was president of City of York Hockey Club to boot, playing into his 70s.
As an English and drama teacher, he taught at Derwent and Knavesmire Secondary Modern schools before becoming head of drama at Hemsworth High School in West Yorkshire. After early retirement from Hemsworth, he took on part-time teaching at Northfield School in Acomb and as a drama teacher at Bootham School until the age of 70.
York Opera chairman Ian Thomson-Smith says: “Clive was the heart and soul of York Opera for more than 50 years, as a director, performer, designer and set builder. So many of us who shared a stage with him will be forever grateful for his guidance, good humour and encouragement. This concert is a small way of recognising how much he has meant to us.”
York Railway Institute Band manager Martyn Groves-Williams adds: “Clive was a truly remarkable, talented and generous man, who thankfully lived a long and joyous life. His memory will be cherished by all of us who were lucky enough to be part of his banding life, and we shall all miss him dearly.”
Helen Lay, community and events fundraiser at St Leonard’s Hospice, says: “We’re incredibly grateful to the York Railway Institute Band and York Opera for teaming up for this special event in Clive’s memory.
“As a charity, we rely on brilliant events like this to raise much-needed funds, so we can continue providing our expert care and support to so many across our area. We’re incredibly grateful to everyone involved.”
Adrian Cook’s Peachum and Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum in York Opera’s The Beggar’s Opera. All pictures: David Kessel
YORK Opera is back with a spring in its step. John Gay’s ballad opera of 1728, now nearing its 300th anniversary, was given lively and sometimes sparkling treatment by its director, Chris Charlton-Matthews, offering the company an opportunity to show its strength in depth.
The choice of venue, The Citadel in Gillygate, York was not an easy option. With the audience seated on three sides, mostly at tables in cabaret style, the performance was virtually in the round. This meant that much of the dialogue came and went, depending on where the performers were facing and, as so often with singers of all shades, words were clearer in song than in speech.
The production firmly reminded us of the wealth of our musical heritage, thanks to the composer Johann Pepusch – Berlin-born but London-based for more than 50 years – who gathered together its 69 songs mainly from British ballads, alongside several by living composers including Purcell.
This production gained immensely from its string quartet, oboe (Alex Nightingale) and harpsichord (Tim Tozer), conducted by John Atkin, who delivered a consistently vivid underlay.
Mark Simmonds’s Macheath: “Every inch the dashing womaniser” in York Opera’s The Beggar’s Opera
At the head of proceedings was Adrian Cook’s determined, ruthless Peachum, who was the undoubted mayor of this unruly parish, gamely supported by Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum and Hamish Brown’s Filch.
Alexandra Mather as their faux-naive daughter Polly and Sophie Horrocks as the more streetwise Lucy Lockit – rivals for the love of highwayman Macheath – were well contrasted, while Mark Simmonds was every inch the dashing womaniser they pursued.
There was a notable contribution, too, from Anthony Gardner’s gaoler Lockit – a David Jason look-alike – whose dialogues with Peachum were outstanding. The chorus was full-throated rather than subtle, but cameos from chorus members added considerable colour and kept up momentum.
Alexandra Mather’s faux-naive Polly Peachum
Even so, the performance lasted three hours and would have been punchier with half an hour excised.
The props by Teresa Carr and Jane Carr – a bar for the tavern, a desk for Peachum’s ‘office’ and a high trellis for the bars of Newgate prison – were more than enough to set the scenes, and Jane Woolgar’s choreography was consistently appealing.
The decision to dress the cast in costumes of every era (by the ever-imaginative Maggie Soper), to illustrate the maxim that the poor are always with us, was understandable but confusing.
The jollity of the proceedings was anyway inevitably at odds with the poverty-riddled story. The prologue and epilogue by the Beggar himself, Ian Thomson Smith, ensured a firm start and a happy ending.
Susie Blake’s Shirley and Jason Durr’s Johnny ‘The Cyclops’ in Torben Betts’s Murder At Midnight at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Pamela Raith
A NEW crime caper and a ghost story, a clash of the blues and a Tommy Cooper tribute make their mark in Charles Hutchinson’s diary.
Deliciously twisted crime caper of the week: Original Theatre in Murder At Midnight, York Theatre Royal, until Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees
ON New Year’s Eve, in a quiet corner of Kent, a killer is in the house in Torben Betts’s comedy thriller Murder At Midnight, part two of a crime trilogy for Original Theatre that began last year with Murder In The Dark, this time starring Jason Durr, Susie Blake, Max Howden and Katie McGlynn.
