The Wizard of York, Dan Wood, sets his spellbinding WizardFest in motion for three magical days. Picture: The Story Of You
NOT only a new festival of wizardry, but Charles Hutchinson has plenty more wizard ideas too for the Bank Holiday weekend and beyond the wand.
Enchanting festival of the week: WizardFest, waving a wand over York, today to Monday
ORGANISED by The Wizard of York, Dan Wood, York’s first ever festival of wizardry promises 25 activities, events, workshops and fantastical food and drink, featuring the city’s most magical businesses.
Highlights include Wizard Walk of York walks; a Brick Magic LEGO workshop; screenings of the first three Harry Potter films at City Screen Picturehouse; Professor Kettlestring’s Puzzling World needing help to defeat dark wizard Mortius Darktrix; The Cat Gallery’s Black Cat Trail and Make It York’s Owl Trail; Monday’s Magical Night Market at Shambles Market and a fancy dress parade between St Helen’s Square and York Minster at 3pm on Monday. Plan your magical itinerary and make bookings at wizardwalkofyork.com/wizardfest.
York Printmakers’ poster for the 2025 Festival of Print
“More than an exhibition” of the week: York Printmakers, Festival of Print, 22 High Petergate, York, until July 20, open every Friday and Saturday, 10am to 5pm, and Sundays, 10am to 4pm
YORK Printmakers celebrate creativity, craft and community in a curated exhibition of original prints, from linocut and etching to screenprint and collagraph, complemented by demonstrations, talks and workshops. Visitors can explore the stories and processes behind each piece and meet the makers behind the art.
“This year’s festival is more than an exhibition,” say the organisers. “It’s an invitation to discover, to ask questions and to support York artists keeping traditional and contemporary printmaking alive.” Entry is free.
Festival Of The Force: The Star Wars convention from another galaxy, here in York
Film convention of the week: Festival Of The Force, York Railway Institute, Queen Street, York, Sunday, 10am to 5pm
MAY the Force be with you for this Star Wars convention, Festival Of The Force, whose mission is to deliver an immersive experience in celebration of the Star Wars universe while building a strong sense of community among collectors, fans, and cosplayers of all ages. Look out for a galaxy of merchandise, celebrity appearances and fan-led events. Box office: eventbrite.co.uk/e/festival-of-the-force-tickets.
Wanted in York: Julian Clary swaps guns for puns and putdowns in A Fistful Of Claryon Sunday
Camp sight of the week: Julian Clary in A Fistful Of Clary, Grand Opera House, York, Sunday, 7.30pm
JULIAN Clary goes Western as he saddles up for entendres at the double, sure that the men in the audience won’t be able to keep their hands off his Rawhide.
The lucky few will play with him on stage in the Hang‘em Low saloon, but life in the Old West was tough. Not all of Julian’s wild bunch will be around to witness the final shoot-out when he gives himself selflessly at high noon to the last man standing. Tickets update for Clary’s pun fight: still available at atgtickets.com/york.
Sophie Ellis Bextor: Disco nights at York Barbican and York Racecourse
Dancefloor diva at the double: Sophie Ellis Bextor, York Barbican, May 26, Spring Bank Holiday Monday, 7.30pm; York Racecourse Music Showcase Weekend 2025, July 25, after 8.23pm last race
“IT will be wonderful to bring the disco fun to everyone,” says Sophie Ellis Bextor, lockdown queen of the Kitchen Disco online sessions, as she heads to York twice. Buoyed by Murder On The Dancefloor’s appearance in the final scene of Emerald Fennell’s film Saltburn returning her 2001 smash to number two in the UK charts, she takes to the road with a career-spanning set also featuring Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love), Take Me Home (A Girl Like Me) and Freedom Of The Night.
The former lead singer of theaudience will be joined by special guest Natasha Bedingfield for the post-racing concert on Knavesmire in July. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk (last few tickets); yorkracecourse.co.uk.
Jon Mills’s cast for Miles Salter’s short play One Step Beyond, premiering at the Black Swan Inn next week
Premiere of the week: Yortk Settlement Community Players presents Miles Salter’s One Step Beyond, Black Swan Inn, Peasholme Green, York, May 26 to 28, 7.30pm
STEVE and Kerry have been married a long time. Steve’s vinyl collection may tear them apart. Luckily they have a counsellor…and Steve’s friend Boring Ryan on hand to help them out. It must be love, love, love. Jon Mills directs Stuart Green, Pamela Gourlay, Liz Quinlan, Chris Meadley and Jess Murray in York writer Miles Salter’s short play for YSCP’s Direct Approach project. Tickets to enter this House of Fun: £5, pay on the door, cash or card.
Victoria Delaney, left, and Clare Halliday in rehearsal for York Actors Collective’s production of Tiger Country at Theatre@41, Monkgate
Hospital drama of the week: York Actors Collective in Tiger Country, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, May 27 to 31, 7.30pm, Tuesday to Friday; 2.30pm and 6pm, Saturday
NINA Raine’s doctors-and-nurses drama, last performed at Hampstead Theatre, London, in 2014, is revived by Angie Millard’s company York Actors Collective.
This fast-paced play considers doctors’ dilemmas as a range of clinical and ethical issues come under the spotlight in a busy hospital. Professionalism and prejudice, turbulent staff romances, ambition and failure collide as Raine depicts an overburdened health service and the dedicated individuals that keep it going. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Nick Mohammed’s alter-ego, Mr Swallow, in Show Pony, cantering into the Grand Opera House next week and in the autumn. Picture: Matt Crockett
Comedy gig of the week: Nick Mohammed Is Mr Swallow in Show Pony, Grand Opera House, York, May 28 and October 23, 7.30pm
COMEDIAN, writer, Ted Lasso regular and Taskmaster loser Nick Mohammed transforms into his alter-ego, Mr Swallow in Show Pony, a new show that will “cover everything from not having his own sitcom to not having his own sitcom… and everything in between (critical race theory). As per – expect magic, music and a whole load of brand-new mistakes”. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Sir Tim Rice: Mulling over a life in musicals at the Grand Opera House, York
Musical knight of the week: Sir Tim Rice, My Life In Musicals – I Know Him So Well, Grand Opera House, York, May 29,7.30pm
LYRICIST supreme Sir Tim Rice reflects on his illustrious career at the heart of musical theatre, sharing anecdotes behind the songs, both the hits and the misses, complemented by stories of his life and live performances by leading West End singers and musicians, led by musical director Duncan Waugh. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Paul Chowdhry in the poster artwork for Englandia, on tour at York Barbican tomorrow
PAUL Chowdhry, Britain’s most successful British Indian stand-up comedian, brings his Englandia tour to York Barbican tomorrow night.
Now extended to 41 dates between March 3 and September 25, this tour is the London-born Punjabi Sikh humorist, actor and podcaster’s biggest ever itinerary in a career stretching back to 1998, with such highlights as hosting Channel 4’s Stand Up For The Week and being the first British act to perform at the Caribbean Comedy Festival in Trinidad in 2003.
Englandia, his follow-up to his 20121-2023’s Family-Friendly Comedian tour, returns him to the road “after more than a quarter of a century and half my life on comedy stages”.
Why pick comedy for a living, Paul? “The term ‘certified mad’ would be politically incorrect, but I think people realise that being a comic and being confronted by a room full of strangers, there has to be a chemical reaction in the brain, an imbalance, to make you want to do it!” he says.
Now 50, his stand-up career has taken such experiences as performing to music audiences at festivals such as Glastonbury and Latitude and the “weird environment” of playing in nightclubs where the stage is a sofa or chair at 1am in the morning. “I’ve come through the trenches,” says Paul.
Englandia, a conflation of England and India, addresses his experiences as a British Asian. “In the show, I talk about the cultural clashes I’ve experienced between the two cultures, and what I’ve lived through,” says Paul.
“I’ve come through the trenches,” says Paul Chowdhry of his rise through the comedy world
“I’m British, born in London in 1974 [August 21 to be precise] after my family emigrated to England in the 1960s, when my dad came to Southampton on his own, with his brothers and sisters joining him later,” says Paul.
“He was in his early 30s at the time; a very different time. You look back to what people went through, with Enoch Powell’s ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech. It wasn’t unlike that in the Seventies too, growing up against a backdrop of racial tension, though times have changed.”
