Festivals - What`s On Live

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Staffordshire Cover - May_Mids Cover - August 25/04/2014 15:47 Page 1
STAFFORDSHIRE WHAT’S ON ISSUE 341 MAY 2014
THE MIDLANDS ESSENTIAL ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE
STAFFORDSHIRE
’
What sOn
www.whatsonlive.co.uk
ISSUE 341
MAY 2014
KATY PE
RRY
BRINGS P
R
TOUR TO ISMATIC
THE MIDL
ANDS
DERREN BROWN
PART OF MIDLANDS WHAT’S ON MAGAZINE GROUP PUBLICATIONS
master of psychological
illusion back on the road
interview inside...
WOLF ALICE
alternative rock in Stoke
LORD OF THE FLIES
Matthew Bourne’s latest
production lands in Brum
@WHATSONSTAFFS WWW.WHATSONLIVE.CO.UK
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Contents- Region two - May_Layout 1 25/04/2014 19:11 Page 1
May
Editor:
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2014
INSIDE:
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Rock Of Ages
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West End musical
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brings one-woman
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Derrren Brown - master of psychological illusion on the road, page 6
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James Cameron-Wilson:
Film; Anita Champaneri:
Eating Out;
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Eva Easthope, Kate
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News May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:55 Page 1
News
A ROUND-UP OF LOCAL AND NATIONAL ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
National Trust gives students’
artwork a Shropshire home
An art installation produced by Birmingham
City University students is to be exhibited at
a National Trust property in Shropshire.
Battle Of The Somme, constructed from
brown paper and cardboard, depicts the
horrors of a typical day in the First World
War trenches, and was initially only meant to
be displayed for a two-week period before
being recycled. However, a feature on BBC
News and numerous public appeals led to
RAF Shawbury housing it in its Mess until it
was handed over to Dudmaston Hall near
Bridgnorth, where it will remain on display
until the end of the season.
Midlands festival dates for Tinie Tempah
Ironbridge Gorge Museums
in tourism awards finals
Ironbridge Gorge Museums has been named
as a finalist in the Large Visitor Attraction of the
Year category of the prestigious VisitEngland
Awards for Excellence 2014. The winner,
which is selected on the overall quality of the
experience it provides, will be announced at a
glittering awards ceremony at Cheltenham
Racecourse on 12 May. The Ironbridge Gorge
Museums, spread over six square miles of the
Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site, saw
over half a million visitors pass through its
gates in 2013.
Still riding high on the success of second album Demonstration, which was certified Gold in
February, British hip-hop artist Tinie Tempah has announced he’s to perform at four of the
region’s biggest festivals this summer.
Tempah will play Wireless in Perry Park, Birmingham (4 to 6 July), Global Gathering in
Stratford-upon-Avon (21 to 27 July), V Festival at Weston Park in Staffordshire (16 to 17
August) and Shrewsbury Fields Forever at the West Mid/Shropshire Showground (12 to 14
September).
News of Tempah’s V Festival engagement coincided with announcements about other performers who’d also be appearing at the Virgin Media-sponsored event. Childish Gambino,
CeeLo Green, John Martin, Pixie Lott, Sophie Ellis Bextor, Josh Record, Jess Glynne, Icona
Pop and Howling Bells were the further additions to an already impressive line-up.
and the surrounding area during the Great
War. Already on the site are details of local
war heroes who received the Victoria Cross,
a First World War timeline and an overview
of the war.
Anyone with related stories should send
them to [email protected]
RAF Cosford receives Lottery
funding for future projects
Dudley Council announces
plans to commemorate WWI
Dudley Council has issued a plea for residents from across the borough to assist with
plans to commemorate the hundredth
anniversary of World War One. The council is
hoping locals will step forward to provide
wartime stories, memories and photographs
which will then be used to develop website
pages exploring the significance of Dudley
4 www.whatsonlive.co.uk
A grant of almost £900,000 has been awarded to the Royal Air Force Museum in
Cosford by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF)
to assist in the creation of a major new exhibition at the venue.
The First World War In The Air will provide an
insight into the often-overlooked role of air
power during the Great War.
Featuring the stories of the men and women
who took part in the conflict, the exhibition
will be a significant element of a four-year
project which sees the museum marking two
centenaries - this year’s commemoration of
World War One and 2018’s celebration of the
birth of the RAF.
The HLF grant will also help finance programmes for lifelong learning, volunteering,
apprenticeships and public events.
Regent Theatre announces
new-style Stage Experience
The creative team behind a new play examining the impact of World War One on the
Potteries are on the lookout for people wishing to work alongside professional production personnel.
Open auditions for budding actors, singers
and dancers are being held at the Regent
Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent on 2 and 9 August,
with successful applicants becoming part of
a two-month project taking place in
September and October. The project culminates in a performance of For The King’s
Shilling - a collaboration with the Potteries
Museum which looks at how the lives of
three local families were changed forever
when war engulfed Europe in 1914.
Interested in participating? If so, contact
Laura Stacey at Creative Learning by emailing [email protected]. Alternatively, call her on 01782
211214.
Image from previous Stage Experience production
News May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:55 Page 2
Birmingham REP to host
European theatre festival
A festival which celebrates the best of
European theatre is making a welcome
return to Birmingham this July - and for the
first time will be hosted by the city’s
Repertory Theatre. Birmingham's fifth BE
Festival will feature over twenty performances from eleven European countries, as well
as live music, exhibitions, workshops and
discussions. The eleven-day event will also
see the Birmingham Repertory Theatre
building being turned back-to-front, as festival-goers step backstage to experience The
REP in a brand new way.
Commenting on the festival, Roxana Silbert,
Artistic Director at Birmingham Repertory
Theatre, says: “I’m delighted that The REP
will be home to this brilliant, creative festival,
where you can enjoy and engage with a
diverse programme of European theatre no
matter what language you speak. And it’s
particularly nice to be able to allow audiences backstage to enjoy and explore
spaces where usually our carpenters, metalworkers and scenic artists create and build
sets.”
BE Festival takes place at Birmingham
Repertory Theatre from 2 to 12 July. For
tickets, ring 0121 236 4455, or book online
at Birmingham-rep.co.uk
The HOLI ONE in Brum
Digbeth’s Rainbow Arena is set to host one
of the world’s most ‘unique, fun and exciting’ festivals this summer. Fusing music,
dance, performance art and visual stimulation, HOLI ONE is a touring festival set
against a backdrop of dance and DJ music,
and invites revellers to throw powders into
the air to create ‘an explosion of colour and
excitement’. The festival is currently in the
planning phase, with organisers asking for
anyone interested in performing on 28 June
to get in touch.
Got 2 Sing in Shropshire
If you were one of the thousands of people
who ventured into Shrewsbury for the
recent Big Busk, then chances are you witnessed the melodic performance given by
the Got 2 Sing Choir.
Formed in 2011, the community-based
ensemble comprises eight adult choirs
across the Midlands, including recent additions in Shrewsbury and Telford - both of
which are currently on the lookout for new
members. Presenting a repertoire of uplifting songs - from pop and motown to gospel
and musical theatre - the ethos of Got 2
Sing is to meet, socialise, sing and perform.
The choir already has plenty of performances in the diary for this year - including
appearances at the Ironbridge Museum and
Telford and Shrewsbury food festivals - and
is currently planning its 2015 Birmingham
Symphony Hall concert.
For further information, call Beth Dunn on
07815 894788 or visit www.got2sing.co.uk.
Birmingham Hippodrome welcomes more bumper shows
Following a record-breaking year which saw paid admissions rise to over six hundred-andtwenty-five thousand tickets in the 2013/14 financial period, Birmingham Hippodrome has
announced the addition of further bumper shows to its programming for 2014/15.
Blood Brothers, Brazilian dance company Grupo Corpo, a twentieth anniversary production of
Slava’s Snowshow, an autumn season of productions from Welsh National Opera, and
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s staging of Sir Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker take the theatre
through to the Christmas season, during which Jack And The Beanstalk will be keeping audiences entertained. Gary Wilmot, Paul Zerdin and Matt Slack will all be making a welcome
return to the Hippodrome to star in the lavish pantomime, the trio having scored a big hit in
last Christmas’s version of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs.
A major revival of Matthew Bourne’s dance production of Edward Scissorhands (10 to 14
February) kickstarts the Spring 2015 season, with Shrek The Musical (31 March to 26 April)
further cementing the Hippodrome’s reputation as a venue which attracts the biggest and
best national and international shows. Tickets for Shrek go on sale to Friends on 6 May and
to Groups on 12 May, then go on general sale on 14 May.
IN BRIEF
Soap star to join
panto cast
Wolverhampton Grand
Theatre has
announced that
Hollyoaks actor Joe
Tracini is to join Julian
Clary in the theatre’s
2014/15 panto version
of Cinderella.
Tracini, the son of Joe
Pasquale, became a
household name playing Dennis Savage in
the Channel Four
soap. Following in his
father’s footsteps as a
comedy entertainer,
Joe earned a nomination for Best Comedy
Performance at the
British Soap Awards,
and has also garnered
plenty of plaudits for
his talents as a magician. Joe will play
Buttons in the Qdos
production of
Cinderella, which
shows at the Grand
from 6 December to 18
January. Tickets are
available from the box
office on 01902
429212, or online at
grandtheatre.co.uk
Shropshire schoolboy back in the West End
A ten-year-old Shropshire schoolboy will this month perform on
the West End stage in front of his friends and teachers.
Noah Key, a pupil at Brockton Primary School, is currently one of
four youngsters playing a young Simon Cowell in the critically
acclaimed X Factor musical I Can’t Sing, which is showing at the
London Palladium. Noah, who’s admitted to being a bit nervous
about performing to his friends and teachers when they head
south on 22 May, is no stranger to the West End, having last year
made his debut playing Gavroche in Les Miserables.
Noah recently met music mogul Cowell at I Can’t Sing’s launch,
and said of his encounter: “It was great! He’s very nice and he
commented on my Simon Cowell haircut, saying it was very nice.”
Of his latest West End role, Noel added: “Simon’s such a fun
character to play”.
Noah hopes to continue with acting as
he gets older, but has pledged not to let
his performing interfere with his academic studies. He uses his journey to
the capital wisely, catching up with his
schoolwork on the train. “It can sometimes be hard,” he says, “but I love
going to London and being part of the
show.”
Noah will continue to play the young
Noah with Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell until the end of June.
Second Midlands date for Tony Awardwinning musical Avenue Q
Avenue Q, the Tony Award-winning musical featuring some of the
most outrageous puppets ever to appear on stage, has added a
Birmingham date to its forthcoming tour. Focusing on subjects such
as dating, racism, being gay and finding a purpose in life, Avenue Q
is often controversial and not for the easily offended. This latest tour,
visiting the region courtesy of Sell A Door Theatre Company, stops
off at Birmingham’s New Alexandra Theatre from 16 to 20
September. The show also visits Lichfield Garrick from 24 to 26 July.
www.whatsonlive.co.uk 5
Derren Brown interview_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:46 Page 1
“
My starting point
has to be that
people are chosen
at random,
therefore I work
the show around
that. I don’t do
things in the show
that will only work
with a very
particular type of
person
”
Derren Brown
the master of psychological illusion spills the beans
interview...
Illusionist, mentalist, hypnotist and sceptic, Derren Brown is best known not only for his
mindreading act but also for the fact that he openly admits it has nothing whatsoever to do with
psychic or paranormal practices. Instead, he says that his successes are down to a combination
of ‘magic, suggestion, psychology, misdirection and showmanship’. Derren this month returns to
the Midlands with latest offering Infamous, which he describes as a ‘more stripped-down show’.
What’s On recently caught up with the master of psychological illusion to find out what
audiences can expect......
Infamous is a mammoth tour. How do you
keep things fresh when you’re doing the
same thing night after night?
I think that’s part and parcel of doing a show.
Every time you do it, it should feel like the
first time, other than that you’re on top of the
words because you’ve spoken them so
many times before. If you start out thinking,
‘oh, here we go again’, which can
occasionally creep in, that’s when things
start to feel like you’re on autopilot. Then
everybody gets bored with the show, even
though they don’t quite know why. For me,
though, doing the show is a treat. I love
having my days free.
Is that the main appeal of touring?
I love the process of touring, where I get to
mooch around and hang out with a bunch of
friends and be in a different city every week.
Normally, when I’m not on tour, it’s all TV
stuff. I don’t really get much time to myself,
so I value that. On tour, I get to spend the
days reading. I’m writing a book at the
moment, so I use that time effectively. Also,
I’ll go to a city which I know from a previous
year and maybe revisit a nice little coffee
shop tucked away somewhere. All the things
that I don’t get to do when I’m at home.
Are you able to do that incognito, or do
you constantly get hassled by people?
No, I think you find a way of keeping your
head down a bit, but it varies from city to city.
In London, people tend to be quite good at
not ogling you. Also, I’ve cut my hair off and
lost the goatee, so I’m not as recognisable
as I used to be.
Would Infamous travel well
internationally?
The language thing can be a bit of an issue a lot of the stuff that I do wouldn’t land
properly. I think it’s lovely that the tours are
so big and successful over here. It’s meant
that I’ve not really had to think about taking
them abroad. The trouble with doing that is
that there would need to be a lot of press
and TV stuff to do to promote it, which I don’t
generally like doing. That said, there are
certainly a few countries that have been
asking about the show. I guess it would be
good to get out there and see other parts of
the world and be paid for it. An off-Broadway
show has been in the pipeline for quite some
time, but it kind of comes and goes as a
possibility. That will probably be the next
thing, and then, in time, there are certain
pockets which seem to be really up for it but it’s all about finding the time, which at
the moment I don’t have. There’s no reason
why it shouldn’t travel, though.
What’s your starting point when writing a
new show?
It starts off with the sense of a mood that you
want to create. Aside from the ‘tricks’ aspect
of it, you’re writing a show that’s a night of
theatre. That means your first thought tends
to be about creating moments or images or
things that are really going to stick with
people. My first call is always, ‘here are two
thousand people locked in a room with me,
what would be an amazing thing to have
happen to them?’. I read people’s tweets,
which often say, “OMG! I’m going to see
Derren Brown. He’s going to **** with my
mind!”. Twitter is a useful way of reminding
myself what people’s expectations are, so
that I can make sure that I meet them. So
you start out with a bunch of feelings and
moods and things that you want to supply.
The aim is to give people something they
couldn’t get anywhere else; things they
couldn’t get with a magic show, couldn’t get
with a play. After that comes the tricks, and
after that comes how you set about making
things happen. That’s the last consideration,
really.
There must be pressure to keep upping
your game. How much further can you
take your craft?
I don’t think it’s about upping the game.
You’d begin to go mad if you saw it in terms
of ‘it’s got to be bigger and better’. You’d
end up breaking away from the things that
root it in being intelligent and having an
important subtext to it. With TV a couple of
years ago, I did the Apocalypse show, which
was this huge and ambitious project. Then,
after that, I did a show that was much
quieter, based around a painting getting
stolen from a gallery by a bunch of OAPs.
Infamous is a much more stripped-down
show. I don’t see it being about topping my
last effort, but you do have to make sure that
the show delivers every time. And that
certainly gets more difficult to achieve,
because you sometimes feel you’ve been
there before with the ideas you have.
Would you credit yourself with taking
magic to a new level?
I wouldn’t necessarily say that, but what I’ve
done, just from my own point of view, is to
grow out of the desire to impress people with
tricks. I think if you’re an insecure kid or
teenager - or student, as I was - you want to
impress people, and tricks are a very nice,
easy way of doing so. By the time I’d grown
out of that, I’d had some TV success, so it
felt mad to leave it behind and do something
more grown up. What I did do, though, was
find a way of doing it which would still
continue to be interesting for me. I wasn’t
interested in just going, ‘Hey, look at me.