Meet Jonny ‘The Cyclops’, his glamorous wife, his trigger-happy sidekick, his mum – who sees things – and her very jittery carer, plus a vicar, apparently hiding something, and a nervous burglar dressed as a clown. Throw in a suitcase full of cash, a stash of deadly weapons and one infamous unsolved murder…what could possibly go wrong? Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum in York Opera’s The Beggar’s Opera at The Citadel in York. Picture: John Saunders
Opera of the week: York Opera in The Beggar’s Opera, The Citadel, York City Church, Gillygate, York, tomorrow to Saturday, 7.30pm
YORK Opera stage John Gay and Johann Christoph Pepusch’s 1728 satirical ballad opera The Beggar’s Opera in an immersive production under the musical direction of John Atkin and stage direction of Chris Charlton-Matthews, with choreography by Jane Woolgar.
Watch out! You may find yourself next to a cast member, whether Mark Simmonds’ Macheath, Adrian Cook’s Peachum, Anthony Gardner’s Lockit, Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum, Sophie Horrocks’ Lucy Lockit, Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum, Ian Thomson-Smith’s Beggar or Jake Mansfield’s Player. Box office: tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera/1793200.
Natasha Jones, left, and Florrie Stockbridge in Clap Trap Theatre’s Blindfold at Helmsley Arts Centre
Ghost story of the week: Clap Trap Theatre in Blindfold, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow, 7.30pm
RYEDALE company Clap Trap Theatre’s cast of Natasha Jones, Florrie Stockbridge and Cal Stockbridge presents Blindfold, a ghost story by BAFTA-nominated North Yorkshire playwright and scriptwriter Tom Needham.
In 1914, two boyhood friends went to fight for their country but only one came back. After the war, the surviving soldier and his sister encounter an old friend who was being haunted by the ghost of a young man in a blindfold. Now, 100 years later, the discovery of letters re-awakens the ghost. Who is he and what does he want? Piece by piece, the lives of the long dead are brought to life and heartbreaking truths begin to emerge. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Heidi Talbot: Introducing new album Grace Untold at NCEM
Folk gig of the week: Heidi Talbot, Grace Untold UK Tour, National Centre for Early Music, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm
IRISH folk singer Heidi Talbot returns to the NCEM stage to preview her November 21 album Grace Untold, a collection of songs based around Irish goddesses and inspirational women.
This is an album rooted in personal experience and collective lore as Heidi pays tribute to female strength, focusing on legendary figures and the unsung heroines within her own family. Box office: 01904 658338 or necem.co.uk.
Just like him: Daniel Taylor in the guise of Tommy Cooper at Milton Rooms, Malton
Tribute show of the week: Daniel Taylor Productions presents The Very Best Of Tommy Cooper (Just Like That), Milton Rooms, Malton, Friday, 7.30pm
PRODUCED and performed by award-winning West End and Unbreakable star Daniel Taylor, this 90-minute tribute show has the blessing of the Tommy Cooper Estate.
Recapturing the mayhem and misfiring magic of one of Britain’s best-loved entertainers, Taylor gives you a glimpse into the life of the comedy giant, celebrating his best one-liners, dazzling wordplay and celebrated tricks, including Glass/Bottle, Dappy Duck, Spot the Dog and Jar/Spoon. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
Riverdance: The New Generation celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Irish dance phenomenon at York Barbican
Dance show of the week: Riverdance, 30th Anniversary Tour, York Barbican, Friday to Sunday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees
VISITING 30 UK venues – one for each year of its history – from August to December 2025, the Irish dance extravaganza Riverdance rejuvenates the much-loved original show with new innovative choreography and costumes, plus state-of-the-art lighting, projection and motion graphics, in this 30th anniversary celebration.
For the first time, John McColgan directs “the New Generation” of Riverdance performers, none of them born when the show began. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
The poster for Them Heavy Souls’ blues revue at Kirk Theatre, Pickering
Blues gig of the week: Them Heavy Souls, Kirk Theatre, Pickering, Saturday, 7.30pm
MARK Christian Hawkins, top session guitarist for 30 years, is a gun for hire stepping out of the shadows with his British blues rock revue show, featuring stage and screen actress Lucy Crawford on vocals (last spotted playing Miss Prism in York company’s Pop Your Clogs Theatre’s The Importance Of Being Earnest).