Englandia looks back to that history and at the impact of social media platforms today. “All that toxicity, all that right-wing outpouring, on what was formerly known as Twitter; if I was young, I’d be influenced by it.
“Language has changed a lot since the Seventies, but if you look at what is happening now, it reminds me of then.”
Paul contrasts the impact of comedians with politicians or social media influencers. “First and foremost I am a comic, so first and foremost what I say should be taken as a joke, but in parliament or a place of power, Nigel Farage and Andrew Tate are not comedians. That’s not a platform for comedy,” he says.
“Comedy is essentially linguistics, the use of language and twists and turns, but when Boris Johnson cracks a joke, it’s not a joke. Those people are politicians, not jokers. They are a person of influence, as I am, but I’m not making political points. I’m a comedian and I definitely shouldn’t be a politician – they say politics is showbusiness for narcissists!”
“Comedy is a more endangered artform now that you barely see on TV,” says Paul Chowdhry, standing up for stand-up comedy
Paul may be playing his biggest tour yet, but he notes: “Though I’m in a fortunate position of selling tickets, [stand-up] comedy is a more endangered artform now that you barely see on TV. Entertainment has changed and the way we consume media has changed, especially how we consume information online.”
Paul has appeared in the international TV series Devils and on Taskmaster; his social media videos have chalked up millions of views, and he hosts The Paul Chowdhry PudCast podcast, interviewing celebrities on life’s turning points, but live comedy still tops his bill.
“I can’t believe the number of people who come out to the shows. Comedy is a risk; audiences never know what to expect,” he says.
True, but Paul draws the crowds home and abroad. “I took the last tour to Canada and the USA. It costs you £10,000 for an AE visa,” he says. “That’s Alien of Extraordinary Ability.
“I’ve still got a little time left on my visa, so I can go back – if he [President Trump] doesn’t change the rules!”
Paul Chowdhry, Englandia, York Barbican, tomorrow (23/5/2025), 7.30pm. Tickets update: still available at yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Hayley Bamford in rehearsal for her lead role as Deloris Van Cartier in York Musical Theatre Company’s production of Sister Act The Musical
FROM Holmes & Watson to Wright & Grainger, a play told two contrasting ways to funny nun business, Charles Hutchinson fills diaries for arty times ahead.
Nun better musical of the week: York Musical Theatre Company in Sister Act The Musical, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, tonight to Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
KATHRYN Addison directs York Musical Theatre Company in Alan Menken’s American musical with Hayley Bamford in the sassy role of “novice nun” Deloris Van Cartier.
When club singer Deloris witnesses nightclub owner Curtis Jackson (Zander Fick), commit murder, the police hide her in a convent, where she meets the Mother Superior (Kirstin Grififths) and an ensemble of 22 nuns. Cue multiple upbeat numbers as friendships grow and the convent is saved from financial ruin. Hallelujah! Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Improv show of the week: Unwritten, The Literary Improv Show, Rise@Bluebird Bakery, Acomb Road, Acomb, York, tomorrow, doors 7.30pm, show 8.30pm
EVER wondered what Whose Line Is It Anyway? would be like with a literary twist? The Bluffs take classic short-form improv games, then infuse them with storytelling flair. Every show is unique, shaped by audience suggestions and spontaneous creativity. An evening of humour, surprises and plot twists awaits. Box office: bluebirdbakery.co.uk/rise.
Dominic Goodwin, left, and Thomas Frere in Clap Trap Theatre’s Switcheroo, the play told as comedy and then seriously seriously
Role-swapping play of the week: Clap Trap Theatre in Switcheroo, York Theatre Royal Studio, tomorrow to Saturday, 7.45pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Post-show discussion, Friday. Also Helmsley Arts Centre, May 31, 7.30pm
TOM Needham’s play Switcheroo is based on the simple premise that “it’s not what you say, it’s the way that you say it”. Presented by Ryedale company Clap Trap Theatre, the story follows three siblings who, when it comes to scattering their mother’s ashes, are hit with a bombshell revelation that turns their world upside down.
The first act is a full-blown, larger-than-life comedy, whereupon the actors swap characters to repeat it as a serious drama. Paul Birch directs a cast of Thomas Frere (Alex/Sam), Clap Trap co-founder Cal Stockbridge (Sam/Pat) and Dominic Goodwin (Pat/Alex). Box office: York, 01904 623568 or yorktheratreroyal.co.uk; Helmsley, 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
The poster artwork for ACT’s production of Ken Ludwig’s Moriarty at Helmsley Arts Centre
Ryedale play of the week: ACT in Ken Ludwig’s Moriarty, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow, 7pm
SHERLOCK Holmes and Dr Watson are back on the case as ACT (Ampleforth College Theatre) presents Ken Ludwig’s Moriarty, an investigation into the Bohemian king’s stolen letters that cascades into an international mystery filled with spies, blackmail and intrigue.
Faced with world peace at stake, Holmes and Watson join forces with American actress Irene Adler to take down cunning criminal mastermind Professor Moriarty and his network of devious henchmen. Box office: Helmsley, 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Paul Chowdhry: Heading for York Barbican with his Englandia show
Comedy gig of the week: Paul Chowdhry, Englandia, York Barbican, Friday, 7.30pm
PAUL Chowdhry, the most successful British Indian stand-up comedian in British history, heads to York on his 41-date itinerary. “After more than a quarter of a century and half my life on comedy stages, it’s time for my biggest tour ever,” says The Paul Chowdhry PudCast podcaster.
“I hope to see you there. If not, I’ll be in massive debt and doing benefit gigs for the foreseeable future.” To help Chowdhry avoid that scenario, book tickets at yorkbarbican.co.uk.
The Dunwells: Returning to Pocklington on Friday
The boys done well: The Dunwells, All Saints Church, Pocklington, Friday, 7.30pm
LEEDS duo The Dunwells continue their working relationship with Hurricane Promotions’ James Duffy, who has promoted brothers Joe and David’s indie-folk/Americana band across Yorkshire, not least at the market town’s Platform Festival and Pocklington Arts Centre, where he worked for many years. Box office: thedunwells.com.
Alexander Flanagan Wright in Wright & Grainger’s Helios at Helmsley Arts Centre
Storytelling show of the week: Wright & Grainger present Helios, Helmsley Arts Centre, Friday, 7.30pm
A LAD lives halfway up an historic hill. A teenager is on a road trip to the city in a stolen car. A boy is driving a chariot, pulling the sun across the sky. Welcome to Wright & Grainger’s story of the son of the god of the sun that transplants the Ancient Greek tale into a modern-day myth wound around the winding roads of rural England and into the everyday living of a towering city.
“It’s a story about life, the invisible monuments we build into it, and the little things that leave big marks,” say friends since Easingwold schooldays Alexander Flanagan Wright and Phil Grainger. “Join us in a little room with a tape player and a delicate tale to tell.” Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Jed Potts: Playing with The Hillman Hunters at the Milton Rooms, Malton
Blues gig of the week: Ryedale Blues Club presents Jed Potts & The Hillman Hunters, Milton Rooms, Malton, May 29,
EDINBURGH guitarist and vocalist Jed Potts fronts Jed Potts & The Hillman Hunters and Under-Volt and also plays with The Katet, The Blueswater, Nicole Smit and occasionally with American blues artist Brandon Santini too. This time he has The Hillman Hunters for company.
Potts first picked up a guitar at nine and performed his first gig at 16.”Blues is my musical first language and it infuses everything I play,” he says. “Even when I’m playing with The Katet or Thunkfish, the blues is always there. I don’t think I could hide it even if I wanted to.” Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
In Focus: Francesca Simon’s exhibition, The Spaces Between, at Ryedale Folk Museum, until June 29, and Platform A Gallery, Middlesbrough, until June 19
Check C, by Francesca Simon, 2022, at Ryedale Folk Museum
FRANCESCA Simon’s bold new art exhibition is running simultaneously at two venues: her series Check Works at Ryedale Folk Museum’s Art Gallery, Hutton-le-Hole, and Goaf Works at Platform A Gallery in Middlesbrough.