Look at this amazing thing I can do!’. So
although the stage shows are still a bit more
rooted in that, TV has gone down a different
route and the focus isn’t really on me
anymore. Now it’s on members of the public
doing something extraordinary. Also, what’s
interesting about that is that you’ve suddenly
got drama, whereas being a magician or
reading someone’s mind isn’t necessarily
great drama. Classically, a magician clicks
his fingers and something happens. That’s
like a ‘whimsical god’ thing, and there’s
nothing dramatic in it. So if I’ve taken it to
another place, it’s nothing other than that. As
for the stage shows, I’m doing a new show
every two years. I don’t think any other stage
magician has ever done that, so in a sense
maybe that’s new too.
Is it easier to deliver your craft live to a
theatre audience, or in front of a TV
camera?
It’s different! In some ways - and you see it a
lot with other magicians on TV - it’s easy to
make a TV magic show look amazing,
because you can edit it in any way you want.
You can cheat in any way you want. There
are all sorts of things that are at your
disposal, and one TV production company
may have a different set of ethical rules to
another. I think the trouble with TV is it’s too
easy to fake it - and if you’re not faking it,
people don’t know that you’re not. It’s
difficult to judge, whereas on stage you really
see every moment of it - especially with
people being chosen at random from the
audience, which is how I do it. You may get
involved with someone, and if things don’t
quite work out, you’re going to see that
happen. You’re going to see every moment
of the process. You haven’t got that little
border around it which you have with TV,
where the edges are cut off in terms of what
you’re seeing. As a TV audience, you only
see what the camera is pointing at. I think
with live shows there’s a fairness to it. I also
think the point of magic is to generate that
feeling of wonder and amazement, and I
don’t get that when I’m watching magic on
TV anymore.
With a live show, how do you assess the
right candidate for a particular stunt?
My starting point has to be that people are
chosen at random, therefore I work the show
around that. I don’t do things in the show
that will only work with a very particular type
of person. There are times when I can do
something over the whole audience and then
pick someone I want to use - though that can
only be done very sparingly, otherwise
people would think it was stooged. It’s partly
that, partly the writing of the show and the
ideas that I come up with. Most of the things
I do will work with about ninety percent of
the audience. Occasionally I’ll get someone
up on the stage and realise it’s not going to
work, so I apologise and send them back.
Then there are the obvious tricks that I know
will only work on a few people, so by that
point I’ve earned the licence to go and pick
somebody out of the audience myself.
In the past, you’ve described yourself as
being a bit of a sceptic. What is it that
you’re sceptical about?
By that I mean that what I’m doing treads the
line of psychic ability and magical powers. I
realised early on that there was a
Continued from page 7...
responsibility to contain what I’m doing
within a theatrical framework and also to
debunk - I know it’s a bit of a witless word,
but there are charlatans out there who could
do with a bit of debunking. That’s a kind of
sceptical agenda - showing how people such
as mediums and faith healers can operate,
and how that stuff can be faked or how you
can draw yourself into believing it. I think
that’s an important notion to get out there, so
that people can make a more informed
decision about whether they want to go and
spend money on people like that, and
maybe risk getting into an addictive cycle,
which I think can be really damaging. I
believe it’s down to people like me to
express that. I tend to do it by replicating a
lot of the stuff and then saying I’m not using
any psychic or magic powers, and that what
I’m doing is entirely rational. I think that
works better than trying to pull it apart, or
saying ‘this is how the psychic does it’. I
think being specific about the reference
doesn’t actually do the job, whereas if you
replicate it and make it entertaining, people
are just left with that diffidence; a kind of a
conflict that they can’t quite resolve.
So do you simply not believe that people
have the ability to engage with the
supernatural, or is it the supernatural you
don’t believe in?
Until you know the limits of what’s natural
and what ordinary sensory perception is, it’s
very difficult to start saying that something is
supernatural or extra-sensory. It’s not about
trying to disprove it or even prove it. It’s just
about ‘is this really happening?’, because
things get in the way of people’s stories. If
you see a psychic, you may come out
thinking, ‘God, she knows all these things
about me’, but you’re missing all the things
that don’t quite match. Then there’s the
possibility that the friend who saw her first
and recommended that you see her has
inadvertently dropped in a whole load of
information about you. It’s not that I refuse to
believe in it. The thing about being sceptical
is you reserve judgement until the evidence
comes in. That’s an important point, because
nowadays people believe being ‘openminded’ means you believe in anything, but
actually that’s very closed-minded. Being
truly open-minded is about being prepared
to change your beliefs based on evidence, or
on the lack of it.
might cause harm. There’s a huge amount of
behind-the-scenes stuff, and sometimes, to
preserve a sense of drama, you don’t spell
out all of those things. People have said
‘what if he’d picked up a big stick and
whacked one of the zombies, what would
have happened then? It doesn’t make sense.
It must all be fake’. What they don’t know is
that we will have picked up every possible
weapon from the site. There are lots of things
to consider, but it’s all taken care of.
Has there ever been a time when you’ve
overlooked something, resulting in things
going wrong?
No, there really hasn’t. There’s a whole team
of people making sure that this person I’ve
chosen is malleable, and that I have all the
things I need. I just know it will run like
clockwork once he or she is in the world that
they need to be put in - I know they’ll
respond very well to everything. With a lot of
those shows, he or she is just one unwitting
participant alongside a whole cast of actors
intent on making this thing happen, and it
always does. Sometimes, little things occur
which may shock. Like with the end of
Apocalypse. I called him up and hypnotised
him over the phone to bring him out of his
story, and he collapsed to the ground. He
had this heavy rucksack on his back and he
collapsed face-first into the grass. Our hearts
jumped and it was firstly, ‘oh, is he okay?’
and secondly, ‘can we really show that on
TV, it’s all a bit too dramatic, isn’t it?’. But he
was okay, as were Channel Four about
showing it. Things like that might catch you
by surprise, but generally it’s okay.
Have you ever been hypnotised?
I’m a classically bad subject. I think people
who’re emotionally very open tend to be
good subjects, and I’m not. I did have one
experience at a hypnotic workshop where I
found myself out of it. As far as I was
concerned, I was on a beach; I could feel the
sand, I could hear the waves - but then it
finished, I snapped out of it and that was
that.
Does your craft ever spill over into your
private life - do people fear you have
some sort of power over them?
I’ve got a good friend who’s said that the first
couple of times we went out together he
thought everything I said was some
calculated measure, but it’s not. Because I
don’t do it, I don’t think about it, and I
therefore don’t find it’s an issue.
Is it true that you tried to train yourself out
of homosexuality?
No, that’s a weird made-up thing. What I did
do when I was a student was go to a oneday event driven by a Christian group who
claimed to ‘cure’ homosexuals. Obviously
they don’t, but at the time I felt it wouldn’t be
a bad thing. I could press a button and it
would all change. I was up for that. Looking
back, it was all nonsense. It’s not even like
they achieve the results, and that’s even
before you consider whether those results
would be desirable or admirable. I’ve since
come out of Christianity, but that was a bit
more in line with the sort of stuff I was
learning - a process of understanding the
mind a bit better that took me out of the faith.
So whether those two things have been
merged into a weird story, I don’t know.
Trying to train myself out of homosexuality
would be most odd.
Which magic trick do you most wish was
really magic, rather than a result of
suggestion?
I think if I could genuinely read minds then
that would save a lot of trouble.
Where did that initial interest in magic
stem from?
I did have a magic set when I was little, but
my interest really comes from seeing a
hypnotist when I was at university. That really
sowed the seed.
You mentioned you’re writing a book at
the moment. What’s it about?
It’s about happiness, but I’m still in the
process of writing the first draft at the
moment. I’m writing it during the day while
I’m out on tour. I anticipate it’ll be out some
time next year.
And is there a new TV show on the
agenda?
I think the next thing will be the televised
version of this show. It’s been filmed and the
plan is for it to go out over Christmas..
Derren Brown appears at Wolverhampton
Grand Theatre from Mon 5 to Sat 10 May
As viewers, we often perceive people’s
lives are being put at risk with some of
your stunts, like with the Russian Roulette
stunt. Is there always an element of risk?
There can be, inasmuch as things might not
work out quite the way you planned, but
you’d never put people at risk of harm.
There’s an enormous duty of care towards
people who’re taking part in the show. With
Apocalypse, we had someone going through
a traumatic experience, believing the world
was going to end. It did, and they woke up
to find their family had gone and there were
zombies everywhere. Something like that has
to be plotted very carefully. The choice of
person has to be made very carefully, and
their ongoing experiences have to be
presented in a way that’s passed as
acceptable by psychiatrists and
psychologists, to make sure the balance is
always kept right. There are all sorts of
physical things that can be put into place to
make sure they can’t do certain things that
Nina Kristofferson interview_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:59 Page 1
Nina Kristofferson
back on home turf with The Billie Holiday Story...
Nina Kristofferson interview_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:59 Page 2
interview...
Former Birmingham School of Speech and Drama student Nina Kristofferson had her first taste
of stardom aged thirteen, when she was chosen to become a CBBC presenter. Although a brief
engagement, it sowed the seeds for a career on the stage, and roles with Birmingham Opera
Company and Northern Broadsides followed. Having recently scored a West End hit with her
tribute to Billie Holiday, Nina this month brings the highly acclaimed one-woman show to
Birmingham’s New Alexandra Theatre. What’s On caught up with her to find out more...
Where did you grow up, which school did
you attend and where did you train?
I grew up in Birmingham and attended
Smethwick High School for Girls and
Birmingham School of Speech and Dramatic
Art. Then, after that, Guildford School of
Acting, which is attached to the University of
Surrey (Conservatoire). I studied there for
three years and loved it. I’d wanted to be an
actress from an early age. I knew I needed to
know about acting, dancing and singing, so I
immersed myself in training. I did some voice
training at Birmingham’s Euphonius Music
School, did a couple of ballet classes and
some tap classes and lots of singing classes
before going to Guildford.
Did you grow up with music? Did you sing
from an early age?
I did grow up with music, particularly jazz
and blues, so from an early age I loved
listening to Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday,
Sarah Vaughan and Louis Armstrong. I also
listened a lot to classical music. And I used
to watch all the old films - still do - with
Audrey Hepburn, Katherine Hepburn, Bette
Davis, Joan Crawford. I loved their style, the
drama, the look, everything. And I love opera
too, particularly Maria Callas.
Tell us about your early career and your
first break...
When I was about thirteen, I was picked to
be a CBBC presenter. There was a group of
us who presented Blue Peter-type shows
from the inside of a red bus! We did six
shows and I absolutely loved it! My first
professional break was with a show called
Paradise Now And Then, with the Gay
Sweatshop Theatre Company, about the civil
rights movement; I played a young Angela
Davies, and it went brilliantly! Then I was in a
show called Black Heroes In The Hall Of
Fame, doing a mixture of singing and
dancing. I played the character of Lorraine
Hansberry, who was an American playwright
and writer. She was the first black woman to
write a play on Broadway, and inspired Nina
Simone to write the song To Be Young,
Gifted And Black. I also played the character
of Marian Anderson, the African-American
contralto and one of the most celebrated
singers of the twentieth century. We then
took the show to America and did a small
run. While I was there, I went to a bar, started
singing, and one of the show’s producers
invited me back to do some jazz and blues
concerts of my own.
In which shows and productions did you
perform before your own show, The Billie
Holiday Story?
Anthony And Cleopatra in Birmingham;
Medea, on tour with Northern Broadside; and
Porgy & Bess with the Birmingham Opera
Group, both in Birmingham and Chicago.
When did you discover Billie Holiday?
When I was a kid listening to the radio,
singing along using my hairbrush as a
microphone. I was quite a loud kid.
What attracted you to her music and
story?
Her beautiful tone; her voice got me at first. I
was curious about why she was so loved,
and when I listened to her voice, it was so
rich and warm and yet so sad; it really
moves you. I started investigating her music
and her life, and started singing along to
more of her songs. The more I listened, the
more I loved singing along. After the jazz and
blues concerts I’d done in the US, I realised I
could sing her songs, and I wanted to learn
more about her. I wanted to nurture and
bring forth someone who was iconic and
who had a great story to tell. At first it was a
toss-up between Billie Holiday and Nina
Simone (I think Nina is someone whose story
I’ll tell in the near future). Reading about
Billie Holiday’s life, realising what she went
through and what she achieved with her
music was totally inspiring. If I could have an
inch of her career, I’d be laughing.
How did you research The Billie Holiday
Story?
I read and listened to anything I could get
my hands on. I had some of her music, I did
loads of internet searching, and I’ve now got
lots of books about her. One that’s really
popular is Julia Blackburn’s, called With
Billie. Julia did a lot of research and knew a
lot about Billie’s background; I found the
book very useful. I got hold of all Billie’s CDs
and gradually immersed myself in her story,
her music, and started to get to know her as
a person. The more you read, the more
layers are revealed, and within the layers, the
more you have to go into it to understand
why things happened. I had to fill in the gaps
in her story, because people only know
segments. I want to take the audience on a
journey, so that they get to know her and her
music. I want them to get to know the true
essence of who she was through the music,
and through her great sense of humour,
through her character, and through all the
things - many terrible things - that happened
to her.
Tell us how you work with your band...
Everyone in the band, bar the drummer, did
the West End run with me, which was
fantastic - luckily, I knew most of the
musicians before. I also did auditions, so we
jammed together. I’ve got a great ear, so I
knew what would work. I’d met Allan
(Rogers, pianist and MD) in Edinburgh when
I did the show there in 2011. He was doing
the festival at the time. He joined me in 2013.
I went through all of Billie’s classic music songs that people would identify with, such
as Strange Fruit, God Bless The Child and
Easy Living - and also looked at her legacy
and history. I thought it would be interesting
to integrate a bit of story and chat between
the songs, to link everything together.
Your show ran very successfully at the
Charing Cross Theatre in London. Was
that your West End debut?
I’ve performed roles like Liz Imbrie - the wisecracking undercover tabloid reporter in High
Society - at the Shaftsbury. It had started at
Regent’s Park Theatre. I also played the
Nurse in Romeo & Juliet, plus lots of
classical soirees and some off-West End
performances.
Do you have Billie Holiday fans coming to
see the show?
Lots! They love it! And they come dressed
up with a gardenia or flower in their hair.
Some of them come suited and booted to
see the show - lots of people dress up in
vintage gear. It’s lovely to see them!
Is this the first time you’ve toured the
show?
I did the show at Edinburgh in 2011 - at the
Assembly Rooms - and a small tour in 2012,
which kicked off at the Electric Theatre in
Guildford. This is quite different, though, and
I’m really looking forward to it! I’m a bit
nervous too!
What’s next for Nina Kristofferson?
I’d like to do some TV, I’d love to do classical
plays, film and some classical music, along
with jazz and blues. And hopefully the Nina
Simone story.
The Billie Holiday Story shows at
New Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham,
on Thurs 8 May
Music May Region Two _Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:53 Page 1
Music
Echo And The Bunnymen
Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton, Sun 11 May
Hailing from Liverpool, Echo & The Bunnymen
have released twelve studio albums in a career
spanning more than three decades. Following Ian
McCulloch’s departure in 1988, the loss of drummer Pete de Freitas the following year, and a split
in 1993, the band regrouped four years later and
continued to make music. Their Midlands gigs
come as part of a brand new tour in support of
equally brand new album Meteorites, which returning frontman McCulloch describes as “up there in
heaven - untouchable, celestial, beautiful and real.
It has changed my life”.
Wolf Alice
The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent, Thurs 22 May
Alternative rock band Wolf Alice - featuring Ellie
Rowsell and Joff Oddie - are releasing new EP
Creature Songs and playing twenty UK dates before hitting the summertime festival circuit, with appearances at Glastonbury, T In The Park and
Reading & Leeds all scheduled for later this year.
Although starting out as an acoustic duo, Ellie and
Joff evolved their music to include more rock elements, and the band are often compared to Hole
and Elastica. Grungey new single Moaning Lisa
Smile captures their raw, live sound, and is perhaps their best yet. Superfood and Gengahr support.