Playing music from the golden era of 1966 to 1975, Them Heavy Souls capture the power and magic of Led Zeppelin/Jimmy Page, Cream/Eric Clapton, Yardbirds/Jeff Beck, Humble Pie/Peter Frampton and Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, delivered with vintage guitars, amplification and a nod to improvisation. Box office: 01751 474833 or kirktheatre.co.uk.
Alex Hamilton: Leading his blues trio at Helmsley Arts Centre
The other blues gig of the week, on the very same night: The Alex Hamilton Band, Helmsley Arts Centre, Saturday, 8pm
GUITARIST Alex Hamilton is joined in his blues/rock/Americana trio by father Nick Hamilton on bass and Martin Bell on drums. He combines melodic rock vocals, hard-hitting lyrics and a heart-felt guitar technique, as heard on his albums Ghost Train, Shipwrecked and On The Radio, as well as in concert venues around the world. Box office: 01751 474833 or kirktheatre.co.uk.
Gunn in for you: Steve Gunn promotes his two 2025 albums at The Band Room this weekend. Picture: Paul Rhodes
Moorland gig of the week: Steve Gunn, The Band Room, Low Mill, Farndale, North York Moors, Saturday, 7.30pm
STEVE Gunn, the ambient psychedelic American singer-songwriter based in Brooklyn, New York, made his name as a guitarist in Kurt Vile’s backing band, The Violators. His myriad magical influences include Michael Chapman, Michael Hurley and John Fahey.
This weekend he will be showcasing his second album of 2025, Daylight Daylight, out on November 7 on No Quarter, as well as his first fully instrumental album, August’s Music For Writers. Box office: 01751 432900 or thebandroom.co.uk.
On being Normal: Henry Normal discusses himself at Helmsley Arts Centre
Normal service resumed: Henry Normal, The Slideshow, Helmsley Arts Centre, Sunday, 8pm
THE Slideshow, as poet, film and TV producer/writer Henry Normal explains, is a multi-MEdia spectacular with the emphasis on the “me” in his celebration of his “meteoric rise to z celebrity status”, together with his joyous and inevitable slide into physical and mental decline.
Expect poetry, photos, jokes, music, dance, song, circus skills, costume changes, props and stories, exploring where Normal went wrong in life, plus lessons you can learn from his mistakes, in his live performed memoir with cautionary verse. For tickets for this adventure into understanding the human condition from the inside, go to: helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Martha Tilston: Playing The Basement tonight at City Screen Picturehouse
CRIMINAL investigations and a brace of plays with murder at the core, Charles Hutchinson detects a theme to his latest recommendations.
Singer-songwriter of the week: Martha Tilston, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, tonight, 7.30pm
BORN in Bristol and now living in Cornwall, singer, songwriter and filmmaker Martha Tilston writes songs from the heart as a balm for the modern age.
Tilston, who has worked Zero 7, Damien Rice, Nick Harper, Kae Tempest and Aztec Camera’s Roddy Frame, combines raw vocals and sparkling melodies with thought-provoking lyrics and filmic movements, inviting her audience to “connect with longed-for parts of ourselves”. Box office: marthatilston.co.uk.
Jennifer Rees: Exploring stories of serial killers in forensic detail at the Grand Opera House, York
Criminal investigations of the week: Strange But True Crimes with Jennifer Rees, Grand Opera House, York, October 21, 7.30pm
FORMER forensics lecturer and Psychology Of Serial Killers presenter Jennifer Rees explores stories such as the serial killer who gained work in law enforcement while on the run – and ended up hunting himself.
Watch out too for the female, balloon-carrying killer clown, serial killers on game shows – how their appearances led to their identification – and many more stories. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Jason Durr’s Jonny ‘The Cyclops’, right, accosting the nervous burglar in Torben Betts’s comedy thriller Murder At Midnight. Picture: Pamela Raith
Deliciously twisted crime caper of the week: Original Theatre in Murder At Midnight, York Theatre Royal, October 21 to 25, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees
ON New Year’s Eve, in a quiet corner of Kent, a killer is in the house in Torben Betts’s comedy thriller Murder At Midnight, part two of a crime trilogy for Original Theatre that began last year with Murder In The Dark, this time starring Jason Durr, Susie Blake, Max Howden and Katie McGlynn.