The Spaces Between invites visitors to experience vibrant geometric abstractions, made in and engendered partly by the landscape of the North York Moors that surrounds Francesca’s Glaisdale studio.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to be able to exhibit across these two galleries simultaneously. The paintings and drawings shown here originally grew out of the hours I spent walking in Glaisdale during lockdown,” says Francesca.
“These works feature intense, bright colours, which I used consciously to create uplifting works. I wanted people to feel their spirits rise when they looked at them. The more austere later works demand an intense analysis of structure.”
Glaisdale artist Francesca Simon
Ryedale Folk Museum director Jennifer Smith says: “We’re delighted to share this exhibition with visitors. Francesca’s work resonates deeply in this region. Through precise, geometric artworks, Francesca has distilled our beautiful North York Moors and brought her unique perspective to the landscape we know and love.”
Francesca’s relationship with both galleries spans more than ten years, beginning with her involvement in the group show Making Matters at Platform A Gallery in 2014.
Gallery director Tony Charles says: “A decade ago, Francesca delighted audiences inourregion, showcasing her characteristic and beautiful precision. Now, in The Spaces Between, we see her rigorous investigations endure and the strong identification with the landscape continuing to be so significant within her work”.
Working within the distinctive moorland setting, Francesca acknowledges a visual filtering process where the organic colours, lines and textures around her are translated into bold, structured compositions.
In Check Works, arrangements of right-angled or half-square triangles are disrupted by horizontal bars to create playful, almost musical compositions.
Goaf 1, by Francesca Simon, 2025, at Platform A Gallery, Middlesbrough
The body of work at Platform A, monochrome in tone apart from dashes of colour in the horizontal bars, is a development from the work at Ryedale. In these paintings, her particular focus includes the goaf or void remaining after the collapse of mined-out areas, a feature of 19th-century ironstone mining in North Yorkshire, and, latterly, the triangles observed in Indian stepwells. Works such as Cross Cut, Sky Seam and Cobalt Base 1 and 2 explore these themes.
Describing the new exhibition as “exciting contemporary art”, Jennifer says: “What Francesca does in such a compelling way is to translate experiences that are familiar to us – like a walk on the moors, light on trees – into striking abstract forms.”
Francesca holds a BA from the University of Cambridge and an MA in Fine Art Painting from Central Saint Martins. Her art is held in prestigious collections such as the Government Art Collection, Newnham College, Cambridge, and the Tim Sayer Collection, bequeathed to the Hepworth Wakefield. Her work has been exhibited at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition on several occasions..
Both venues offer free admission to The Spaces Between. Ryedale Folk Museum’s Art Gallery is open Saturday to Thursday, from 10am to 5pm (closed on Fridays); Platform A Gallery, Tuesday to Friday, 11am to 4pm, or by appointment (www.platformagallery.net).
Pease in our time: John Pease tops bill at Patch’s new Funny Fridays comedy forum at the Bonding Warehouse
A NEW comedy night in a bygone location and Shakespeare on a council estate stand out in Charles Hutchinson’s picks for cultural exploration.
Laughter launch of the week: Funny Fridays, Patch, Bonding Warehouse, Terry Avenue, York, May 9, doors 7pm for 7.30pm start
LIVE comedy returns to the Bonding Warehouse for the first time since the days of the late Mike Bennett presenting the likes of Lee Evans and Ross Noble under the Comedy Shack banner. Stand up for Funny Fridays, hosted by York humorist Katie Lingo (alias copywriter Katie Taylor-Thompson) with an introductory price of £6.50.
On her first bill will be Kenny Watt, Tuiya Tembo, BBC New Comedy Awards semi-finalist Matty Oxley, Saeth Wheeler and Edinburgh Fringe Gilded Balloon semi-finalist John Pease. Box office: eventbrite.co.uk/e/funny-fridays-at-patch-tickets.
Sean Heydon: Magical sleight of hand at the Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club tonight
Magical comedy gig of the week: Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club presents Sean Heydon, Big Lou, Oliver Bowler and MC Damion Larkin, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, tonight, 8pm
LAUGH Out Loud headliner Sean Heydon has performed to A-list celebrities and blue-chip companies, as well as at comedy clubs, with his combination of madcap comedy, sleight-of-hand magic and illusions for more than 15 years.
Big Lou offers a modern twist on old-school joke telling in the Les Dawson style; comedian, actor and writer Oliver Bowler discusses life experiences on the mean streets of Bolton; regular host and promoter Damion Larkin keeps order. Box office: 01904 612940 or lolcomedyclubs.co.uk.
Anastacia: Playing York Barbican on her Not That Kind 25th anniversary tour
Anniversary tour of the week: Anastacia, Not That Kind Tour, York Barbican, Sunday, 7.45pm
CHICAGO singer-songwriter Anastacia , 56, heads to York on her European tour marking the 25th anniversary of her debut album Not That Kind and its breakthrough hit I’m Outta Love.
Further singles Not That Kind, Paid My Dues, One Day In Your Life, Left Outside Alone and Sick And Tired charted too, as did 2001 album Freak Of Nature (reaching number four) and 2004’s chart-topping Anastacia, 2005’s Pieces Of A Dream, 2008’s Heavy Rotation, 2014’s Resurrection and 2015’s Ultimate Collection Her special guest will be Casey McQuillen. Box office: for returns only, yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Newton Faulkner: Unveiling new songs from his upcoming Octopus album at The Crescent, York
“No technological funny business” of the week: Newton Faulkner, Feels Like Home Tour 3, The Crescent, York, Sunday, 7.30pm
LET Reigate singer-songwriter Newton Faulkner describe his York gig: “Folks, I give you the Feels Like Home Tour 3. We’re talking no technological funny business in my set-up. I love switching my focus back to just playing and singing. I also cannot wait to introduce you properly to the new material and my new head.”
Often Faulkner has found himself in his home studio working solo, but not for this next record, nor for this tour. His new phase is full of collaboration, one where “seeing these songs come to life on stage is going to be nothing short of joyous” ahead of the September 19 release of Octopus. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape on his return to York Theatre Royal after 45 years. Picture: Gisele Schmidt
York theatre event of the year: Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape, York Theatre Royal, until May 17
OSCAR winner Gary Oldman returns to York Theatre Royal, where he made his professional debut in 1979, to perform Samuel Beckett’s melancholic, tragicomic slice of theatre of the absurd Krapp’s Last Tape in his first stage appearance since 1989.
“York, for me, is the completion of a cycle,” says the Slow Horses leading man. “It is the place ‘where it all began’. York, in a very real sense, for me, is coming home. The combination of York and Krapp’s Last Tape is all the more poignant because it is ‘a play about a man returning to his past of 30 years earlier’.” Tickets update: check availability of returns on 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
York musician Steve Cassidy: Once he worked with John Barry and producer Joe Meek, now he plays with his mates on regular nights at the JoRo
Return of the week: Steve Cassidy Band, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Sunday, 7.30pm
YORK singer, songwriter, guitarist and former head teacher Steve Cassidy will be joined by special guests when he lines up as usual with John Lewis on lead guitar, Mick Hull on bass guitar, ukulele, guitar and vocals, Brian Thomson on percussion and George Hall on keyboards.
Expect rock and country songs, as well as instrumental pieces, selected especially for this evening. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Mark Holgate’s Oberon and Suzy Cooper’s Titania, centre, with Sam Roberts’s Demetrius, left, Amy Domeneghetti’s Helena, Will Parsons’ Lysander and Meg Olssen’s Hermia in York Stage’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Reinvented play of the week: York Stage in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Grand Opera House, York, May 6 to 11, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday matinees
YORK pantomime golden gal Suzy Cooper turns Fairy Queen Titania opposite York-born Royal Shakespeare Company actor Mark Holgate’s Fairy King Oberon in Nik Briggs’s debut Shakespeare production for York Stage.