Gypsy Fire
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, Fri 9 May
Paolo Nutini
Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, Fri 30 May
After a period of wound-licking in the aftermath of a relationship break-up - and following
the release of two successful albums which sold over three million copies between them Paolo Nutini here returns to the limelight in support of third album Caustic Love, the second single from which, Iron Sky, has earned warm praise from no less a luminary than
Adele. Admitting that performing live still makes him nervous, Scottish singer Nutini is
touring prior to summer gigs at Glastonbury, Radio One Big Weekend and T In The Park.
Janelle Monae
The Institute, Birmingham, Thurs 8 May
Paying Birmingham fans a compliment by playing here on her exclusive three-date tour,
Janelle Monae is The Electric Lady, and plays in support of the album of the same name.
Nominated for Best International Female at the BRITS this year, Janelle’s new album has
already spawned singles Primetime and Q.U.E.E.N., featuring Erykah Badu.
Wearing only a uniform of monochrome, her alter-ego Cindi Mayweather is an alien sent
from the future to save mankind. Watch instead as she saves the music industry with her
Bowie-esque creativity and imagination. Cody Chesnutt supports.
This highly rated jazz quartet have pushed the
boundaries by showing what can be achieved on
purely acoustic instruments. Comprising two
acoustic guitarists, a jazz violinist and a double
bassist, Gypsy Fire perform with real passion and
skill. Although the quartet formed a relatively short
time ago, in 2010, their CV already features a performance at the Royal Albert Hall (as part of Late
Night Jazz). Here making a return with a new
Acoustic Spectacular theatre show, let them take
you on a musical journey through style and time.
BRIAN YEATES ASSOCIATES PROUDLY PRESENTS...
Stand Up & Rock
★ ★ ★ FEATURING ★ ★ ★
JASPER CARROTT
THE BEV BEVAN BAND
TREVOR BURTON
GEOFF TURTON
JOY STRACHAN-BRAIN
SEPTEMBER 2014
Tue 16th Sept - Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton - 01902 429212
Fri 19th & Sat 20th Sept - Concordia Theatre, Hinckley - 01455 615005
Tue 23rd - Fri 26th Sept - Arts Complex, Solihull - 0121 704 6962
OCTOBER 2014
Thurs 16th Oct - Town Hall, Dudley - 01384 812812
Fri 17th Oct - Roses Theatre, Tewkesbury - 01684 295074
Tues 21st Oct - Town Hall, Birmingham - 0121 345 0600
Thurs 23rd - Sat 25th Oct - Palace Theatre, Redditch - 01527 65203
Sun 26th Oct - Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury - 01743 281281
Thurs 30th & Fri 31st Oct - Town Hall, Sutton Coldfield - 0121 464 8990
June 16th 2014 - Garrick Theatre, Lichfield
NOVEMBER 2014
Sat 1st Nov Civic Theatre, Bedworth
02476 376707
Tues 11th - Sat 15th Nov
Garrick Theatre, Lichfield
01543 412121
Mon 17th Nov
Playhouse, Nottingham
01159 419419
...trut ltyo
a nighber.
remem
Sept 16th 2014 - Garrick Theatre, Lichfield
Oct 11th 2014 - Solihull Arts Complex
www.brianyeates.co.uk
Music PREVIEWS
The Urban Folk Quartet
Stafford Gatehouse, Sat 10 May
The Urban Folk Quartet is like no other folk
band. With Birmingham’s vibrant and diverse
music scene having a significant influence on
their work, they dabble in all kinds of sounds,
from funk grooves and middle-eastern
melodies to afrobeat and north Indian
rhythms. That’s not to say, though, that they
don’t tug their collective forelock in the direction of more traditional folk too, and describe
their music as being ‘fiddle-led’ and drawn
‘heavily from celtic dance forms and traditional song’.
Billy Ocean
The Buttermarket, Shrewsbury, Fri 16 May; The Robin, Bilston, Sat 24 May;
Lichfield Garrick, Sun 26 May
Shreya Ghoshal
Trinidad-born Billy Ocean scored his biggest successes in the 1970s and, particularly, the
early-to-mid-’80s, winning the 1985 Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for
his worldwide hit Caribbean Queen. As well as enjoying numerous hits himself, Ocean has
also penned songs for various other artists, including LaToya Jackson, Randy Crawford, Marti
Pellow and Boyzone. In 2011, he became a Companion of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, his title being presented to him by Sir Paul McCartney.
National Indoor Arena, Birmingham,
Mon 26 May
Clean Bandit
Kris Drever
Brought up in the quaint town of Rawatbhata
in Rajasthan, Shreya Ghoshal got her first
real break when she won Reality TV show
SaReGa Ma. It was here that Shreya impressed director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who
later chose her to become the voice of the
protagonist Paro in Devdas. With umpteen
awards under her belt, this pitch-perfect
songstress has become an icon for millions
of young people.
The Institute, Birmingham, Mon 5 May
The Hive, Shrewsbury, Sun 4 May
Riding high on the success of single Rather
Be, which stayed put at number one for four
weeks in January, Clean Bandit are back for
their second headlining UK tour. Tagged by
The Guardian as ‘the UK’s number one classical-dance crossover act’, the Cambridgeeducated quartet this month release debut
album New Eyes, featuring previously released singles A+E, Mozart’s House and
Dust Clears. If you didn’t manage to buy tickets for this sold-out show, you can still catch
them at Wireless in July. Javeon and Kidnap
Kid support at The Institute.
Kris Drever hails from a musical background,
his dad Ivan having been a member of Scottish band Wolfstone, best known for their
combination of Highland music and rock’n’roll. Contemporary folk musician Kris came
to prominence almost a decade ago, first of
all forming awardwinning folk trio Lau
and then releasing
debut solo album
Black Water. He’s
also contributed to a
couple of Kate Rusby
offerings, 2005’s The
Girl Who Couldn't Fly
and 2007’s Awkward
Annie.
Eagles
LG Arena, Birmingham,
Wed 28 - Thurs 29 May
Drawing on a back-catalogue spanning fortyplus years, The Eagles here make a welcome
return to the Midlands - where they last performed in 2009 - for a concert that features all
their classic numbers, including Lyin' Eyes,
Best Of My Love and Desperado. One of the
world’s best-selling bands, with a staggering
one hundred-and-fifty million record sales
under their collective belt, they’re probably
best known for the hit 1977 single Hotel California, from their album of the same name...
This Birmingham gig sees them presenting
their History Of The Eagles show, which they
began touring last year in support of the similarly titled documentary release.
Katy Perry
LG Arena, Birmingham, Tues 13 - Wed 14 May
Pink Fairies
The Robin, Bilston, Thurs 15 May
Even by the crazy standards of the early1970s music scene, Pink Fairies were revellers in excess. Active in London’s Ladbroke
Grove underground and psychedelic scene,
they were well known for their promotion
both of free music and drug taking, and garnered a reputation for performing impromptu
concerts - and not always welcome ones.
Hailed by Sex Pistol John Lydon as his
favourite old-wave band, they’re this year
coming together a quarter-century after their
last outing, and feature originals Russell
Hunter and Duncan ‘Sandy’ Sanderson performing with guitarist supremo Andy
Colquhoun.
One-time Christian artist Katy hit the big-time
with a secular sound that's been described
as a mix of 'sass and spunk'. The multiaward-winning Californian combines cheeky pop with more
commercial pop/rock
music, presenting a sound
that calls to mind Lily
Allen, Avril Lavigne and
Alanis Morissette. Having
chalked up over eleven
million album sales and
eighty-one million singles
sales worldwide, Katy
this month visits Birmingham on her Prismatic World Tour,
which she’s undertaking in support of
fourth studio album
Prism. Icona Pop
support.
FRIDAY 19 SEPTEMBER
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Music GIG REVIEWS
Music LISTINGS
THEM AND NOW Kitchen
Garden Cafe, B’ham
For further reviews, visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk
For full listing information on gigs,
including times and dates,
visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk
ROBERT CRAY Birmingham Town Hall
THE DUNNETT/BAXTER
BIG BAND The Yardbird
Jazz Club, Birmingham
LAKE STREET DIVE The
Glee Club, Birmingham
CLEAN BANDIT The Institute, Birmingham
AMY KAKOURA Kitchen
JAMES HICKMAN & DAN
CASSIDY Henry Tudor
House, Shrewsbury
EMPIRE, TIGERPUNCH &
ZIM ZIM The Flapper,
Birmingham
MON 5 MAY
Elbow LG Arena, Birmingham
Kicking off their first UK tour in just under two years, Elbow returned to
Birmingham last month in support of their recently released record,
The Take Off And Landing Of Everything. With the gig pretty much
sold out, the receptive crowd cheered as the band took to the stage
after a warm-up by Doves frontman Jimi Goodwin. Despite the new
tour supporting The Take Off And Landing Of Everything, the twohour-long set also featured plenty of tracks from their previous
records, Build A Rocket Boys! and The Seldom Seen Kid. Backed by
a brilliant brass and strings section, the band played hit tracks such as
The Bones Of You, New York Morning and Mirrorball, as well as a soultouching version of The Heart Will Always Win, dedicated to those in
the audience who were missing someone. Most of the band’s sixteentrack set was, as expected, relaxed. However, when it reached
Grounds For Divorce, the rulebook went out of the window, their roaring rendition of one of their most famous songs breathing new life into
everyone in the LG Arena. In between songs, Elbow lead singer Guy
Garvey provided plenty of banter, telling stories and cracking jokes in
a way that suited the band perfectly. The show itself was impressive
yet restrained. Despite the occasional acoustic track here and there,
the encore was certainly the highlight of the show for me, with a double act of Lippy Kids and One Day Like This generating a fantastic response from the crowd, egged on by Garvey. I’m already wishing
them a speedy return to Birmingham, but in the meantime, fear not they’re quite active on the festival circuit this year.
Ryan Humphreys ■■■■
THU 1 MAY
SOUL LEGENDS Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
THE STEVE GIBBONS
BAND The Robin,
Bilston
JOE BROWN Victoria
Hall, Stoke-on-Trent
KRYSTLE WARREN Henry
Tudor House, Shrewsbury
COCO & THE BUTTERFLIES Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
THE FALL Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
PHILLIP CLOUTS JAZZ
QUARTET Maidment
Hall, Shrewsbury
School
DAVID SERERO The Glee
Club, Birmingham
NINE BLACK ALPS The
Flapper, Birmingham
THE PSYCHEDELIC WARLORDS The Roadhouse,
Birmingham
MIKE STEWART
LAWRENCE Dovehouse
Theatre, Solihull
UNDER THE INFLUENCE
The Asylum, B’ham
FAULKNER The Jam
House, Birmingham
LADY FUEL Scruffy Murphys, Birmingham
EVERYBODY LOOKS FAMOUS/WHITE CLOUDS &
GUNFIRE The Institute,
Birmingham
FRI 2 MAY
The Blockheads The Robin, Bilston
A welcome return visit to Bilston for The Blockheads, currently touring
their latest album. With their new material being every bit as poetic as
early-days Blockheads offerings, Derek ‘The Draw’ Hussey and the
boys are ensuring that the legacy of the late Ian Dury, who died thirteen years ago, not only lives on but is also celebrated - hence the
choice of Same Horse, Different Jockey! as the album’s title. Accompanied by noted bassist Norman Watt-Roy, Hussey belts out the new
material alongside plenty of classics numbers.
Thirty years on and The Blockheads are still as rock’n’roll as ever. A
band of ageing members, sure; but not of ageing talent.
Luc Lichtle ■■■■
TALON Wulfun Hall,
Wolverhampton
FROM THE JAM The
Robin, Bilston
GROUPER The Jam
House, Birmingham
MCBUSTED LG Arena,
Birmingham
KAZABIAN O2 Academy,
Birmingham
PULLED APART BY
HORSES The Sugarmill,
Stoke-on-Trent
ABSOLVA & BABYLON
FIRE The Asylum,
Birmingham
CYMBALS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
PROSUMER Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
JUPITER ATE & THE DELTA
RHYTHM The Actress &
Bishop, Birmingham
MENTALLICA The Roadhouse, Birmingham
STOP STOP & LOVEBITE
Route 44, Birmingham
RED LIGHT ROOM The Institute, Birmingham
TOSELAND The Asylum,
Birmingham
TAKE TWO Irish Centre,
Birmingham
IRON KNIGHTS &
ERADIKATOR Scruffy
Murphys, Birmingham
SAT 3 MAY
MCBUSTED LG Arena,
Birmingham
THE ILLEGAL EAGLES Vi
ctoria Hall,
Stoke-on-Trent
GROUPER The Jam
House, Birmingham
JETHRO TULL’S IAN ANDERSON Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
THE COUNTERFEIT
STONES The Robin, Bilston
MAGNUM Wulfrun Hall,
Wolverhampton
MAMA - GENISIS Theatre
On The Steps, Bridgnorth
THE QUIK & THE KLIKS
Artrix, Bromsgrove
MARTIN CARTHY & ELIZA
CARTHY mac, Birmingham
INTRIGUE IN TANGIERS
Solihull Arts Complex
FRED ZEPPELIN Lichfield
Guildhall
STEVE BROOKSTEIN Artrix, Bromsgrove
BOOTLEG BLONDIE The
Roadhouse, B’ham
CAHELEN MORRISON &
ELI WEST Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
MALARKI The Actress &
Bishop, Birmingham
MIDLANDS’ METAL CRUSADE The Slade Rooms,
Wolverhampton
CONGO NATTY Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
FIRE IN CAIRO, DINKY,
SUNDAY 44 & CHANGING
SEASONS O2 Academy,
Birmingham
RICARDO CURBELO Birchmeadow, Broseley
THE HURLING BOYS Irish
Centre, Birmingham
SEDULUS, PROSPERINA,
KI & PIST Scruffy Murphys, Birmingham
FROM WITHIN The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent
VAULT OF EAGLES &
BLEECH & REAP The
Sunflower Lounge,
Birmingham
DUBSPEEKA The Vaults,
Shrewsbury
FATHOMS, BLACK DOGS,
FAILURE TO FOLLOW &
VEXXEN The Flapper,
Birmingham
SUN 4 MAY
YES Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
ALBERT LEE & HOGAN’S
HEROES Artrix, Bromsgrove
FUDGESTOCK The Robin,
Bilston
BLACK Artrix, Bromsgrove
LOCO DICE, ROBERT
DIETZ, ADAM SHELTON &
SUBB-AN The Rainbow
Venues, Birmingham
EROL ALKAN Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
SNARKY PUPPY The Glee
Club, Birmingham
KRIS DREVER The Hive,
Shrewsbury
THE INDIANS Irish Centre, Birmingham
PEARL SCAM The Roadhouse, Birmingham
TUE 6 MAY
BRENDAN SHINE Solihull
Arts Complex
FISH The Robin, Bilston
BARRENCE WHITFIELD &
THE SAVAGES The Slade
Rooms, W’hampton
MODERN MINDS, ALEX
MOIR, GEORGE GADD &
PINK VIOLENCE The Actress & Bishop, B’ham
YELLOW OSTRICH Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
WILD CLUB Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
BAD RABBITS O2 Academy, Birmingham
NADIINE DANIIELS & MISS
DORA The Jam House,
Birmingham
10CC’S GRAHAM GOULDMAN & FRIENDS The
Glee Club, Birmingham
WED 7 MAY
JOE TOPPING TRIO The
Red Lion Folk Club,
Birmingham
HANNAH JAMES & SAM
SWEENEY Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
THE WONDER YEARS The
Institute, Birmingham
GRAEME CLARK mac,
Birmingham
TWO MAN TING The
Yardbird Jazz Club,
Birmingham
MOTOR CITY MEMORIES
Crewe Lyceum,
Cheshire
THE BREW The Robin,
Bilston
SOLIDS Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
SEPTEMBER GIRLS Hare
& Hounds, Birmingham
BEAT BROTHERS The
Jam House, Birmingham
FRASER ANDERSON
Kitchen Garden Cafe,
Birmingham
THU 8 MAY
THE FUREYS & DAVEY
ARTHUR Solihull Arts
Complex, Birmingham
RHAPSODY QUEEN Crewe
Lyceum, Cheshire
MICHAEL BOLTON Civic
Hall, Wolverhampton
THE NEIL DIAMOND
STORY Lichfield Garrick
THE RIFLES The Slade
Rooms, Wolverhampton
UK SUBS The Robin,
Bilston
JANELLE MONAE The Institute, Birmingham
MOOD INDIGO The Jam
For full music listings in the West Midlands, visit. www.whatsonlive.co.uk 17
LICHFIELD GUILDHALL
MAY
Sat 3rd May, 8pm
Fred Zeppelin
Tickets: £10.00
Sun 11 May, 5pm
Battle Acoustica Final
Tickets: £3.00
Sun 11 May, 8.15pm
Battle Of The Bands
Final
Tickets: £3.00
JULY
Fri 11th to Sun 13th July
BEACON PARK, LICHFIELD
FREE ENTRY
THE FAMILY COMMUNITY
ARTS FESTIVAL
The festival attracts many thousands of people to watch professional artists, participate in arts
and crafts activities and to take
part in performance opportunities.