Meet Jonny ‘The Cyclops’, his glamorous wife, his trigger-happy sidekick, his mum – who sees things – and her very jittery carer, plus a vicar, apparently hiding something, and a nervous burglar dressed as a clown. Throw in a suitcase full of cash, a stash of deadly weapons and one infamous unsolved murder…what could possibly go wrong? Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
The Divine Comedy’s Neil Hannon: Showcasing new album Rainy Sunday Afternoon at York Barbican. Picture: Kevin Westerberg
Recommended but sold out already: The Divine Comedy, York Barbican, October 21, doors 7pm
IN the wake of composing all the original songs for the 2023 global blockbuster Wonka, North Irishman Neil Hannon has returned to his Divine Comedy guise for September 19’s Rainy Sunday Afternoon: album number 13 and his first studio set since 2019’s Office Politics.
Recorded at Abbey Road, London, the album was written, arranged and produced by Hannon, who covers his usual range of emotions: sad, funny, angry and everything in between. Hear Hannon songs new and old next Tuesday, when Studio Electrophonique will be the special guest. Box office, for returns only: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Katie Melia’s Show White in Steve Coates Music Productions’ Disenchanted, turning fairy tales on their head at the JoRo
Cheeky twist on fairy tales of the week: Steve Coates Music Productions in Disenchanted, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, October 22 to 25, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
KATIE Melia directs and leads the cast as Snow White in Steve Coates Music Productions’ production of Disenchanted, the musical with the feminist twist that turns fairy tales upside down, from the Little Mermaid hitting the bottle to Belle ending up in a straitjacket for chatting with the cutlery.
Forget the damsels in distress, Snow White, Cinderella and their royal crew want to set the record straight. Equipped with sass, wit, and powerhouse vocals, these not-so-princessy princesses flip the script, spill the tea and reclaim their stories as they challenge outdated happily-ever-afters. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Making an impression: Dead Ringers on 25th anniversary tour
Comedy nights of the week: Dead Ringers, October 22, 3pm and 7.30pm, and Nick Mohammed Is Mr Swallow: Show Pony, October 26, 8pm, both at Grand Opera, House, York
TO mark its 25th anniversary, BBC Radio 4’s topical satire show Dead Ringers takes to the road with a full UK tour for the first time as long-standing cast members Jon Culshaw, Jan Ravens, Lewis MacLeod and Duncan Wisbey take a trip through classic sketches and unrivalled impressions, peppered with topical humour.
Celebrity Traitors competitor, Taskmaster contestant and Ted Lasso actor Nick Mohammed returns to York as his alter-ego Mr Swallow. Expect magic, music and new mistakes. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Harry Summers, left, and Emma Scott in rehearsal for York Shakespeare Project’s The Spanish Tragedy. Picture: John Saunders
Revenge drama of the week: York Shakespeare Project in The Spanish Tragedy, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, October 22 to 25, 7.30pm
PAUL Toy directs York Shakespeare Project for the fourth time – and the first since Troilus And Cressida in 2011– in “the most popular play of the Elizabethan era, outselling Shakespeare”: Thomas Kyd’s The Spanish Tragedy, the circa 1592 blueprint for the Revenge Tragedy genre.
No Kyd, maybe no Hamlet or The Duchess Of Malfi, as treachery, deceit and disguise are wrapped inside a torrid tale of vengeance-seeking ghosts, madness, a play-within-a-play and a Machiavellian villain, delivered by Toy with masks, music and dance. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum in York Opera’s The Beggar’s Opera. Picture: John Saunders
Opera of the week: York Opera in The Beggar’s Opera, The Citadel, York City Church, Gillygate, York, October 23 to 25, 7.30pm
YORK Opera stage John Gay and Johann Christoph Pepusch’s 1728 satirical ballad opera The Beggar’s Opera in an immersive production under the musical direction of John Atkin and stage direction of Chris Charlton-Matthews, with choreography by Jane Woolgar.
Watch out! You may find yourself next to a cast member, whether Mark Simmonds’ Macheath, Adrian Cook’s Peachum, Anthony Gardner’s Lockit, Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum, Sophie Horrocks’ Lucy Lockit, Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum, Ian Thomson-Smith’s Beggar or Jake Mansfield’s Player. Box office: tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera/1793200.