In his first co-production with the Cumberland Street theatre, Briggs relocates the Bard’s most-performed comedy from the court of Athens to Athens Court, a northern council estate, where magic is fuelled with mayhem and true love’s bumpy path is played out to a new score by musical director Stephen Hackshaw and Nineties and Noughties’ dancefloor fillers, sung by May Tether. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Katherine Toy in rehearsals for AKA Theatre’s The Flood, on tour in York, Hull and Leeds. Picture: Cian O’Riain
Premiere of the week: AKA Theatre Company in The Flood: A Musical, Friargate Theatre, York, May 9 and 10, 7.30pm; Godber Studio, Hull Truck Theatre, Hull, May 13, 7pm; Leeds Playhouse Burton Studio, May 14 and 15, 8pm
AKA Theatre Company’s premiere of Lucie Raine and Joe Revell’s musical The Flood blends live music and heartfelt storytelling based on true accounts of facing up to disaster in West Yorkshire in 2015.
“This is a story about what it means to come together when everything falls apart,” says writer-director Raine, who uses a cast of five actor-musicians. “It’s not just a play. It’s a tribute to resilience and creativity, inspired by Hebden Bridge and its people. It’s a celebration for all communities who have faced adversity and emerged stronger.” Box office: York, ticketsource.co.uk; Hull, hulltruck.co.uk; Leeds, leedsplayhouse.org.uk.
Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox: Putting the retro into today’s hits at York Barbican
Nostalgia for today: Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox: Magic & Moonlight Tour 2025, York Barbican, May 7, doors 7pm
AFTER chalking off their 1,000th show, retro collective Postmodern Jukebox are on the British leg of their Moonlight & Magic world tour. Enter a parallel universe where modern-day hits are reimagined in 1920s’ jazz, swing, doo-wop and Motown arrangements. Think The Great Gatsby meets Sinatra At The Sands meets Back To The Future. Dress vintage for the full effect. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
In Focus: York Late Music, Unitarian Chapel, St Saviourgate, York, Stuart O’Hara & Marianna Cortesi, today at 1pm; Trio Agile and Northern School of Contemporary Dance, today at 7.30pm
Stuart O’Hara & Marianna Cortesi
YORK Late Music plays host to two concerts today, the first featuring bass Stuart O’Hara and pianist Marianna Cortesi this afternoon as Sounds Lyrical presents settings of poets Hugh Bernays, John Gilham, Richard Kitchen and Alan Gillott by composers Thomas J Crawley, Robert Holden, Jenny Jackson, Katie Lang, Dawn Walters and James Else.
The concert comprises: Elizabeth Lutyens’ Refugee Blues (Auden); David Blake’s Morning Sea (CP Cavafy); Dawn Walters’ Pre-dawn (Richard Kitchen); Jenny Jackson’s Collecting Stones (Richard Kitchen); Robert Holden’s Flaneur (John Gilham) and Katie Laing’s Maker (Richard Kitchen).
Then come Thomas J Crawley’s Leather Heart (Hugh Bernays); James Else’s Retras IV (Alan Gillott); Tim Brooks’s Jeer (Lizzie Linklater); David Blake’s Voices (CP Cavafy) and Stephen Dodgson’s Various Australian Bush Ballads, 2nd Series. The programme also includes music by David Blake and Elizabeth Lutyens.
Northern School of Contemporary Dance dancer Antonio Bukhar Ssebuuma: Performing with Trio Agile tonight
TONIGHT’S concert marks a first collaboration between York Late Music and the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Trio Agile and NSCD’s Freedom Dances programme.
Bringing together the freedoms of dance, music and rhythm, Trio Agile combine their experimental flair and improvisatory talent with four dancers from the Leeds school, Antonio Bukhar Ssebuuma, Darcy Bodle, Genevieve Wright and Maya Donne.
The 7.30pm performance blends a range of styles from across the globe in a shared expression of the power and joy of the arts, including new works from Indian composer and performer Supriya Nagarajan, Angela Elizabeth Slater, David Lancaster, Steve Crowther, David Power, Athena Corcoran-Tadd and James Else.
Curated by James Else in partnership with the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, the programme comprises: Susie Hodder-Williams & Chris Caldwell, Prelude; Angela Elizabeth Slater, Weaving Colours; Paul Honey, Une Valse Assez Triste; James Else, Freedom Dances and David Lancaster, The Compendium Of Ingenious Mechanical Devices.
Then follow Susie Hodder-Williams & Chris Caldwell, Pas de Deux; Tom Armstrong, Aunt Maria’s Dancing Master; Paul Honey, Pizzìca; Athena Corcoran-Tadd, To You; Supriya Nagarajan, Mohanam Raga; Steve Crowther, Once Upon A Time Harlequin Met His Columbine; David Power, Something In Our Skies; Susie Hodder-Williams & Chris Caldwell, Light Dances and Athena Corcoran-Tadd , Hope Is A Boat.
The musicians will be: Susie Hodder-Williams, flutes; Chris Caldwell, saxophone and bass clarinet; Richard Horne, vibraphone and percussion; Supriya Nagarajan, voice, and Paul Honey, piano.
Chris Caldwell, Susie Hodder-Williams and composer James Else will give a pre-concert talk at 6.45pm with a complimentary glass of wine or juice.
Tickets are on sale at latemusic.org or on the door.
In Focus: The Wedding Present return to Leeds University roots to play Stylus on May 9, 7.30pm
Returning home: Former Mathematics degree student David Gedge outside Leeds University Union, where he will lead The Wedding Present in a 40th anniversary performance at Stylus
DAVID Gedge returns to Leeds University with The Wedding Present, playing Stylus to mark 40 years since he formed the band in his days of studying Mathematics on the campus.
Billed as “Back To Where It All Began”, this Leeds University Union gig brought David back north from his Brighton home on April 14 to re-visit early landmarks in The Wedding Present story to promote both this anniversary celebration and York writer-director Matt Aston’s upcoming musical Reception, inspired by Gedge’s songs for The Wedding Present and Cinerama. More on that August 22 to September 6 show at The Warehouse, Slung Low’s theatre space in Holbeck, later.
The Stylus gig will be the first of two Yorkshire engagements for The Wedding Present in quick succession. On May 10, Gedge’s band will be hooking up with Peter Hook & The Light (Best of Joy Division & New Order) The Farm and Spear Of Destiny on the Interzone bill at Scarborough Spa.
“We did it in Newcastle last year too. It seems to be Peter Hook’s festival – Interzone is a Joy Division song, isn’t it,” says David. Doors open at 4pm with tickets available at seetickets.com and scarboroughspa.co.uk.
Charles HutchPressmet up with David on the day of the photo-shoot, over a light bite in the university student union refectory, the scene of many a gig down the years.
“If I’m honest with you, I studied Mathematics here because I found it quite easy,” he says. “I remember at school finding Maths lessons a doddle. I just clicked with it. My other A-levels were Biology and Physics, and I never knew how I would then use it, but being in a band band is what I’d always wanted to do, really from the age of five, where there are photographs of me playing the recorder, pretending to be in a band.
“From schooldays onwards, I was always in bands. The simple answer is I never decided to do it; it was just always going to be the case. I thought, ‘I’ll go to university, doing Maths will be dead easy and I’ll have a lot of time to do other things’.
“It turned out to be more difficult than I expected and a lot of work, so I kind of regretted doing it – but I got a 2.2, then started to do a MSc, but then the band took off.”
Rising from the ashes of The Lost Pandas, The Wedding Present “kind of existed from 1983-84 but with different line-ups”. The first single, Go Out And Get ‘Em, Boy!, emerged in May 1985 – hence this 40th anniversary gig – with vocalist and guitarist Gedge and bassist Keith Gregory by then being joined by fellow Leeds University alumni Peter Solowka (guitar) and Shaun Charman (drums).
“Actually our first gig was in Allerton Bywater, a mining village half an hour from here, at The Shires Club. The second, third and fourth were here, at the university. We’ve played the Refectory at least once, maybe twice; the Tartan Bar, the R H Evans Lounge and the Riley Smith Hall, as we were getting bigger.
“This will be the first time we’ve played Stylus. We haven’t played the university for years, as we usually play either the O2 Academy or, for a smaller gig, the Brudenell Social Club.”
David has never kept count of how many musicians have passed through the Wedding Present ranks in the past four decades. “I don’t know how you define it, because sometimes you need a stand-in and we’ve had musicians come in as extra players,” he says.
At Stylus, David will be fronting a line-up he had had in place for a couple of years: Vincenzo Lammi on drums; Paul Blackburn on bass and Rachael Wood on guitars (and vocals too). “Weirdly, like me, they’re all based in Brighton, though Vinny is from Sheffield, Paul, from Southport, and Rachael, from Derby, so we’re all northerners. Brighton’s a nice place to be, but it’s expensive.”