Fuse aims to provide access to the
Arts for everyone regardless of
their ability to pay.
Featuring this years
For a programme or further information contact:
Donegal House, Bore Street, Lichfield. WS13 6LU
BOX OFFICE 01543 262223
www.lichfieldarts.org.uk
You can now book on-line www.lichfieldarts.org.uk
Music LISTINGS
House, Birmingham
FATAL CHAOS, KRITICAL
CHARGE, METHODEMIC,
BITTER ALLIANCE & ARAMANTUS O2 Academy,
Birmingham
REUBEN FOWLER SEXTET
Bramall Music Building,
Birmingham
MARK RADCLIFFE & THE
FOES Foxlowe Arts Centre, Leek
THE GRAND SLAMBOVIANS Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
SONS & LOVERS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
DESOLATED, SENTENCED,
GROVE STREET FAMILIES
& BLOOD CURDLER The
Flapper, Birmingham
THE STARVING DOGS &
FALLOW FIELDS The
Roadhouse, B’ham
DANIEL O’DONNELL Victoria Hall, Stoke-on-Trent
SWAATI KHUNTI Symphony Hall, Birmingham
FRI 9 MAY
T-REXTASY Solihull Arts
Complex
TRU GROOVE The Jam
House, Birmingham
BIG UP THE 90’S The
Robin, Bilston
QUILL Tamworth Assembly Rooms
GYPSY FIRE Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
MARTIN SIMPSON
Newhampton Arts Centre, Wolverhampton
QUEEN - FLASH The
Place, Oakengates
BO NINGEN Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
SNOWBLIND, IRON VOID,
HOLLOW EARTH, LOOORD
& BURDEN OF THE NOOSE
The Asylum, Birmingham
SINGING NINA The Drum,
Birmingham
SAM PEPPER The Institute, Birmingham
THE KOOKS The Institute,
Birmingham
THE RYANS Irish Centre,
Birmingham
QUOMOTION Route 44,
Birmingham
EASY TARGET, IDIOM,
DEAD CITY SOULS & LOVE
SICK FOR MINA The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent
PINK MARTINI PRESENTS
THE VON TRAPS Birmingham Town Hall
REED BASS Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
SNOOTY BOBS O2 Academy, Birmingham
FRIENDLY FIRE BAND
Hare & Hounds, B’ham
KING KRAB The Roadhouse, Birmingham
SAT 10 MAY
TRU GROOVE The Jam
House, Birmingham
SHOWADDYWADDY
Crewe Lyceum,
Cheshire
KASAI MASAI Theatre
Severn, Shrewsbury
DON WILLIAMS Symphony Hall, Birmingham
THE DAMES OF DARKNESS
FESTIVAL The Robin,
Bilston
THREE SPIRE ROMANCE
The Actress & Bishop,
Birmingham
LIVEWIRE The Slade
JOHN COOPER CLARKE
Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton
MIRANDA SYKES & REX
PRESTON Birchmeadow,
Broseley
URBAN FOLK QUARTET
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
EMBRACE O2 Academy,
Birmingham
PANIC! AT THE DISCO
Civic Hall, W’hampton
QUANTIC Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
CATFISH AND THE BOTTLEMEN The Institute,
Birmingham
A FOREIGNER’S JOURNEY
The Roadhouse, Birmingham
ENERGY GOD, MACKA DIAMOND, RANDY VALENTINE, REDMAN UK,
V.ROCKET, BIG JOHN &
NWR The Institute, Birmingham
BRANDON ALLEN The
Hive, Shrewsbury
UNDER THE COVERS Irish
Centre, Birmingham
PUNK’D THE SPIRIT OF 77
ANIMA, SECOND CITY
FIRE, MUTT & THE REAL
QUAID Scruffy Murphys,
Birmingham
THE BIG FOUR TRIBUTE
BAND The Sugarmill,
Stoke-on-Trent
THE RAINBAND O2 Academy, Birmingham
PURSON, WITCHSORROW,
MEADOWS, SPACE WITCH,
VODUN & ALUNAH The
Asylum, Birmingham
THE STAFFORDSHIRE MEN
St John’s Methodist
Church, Bloxwich
SUN 11 MAY
LIFESIGNS The Robin,
Bilston
GRAEME CLARK Henry
THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
ECHO AND THE BUNNYMEN Wulfrun Hall,
Wolverhampton
ALBERT HAMMOND JR
The Glee Club, B’ham
PURE LOVE O2 Academy,
Birmingham
LITTLE JIMMY Irish Centre, Birmingham
DAVID GIBB & ELLY LUCAS
Birmingham
PATSY MATHESON
Birmingham
BATTLE ACOUSTICA / BATTLE OF THE BANDS FINAL
Lichfield Guildhall
LESS FOR MURDER, THE
DALGRAINS & CARL MCFADYEN The Yardbird
GOATESS, SERPENT
VENOM, SIGIRYA, EARTHMASS, OPIUM LORD &
TRENCH OF BONES The
Asylum, Birmingham
BEAR HANDS & YOUNG
MYTHS The Institute,
Birmingham
MON 12 MAY
TORI AMOS Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
PRETTY YENDE Birmingham Town Hall
WOLF ALICE The Institute, Birmingham
INME, THE RED PAINTINGS
& OXYGEN THIEF The
Flapper, Birmingham
HARPETH RISING Kitchen
ANGEL AT MY TABLE O2
Academy, Birmingham
TUE 13 MAY
BELINDA CARLISLE Birmingham Town Hall
MARTIN STEPHENSON &
THE DAINTEES O2 Academy, Birmingham
JAGWAR MA The Institute, Birmingham
KATY PERRY LG Arena,
Birmingham
DELAYS The Slade
WE WERE EVERGREEN
Hare & Hounds, Birmingham
UP4 THE DOWNSTROKE
The Jam House, Birmingham
MORGAN O’KANE Kitchen
Garden Cafe, Birmingham
WED 14 MAY
KATY PERRY LG Arena,
Birmingham
THE IAN SIEGAL BAND
The Robin, Bilston
BOO HEWERDINE The
Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton
JIMMY LEE & THE EDGE
OF CHAOS ORCHESTRA
The Red Lion Folk Club,
Birmingham
BARRON KNIGHTS Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
THREE STEP MANOEUVRE
FUNKY ORGAN TRIO The
Yardbird Jazz Club,
Birmingham
TELEMAN Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
MICHAEL FRANTI &
SPEARHEAD O2 Academy, Birmingham
THU 15 MAY
THE SEARCHERS Crewe
Lyceum, Cheshire
RODNEY BRANIGAN & TIM
SNIDER Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
THE NEIL DIAMOND STORY
Ludlow Assembly
Rooms, Shropshire
THE PLATINUM ROGUES
PINK FAIRIES The Robin,
Bilston
BETHAN AND THE MORGANS, SMALL CHANGES &
OWD YER OSSIES The
Roadhouse, B’ham
McBusted - LG Arena, Birmingham
CHARLIE SIMPSON O2
Academy, Birmingham
FAIRPORT CONVENTION
Foxlowe Arts Centre,
Leek
DRUMSCAPES WITH JON
STERCKX Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
FRI 16 MAY
DR FEELGOOD & EDDIE
AND THE HOT RODS The
Robin, Bilston
DAN WHITEHOUSE & COLE
STACEY Old Joint Stock
Theatre, Birmingham
DETROIT SOUL The Jam
House, Birmingham
LITTLE MIX LG Arena,
Birmingham
KING PLEASURE & THE
BISCUIT BOYS Theatre
Severn, Shrewsbury
BEATY HEART Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
MILEY CYRUS National
Indoor Arena, Birmingham
VELLOCET The Sugarmill,
Stoke-on-Trent
THE WHISKEY SYNDICATE
The Slade Rooms,
Wolverhampton
PIAF THE SONGS Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
JOE BROWN Birmingham
Town Hall
AUGUSTINES The Institute, Birmingham
THE EMISSARIES The Actress & Bishop, B’ham
BILLY OCEAN The Buttermarket, Shrewsbury
FRED ZEPPELIN Route
44, Birmingham
ACTION BRONSON O2
Academy, Birmingham
THE BIG FOUR TRIBUTE
BAND The Roadhouse,
Birmingham
FACTORY FLOOR Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
DUKE, THE LITTLE
DEATHS, THE VECTORS &
STATIC IRONY O2 Academy, Birmingham
TERRAFORM The Asylum, Birmingham
LOTTE MULLAN The Glee
Club, Birmingham
MILESTONE EXPRESS
Irish Centre, B’ham
FIREBRAND SUPER ROCK
Scruffy Murphys, Birmingham
HORSE HOUSE Symphony Hall, Birmingham
SAT 17 MAY
DETROIT SOUL The Jam
House, Birmingham
THE FUREYS & DAVEY
ARTHUR Crewe Lyceum,
Cheshire
ROCK 4 SPON 3 The
Robin, Bilston
MCBUSTED LG Arena,
Birmingham
DUETS FOR DJANGO Lichfield Garrick
THE SKIRR The Slade
THE TREORCHY MALE
VOICE CHOIR Bedworth
Civic Hall
LIT The Institute, Birmingham
VIVA LA COLD PLAY Theatre On The Steps,
Bridgnorth
THAT’LL BE THE DAY
Birmingham Town Hall
WE ARE SAVIOURS O2
Academy, Birmingham
SECOND CITY FIRE The
Actress & Bishop, Birmingham
THE ROVING CROWS
Foxlowe Arts Centre,
Leek
TOO REX The Roadhouse, Birmingham
PAT BRESLIN Irish Centre, Birmingham
GENERATION N, EASTFIELD & ACHOHOL LICKS
WESTERN SAND & FEDERAL CHARM Scruffy
Murphys, Birmingham
PERHAPS CONTRAPTION
Symphony Hall, Birmingham
THE CORRESPONDENTS
The Institute, B’ham
LENZMAN The Vaults,
Shrewsbury
DILJIT DOSANJH The National Indoor Arena,
Birmingham
SUN 18 MAY
NINE INCH NAILS LG
Arena, Birmingham
THE GLENN MILLER ORCHESTRA Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
THE BOHEMIANS - A
NIGHT OF QUEEN Prince
Of Wales Centre, Cannock
COURTNEY BARNETT
COCO MONTOYA The
Robin, Bilston
ELVIS ROXX Dovehouse
Theatre, Solihull
COURTNEY LOVE O2
Academy, Birmingham
JOHN MCNICHOLL Irish
Centre, Birmingham
KIERAN GOSS Kitchen
TWO GLASS EYES The
Roadhouse, B’ham
FRENCH FOR RABBITS,
CHRIS BICKNELL & JAMES
SAYER The Yardbird
MON 19 MAY
THE FRYER BARNHART INTERNATIONAL ALL STARS
AMANDA SHIRES Henry
THE YOUNG FOLK Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
DROWNERS The Sunflower Lounge, B’ham
HANK WANGFORD O2
Academy, Birmingham
IDIOM The Flapper,
Birmingham
BIG TENT AND THE GYPSY
LANTERN Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham
TUE 20 MAY
KEITH JAMES: THE SONGS
OF LEONARD COHEN The
Robin, Bilston
SPIERS AND BODEN Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
JEFF BECK & BAND Symphony Hall, Birmingham
BEN MARKLAND BAND
FORRO SOCIAL Kitchen
Garden Cafe, Birmingham
KYLE CAREY Ort Cafe,
Birmingham
THE S FACTOR Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
WED 21 MAY
THE JOHNNY CASH ROADSHOW New Alexandra
Theatre, Birmingham
SPIERS AND BODEN The
Red Lion Folk Club,
Birmingham
GOSPEL CENTRAL The
Jam House, Birmingham
JOOLS HOLLAND & HIS
RHYTHM & BLUES ORCHESTRA Civic Hall,
Wolverhampton
BOB WAYNE The Institute, Birmingham
THE SEARCHERS Lichfield
Garrick
TERRY REID WITH BJ
COLE The Robin, Bilston
DERVISH Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
BURY TOMORROW The
“This show is not to be missed”
★★★★★
Edinburgh Evening News
“Unashamedly drumming
as theatre... exhilarating”
★★★★
The Herald
“An invigorating, life-enriching experience.
you’ll be poorer if you miss it.”