Heidi Talbot: Introducing November 21 album Grace Untold at NCEM on October 23
Folk gig of the week: Heidi Talbot, Grace Untold UK Tour, National Centre for Early Music, York, October 23, 7.30pm
IRISH folk singer Heidi Talbot returns to the NCEM stage to preview her November 21 album Grace Untold, a collection of songs based around Irish goddesses and inspirational women.
This is an album rooted in personal experience and collective lore as Heidi pays tribute to female strength, focusing on legendary figures and the unsung heroines within her own family. Box office: 01904 658338 or necem.co.uk.
Riverdance: The New Generation performs the Irish dancers’ 30th anniversary show at York Barbican
Dance show of the week: Riverdance, 30th Anniversary Tour, York Barbican, October 24 to 26, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees
VISITING 30 UK venues – one for each year of its history – from August to December 2025, the Irish dance extravaganza Riverdance rejuvenates the much-loved original show with new innovative choreography and costumes, plus state-of-the-art lighting, projection and motion graphics, in this 30th anniversary celebration.
For the first time, John McColgan directs “the New Generation” of Riverdance performers, none of them born when the show began. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum, left, Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum and Adrian Cook’s Peachum in York Opera’s The Beggar’s Opera. All pictures: John Saunders
YORK Opera will stage John Gay’s 18th-century satirical ballad opera The Beggar’s Opera at The Citadel, York City Church, Gillygate, York, from October 23 to 25.
After June’s successful staging of Offenbach’s The Tales Of Hoffmann at York Theatre Royal, the autumn production of librettist and lyricist Gay and composer Johann Christoph Pepusch’s three-act 1728 opera is presented under the musical direction of John Atkin and stage direction of Chris Charlton-Matthews, with choreography by Jane Woolgar.
The Beggar has written an opera! Well, not exactly “written”. He has borrowed all the tunes from folk ditties or well-known melodies – and his plot is not exactly the usual operatic fare – although he says he has followed all the conventions: a hero, a doomed love affair, prisoners in chains.
However, the hero is a highwayman and completely faithless to his many wives, while every lady’s virtue is for sale and marriage is the way to become a rich widow. All the characters are villains, from gang leader Peachum, who sells his own gang members to be hanged in order to claim the reward, to crooked gaoler Lockit, who runs a line in comfortable manacles, and the utterly psychotic Matt o’the Mint, murderer and arsonist. Could the Beggar be sending up the politicians of his day – but surely they are not crooks, are they?
Cathy Atkin’s Mrs Peachum and Adrian Cook’s Peachum
York Opera will stage an immersive production of this classic satire, where you may find yourself seated next to a cast member, so be careful where you sit! That demure lady to your side might just be a pickpocket after your snuffbox!
To be fully in the mood, join Polly and her evil father Mr Peachum at his speakeasy for a gin tasting sponsored by York Gin before each show. Please note that entry to this tasting does not include entry to the show and vice versa. Here is the link: https://tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera/1819083.
Principal roles will be taken by a combination of established and new soloists: Mark Simmonds as Macheath, Adrian Cook as Peachum, Anthony Gardner as Lockit, Alexandra Mather as Polly Peachum, Sophie Horrocks as Lucy Lockit, Cathy Atkin as Mrs Peachum, Ian Thomson-Smith as The Beggar and Jake Mansfield as The Player.
Alexandra Mather’s Polly Peachum
After The Beggar’s Opera, the company will continue rehearsals for November 8’s concert in conjunction with the York R.I. Brass Band to celebrate the life and musical talents of Clive Marshall, a leading member of both organisations, who died on March 11.
Featuring principals, players and chorus, Opera Meets Brass: A Musical Tribute to Clive Marshall will be held at The Citadel to raise funds for St Leonard’s Hospice in its 40th anniversary year. Tickets (£15, students and under 16s £10) are available at https://tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera.
Then it will be full steam ahead to Christmas for York Opera’s Carols At Christmas concerts at Acomb on December 11, 7.30pm, Haxby, December 12, 7.30pm, and York, December 13, 4.30pm.
York Opera in The Beggar’s Opera, The Citadel, Gillygate, York, October 23 to 25, 7.30pm. Box office: https://tickets.yorkopera.co.uk/events/yorkopera/1793200.