Playing in The Wedding Present after 40 years “feels the same”. “It hasn’t changed. The strange thing is, if it’s 40 years, you think of The Rolling Stones or Status Quo, but actually, no, it’s The Wedding Present now.
“Rock’n’roll was a youth culture, but those who who enjoy it now are our age and are still going to gigs, so the whole genre has grown.”
Climb every mountain: Rebecca Jackson in the role of Maria in Steve Tearle’s production of The Sound Of Music for NE Theatre York
THE spring weather may be perking up, but Charles Hutchinson still finds reasons aplenty to stay in the dark for cultural satisfaction.
York musical of the week: NE Theatre York in The Sound Of Music, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, until Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
IN its centenary year, members of Strensall Women’s Institute have accepted NE Theatre York creative director Steve Tearle’s invitation to play the abbey nuns in this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical.
The show brings back special memories for Tearle, who played Kurt Von Trapp at the age of 11 in a professional tour in his first role in any show. This time he plays his favourite part, Max Detweiler. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Cracking the whip: Carrie Hope Fletcher’s Calamity Jane in Calamity Jane, on tour at the Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Mark Senior
Whip-cracking touring musical of the week: Calamity Jane, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Thursday and Saturday matinees
WEST End leading lady Carrie Hope Fletcher takes the title role of fearless, gun-slinging Calamity Jane, the biggest mouth in Dakota territory and always up for a fight, in North Yorkshireman Nikolai Foster’s touring production, based on the cherished 1953 Doris Day movie.
When the men of Deadwood fall hard for Chicago stage star Adelaid Adams, Calamity struggles to keep her jealousy holstered. Here come The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away), The Black Hills Of Dakota, Just Blew In From The Windy City and Secret Love in this Watermill Theatre production, choreographed by Nick Winston. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Got it taped: Gary Oldman with the reel-to-reel tape machine in Krapp’s Last Tape at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Gisele Schmidt
York theatre event of the year: Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape, York Theatre Royal, until May 17
OSCAR winner Gary Oldman returns to York Theatre Royal, where he made his professional debut in 1979, to perform Samuel Beckett’s melancholic, tragicomic slice of theatre of the absurd Krapp’s Last Tape in his first stage appearance since 1989.
“York, for me, is the completion of a cycle,” says the Slow Horses leading man. “It is the place ‘where it all began’. York, in a very real sense, for me, is coming home. The combination of York and Krapp’s Last Tape is all the more poignant because it is ‘a play about a man returning to his past of 30 years earlier’.” Tickets update: check availability of returns on 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Andy Bell: New songs, solo favourites and Erasure hits at York Barbican tonight
York gig of the week: Andy Bell, Ten Crowns Tour, York Barbican, tonight, 7.30pm
ERASURE singer Andy Bell opens his tour at York Barbican on the eve of Friday’s release of his third solo album, Ten Crowns, ten tracks of dazzling, joyous pop, produced and polished in Nashville, inspired by the dancefloor and gospel, available on vinyl, CD (standard and 2CD versions), gold cassette and digitally via Crown Recordings.
Bell’s set combines new compositions with favourites from his solo catalogue and Erasure hits aplenty. His band features his principal Ten Crowns collaborator and co-writer, Grammy-winning American producer Dave Audé, who opens tomorrow’s show with a DJ set. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Guitar Legends: Terrific riffs galore at Milton Rooms, Malton
Tribute show of the week: Guitar Legends, Milton Rooms, Malton, Friday, 8pm,
GUITAR Legends celebrates the music of iconic guitarists such as Eric Clapton, Prince, Gary Moore, Mark Knopfler and Jimi Hendrix.
Through a blend of live music, visuals and anecdotes, the show takes a journey through rock history, showcasing tenor vocal prowess and guitar virtuosity. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
Learlike: Greensleeved tell Shakespeare’s tragedy of King Lear from the distaff side at York International Shakespeare Festival
Festival of the week: York International Shakespeare Festival presents Greensleeved in Learlike, York St John University Creative Centre Auditorium, Saturday, 2pm
GREENSLEEVED, a female-led pan-European ensemble, premiere their show Learlike in York, presenting Shakespeare’s tragedy of King Lear but this time told by his daughters. These tyrant-children are newly in power but old in their ability for manipulation and deceit. Or are they? Even in the most corrupt homes the roots of resistance grow deep.
Greensleeved comprises performers who met at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland: Amber Frances (Belgium), Ariela Nazar-Rosen (Poland/USA), Lucy Doig (Scotland), Julia Vredenberg (Norway) and Cecilia Thoden van Velzen (Netherlands). For the full programme to May 4 and tickets, head to: yorkshakes.co.uk.
Rob Auton: Any eyeful tower of ocular comedy at Leeds City Varieties Music Hall
The eyes have it: Rob Auton: The Eyes Open And Shut Show, Leeds City Varieties Music Hall, Saturday, 7.30pm
“THE Eyes Open And Shut Show is a show about eyes when they are open and eyes when they are shut,” says surrealist Barmby Moor/York comedian, writer, artist, podcaster and actor Rob Auton. “With this show I wanted to explore what I could do to myself and others with language when eyes are open and shut…thinking about what makes me open my eyes and what makes me shut them.” Box office: 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.
Scouting For Girls: Heading for York and Leeds in 2026
Gig announcement of the week: Scouting For Girls, York Barbican, March 17 and Leeds O2 Academy, March 24 2026
LONDON trio Scouting For Girls will accompany the 2026 release of a new studio album with a 22-date tour that takes in York Barbican and Leeds O2 Academy next March. General ticket sales open at 10am on Friday at yorkbarbican.co.uk and academymusicgroup.com.
Roy Stride, vocals, piano and guitar, Greg Churchouse, bass guitar, and James Rowlands, drums, last payed York Barbican in October 2021. Next year’s shows will mark the 15th anniversary of their Everybody Wants To Be On TV album too.
Guy Kelton Jones: Fronting The James Brown Experience in York, Harrogate and Bradford
THE James Brown Family Foundation is teaming up with The James Brown Experience for a 12-date autumn tour that will visit York Barbican on October 1, Royal Hall, Harrogate, on October 3 and St George’s Hall, Bradford, on October 9.
Promoted by Cuffe & Taylor, this immersive concert experience “goes beyond imitation” to bring to life the songs, dance grooves and back story of the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. Tickets are on sale at CuffeandTaylor.com; yorkbarbican.co.uk/whats-on/the-james-brown-experience/; harrogatetheatre.co.uk or 01423 502116 and bradford-theatres.co.uk.
Founded for charitable and educational purposes in April 2007 by Brown’s daughter, Dr Deanna Brown-Thomas, the James Brown Family Foundation seeks to build on her father’s legacy of charitable giving in many communities around the United States and to see the world as Brown did, bringing hope to those who are less fortunate.
The foundation says: “This production not only honours James Brown’s extraordinary musical legacy, but it also reflects his creativity, hard work and passion. We are thrilled to see this show bring his legacy and sound to new audiences.
“Our commission is to expand James Brown’s vision, touching those here at home and around the world to assist underprivileged children and impoverished families through our initiatives and projects.”
The James Brown Experience celebrates Brown’s impact on music, culture and civil rights, capturing his electrifying energy, soul-power voice and dynamic moves in a night of high-octane dance numbers, heart-wrenching ballads and timeless soul and funk classics.
As well as revelling in such hits as I Feel Good, It’s A Man’s Man’s Man’s World, Get Up Offa That Thing, Sex Machine and Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag, the show also explores the life and soul of the South Carolina-born singer, songwriter, dancer, musician and record producer in his own words.
The James Brown Experience features The New Soul Generals, a nine-piece funk orchestra whose musicians have toured with Jamiroquai, Mark Ronson, Amy Winehouse and Martha Reeves.
Out front will be Guy Kelton Jones, tasked with matching the standards of “the Hardest Working Man in showbusiness” in his rasping vocals and itchy-footed moves. Like Brown, he was raised in Georgia.