The Stage
Tuesday 13th May 2014, 7.30pm
ELGAR CONCERT HALL
Bramall Music Building at the University of Birmingham
Box Office: 0121 345 0492
or online: www.thsh.co.uk
£18 Full Price, £15 Concessions, £10 for under 18’s
Music LISTINGS
Sugarmill, Stoke-onTrent
GYPSY FIRE Solihull Arts
Centre
THE RUTLES Birmingham
Town Hall
M.A.D O2 Academy,
Birmingham
GREG RUSSELL & CIARAN
ALGAR Stafford Gatehouse Theatre
WHORION, THE MIGHTY
WRATH & ERADIKATOR
THU 22 MAY
ONE NIGHT OF ELVIS New
Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
SHAKATAK The Robin,
Bilston
A CELEBRATION OF NEIL
DIAMOND Solihull Arts
Complex
MILES HUNT & ERICA
NOCKTAILS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
EDEN’S CURSE The Slade
THE PARIS 1940’S The
Jam House, B’ham
WOLF ALICE The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent
TINY RUINS The Glee
Club, Birmingham
SKY VALLEY MISTRESS
THE STRUTS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
FRI 23 MAY
ELVIS PRESLEY - ON
STAGE Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
THE SUBTERRANEANS
FLEETWOOD BAC The
Robin, Bilston
THE CARPENTERS STORY
New Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
THE UPLOAD TOUR 3 O2
Academy, Birmingham
BEN UFO Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
THE INDIANS Prince Of
Wales Centre, Cannock
THUMPERS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
QUEEN ALIVE Route 44,
Birmingham
JIMI GOODWIN The Institute, Birmingham
FRAMED The Actress &
Bishop, Birmingham
THE DOUBLE HAPPY The
TOM HICKOX The Glee
Club, Birmingham
REEL NOTE Irish Centre,
Birmingham
REASIDE & LOCCA The
Roadhouse, Birmingham
DELAMERE & RACING
GLACIERS The Sugarmill,
Stoke-on-Trent
TOM HILL AND ZZ BOP
Symphony Hall, Birmingham
THE HOOSIERS The Institute, Birmingham
SAT 24 MAY
THE SUBTERRANEANS
FAIRPORT CONVENTION
Birchmeadow, Broseley
THE ELVIS YEARS Crewe
Lyceum, Cheshire
STILL MARILLION - TOTALLY FUGAZI The Slade
AN EVENING WITH JULIE
ANDREWS National Indoor Arena, B’ham
TROUMACA Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
ROY ORBISON AND
FRIENDS Tamworth Assembly Rooms,
Staffordshire
DILJIT DOSANJH Civic
Hall, Wolverhampton
BILLY OCEAN The Robin,
Bilston
SAXONIZED Route 44,
Birmingham
ENEMO J O2 Academy,
Birmingham
MARC FORD The Institute, Birmingham
THE FULL SHA BANG Irish
Centre, Birmingham
JESS MORGAN Ort Cafe,
Birmingham
RAM WAREHOUSE PARTY
The Rainbow Venues,
Birmingham
SUN 25 MAY
DESPERADO The Robin,
Bilston
GARETH MALONE Symphony Hall, Birmingham
BILLY OCEAN Lichfield
Garrick
TIA MCGRAFF Henry
HOT 8 BRASS BAND Hare
T R DALLAS Irish Centre,
BIrmingham
DISSIDENT PROPHET
Birmingham
KID CONGO AND THE PINK
MONKEY BIRDS Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
MOJO HOOKER, SUZI AND
THE BACKBEATS, THE ZOE
GREEN BAND, THE LOVELESS, THE PAUL STEDMAN
BAND, TOM WALKER TRIO
AND MORE The Roadhouse, Birmingham
JOE MILES, HOLLY AIRES,
CONNOR HEMMING & WES
DANCE The Yardbird
MON 26 MAY
THE SEEKERS Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
WHITE DENIM The Glee
Club, Birmingham
SHREYA GHOSHAL National Indoor Arena,
Birmingham
SLAM DUNK FESTIVAL
Civic Hall, Wolverhampton
THE PIZZA UNDERGROUND
TIR NA NOG Kitchen Gar-
den Cafe, Birmingham
MEADOWLARK Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
TUE 27 MAY
MCBUSTED LG Arena,
Birmingham
BLAIR DUNLOP Hare &
Hounds, Birmingham
CRIPPLED BLACK
PHOENIX The Robin,
Bilston
FOXES The Institute,
Birmingham
FREEZE THE ATLANTIC,
LAYERS & THE BROKEN
OAK DUET The Flapper,
Birmingham
WED 28 MAY
EAGLES LG Arena, Birmingham
GWEN DICKEY’S ROSE
ROYCE The Jam House,
Birmingham
POP FACTOR Lichfield
Garrick
PAUL LAMB & THE DETROIT BREAKDOWN The
Robin, Bilston
THE BLUES BAND The
Place, Oakengates
NURVRAX JAM The Yardbird Jazz Club, Birmingham
AWOLNATION The Institute, Birmingham
FUTUREPROOF O2 Academy, Birmingham
JACK NCNEILL & CHARLIE
HEYS Kitchen Garden
Cafe, Birmingham
THU 29 MAY
DEL CAMINO The Jam
House, Birmingham
TROUBADOUR The Robin,
Bilston
GERRY CROSS THE
MERSEY Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
ESKA Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
DOMINIC KIRWAN Lichfield Garrick
THE RIPTIDE MOVEMENT
O2 Academy, Birmingham
THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY New
Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
THE ENEMY The Institute,
Birmingham
FROM EDEN TO EXILE The
Roadhouse, Birmingham
THE PIZZA UNDERGROUND
The Sugarmill, Stokeon-Trent
MAGGIE 8 Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
EAGLES LG Arena, Birmingham
A
FRI 30 MAY
DRESSED TO KILL The
Robin, Bilston
SOLID SOUL The Jam
House, Birmingham
KEZIASOUL & BURNSIDE
PAUL HEATON & JACQUI
ABBOT The Institute,
Birmingham
CAMERA OBSCURA The
WEDNESDAY 13 The
OLLY MURS TRIBUTE The
Great Barr Hotel, Birmingham
Wolf Alice - The Institute, Birmingham; The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent
PAOLO NUTINI Civic Hall,
Wolverhampton
SOUR MASH The Actress
& Bishop, Birmingham
EAST INDIA YOUTH The
THE BEAUTIFUL SOUND
SLAB, CAMBION, STRONGHOST & IN THE GUISE OF
MEN Scruffy Murphys,
Birmingham
RACHAEL COHEN QUARTET Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
MUSE INC & BLUE NATION
REMI HARRIS TRIO mac,
Birmingham
TWELFTH DAY Ort Cafe,
Birmingham
SAT 31 MAY
THE SMYTHS The Sugarmill, Stoke-on-Trent
T-REXTASY Tamworth Assembly Rooms,
Staffordshire
GRAHAM PARKER AND
THE RUMOUR O2 Academy, Birmingham
MICHAEL KING PRESENTS
THE BILLY FURY YEARS
THE BON JOVI EXPERIENCE Prince Of Wales
Centre, Cannock
THE RAT PACK VEGAS
SPECTACULAR Victoria
Hall, Stoke-on-Trent
METALLICA RELOADED O2
Academy, Birmingham
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
National Indoor Arena,
Birmingham
IVOR & LYNN’S CLASSIC
ROCK DISCO Route 44,
Birmingham
FRANCIS DUNNERY BAND
The Robin, Bilston
PHRONESIS Birmingham
Town Hall
SCHOOLBOY Q The Institute, Birmingham
LACED Hare & Hounds,
Birmingham
ULTIMATE ELTON & THE
ROCKET BAND Theatre
On The Steps, Bridgnorth
SWIM WITH SHARKS Irish
Centre, Birmingham
THE NOTEBENDERS Symphony Hall, Birmingham
SOLID SOUL The Jam
House, Birmingham
Music Venues Box Office
Birmingham
02 ACADEMY
0121 622 8250
THE ACTRESS & BISHOP
0121 236 7426
ADRIAN BOULT HALL
0121 331 5901
THE ASYLUM
0121 233 1109
THE BARBER INSTITUTE
0121 414 7333
BIRMINGHAM TOWN HALL
0121 780 3333
CBSO CENTRE
0121 780 3333
FLAPPER 0121 236 2421
THE GLEE CLUB
0871 472 0400
HARE & HOUNDS
0121 444 2081
THE INSTITUTE
0121 643 0428
IRISH CENTRE
0121 622 2314
THE JAM HOUSE
0121 200 3030
THE KITCHEN GARDEN CAFE
0121 443 4725
LG ARENA
0844 338 8000
NIA
0844 338 8000
THE RAINBOW
0121 772 8174
RED LION FOLK CLUB
0121472 4253
THE ROADHOUSE
0121 459 5660
ROUTE 44
0121 708 0108
SYMPHONY HALL
0121 780 3333
THE VICTORIA
0121 633 9439
THE YARDBIRD
0121 212 2524
Black Country
CIVIC HALL, WOLVERHAMPTON
0870 320 7000
DUDLEY CONCERT HALL
01384 815577
FOREST ARTS CENTRE
0845 111 2898
NEWHAMPTON ARTS CENTRE
01902 572090
ROBIN 2, BILSTON
01902 401211
SLADE ROOMS
WOLVERHAMPTON
Staffordshire
FOXLOWE ARTS CENTRE, LEEK
01538 386112
LICHFIELD GUILDHALL
01543 262223
THE SUGARMILL, HANLEY
STOKE-ON-TRENT
01159 454 593
TAMWORTH ASSEMBLY ROOMS
01827 709618
VICTORIA HALL, HANLEY
0870 060 6649
STAFFORD GATEHOUSE
01785 254653
0870 320 7000
Warwickshire
STOURBRIDGE TOWN HALL
01384 812812
WULFRUN HALL,
WOLVERHAMPTON
THE ASSEMBLY, LEAMINGTON
01926 311311
0870 320 7000
Shropshire
BIRCHMEADOW, BROSELEY
01952 882210
THE BUTTERMARKET,
SHREWSBURY
01743 355055
THE EDGE ARTS CENTRE,
MUCH WENLOCK
01952 728911
HENRY TUDOR HOUSE
SHREWSBURY
01743 361666
THE HIVE, SHREWSBURY
01743 234970
LUDLOW ASSEMBLY ROOMS
01584 878141
THEATRE SEVERN,
SHREWSBURY 01743 281281
THE PLACE, OAKENGATES,
TELFORD 01952 382382
WEM TOWN HALL
01939 232299
THE KASBAH, COVENTRY
024 7655 4473
NAILCOTE HALL,
BERKSWELL
02476 46 6174
STRATFORD CIVIC HALL
01789 207100
THE TIN MUSIC & ARTS,
COVENTRY
0247 655 9958
Worcestershire
ARTRIX, BROMSGROVE
01527 577330
HUNTINGDON HALL / SWAN
THEATRE 01905 611427
MARR’S BAR, WORCESTER
01905 613336
THE RIVER ROOMS,
STOURBRIDGE
01384 397177
For additional information
and to find out What’s On
at these venues.
Visit: www.whatsonlive.co.uk
Classical May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:42 Page 1
Classical Music PREVIEWS
The Marriage Of Figaro
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, Sun 25 May;
Lichfield Garrick, Fri 30 May
Nowadays a cornerstone of the standard
operatic repertoire, The Marriage Of Figaro
was written by Mozart in 1786. Premiering
the same year, it enjoyed instant success.
Set in Spain and recounting the events
which take place during a single day in
the palace of Count Almaviva, the opera
follows the attempts of the countess to
expose the infidelities of her husband, who
has designs on his maid, Susanna.
This touring production arrives in the
region courtesy of Swansea City Opera
and features Andrew Mayor as the Count,
Elin Pritchard as the Countess, Helen
Massey as Susanna and Aris Nadirian as
Figaro.
Sir Antonio Pappano
Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Fri 16 May
Music Director for the Royal Opera House since 2002, Antonio Pappano has conducted an
impressive range of productions since making his directing debut at Den Norske Opera in
1987. Equally praised for his many recordings as both conductor and pianist, Pappano’s services to music were recognised with a knighthood in January 2012.
This month sees the British-born artist visiting the Midlands to direct an impressive cast in a
performance of Verdi’s Requiem, often described as an opera in all but name. The production
features Joseph Calleja - the Maltese tenor who’s been attracting comparisons with the young
Pavarotti - soprano Hibla Gerzmaya, mezzo soprano Ekaterina Semenchuk, bass Carlo Colombara, and the Orchestra and Chorus of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
Manchester Camerata:
Carmen Reworked
Pretty Yende
Stafford Gatehouse Theatre, Fri 25 April
With her victory in every category at the
2010 Belvedere International being followed a year later by a first place finish in
Placido Domingo’s Operalia World Competition, South Africa’s Pretty Yende is rightly
regarded as one of the world’s most
thrilling new sopranos. Pretty’s critically
acclaimed debut with the Metropolitan
Opera in 2013 further cemented her status
as a fast-rising musical star.
Described by the Telegraph as ‘Possessed
of diamanté tone and a megawatt smile’,
she here performs a repertoire of bel canto
gems by Rossini and Bellini, presented
alongside works by Bernstein, Balfe and
Gimenez.
One of the UK’s leading chamber orchestras,
Manchester Camerata enjoys a ‘flourishing residency’ in Stafford, and this month returns to
the Gatehouse to deliver a selection of classical favourites. Joined by one of Norway’s most
exciting pianists, Christian Ihle Hadland, and
under the direction of conductor Gábor TakácsNagy, the orchestra presents a programme
which features: Grieg’s Holberg Suite op.40 five movements based on eighteenth century
dance forms; Mozart’s Piano Concerto no.12
K414 - an early work, performed here with just
a string orchestra; and Shchedrin’s Carmen
Suite after Bizet - a memorable piece for
strings and five percussionists described as
‘dramatic, entertaining and incredibly witty’.
Christian Ihle Hadland
Birmingham Town Hall, Mon 12 May
Nigel Short
Tenebrae Consort
St Chad’s Church, Shrewsbury, Fri 23 May
Tenebrae Consort comprises outstanding
musicians drawn from the award-winning
chamber choir Tenebrae, as well as from
the groups the Swingle Singers, the Kings
Singers and The Sixteen. Directed by Nigel
Short, the consort here intersperses chant
with the glories of polyphony, including
three settings of John Sheppard’s In
manus tuas, Thomas Tallis’ Te lucis ante
terminum, and his intensely moving
Lamentation Of Jeremiah. This timeless
music will be performed by candlelight,
with age-old traditional processionals being
used to take full advantage of the unique
acoustic and atmosphere of St Chad’s.
Classical May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:42 Page 2
Classical LISTINGS
For full listing information on classical
concerts, including times and dates,
CBSO RIMSKY-KORSAKOV'S SCHEHERAZADE
Featuring Rafael Payare
(conductor) and
Jonathan Biss (piano).
Programme includes
works by Brahms,
Schumann and RimskyKorsakov, Thurs 1 May
Symphony Hall, B’ham
KHOVANSKYGATE: A
NATIONAL INQUIRY Birmingham Opera Company present Mussorgsky’s final opera,
directed by Graham
Vick, Fri 2 May, Cannon
Hill Park, Birmingham
LUNCHTIME CONCERT
Rupert Marshall-Luck
(violin) and Matthew
Rickard (piano) perform
works from Bartok and
Dohnanyi, Fri 2 May,
Barber Institute, B’ham
PAVEL HAAS QUARTET
Featuring Denis
Kozhukhin (piano). Programme includes works
by Beethoven and
Brahms, Sun 4 May,
CARDUCCI STRING QUARTET - FROM VIENNA TO
MOSCOW Sun 4 May,
Maidment Hall, Shrewsbury School
MOSCOW PHILHARMONIC
ORCHESTRA Featuring
Yuri Simonov (conductor) and Natalie Clein
(cello). Programme
includes works by
Tchaikovsky &
Shostakovich, Tue 6
May, Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
SANDRINE PIAU & APOLLO’S FIRE Programme
includes works by
Vivaldi, Rameau & Handel, Wed 7 May, Birmingham Town Hall
STEPHEN HOUGH - PIANO
RECITAL Programme
includes works by
Brahms, Bruckner,
Schoenberg, Schumann, Strauss & Wagner, Wed 7 May, The Barber Institute, B’ham
CBSO RACHMANINOV AND
SHOSTAKOVICH Featuring Andres OrozcoEstrada (conductor)
and Simone Lamsma
(violin). Programme
includes works by
Ravel, Shostakovich &
Rachmaninov, Thurs 8
May, Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
REUBEN FOWLER SEXTET
Thurs 8 May, Bramall
Music Building, B’ham
CBSO PLAYERS Featuring
Gabriel Dyker & Bryony
Morrison (violins),
Michael Jenkinson
(viola) & Sally Morgan
(bass). Programme
includes works by
Rossini & Dvorak, Fri 9
May, CBSO Centre,
Birmingham
THE HERMES ENSEMBLE
Fri 9 May, Barber Institute, Birmingham
CBSO SILENT HEROES:
BUSTER KEATON Featur-
ing Carl Davis (conductor), Fri 9 May Symphony Hall, Birmingham
HALLE ORCHESTRA GALA
FINALE Fri 9 May, Victoria Hall, Stoke-on-Trent
PINK MARTINI PRESENT
THE VON TRAPPS Fri 9
May, Birmingham Town
Hall
ORGAN PROM WITH
JONATHAN SCOTT Sat 10
May, Victoria Hall, Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
LUDLOW ORCHESTRA: A
RUSSIAN CONCERT Programme features works
by Borodin,
Tchaikovsky, Bochmann
& Mussorgsky, Sat 10
May, St Laurence
Church, Ludlow, South
Shropshire
BCMG: FANTASIA ON THE
NOTES Oliver Knussen
conducts a programme
of work in celebration
of the 80th birthday of
Harrison Birtwistle, Sat
10 May, CBSO Centre,
Birmingham
CBSO FAMILY CONCERT:
BITE-SIZE CLASSICS Featuring Michael Seal
(conductor) and Alasdair Malloy (presenter).
Programme includes
works by Strauss, Glinka, Faure, Beethoven,
Shostakovich, Copland,
Prokofiev and Mercury,
Sun 11 May, Symphony
Hall, Birmingham
CBSO WITH SIMON RATTLE Sun 11 May, Symphony Hall, B’ham
LUNCHTIME ORGAN CONCERT: THOMAS TROTTER
Programme includes
works by Bach, Handel
(arr Trotter), Judith
Weir, Mendelssohn &
Vierne, Mon 12 May
PRETTY YENDE Mon 12
May, B’ham Town Hall
ORCHESTRA OF THE
SWAN: BEETHOVEN'S
EROICA Featuring Martin
Roscoe on piano, Wed
14 May, Birmingham
Town Hall
CBSO HAYDN AND
MOZART Featuring
Andris Nelson (conductor), Margaret
Cookhorn (contrabassoon), Rainer Gibbons
(oboe), Christopher
Richards (clarinet),
Gretha Tuls (bassoon)
& Elspeth Dutch (horn),
Wed 14 - Thurs 15 May,
PAPPANO CONDUCTS THE
VERDI REQUIEM Fri 16
May, Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
ZELKOVA QUARTET Programme includes works
from Haydn and Bartok,
THE MIDLAND CHAMBER
PLAYERS Fri 16 May,
Birmingham And Midland Institute
BIDDULPH MALE VOICE
CHOI WITH JONATHAN
ANSELL Sat 17 May, Vic-
toria hall, Stoke-onTrent
SIAN JONES CANTIONES
CHAMBER CHOIR Programme includes works
by Pergolesi & Mozart,
Sat 17 May, Holy Trinity
Church, Oswestry,
North Shropshire
ENGLISH REFLECTIONS
City of Birmingham
Choir perform works by
Elgar & Vaughan
Williams, Sat 17 May,
LUDLOW CHORAL SOCIETY: DURUFLE’S REQUIEM
Sat 17 May, St Laurence’s Church, Ludlow, South Shropshire
RISING STARS: DIONYSIS
GRAMMENOS AND KARINA SPOSOBINA Programme includes works
by Bassi, Rachmaninov,
Faure, Della Giacomma, Schumann,
Chopin, Poulenc & de
Sarasate, Sun 18 May,
BIRMINGHAM CANOLDIR
MALE CHOIR Sun 18
May, Birmingham Town
Hall
CBSO PLAYERS Programme includes works
by Bax, Debussy & Piazolla, Thurs 22 May,
CBSO Centre, B’ham
BEYOND CLASSICAL: INVITATION TO THE DANCE
Featuring performances
by Yawen Mu &
Linyang Wang, Thurs
22 May, Symphony Hall
Cafe Bar, Birmingham
MANCHESTER CAMERATA:
THE YELLOW HAMMERS
SONG Featuring Benjamin Grosvenor
(piano), Giovanni
Guzzo (violin) & Hannah Roberts (cello).
Programme includes
works by Beethoven,
Fri 23 May, Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
BACK TO BACH
LUNCHTIME CONCERT
WITH KENNETH HAMILTON
TENEBRAE CONSORT
CHANT AND POLYPHONY
BY CANDLELIGHT Fri 23
May, St Chad's Church,
Shrewsbury
CBSO DER ROSENKAVALIER Featuring Andris
Nelsons (conductor),
Soile Isokoski
(Marschallin), Alice
Coote (Octavian),
Sophie Bevan (Sophie),
Franz Hawlata (Ochs),
Mark Stone (Faninal),
Bonaventura Bottone
(Valzacchi), Pamela
Helen Stephen (Annina), Ji-Min Park (Italian
Tenor), Eddie Wade
(Notary/Police Inspector/Servant) and CBSO
Chorus and Youth Chorus, Sat 24 May, Symphony Hall, B’ham
GARETH MALONE An
inspirational evening of
choral music courtesy
of the UK’s Favourite
Choirmaster, Sun 25
May, Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
THE MARRIAGE OF
FIGARO Swansea City
Opera present their version of Mozart's comic
opera, Sun 25 May,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
JULIAN HELLABY & PETER
NOKE Programme
includes works by
Gershwin, Milhaud,
Poulenc & Ramskill,
Tues 27 May, CBSO
Centre, Birmingham
CBSO ANDRIS AND HAKAN
IN CONCERT Featuring
Andris Nelsons (conductor) and Hakan
Hardenberger (trumpet). Programme
includes works by
Ravel, Haydn and Mussorgsky, Wed 28 May,
CBSO PICTURES AT AN
EXHIBITION Featuring
Andris Nelsons (conductor) and Hakan
Hardenberger (trumpet). Programme
includes works by
Ravel, Dean and Mussorgsky, Thurs 29 May,
THE MARRIAGE OF
FIGARO Swansea City
opera, Fri 30 May, Lichfield Garrick
BACK TO BACH
LUNCHTIME CONCERT
WITH KENNETH HAMILTON
CBSO PLAYERS Adrian
Spillett presents a contemporary programme
featuring works by
Radiohead, Reich,
Bradley & Rush, Fri 30
May, CBSO Centre,
Birmingham
Jonathan Ansell - Victoria Hall, Stoke-on-Trent
Classical Box Office
ADRIAN BOULT HALL,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 331 5901
HOLY TRINITY CHURCH,
OSWESTRY
01691 654832 / 652810
BARBER INSTITUTE,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 414 7333
MAIDMENT HALL,
SHREWSBURY SCHOOL
01743 280810
BIRMINGHAM
CONSERVATOIRE
0121 331 5901/2
ST CHAD’S CHURCH,
SHREWSBURY
01743 365478
BIRMINGHAM & MIDLAND
INSTITUTE
0121 236 3591
ST LAURENCE’S CHURCH,
LUDLOW
01584 872073
0121 780 3333
SYMPHONY HALL,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 780 3333
BRAMALL CONCERT HALL,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 414 3344
CBSO CENTRE,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 780 333
VICTORIA HALL,
STOKE-ON-TRENT
0870 060 6649
For additional information
Visit: w ww.whatsonlive.co.uk
Comedy May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 14:43 Page 1
Comedy
Brian Conley
Comedy
Box Office
Stafford Gatehouse Theatre, Weds 14 May;
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury Fri 16 May
Comedian, television presenter, singer and
actor Brian Conley is well known indeed in
these parts, having regularly appeared at the
Birmingham Hippodrome over the years, in
musicals such as Jolson, Chitty Chitty Bang
Bang and Oliver!. His
popularity with
Midlands audiences
has been most in evidence during the festive season, however,
courtesy of his numerous star-turns in the
Hippodrome’s pantomime. In short,
when Brian’s in town,
a ticket sell-out is a
guarantee!
Tom Stade
The Glee Club, Birmingham, Fri 30 - Sat 31 May
Clever, controversial and Canadian pretty much
sums up Tom Stade, a familiar face on BBC TV
programmes such as Michael McIntyre's
Comedy Roadshow and Mock The Week. Tom
has headlined gigs in
comedy hotspots like
New York and London
by way of locations
such as Amsterdam
and Johannesburg,
and has also earned
his corn in far-flung
war zones like Iraq
and Afghanistan, scoring some major hits by
entertaining the
troops.
ARTRIX, BROMSGROVE
01527 577330
BEDWORTH CIVIC HALL
02476 376707
0121 780 3333
THE DRUM, BIRMINGHAM
0121 333 2444
DUDLEY CONCERT HALL
01384 815 577
GLEE CLUB, BIRMINGHAM
0871 4720400
HIGHLIGHT, BIRMINGHAM,
0844 844 0044
HUNTINGDON HALL,
WORCESTER,
01905 611427
FOXLOWE ARTS CENTRE,
LEEK, STAFFS
01538 386112
Omid Djalili
Palace Theatre, Redditch, Thurs 15 May; Oakengates Theatre,
Telford, Fri 30 May; Huntingdon Hall, Worcester, Sat 27 Sept;
Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, Thurs 11 Dec
A fella who's been referred to as 'the thinking person's Iranian comedian', multi-award-winning funnyman Omid Djalili is a firm favourite
at the Edinburgh Festival, and is probably one of the most subversive comedians currently doing the rounds on the UK comedy circuit. An actor as well as a comedian, Omid has trodden the boards
in versions of The Shawshank Redemption and Joe Orton's
acclaimed comedy What The Butler Saw. He also took the lead role
in the David Baddiel film The Infidel, as well as appearing in box
office blockbusters Gladiator, The Mummy, Sex And The City 2 and
the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough.
Shappi Khorsandi
Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton, Fri 9 May; Royal
Spa Centre, Leamington Spa, Sat 24 May
Iranian-born comedian Shappi found herself
living in the UK after her father,
the poet and satirist Hadi
Khorsandi, wrote a poem
that was perceived as
being critical of Iran’s
revolutionary regime.
A regular contributor
both to radio and
television comedy
shows, Shappi’s
jokes include:
“I'm going to
India on holiday
and I wanted to
know what the
weather is like
there. So I
phoned my
bank”.
Comedy Hulaballoo
The Courtyard & Idolize Spiegeltent, Stratford-upon-Avon,
Thurs 22 May - Sun 25 May
Some of the biggest names on the circuit feature in four days of
comic madness when Comedy Hullabaloo takes place in Stratford
this month. Organised by Underbelly, the entertainment company
responsible for Udderbelly Festival London and London
Wonderground, the festival spreads across various venues in
Stratford-upon-Avon. Ardal O’Hanlon, Tim Vine, Milton Jones (pictured), Jason Manford, Al Murray, Hal Cruttenden, Justin Moorhouse
and Richard Herring are among the well-established names booked
to appear. Meanwhile, a Comedy Club 4 Kids element of the show
sees Ed Gamble, Nish Kumar and James Acaster plying their trade
to younger visitors - but without any rude bits.
KITCHEN GARDEN CAFE,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 443 4725
LG ARENA, BIRMINGHAM
0844 338 8000
LUDLOW ASSEMBLY
ROOMS
01584 878141
MAC, BIRMINGHAM
0121 446 3232
NEW ALEXANDRA
THEATRE, BIRMINGHAM
0844 871 3011
PALACE THEATRE,
REDDITCH
01527 65203
THE PUBLIC, WEST
BROMWICH
0121 533 7161
DRUMMONDS BAR,
WORCESTER
01905 28190
RICOH ARENA, COVENTRY
0844 873 6565
THE ROSES THEATRE
TEWKESBURY
01684 295074
ROYAL SPA CENTRE,
LEAMINGTON SPA
01926 334418
STAFFORD GATEHOUSE
THEATRE
01785 254653
SOLIHULL ARTS COMPLEX
0121 704 6962
THE SLADE ROOMS,
WOLVERHAMPTON
0870 320 7000
THE GEORGE HOTEL,
BURSLEM, STAFFS
07763301081
TAMWORTH ASSEMBLY
ROOMS
01827 709618
THEATRE SEVERN,
SHREWSBURY
01743 281281
VICTORIA HALL, HANLEY,
STOKE-ON-TRENT
0844 871 7649
WARWICK ARTS CENTRE
02476 524524
WEST BROMWICH TOWN
HALL
0121 596 4429
WULFRUN HALL,
WOLVERHAMPTON
0870 320 7000
For more comedy listings, visit, www.whatsonlive.co.uk 25
THE EASY WAY TO
BOOK
YOUR TICKETS
ONLINE
whatsonlive.co.uk
The most comprehensive what’s on listings website
for Birmingham and the West Midlands
Comedy LISTINGS
For full listing information on comedy
gigs including times and dates visit
PAUL CHOWDHRY Thurs
1 May, Wulfrun Hall,
Wolverhampton
KUM-N-AVALOFF COMEDY
NIGHT Thurs 1 May
Stourbridge Town Hall
PIERRE HOLLINS,
SCOTTISH FALSETTO
SOCK PUPPET THEATRE,
JAMES MEEHAN, JOHN
LEBBON, LOU CONRAN
Thurs 1 May, Foxlowe
Arts Centre, Leek,
Staffordshire
REVEREND OBADIAH
STEPPENWOLF III, TIM
CLARK, ADAM BLOOM,
COMIC TBC Thurs 1 May,
ANDY ROBINSON, GERRY
K, JELLYBEAN MARTINEZ,
ALAN DONEGAN Fri 2
May, The George Hotel,
Burslem, Staffordshire
LAURENCE CLARK Fri 2
May, Arena Theatre,
Wolverhampton
JON RICHARDSON Fri 2
May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
JERRY SADOWITZ Fri 2
May, Crescent Theatre,
Birmingham
ANDREW BIRD, MIKE
WILKINSON, DAVID
LONGLEY, CHRIS CHOPPING, CARL HUTCHINSON
Fri 2 May, Jongleurs
Comedy Club, B’ham
TOM STADE, ANDY
ASKINS, JOSEPH WILSON,
DAMION LARKIN Fri 2
May, The Slade Rooms,
Wolverhampton
MARK STEEL: BACK IN
TOWN Fri 2 May, The
Edge Arts Centre, Much
Wenlock, South
Shropshire
ANGIE LE MAR, KEVIN J
PLUS COMIC TBC Fri 2
May, The Drum, B’ham
ALEX LOVE, TIM
O'CONNOR, NICK ROOT,
PHILLIP SIMON, WAYNE
BEESE, SARA MASON,
ROB COLEMAN Fri 2 May
Evesham Arts Centre,
Worcestershire
TOM CRAINE, ASH FRITH,
HAYLEY ELLIS Fri 2 May
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre
REVEREND OBADIAH
STEPPENWOLF III, TIM
CLARK, ADAM BLOOM,
MIKE WILMOT Fri 2 May Sat 3 May, The Glee
Club, Birmingham
MARK THOMAS Sat 3
May, Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
ALFIE MOORE Sat 3 May
Huntingdon Hall,
Worcester
PETER WHITE, TOM
DEACON, PAUL F TAYLOR,
ANDY FURY Sat 3 May,
Coventry Showcase
Cinema
ANDREW BIRD, MIKE
WILKINSON, CARL
HUTCHINSON, DAVID
LONGLEY Sat 3 May,
Jongleurs Comedy
Club, Birmingham
JOHN WITHERSPOON Sun
4 May, Wulfrun Hall,
Wolverhampton
RICH HALL Thurs 8 May
The Place, Oakengates
Theatre, Telford
JAMES DOWDESWELL,
MIKE GUNN, GWILLUM
ARGOS, DAVE
TWENTYMAN Thurs 8
May, The George Hotel,
Lichfield
HOLLY WALSH,
CHRISTIAN REILLY Thurs
8 May, mac, B’ham
PATRICK MONAHAN Thurs
8 May - Sat 10 May, Old
Joint Stock Theatre,
Birmingham
DANA ALEXANDER, DAVE
LONGLEY, JUSTIN
MOORHOUSE, JONNY
AWSUM Thurs 8 May Sat 10 May, The Glee
Club, Birmingham
SHAPPI KHORSANDI Fri 9
May, Wulfrun Hall,
Wolverhampton
LEE EVANS Fri 9 May,
Ludlow Assembly
Rooms, South
Shropshire
PAUL SINAH, IAN
COPPINGER, ROB
COLLINS, STEVE
SHANYASKI, RYAN GOUGH
JUSTIN BOTTOM'S FIRST
ENCOUNTERS OF THE
CLOSE KIND Fri 9 May,
Palace Theatre,
Redditch
LEE HURST Sat 10 May
Artrix, Bromsgrove
BILLY PEARCE Sat 10
May, Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
RICH HALL Sat 10 May
Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
ALUN COCHRANE, PAUL
TONKINSON, TOM STADE
AND MC MRS BARBARA
NICE Sat 10 May,
Players Bar, B’ham
PAUL SINAH, IAN
COPPINGER, ROB
COLLINS, STEVE
SHANYASKI Sat 10 May,
Jongleurs Comedy
Club, B’ham
LEE EVANS: WORK IN
PROGRESS Sat 10 May,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
PAUL TONKINSON, KAREN
BAYLEY, DANNY WARD,
BETHANY BLACK Sat 10
May, Coventry
Showcase Cinema
SHOULD I STAY OR
SHOULD I GO Sun 11
May, Drummonds Bar,
Worcester
ROUGH WORKS Sun 11
May, The Glee Club,
Birmingham
MARK GRIST Sun 11
May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
LEE EVANS Sun 11 May
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre
OPEN MIC COMEDY HOSTED BY LOUDEEMY
SOUP Mon 12 May,
The Blue Orange
Theatre, Birmingham
BARNSTOMERS COMEDY
Tues 13 May, Royal Spa
Centre, Leamington
Spa
DUNCAN OAKLEY Tues 13
May, Rose Villa Tavern,
Birmingham
SAM BRADY Weds 14
May, mac, Birmingham
BRIAN CONLEY Weds 14
May, Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
VG LEE, HELEN THORN,
INDIA MCLEOD, MAUREEN
YOUNGER Weds 14 May,
Birmingham
KATHERINE RYAN, PHIL
JERROD, JONNY PELHAM,
CLINT EDWARDS Weds
14 May, Henry Tudor
House, Shrewsbury
OMID DJALILI Thurs 15
May, Palace Theatre,
Redditch
BEN NORRIS, ZOE LYONS,
JAMES DOWDESWELL,
BARRY DODDS Thurs 15
May - Sat 17 May,
SARAH MILLICAN Fri 16
May, De Montfort Hall,
Leicester
ANDY ASKINS, JIM
SMALLMAN, LUKE
TOULSON, TOM DEACON,
KIRI PRITCHARD-MCLEAN
BRIAN CONLEY Fri 16
Shrewsbury
JETHRO Fri 16 May,
Crewe Lyceum
COURTLAUGHING
COMEDY CLUB Fri 16
May, Hereford
Courtyard Theatre
JIMMY CARR Sat 17
May, Dudley Town Hall
ANDY ASKINS, LUKE
TOULSON, JOE BOR Sat
17 May, Jongleurs
MICKEY SHARMA Sat 17
May, mac, Birmingham
JON RICHARDSON Sat 17
May, Civic Hall,
Wolverhampton
JAMES SHERWOOD, ANDY
WATSON, MATT RUDGE,
GARETH MILLERICK Sat
17 May, Coventry
Showcase Cinema
IT'S A CRACKER, BE A
JUDGE AS EIGHT COMEDIANS BATTLE TO BE
'COMEDY KING OF
EVESHAM'. MC JAN
WAGSTAFFE, BEN
THURSRSTON, SHERAZ
YOUSAF, NEIL IRVING,
JOSH SADLER, JAY
QUINN, PETE BECKLEY,
JIM KELLY, RUSS
MULLIGAN Sat 17 May,
Worcestershire
ROB ROUSE, RIA LINA,
BREN RILEY, COMIC TBC
Sat 17 May, Players
Bar, Birmingham
SEVERN JESTERS Sun 18
Shrewsbury
FRANK SKINNER Sun 18
May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
GARY DELANEY, BRET
GOLDSTEIN, ROB ROUSE
Sun 18 May, Warwick
Arts Centre, Coventry
TOADALLY FREE COMEDY!