In the dock: Tigerslane Studios’ cast for the prosecution and defence in Murder Trial Tonight III – The Doorstep Case at York Barbican and Sheffield City Hall
“THIS isn’t just a theatre play; it’s a social experiment,” says Graham Watts, West End director of the courtroom drama series Murder Trial Tonight. “We aim to challenge perceptions and engage our audience in a way that goes beyond traditional theatre.”
Welcome to Tigerslane Studios’ third season of Murder Trial Tonight – The Doorstep Case, wherein storytellers, technicians and performers break down the fourth wall and bring a true-crime story to life, on tour at York Barbican tomorrow night and Sheffield City Hall on Wednesday, both at 7pm.
In case number three, a mother returns home in the early hours of the morning after a night out celebrating her birthday, only to find her daughter murdered on her doorstep. The daughter’s boyfriend has been charged with the murder. Is he guilty of murder or is the killer still at large? Book your seat on jury service now to decide – and then learn if you were right.
The show begins on screen, giving the backdrop and opening to the case, followed by a live murder trial, immersing the audience in a fast-paced courtroom experience, wherein they play a crucial role as members of the jury.
What happens? Both the prosecution and defence will present their cases and cross-examine witnesses, whereupon the audience will deliberate and deliver their verdict: Guilty or Not Guilt? At the end of the trial, footage of the murder will be revealed. Did the jury deliver the right verdict? All will be revealed on the night.
Please note, each season’s trial is based on a true story, with a disclaimer that names, events and dates have been altered for dramatisation purposes.
Court is in session tomorrow in York, where the Tigerslane Studios cast will include Joshua Welch, who studied writing, directing and performance in the University of York’s department of theatre, film and television from 2013 to 2016 and later gained a Masters in acting from the Drama Centre, London.
“I was in the University of York Drama Society’s project at Clifford’s Tower , where we performed a play by lecturer Lisa Peschel, based on research of theatrical performance in the Second World War Jewish ghetto at Theresienstadt,” he recalls.
Courtroom drama: True crime case plays out at York Barbican and Sheffield City Hall with the audience on jury service
“Recently I came back to the university to attend Michael Cordner’s farewell lecture and did a few performances on the campus but that’s the only time I’ve been back to York since leaving university.”
How did Joshua, 30, land a role in Murder Trial Tonight III? “One of my best friends, Lauren Moakes, who studied at York at the same time as me, was in last year’s cast for Murder Trial Tonight II and told me about the show,” he says. “I auditioned around Christmas and started rehearsals in January.”
Originally from Sheffield, Joshua lives in London, where he is an associate artist and performer for Kelly Hunter’s Flute Theatre, a company that makes Shakespeare shows adapted for performance to people with autism, with a focus on feeling and emotion. “We play to an audience of 12, who sit in a circle with the actors, who have met them that day,” he says.
“The whole play is acted out in a sensory drama game with each audience member getting a chance to play a part, and they age from seven to 70s.
“The performance is more about the atmosphere in each scene, which can be lacking in some plays, but in Shakespeare, the feeling is so different between each scene.”
Now Joshua is entering the world of crime for Murder Trial Tonight III. “I’ve always loved Agatha Christie, but this is different because it’s based on true events, without the big Christie revelation at the end,” says Josh.
“The audience has the power to change the whole thing , which will vary from night to night because it’s a fully live court case, where you hear from the prosecution in the first half and the defence case in the second, followed by the closing case from the prosecution and the defence.
The poster for Tigerslane Studios’ Murder Trial Tonight III – The Doorstep Case
“Then it’s completely up to the audience to decide if the defendant is guilty or not guilty, and it makes you realise how difficult it is to decide when there’s a ten-minute deliberation after the case and you hear people discussing what they think has or hasn’t happened.
“At the end [after they each give their verdict with the aid of a QR code and app] the percentage of the vote is revealed – and we find out how many people got it right or wrong.”
Joshua, who takes the part of witness for the prosecution Eddie Harper, has never served on a jury. “Doing Murder Trial Tonight makes you aware what a big responsibility it is to be on a jury, and each case highlights how important it is for both the prosecution and defence to deliver the case so that a verdict can be reached beyond reasonable doubt.”
You will not that tomorrow’s performance is not in a traditional theatre – or court house, for that matter – but at York Barbican, a venue more associated with concerts and comedy. “It’s been a great acting experience, the ‘gig’ nature of it, where the venues are so different and you have to adjust to the space,” says Joshua.
“It’s fun to do, presenting the case, where my character has a way he wants the case to go where everyone will say ‘he’s telling the truth’, trying to convince people of that. Interestingly, some nights you find you’ll play it differently: sometimes you have to focus on what you’re saying, not on what the audience are thinking, how they’re reacting.
“I like playing the halls because the spaces are vast, so it feels intimidating, which matches how nervous people can be when they take the oath to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth in court.”
Joshua is delighted to be back on home Yorkshire soil at York Barbican tomorrow and Sheffield City Hall on Wednesday. “It will be a lovely walk down memory lane for me,” he says.
Tigerslane Studios presents Murder Trial Tonight III – The Doorstep Case, York Barbican, April 29, 7pm. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk. Also: Sheffield City Hall Oval Hall, April 30, 7pm. Box office: ticketmaster.co.uk/murder-trial-tonight-3-the-doorstep-sheffield-30-04-2025/.
Carrie Hope Fletcher’s Calamity Jane in Nikolai Foster’s touring production of Sammy Fain’s musical at the Grand Opera House, York
WEST End leading lady, author and vlogger Carrie Hope Fletcher returns to York from tomorrow to Saturday in the title role in Calamity Jane at the Grand Opera House – much to her mum’s delight.
Something about the gun-slingin’, tough-talkin’, hard-ridin’ frontierswoman immortalised by Doris Day in the 1953 film made her reckon it was a role that Carrie was born to play.
How could she say No when the offer came through to the 32-year-old South Harrow actress, whose credits include Éponine and Fantine in Les Misérables; Veronica Sawyer in the original West End production of Heathers: The Musical; Wednesday in The Addams Family; Beth in the arena tour of The War Of The Worlds and originating the role of Cinderella in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella.
“My mum had always said I would be a good Calamity Jane, and through the entirety of my adult career she has always said she would love to see my playing the part,” says Carrie. “It’s her dream role for me. So I looked into it and listened to the songs and watched the movie starring Doris Day and fell in love with it. Doris is such an icon. Though I did have to prepare my mum not to get her hopes up as things do fall through and you never know what might happen.”
“It’s so wonderful Calamity is not just an ingenue or the soppy romantic or just a comedy character, she is all of it,” says Carrie Hope Fletcher
Mum knows best, however! Since January, Carrie has been leading North Yorkshireman Nikolai Foster’s cast in the good-hearted Western musical comedy, following the likes of Carol Burnett, Barbara Windsor, novelist Lynda La Plante, Toyah Willcox and Jodie Prenger, who played Calamity on its last Grand Opera House visit in February 2015.
Carrie loves how the fearless, feisty Calamity pushes her as a performer. “I am relatively new to the whole world of Calamity Jane, but it’s a dream role in terms of her as a character,” she says of a whip-crackin’ woman “prone to making a few blunders and mistakes”. “She is the romantic lead, gets a great love story, has an amazing female friendship with Katie Brown and gets all the cracking, belty numbers.
“She ticks all of those boxes and it’s so wonderful she’s not just an ingenue or the soppy romantic or just a comedy character, she is all of it. Parts like that are really rare and she has been great fun to get to know.”
The subject of femininity plays out in Calamity’s relationship with Wild Bill Hickok, the Howard Keel-originated role now played by Vinny Coyle. “There are conversations between her and Wild Bill where he says ‘Why can’t you be more feminine?’,” says Carrie. “She goes through a Cinderella story finding it, but ultimately ends up going back to who she is comfortable as, and being loved and accepted for it. And it’s all hidden within this funny, farcical story.”
Carrie Hope Fletcher: West End leading lady, musical theatre singer, author, vlogger and sister of McFly’s Tom Fletcher
She is not daunted by singing songs such as The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away) and Secret Love forever associated with Doris Day. “I have a good mindset about the pressure that comes with that,” she says. “You can’t please everyone as everyone has different versions of what they want the character to be. If you tried to please people, you would come up with this warped version that isn’t anyone’s dream version.