Mon 19 May The Blue
Orange Theatre, B’ham
RICHARD HERRING Tues
20 May, Station Pub,
Sutton Coldfield
THE NOISE NEXT DOOR
Weds 21 May, Station
Pub, Sutton Coldfield
JOSH WIDDICOMBE Weds
21 May, The Glee Club,
Birmingham
GRUMPY OLD WOMEN
Weds 21 May, Theatre
Severn, Shrewsbury
MATT RICHARDSON Thurs
22 May, Artrix,
Bromsgrove
JON RICHARDSON Thurs
22 May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
RO CAMPBELL, TOBIAS
PERSSON, NATHAN
CATON, COMIC TBC Thurs
Birmingham
RUBY WAX Thurs 22
May, The Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury
NICK DOODY, SILKY Thurs
22 May, mac, B’ham
RAYMOND MEARNS,
ROGER MONKHOUSE,
SMUG ROBERTS, BARRY
DODDS, AARON
TWITCHEN Fri 23 May,
Jongleurs Comedy
Club, Birmingham
MAXINE JONES Fri 23
May, Stafford
Gatehouse Theatre
RO CAMPBELL, STEVE
HARRIS, TOBIAS
PERSSON, JASON
PATTERSON Fri 23 May
THE LAUGHTER CREWE
Fri 23 May, Crewe
Lyceum
LEE EVANS: WORK IN
PROGRESS Fri 23 May,
The Edge Arts Centre,
Much Wenlock, South
Shropshire
BARNSTORMERS COMEDY
NIGHT Sat 24 May
Artrix, Bromsgrove
BILLY PEARCE Sat 24
May, Prince Of Wales
Centre, Cannock,
Staffordshire
LEE EVANS: WORK IN
PROGRESS Sat 24 May,
Worcestershire
MATT RICHARDSON Sat
24 May, Hereford
Courtyard Theatre
PAUL CHOWDHRY Sat 24
May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
SHAPPI KHORSANDI Sat
24 May, Royal Spa
Centre, Leamington
Spa
RAYMOND MEARNS,
ROGER MONKHOUSE,
SMUG ROBERTS, BARRY
DODDS Sat 24 May,
Jongleurs Comedy
Club, Birmingham
DUNCAN OAKLEY, JOE
BOR, CARLY SMALLMAN,
ANTHONY J BROWN Sat
24 May, Coventry
Showcase Cinema
JOE LYCETT, ELLIE
TAYLOR, RAYMOND & MR
TIMPKINS REVUE, QUINCY
Sat 24 May, Players
Bar, Birmingham
DAN NIGHTINGALE, RICH
WILSON, CHRISTIAN
REILLY Sun 25 May,
Rose Villa Tavern,
Birmingham
MILES JUPP Tues 27
May, Artrix, Bromsgrove
CRAIG CAMPBELL Weds
Birmingham
JIM DAVIDSON AND
RICHARD DIGANCE Weds
28 May, Palace Theatre,
Redditch
DALISO CHAPONDA, PHIL
ELLIS, TOM STADE PLUS
COMIC TBC Thurs 29
May, The Glee Club,
Birmingham
THE HILARITY CHARITY
GALA WITH JOSH WIDDICOMBE AND JON
RICHARDSON Thurs 29
May, Wolverhampton
Grand Theatre
BILLY PEARCE Thurs 29
May, Palace Theatre,
Redditch
LEE EVANS: WORK IN
PROGRESS Thurs 29
May, The Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury
HAL CRUTTENDEN Fri 30
May, Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
BILLY PEARCE Fri 30
May, The Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury
DOUG SEGAL Fri 30 May
Artrix, Bromsgrove
OMID DJALILI Fri 30 May
NATHAN CATON, ERICH
MCELROY, OLA, KATE
LUCAS Fri 30 May,
Tamworth Assembly
Rooms
OMID DJALILI Fri 30 May
The Place, Oakengates
Theatre, Telford
MORECAMBE - THE MAN
WHO BROUGHT US
SUNSHINE Fri 30 May Sat 31 May, Theatre
Severn, Shrewsbury
TANYALEE DAVIS, JIMMY
MCGHIE, BOBBY MAIR Fri
30 May - Sat 31 May
Jongleurs Comedy
Club, Birmingham
YIANNI AGISILAOU, MISS
LONDON, ARCHIE MADDOCKS, ROBYN PERKINS,
MATTHEW BAYLIS Fri 30
May, National Brewery
Centre, Burton-uponTrent
TOM STADE, DALISO
CHAPONDA, PHIL ELLIS,
JOE BROMEHEAD Fri 30
May, The Glee Club,
Birmingham
RETURN OF THE GRUMPY
OLD WOMEN: FIFTY
SHADES OF BEIGE Sat 31
May, The Swan
Theatre, Worcester
JEFF LEACH: FIT (WORK
IN PROGRESS) Sat 31
NICK REVELL, BEN VAN
DER VALDE, STEVE DAY,
JOLLYBOAT Sat 31 May
Coventry Showcase
Cinema
RETURN OF THE GRUMPY
OLD WOMEN: FIFTY
SHADES OF BEIGE Sat 31
May, Huntingdon Hall,
Worcester
PHIL ELLIS, TOM STADE,
DALISO CHAPONDA,
CAIMH MCDONNELL Sat
Birmingham
NATHAN CATON, OLA,
NICK DIXON, JOHNNY
PELHAM, SUSAN MURRAY
Sat 31 May, Players
Bar, Birmingham
COMEDY IN THE MET, LINE
UP TBC Sat 31 May,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
Comedy Hullabaloo
ARDAL O'HANLON,
ROISIN CONATY PLUS
COMICS TBC Thurs 22
May, The Courtyard,
Stratford-Upon-Avon
MILTON JONES, JAMES
ACASTER, ROISIN
CONATY, ED GAMBLE Fri
23 May, The
Courtyard, StratfordUpon-Avon
TOMMY TIERNAN Fri 23
May, Idolize
Spiegeltent, Stratford
Upon-Avon
JASON MANFORD Fri 23
May, The Courtyard,
Stratford-Upon-Avon
ARDAL O’HANLON,
JAMES ACASTER, ED
GAMBLE PLUS COMIC
TBC Fri 23 May, Idolize
Spiegeltent, StratfordUpon-Avon
AL MURRAY Sat 24 May
Idolize Spiegeltent,
Stratford-Upon-Avon
COMEDY CLUB 4 KIDS
WITH ED GAMBLE, NISH
KUMAR, JAMES ACASTER
Sat 24 May, Idolize
DAVID O'DOHERTY WILL
TRY TO FIX EVERYTHING
(SOLO SHOW) Sat 24
May, Idolize
AL MURRAY, JUSTIN
MOORHOUSE, LLOYD
LANGFORD, JAMES
ACASTER, NISH KUMAR
Sat 24 May, The
Courtyard, StratfordUpon-Avon
JUSTIN MOORHOUSE,
LLOYD LANGFORD, ED
GAMBLE, NISH KUMAR
Sat 24 May, Idolize
Spiegeltent, StratfordUpon-avon
ALUN COCHRANE,
TOMMY TIERNAN, TIFF
STEVENSON, MARK
OLVER, JAMES ACASTER
Sat 24 May, Idolize
Spiegeltent, StratfordUpon-avon
ALUN COCHRANE, NISH
KUMAR, PETE FIRMAN,
HAL CRUTTENDEN Sun
25 May, Idolize
RICHARD HERRING,
CHARLIE BAKER, NISH
KUMAR, SHAPPI
KHORSANDI Sun 25
May, Idolize
RICHARD HERRING,
SIMON EVANS, DAVID
O’DOHERTY, JUSTIN
MOORHOUSE PLUS
COMICS TBC Sun 25
May, The Courtyard,
Stratford-Upon-Avon
www.comedyhullabaloo.com
For more comedy listings, visit, www.whatsonlive.co.uk 27
Theatre May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 16:32 Page 1
Theatre
Rock Of Ages
New Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Mon 12 - Sat 17 May;
Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, Mon 14 - Sat 19 July
Cinema-goers who caught the 2012 movie version of Rock Of Ages,
starring Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand and Catherine ZetaJones, will know exactly what to expect from this feelgood musical.
For those who didn’t and therefore don’t, it focuses on the romance
between a smalltown girl and a big-city rocker, and is packed to its
proverbial rafters with classic 1980s numbers.
So if, for you, the decade of Glasnost, yuppies, Miami Vice and mullet
hair-dos took place against a soundtrack of rock anthems such as
We Built This City, The Final Countdown and I Wanna Know What
Love Is, then this is undoubtedly a show worth catching.
Ben Richards and Noel Sullivan star.
Private Peaceful
The REP, Birmingham, Wed 14 - Sat 17 May
Private Peaceful is a short play that packs a real
punch. Based on the book by War Horse author
Michael Morpurgo and perfectly pitched for the
young audience at which it’s aimed, the stage production has been hailed for being “as moving as the
poetry of Wilfred Owen and as painfully memorable
as white-hot shrapnel”.
First World War soldier Private Tommo Peaceful is
awaiting the firing squad at dawn. With his young life
about to be cut tragically short, he recalls his joyful
past growing up in rural Devon, his schooldays, his
father, and the love of his life - a girl named Molly...
This collaboration between Scamp Theatre & Fiery
Angel features Andy Daniel in the role of Private
Peaceful.
One Man, Two Guvnors
Birmingham Hippodrome, Mon 26 - Sat 31 May
Based on The Servant Of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni, this National Theatre production is directed by Nicholas Hytner and stops off in Birmingham as part of its
biggest-ever UK and Ireland tour. Fired from his skiffle band, Francis Henshall
becomes minder to Roscoe Crabbe, a small-time East End hood who’s now in
Brighton to collect £6,000 from his fiancée’s dad. But Roscoe is really his sister
Rachel, posing as her own dead brother, who’s been killed by her boyfriend, Stanley
Stubbers. You keeping up?... Shaun Williamson, Jasmyn Banks, Gavin Spokes and
Emma Barton star. Check out the interview with Nicholas Hytner at whatsonlive.co.uk
Theatre PREVIEWS
Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story
Wolverhampton Grand Theatre,
Mon 19 - Sat 24 May; Birmingham Hippodrome, Mon 23 - Sat 28 June
Seen by over twenty million people across
the globe, Buddy is an enormously enduring
and touchingly affectionate portrayal of one
of rock’n’roll's earliest and brightest stars.
Charting the singer's meteoric rise to fame
and fortune, and following his career through
to his very last performance, the show features timeless classics such as That’ll Be The
Day, Peggy Sue, Oh Boy, Rave On and
Everyday.
Cirque Du Soleil: Dralion
LG Arena, Birmingham, Thurs 22 - Sun 25 May.
Entertaining Mr Sloane
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury,
Thurs 22 - Sat 24 May
This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of Joe
Orton’s black comedy, a work of theatre
which proved an instant hit when it was first
staged in 1964. The arrival of the enigmatic
Mr Sloane seems like a dream come true for
Kath, who shares a drab existence with her
father in a house on the outskirts of a rubbish
dump. But there’s more to Sloane than meets
the eye. As Kath and her brother Ed compete
for his favours, it soon becomes apparent
that behind the new lodger’s provocative and
sexually ambivalent demeanour lies a calculating psychopath with a dark and secretive
past... A 1970 film version of the play starred
Peter McEnery in the title role, with Beryl Reid
and Harry Andrews giving star turns as Kath
and Ed.
The internationally acclaimed Cirque Du Soleil returns to the region to present the UK debut
of its signature production. Drawing inspiration from Eastern philosophy, Dralion (pronounced
dra-lee-on) showcases the three thousand-year-old tradition of Chinese acrobatics to explore
the ongoing quest for harmony between humans and nature.
The ensemble which has done most to restore people’s view of the circus as a valid and
desirable form of entertainment, Cirque du Soleil (or Circus of the Sun) was founded in Quebec, Canada, in 1984, and has since gone on to present some of the most successful and
groundbreaking theatrical extravaganzas of all time. A massive hit wherever it erects its big
top, the company has performed in more than two hundred-and-seventy cities, on every continent except Antarctica, and in front of a combined total of ninety million-plus people.
years later, romance is once again in the
Mediterranean air, as the love-struck protagonists try every trick in the book to keep their
amorous intentions a secret...
Inherit The Wind
New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme,
Sat 31 May - Sat 14 June
Although best known from the 1960 Stanley
Kramer film version starring Spencer Tracey
and Fredric March, Inherit The Wind debuted
as a play some five years earlier. Written by
Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, it
fictionalises a real-life trial that happened in
1925, in which a high school teacher in Tennessee broke the law by teaching human
evolution in a state-funded school. The play
was produced by Lawrence and Lee as a
means of reflecting on the then-topical subject of the McCarthy Trials, during which
thousands of Americans were accused of
being communists or communist sympathisers.