“I feel like I have been entrusted with the role and I need to be the one to decide who this version of Calamity Jane is. And if people don’t like it, they don’t like it. But if they do, it means all the more.”
Alongside her theatre work, Carrie has published a series of books for young people and accrued more than 500,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel and hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers. She last appeared in York last October in Love Letters, her exploration in song of all forms of love, from romantic to maternal, unrequited to obsessive, at York Barbican.
As always, she found joy in singing, joy that transferred to the audience too. “That’s what people latch on to. Maybe the joy I get from it separates me from others. That’s what people connect to,” she says. “I do think that musical theatre is based in expressing emotion, and if you’re not feeling it one night, then it won’t transmit to the audience.”
The tour poster for Calamity Jane starring Carrie Hope Fletcher
Now her focus is on being on the road in Calamity Jane for the best part of a year, necessitating being away from her husband, fellow performer Joel Montague, and their daughter, Mabel, who will join her for some of the dates, however.
If juggling motherhood and appearing in a major tour were not enough, Carrie has mastered a new skill while working on Calamity Jane. Her cast cohorts are actor-musicians, and not one to be left out, she can be spotted picking up an instrument – a somewhat unusual one.
“I got the coconuts to play,” she says. “I am the horse! So while everyone else is incredibly talented with the saxophone and the trumpet and cello, I’ll be focusing on the coconuts.”
Calamity Jane, Grand Opera House, York, April 29 to May 3, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm matinees. Box office: atgtickets.com/york
Gary Oldman in the York Theatre Royal auditorium, where his production of Krapp’s Last Tape is in its second week. Picture: Gisele Schmidt
FANCY serving on a jury in a true crime thriller? Find out how in Charles Hutchinson’s guide to going out.
York theatre event of the year: Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape, York Theatre Royal, until May 17
OSCAR winner Gary Oldman returns to York Theatre Royal, where he made his professional debut in 1979, to perform Samuel Beckett’s melancholic, tragicomic slice of theatre of the absurd Krapp’s Last Tape in his first stage appearance since 1989.
“York, for me, is the completion of a cycle,” says the Slow Horses leading man. “It is the place ‘where it all began’. York, in a very real sense, for me, is coming home. The combination of York and Krapp’s Last Tape is all the more poignant because it is ‘a play about a man returning to his past of 30 years earlier’.” Tickets update: check availability of returns on 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
James Bond Concert Spectacular: Celebrating the music of the long-running film series. Picture: Bryan Marshall
Film music event of the week James Bond Concert Spectacular, Grand Opera House, York, Sunday, 7.30pm
CAROLINE Bliss, who played Moneypenny in The Living Daylightsand Licence To Kill, will be the compere for Q The Music’s James Bond Concert Spectacular, sharing anecdotes from her film appearances.
Focusing not only on Bond theme songs, such as Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, Live And Let Die and Nobody Does It Better, the show also pays homage to the complete canon, covering chase music, incidental cues and suites from across the series. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
You are the jury: Murder Trial Tonight III, in court at York Barbican on Tuesday
Courtroom drama of the week: Tigerslane Studios presents Murder Trial Tonight III – The Doorstep Case, York Barbican, April 29, 7pm
“THIS isn’t just a theatre play; it’s a social experiment,” says Murder Trial Tonight’s West End director, Graham Watts. “We aim to challenge perceptions and engage our audience in a way that goes beyond traditional theatre.”
Welcome to Tigerslane Studios’third season of Murder Trial Tonight – The Doorstep Case, wherein storytellers, technicians and performers break down the fourth wall and bring true-crime stories to life. The show begins on screen, giving the backdrop to the case, followed by a live murder trial, with the audience as the jury. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Carrie Hope Fletcher: Shooting from the hip and lip in Calamity Jane at the Grand Opera House, York
Whip-cracking musical of the week: Calamity Jane, Grand Opera House, York, April 29 to May 3, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees
WEST End leading lady Carrie Hope Fletcher takes the title role of fearless, gun-slinging Calamity Jane, the biggest mouth in Dakota territory and always up for a fight, in North Yorkshireman Nikolai Foster’s touring production, based on the cherished 1953 Doris Day movie.
When the men of Deadwood fall hard for Chicago stage star Adelaid Adams, Calamity struggles to keep her jealousy holstered. Here come The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away), The Black Hills Of Dakota, Just Blew In From The Windy City and Secret Love in this Watermill Theatre production, choreographed by Nick Winston with musical supervision by Olivier, Grammy and Tony Award winner Catherine Jayes. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Karine Polwart’s poster artwork for her Feather & Ether Tour show at Pocklington Arts Centre
Folk gig of the week: Karine Polwart, Feather & Ether Tour, Pocklington Arts Centre, April 30, 8pm
THIS year marks 25 years since Karine Polwart embraced a full-time career as a Scottish folk singer and 20 years since she scooped three BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards with her debut solo album Faultlines.
Her Feather & Ether Tour is a rare chance to enjoy her in intimate, conversational solo performance. Expect a clutch of new songs and wonder tales and an night of curiosity and compassion from Polwart, songwriter, theatre-maker, broadcaster and storyteller, whose work evokes a richness of place, hidden histories, scientific enquiry and folklore. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.
Learlike: King Lear re-told from the distaff side in the UK premiere at the York International Shakespeare Festival
Festival of the week: York International Shakespeare Festival presents Greensleeved in Learlike, York St John University Creative Centre Auditorium, May 3, 2pm
GREENSLEEVED, a female-led pan-European ensemble, premiere their show Learlike in York, presenting Shakespeare’s tragedy of King Lear but this time told by his daughters. These tyrant-children are newly in power but old in their ability for manipulation and deceit. Or are they? Even in the most corrupt homes the roots of resistance grow deep.
Greensleeved comprises performers who met at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland: Amber Frances (Belgium), Ariela Nazar-Rosen (Poland/USA), Lucy Doig (Scotland), Julia Vredenberg (Norway) and Cecilia Thoden van Velzen (Netherlands). For the full programme to May 4 and tickets, head to: yorkshakes.co.uk.
Rob Auton: Any eyeful tower of ocular comedy at Leeds City Varieties Music Hall
The eyes have it: Rob Auton: The Eyes Open And Shut Show, Leeds City Varieties Music Hall, May 3, 7.30pm
“THE Eyes Open And Shut Show is a show about eyes when they are open and eyes when they are shut,” says surrealist York/Barmby Moor comedian, writer, artist, podcaster and actor Rob Auton. “With this show I wanted to explore what I could do to myself and others with language when eyes are open and shut…thinking about what makes me open my eyes and what makes me shut them.” Box office: 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.
Scouting For Girls: Heading for York and Leeds in 2026
Gig announcement of the week: Scouting For Girls, York Barbican, March 17 and Leeds O2 Academy, March 24 2026
LONDON trio Scouting For Girls will accompany the 2026 release of a new studio album with a 22-date tour that takes in York Barbican and Leeds O2 Academy next March. Fans who pre-order the Wolfcub Edition at scoutingforgirls.os.fan will receive access to a ticket pre-sale that opens at 10am on April 30. General sales follow from 10am on May 2 at yorkbarbican.co.uk and academymusicgroup.com.
Roy Stride, vocals, piano and guitar, Greg Churchouse, bass guitar, and James Rowlands, drums, last payed York Barbican in October 2021. Next year’s shows will mark the 15th anniversary of their Everybody Wants To Be On TV album too.
In Focus: NE Theatre York in The Sound Of Music, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, April 29 to May 3, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday
NE Theatre York’s cast for The Sound Of Music at the JoRo
TWO Marias, two Captain Von Trapps, three groups of Von Trapp children and multiple members of Strensall Women’s Institute, plus a dog, add up to NE Theatre York’s production of The Sound Of Music.
In its centenary year, Strensall Women’s Institute has accepted creative director Steve Tearle’s invitation to play the abbey nuns – and sing several big numbers – in the heartwarming Rodgers and Hammerstein musical.
The show brings back special memories for Tearle, who played Kurt Von Trapp at the age of 11 in a professional tour in his first stage role.
NE Theatre York creative director Steve Tearle with his dog Millie Bell
“I’ve always loved this show, and remembering my experience of it always fills me with joy. Fast forward to 2025 and I get to produce this famous musical and play my personal favourite part in the show, Max Detweiler,” says Steve, whose dog, Millie Bell, will make an appearance in the canine role of Max’s dog.
Tearle’s cast features newcomers aplenty to the stage. “NE Theatre prides itself on giving people of all ages the confidence to perform on stage, and this is the perfect opportunity with more than 20 people who have never performed before,” he says.
NE Theatre York in rehearsal for The Sound Of Music
“We’re producing the show with all the elements that everyone loves but keeping with the West End trend of scaled-back sets and using lighting effects to highlight the action. The focus, as always, will be on the talent of the actors on stage and giving everyone a moment to shine.”
Maia Beatrice and Rebecca Jackson will alternate the role of Maria while Matthew Clarke and Chris Hagyard will do likewise as Captain Von Trapp. NE Theatre stalwart Perri Anne Barley will play Mother Abbess; Ali Butler and Aileen Hall will take turns as Baroness Elsa. Tearle is joined in the production team by musical director Joe Allan.
NE Theatre’s production coincides with a brace of landmarks: the 60th anniversary of Robert Wise’s film starring Julie Andrews as the singing nun and the 90th anniversary of the Joseph Rowntree Theatre.
Rebecca Jackson in the role of Maria in Steve Tearle’s production of The Sound Of Music for NE Theatre York
Quick refresher course: The Sound Of Music is based on the real-life story of the Von Trapp family of singers, one of the world’s best known concert groups in the era immediately preceding the Second World War.
When Maria, a tomboyish postulant at an Austrian abbey, becomes governess to a widowed naval captain’s seven children, she brings a new love of life and music into the home. Among the much-loved songs are My Favourite Things, Climb Every Mountain, Do Re Mi, Sixteen Going On Seventeen, Edelweiss and The Sound of Music.
A number of tickets are being given to charities. Hurry, hurry to secure a seat as April 29, May 1 and May 2 are down to “last few tickets”, availability is limited for April 30 and both May 3 performances have sold out. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Gary Oldman in reflective mood in the dressing room as he returns to York Theatre Royal to perform Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape, now into its week of press shows. Picture: Gisele Schmidt
YORK International Shakespeare Festival’s tenth anniversary programme is among Charles Hutchinson’s recommendations as April blossoms.
York theatre event of the year: Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape, York Theatre Royal, until May 17
OSCAR winner Gary Oldman returns to York Theatre Royal, where he made his professional debut in 1979, to perform Samuel Beckett’s melancholic, tragicomic slice of theatre of the absurd Krapp’s Last Tape in his first stage appearance since 1987.
“York, for me, is the completion of a cycle,” says the Slow Horses leading man. “It is the place ‘where it all began’. York, in a very real sense, for me, is coming home. The combination of York and Krapp’s Last Tape is all the more poignant because it is ‘a play about a man returning to his past of 30 years earlier’.” Tickets update: check availability of returns and additional seats on 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Katy Stephens’ White Witch and Aslan the lion in The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, on tour at the Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Ellie Kurttz
Touring show of the week: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, Grand Opera House, York, until Saturday, 7pm plus 2pm Thursday and Saturday matinees
STEP through the wardrobe into the kingdom of Narnia for the most mystical of adventures in a faraway land. Join Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter as they wave goodbye to wartime Britain and say hello to Mr Tumnus, the talking Faun (Alfie Richards), Aslan, the Lion (Stanton Wright), and the coldest, cruellest White Witch (Katy Stephens).
Directed by Michael Fentiman, this breathtaking stage adaptation brings magical storytelling, bewitching stagecraft and stellar puppets to CS Lewis’s allegorical novel. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Philipp Sommer: Delivering his riposte to Shakespeare’s hatchet job on Richard III in Re-Lording Richard 3.0
Festival of the week: York International Shakespeare Festival, until May 4
YORK International Shakespeare Festival is marking its tenth anniversary with a programme incorporating artists from the Netherlands for the first time; Croatia for Marin Drzic Day; Ukrainian artists from Ivano Frankisk and Bulgaria.
Among the highlights will be Berlin actor Philipp Sommer’s riposte to Shakespeare’s hatchet job on York’s own Richard III, Re-Lording Richard 3.0 (tomorrow); Olga Annenko’s Codename Othello (Friday); York company Hoglets Theatre’s A Midsummer Night’s Mischief with Team Titania and Team Oberon (Saturday); Stillington writer/actor/director Alexander Wright’s immersive, existential Hamlet Show (April 28 to 30); Ridiculusmus’s Alas! Poor Yorick (April 29) and the Shakespeare’s Speakeasy play in a day (May 2). For the full programme and tickets, head to: yorkshakes.co.uk.
George Young’s Henry VI in York Shakespeare Project’s Henry VI Parts 1, 2 and 3. Picture: John Saunders
Condensed play of the week: York Shakespeare Project in Henry VI Parts 1, 2 and 3, “I Am Myself Alone”, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, until Saturday, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee
UNIVERSITY of California Santa Barbara theatre professor Irwin Appel, artistic director of Naked Shakes, directs York Shakespeare Project in his condensed, physical theatre version of Shakespeare’s Henry VI trilogy.
A bare space, a crown and a throne meet an ensemble cast in a powerful show of “actor-generated theatricality and transformation”, wherein they tell a cautionary tale of power and greed that charts how a tyrant can rise in a torn and broken society. Box office: yorkshakes.co.uk or tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Pip Cook, left, Josie Morley and Keeley Lane in Badapple Theatre Company’s revival of Kate Bramley’s The Thankful Village, playing York Theatre Royal Studio from today
Wartime memorial of the week: Badapple Theatre Company in The Thankful Village, York Theatre Royal Studio, today to Saturday, 7pm plus 2.30pm matinees, today and Saturday
IN a new departure for Green Hammerton touring company Badapple Theatre, writer and artistic director Kate Bramley will be playing a live score for the first time to accompany her poignant First World War comedy-drama The Thankful Village.
A story of hope, humour and humanity is seen through the eyes of three Yorkshire women from the same rural household, below and above stairs. Left behind to cope after their men-folk march off to Flanders, Pip Cook’s Edie, Keeley Lane’s Victoria and Josie Morley’s Nellie each face up to the challenges in their own way as they wait anxiously for news of their loved ones far away. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Matt Goss: Tipping his hat to The Hits & More at York Barbican on Friday. Picture: Paul Harris
Pop concert of the week: Matt Goss, The Hits & More, York Barbican, Friday, 8pm
MATT Goss, the Bros pop pin-up-turned-Las Vegas showman, says: “Trust me, what I’ve learnt over the years being on countless stages around the world, this will be your best night of the year.”
Now living in central London after many years of blue skies in America, Goss, 56, will be celebrating all he has achieved in his music career and beyond in a rock’n’roll show, but still with a horn section (featured previously in the Matt Goss Experience show with the MG Big Band and the Royal Philharmonic at York Barbican in April 2023). Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Comedy gig of the week: Hilarity Bites Comedy Club, Clayton Jones, Dawn Bailey and Chris Brooker, Milton, Rooms, Malton, Friday. 8pm
HEADLINER Clayton Jones, the 2017 Last Minute Comedy Comedian of the Year winner, covers everyday topics of marriage, children, being mixed race, school life and growing up in London in his observational comedy.
Newly turned 50, affable Dawn Bailey views life as a mum through happy specs and giddy knickers (in her own words). Host Chris Brooker combines infectious energy with original material and inspired improvisation. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
Josienne Clarke: Performing the songs of Sandy Denny with full folk-rock band at Pocklington Arts Centre
Folk gig of the week: Across The Evening Sky: Josienne Clarke Sings The Songs Of Sandy Denny, Pocklington Arts Centre, Friday, 8pm
MELANCHOLIC singer, songwriter and interpreter of traditional song Josienne Clarke leads a full folk-rock band – guitar, piano, bass and drums – in a new show dedicated to Sandy Denny, whose songs are her “north star – a constant guiding light”.
“If I can take one young fan of mine and introduce them to Sandy, in a context that they can grab hold of,” she says. “If they like my music, they will love Sandy. And that would be the whole concept sorted. To pass it on, so that these songs can go on forever.” Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.