Every Brilliant Thing
The Edge Arts Centre, Much Wenlock,
South Shropshire, Wed 21 May
Paines Plough and Pentabus, two theatre
companies celebrating their fortieth anniversary in 2014, have come together to produce
this contemplation on the subject of depression. When a six-year-old girl finds that her
mother’s been taken to hospital having ‘done
something stupid’, she determines to make a
list of everything that’s brilliant about the
world. Twenty years
later, the list takes
on a life of its own...
Every Brilliant Thing
involves the participation of members
of the audience, a
fact which ensures
each performance is
unique.
Kidnapped
.
Last Of The Duty Free
Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent,
Mon 19 May - Sat 24 May
Fans of writer Eric Chappell’s 1980s sitcom
Duty Free will surely be taking their seats for
this somewhat unexpected opportunity to
once again enjoy the company of David,
Amy, Robert and Linda - particularly as the
show stars three of the four original performers. Keith Barron, Gwen Taylor and Neil
Stacy reprise their roles for the stage version
of a TV programme that pulled in over twelve
million viewers at the height of its success.
When working class David and Amy Pearce
met upper-middle class Robert and Linda
Cochran, opposites attracted and a most
unlikely romantic liaison developed. Thirty
Carnaby Street
Lichfield Garrick, Sat 31 May
There’s nothing complicated or unfamiliar
about Carnaby Street. The show takes the
well-peddled ‘wannabe rock star’ storyline,
locates its action in London’s West End
against the backdrop of the Swinging ’60s,
and throws in a jukebox-worth of classic hits
from the decade, including Roll Over
Beethoven, Do Wah Diddy Diddy, Tired Of
Waiting For You, You Really Got Me, Keep On
Running and Sweets For My Sweet. Add into
the mix a high-energy cast and you’ve got
yourself one of those evenings that should
see your hands and toes clapping and tapping respectively. And if you’re really lucky,
there might even be some ‘dancing in the
aisles’ to be done.
Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton, Sat 24 May
Robert Louis Stevenson’s third best-known
tale - after Treasure Island and The Strange
Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde - Kidnapped
is set against the fierce social and political
backdrop of 1750s’ Scotland, telling the story
of the young Davie Balfour’s pursuit of his
inheritance and
escape to the Highlands. Very much a
family-friendly
adventure, the story
is here adapted by
emerging playwright
Ivan Wilkinson and
presented by Sell A
Door Theatre Company.
CALL
FOR Y
BROCHOUR
U
TODAYRE
OLD MACDONALD
HAD A FARM
GATEHOUSE THEATRE
Sun 4 May
Presented by the team behind
There Was An Old Lady Who
Swallowed A Fly and written
especially for parents to enjoy
with their children, this fun filled
farmyard tale brings to life all
2.30pm, £9.50/£8.50 concs
the best loved characters from
/Family £32
the original nursery rhyme along
with a magical medley of games, giggles and sing along songs
including Heads, Shoulders Knees and Toes, She’ll Be Coming
Round The Mountain and of course Old MacDonald Had A Farm.
THE SIMON AND GARFUNKEL STORY
GATEHOUSE THEATRE
Sun 11 May
Direct from London's West End,
award winning actor Dean Elliott
(Buddy Holly in 'Buddy -The
Musical') and a full cast of performers tell The Simon and Garfunkel Story using original pho7.30pm, £18.50/£16.50 concs
tos, film footage and featuring a
live band performing hits including 'Mrs Robinson', 'Cecilia',
'Homeward Bound' and many more.
PIAF THE SONGS
GATEHOUSE THEATRE
Fri 16 May
Edith Piaf remains France’s
most popular singer. Piaf’s life
was the stuff of legend, from
her dramatic rise from Paris
street urchin to star of international renown. Her life, however,
was anything but ‘La vie en
rose'. In the 50th anniversary
year of Piaf’s death, this powerful celebration comes from a
company whose credentials
include Kneehigh Theatre and
Canteve Vocale.
7.30pm, £15/£12 under 21s
THE YELLOW-HAMMER’S SONG GATEHOUSE THEATRE
Fri 23 May
Considered one of the most talented and respected pianists of
the younger generation, Benjamin Grosvenor joins Manchester Camerata’s leader, Giovanni Guzzo, and principal cellist, Hannah Roberts, in
Beethoven’s beautifully lyrical
Triple Concerto. Gábor Takács7.30pm, £15/£13 concs
Nagy will bring his unparalleled
/under 26s £5/under 18s £3
musical imagination, emotional
depth and sizzling energy to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony – the
most iconic and timeless of all orchestral works.
EMBARRASSING MOTHER
THE MET STUDIO
Fri 23 May
Maxine's three sons are horrified
when she starts stand-up. She
is forced to lie. They think she's
in Lidl. Maxine left London for
Dublin in 1990, married an Irishman, became the first divorcee,
reared three rowdy sons and
discovered how English she
was. Maxine has featured on
BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour
and RTE’s Arena. Embarrassing
Mother has played to full houses in Dublin and Edinburgh.
8pm, £10
THE TIME MACHINE
THE MET STUDIO
Thu 29 May
1985.In a suburban garden,
beneath a waning moon, a man
lies dazed beside a remarkable
machine. He has a story to tell.
An unbelievable story about the
7.30pm, £12/£10 concs
future that he insists is true.
Is it a joke? A prophecy? A dream? Now this classic of science
fiction is brought thrillingly and vividly to life by Robert Lloyd Parry
of Nunkie Theatre Company in new, one-man show that returns
to the brilliantly imaginative, ground-breaking source.
BOOKONLINE
Box Office 01785 254653
www.staffordgatehousetheatre.co.uk
Theatre PREVIEWS
Theatre LISTINGS
Birango: Women Of War
For full listing information on theatre
productions, including times and dates,
The Drum, Birmingham, Sun 11 May
This thought-provoking work of theatre blends
physical performance, dance, animation and
film to recount the story of Birangona women
during the Bangladesh Liberation War of
1971. The conflict saw over two hundred thousand women and girls systematically raped
and tortured as part of the Pakistani Army's
war strategy. These same innocent females
were then silenced, ostracised and forgotten
about by their society.... Presented by Komola
Collective, Birango: Women Of War features
the firsthand accounts of five of these women,
offering a moving and disturbing insight not
only into their experiences during the war, but
also into the subsequent misery of living in a
society in which they were marked with dishonour and shame.
The Time Machine
Stafford Gatehouse Theatre, Thurs 29 May
The primary protagonist of this classic HG
Wells science fiction tale is an English scientist and gentleman inventor, referred to by the
story’s narrator as the Time Traveller. Building
a machine capable of travelling through the
fourth dimension of time, he journeys to AD
802,701, where he meets a society of elegant
yet childlike adults called the Eloi, and a
breed of ape-like troglodytes known as the
Morlocks. But his encounter with these two
very different races of creature is only the
beginning of his adventure... Nunkie is the
company behind this new one-man adaptation of Wells’ profoundly influential Victorian
novella.
Morecambe
Fri 30 - Sat 31 May
Hailed for lovingly and thoughtfully bringing a
little of Eric and Ernie’s sunshine to the London West End stage, this is a one-man show
exploring the life and times of John Eric
Bartholomew - better known, of course, as
the comedian Eric Morecambe.
Bob Golding’s the man charged
with the sizable task of portraying one of Britain’s best-known
and most-loved funnymen,
and it’s a challenge which
he meets head on. Indeed,
there are moments when
he so effectively captures
the spirit of Eric that
audience members of a
certain age may feel like
they’ve actually been
transported back to the
1970s, the decade
most closely associated with the
legend that is
Morecambe and
Wise.
From
THUR 1 MAY
GUYS AND DOLLS Amateur production presented by Solihull On
Stage, until Sat 3 May,
20TH CENTURY BOY - THE
MUSICAL Based on the
life of Marc Bolan, until
Sat 3 May, New Alexandra Theatre
FAME - THE MUSICAL
Presented by Bill Kenwright until Sat 3 May,
Regent Theatre, Stokeon-Trent
PYGMALION Alistair
McGowan, Rula Lenska
and Jamie Foreman
star in the centenaryyear production of
Bernard Shaw's enduring masterpiece, until
Sat 3 May, Malvern
Theatres
FAWLTY TOWERS Presented by Stoke Repertory Theatre, until Sat 3
May, Stoke Repertory
Theatre
THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL
Presented by Lichfield
Operatic Society, until
Sat 3 May, Lichfield
Garrick
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Amateur production presented by the
Stafford Gatehouse
Youth Theatre, until Sat
3 May, Stafford Gatehouse Theatre
GUYS AND DOLLS Presented by Worcester
Operatic and Dramatic
Society, until Sat 3 May,
The Swan Theatre,
Worcester
THE PAJAMA GAME Classic musical comedy
presented by Studley
Operatic Society, until
Sat 3 May, Palace Theatre, Redditch
THE PLAY THAT GOES
WRONG Theatre Mischief present a playwithin-a-play about an
amateur dramatic society putting on a murder-mystery production,
until Sat 3 May, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
SCOUT GANG SHOW until
Sat 3 May, Crewe
Lyceum
COVENTRY GANG SHOW
The promise of a spectacular show packed
with singing, dancing &
comedy, until Sat 3
May, Belgrade Theatre,
Coventry
GIRLS LIKE THAT A
Young REP production
which explores the
pressures surrounding
young people today
and in the past, and the
contradictory choices
they make in expressing themselves, until
Sat 3 May, The REP,
Birmingham
OTHELLO Tread The
Boards Theatre Company presents one of
Shakespeare’s darkest
tragedies, until Sat 24
May, The Attic Theatre,
Stratford-upon-Avon
HENRY IV PARTS I & II
RSC Associate Artist
Antony Sher returns to
the Company to play
the infamous comic
knight Falstaff, until Sat
6 Sept, Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
THE ROARING GIRL Jo
Davies directs Lisa Dillon as the dynamic,
cross-dressing heroine
in a new version of
Thomas Middleton &
Thomas Dekker's
Jacobean comedy, until
Tue 30 Sept, The Swan
Theatre, Stratfordupon-Avon
ARDEN OF FAVERSHAM
Polly Findlay makes her
RSC debut, directing
this darkly comic thriller
which focuses on a
husband, wife and
lover who find themselves locked in a
deadly game, until
Thurs 2 Oct, The Swan
Theatre, Stratfordupon-Avon
A JOURNEY AROUND MY
SKULL Kindle Theatre
present a darkly comic
examination of our relationship with our mind,
memories and imagination, Thurs 1 May, mac
- Midlands Arts Centre,
Birmingham
KING LEAR: NATIONAL
THEATRE LIVE Acclaimed
actor Simon Russell
Beale takes the lead
role in this National
Theatre production of
Shakespeare's bloody
tale, Thurs 1 May, The
Edge Arts Centre,
Much Wenlock, South
Shropshire; Wem Town
Hall, North Shropshire
THE ARCHERS An
evening of anecdotes,
banter and favourite
pieces from Sunny
Ormonde, the women
who plays wayward Lilian Bellamy in the
Radio Four soap, Thurs
1 May, Lichfield Garrick
HOLMES ALONE Presented by Don’t Go Into
The Cellar Theatre
Company, Thurs 1 May,
Old Joint Stock Theatre, Birmingham
NEWMAN UNIVERSITY:
PEOPLE Eight performers explore the lives of
a group of diverse
characters, Thurs 1 - Fri
2 May, mac - Midlands
Arts Centre, Birmingham
FINDING JOY A comic,
anarchic, touching and
heroic full-mask adventure from Worcesterbased theatre company
Vamos, Thurs 1 - Fri 2
May, Tamworth Assembly Rooms
CRAZY FOR YOU Amateur
production presented
by Mad Cow Productions, Thurs 1 - Sat 3
Shrewsbury
BASSETT The Belgrade
Acting Out Company
present James Graham's pacey look at a
generation of young
people who've inherited
a world at war, Thurs 1
- Sat 3 May, Belgrade
Theatre, Coventry
GEORGE'S MARVELLOUS
MEDICINE Blue Orange
Arts presents its version of Roald Dahl's
classic tale, Thurs 1 Sat 10 May, The Blue
Orange Theatre, Birmingham
AN EVENING WITH PAM
AYRES Fri 2 May, Birmingham Town Hall
TEA WITH OSCAR Don't
Go Into The Cellar Theatre Company present
a Victorian chat show,
hosted by Mr Wilde
himself, Fri 2 May, Lichfield Garrick
BLOWERS & BAXTER:
MEMORIES OF TEST
MATCH SPECIAL Two of
the titans of cricket
share tales from Test
Match Special commentary boxes all over
the world, Fri 2 May,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
LEVEL UP WITH ZENA
EDWARDS & TOM SISSONS An explosive
night of spoken word
performance, featuring
some of the country’s
very best poets alongside local rising stars,
Fri 2 May, The REP,
Birmingham
TERRY PRATCHETT'S
WYRD SISTERS Jadis
Shadows present
Stephen Briggs stage
adaptation of one of
Terry Pratchett’s most
beloved tales, Fri 2 Sat 3 May, Old Joint
Stock Theatre, Birmingham
I DON’T WANT TO SET
THE WORLD ON FIRE! A
brand new production
of Bob Eaton’s tale of
ordinary women living
in extraordinary times,
Fri 2 - Sat 24 May, New
Vic Theatre, Newcastleunder-Lyme
BIN MEN AJTC and York
Theatre Royal present
Mike Kenny's play, with
music for young children and their families,
Sat 3 May, The REP,
Birmingham
THE SINGULAR EXPLOITS
OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
Holmes and Watson
recount their lives and
adventures... Sat 3
May, Lichfield Garrick
COSI FAN TUTI Opera
Live from the Metropolitan New York, Sat 3
May, The Edge Arts
Centre, Much Wenlock,
South Shropshire
PIRATES NEVER WASH
THEIR HANDS Plays
acted by adults, providing fun, songs and
audience participation
for two-to-nine-yearolds, Sat 3 May, The
Swan Theatre, Worcester
THE DISPUTE The Crescent Theatre Company
present their version of
Pierre de Marivaux's
eighteenth century
comedy of love, jealousy and betrayal, Sat
3 - Sat 10 May, Crescent Theatre, Birmingham
MAMMA MIA Murder &
Cabaret, Sun 4 May,
Crewe Lyceum
HOW TO CATCH A STAR
Blunderbus present a
new show which fuses
music, puppetry and
storytelling for three-toseven-year-olds, Sun 4
Shrewsbury
OLD MACDONALD HAD A
FARM Presented by
People's Theatre Company, Sun 4 May,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
From
MON 5 MAY
PAUL HOLLYWOOD LIVE
Promising an evening
of baking, comedy &
fun... Mon 5 May, Symphony Hall, Birmingham
KING LEAR: NATIONAL
actor Simon Russell
tale, Mon 5 May, Artrix,
Bromsgrove
SONGS FROM A LEDGE: A
BLUES OPERA Scenes
and songs from a new
musical based on the
troubled life of fictional
jazz’n’blues star Maria
Lynwood, whose career
spanned the 20th century, and of Annalie, her
great granddaughter,
lost in life and desperate for something to
fight for, Mon 5 May,
Kings Heath, Birmingham
SEVEN BRIDES FOR
SEVEN BROTHERS Starring Sam Attwater &
Helena Blackman, Mon
5 - Sat 10 May, Regent
Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent
DERREN BROWN Mon 5 Sat 10 May, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre (Read the interview
with Derren on page
10)
HOT FLUSH New musical
featuring Matt Slack &
Lesley Joseph, Tue 6
May, Crewe Lyceum
BLACK COFFEE Agatha
Christie classic starring
Robert Powell, Liza
Goddard, Gary Mavers
& Ben Nealon, Tue 6 Sat 10 May, Belgrade
Theatre, Coventry
KISMET Tinkers Farm
Opera present an amateur version of the Tony
Award-winning musical,
Tue 6 - Sat 10 May,
Crescent Theatre, Birmingham
For full theatre listings in the West Midlands, visit, www.whatsonlive.co.uk 33
Fri 9th May
FLASH:
A TRIBUTE TO QUEEN
7.30pm. Tickets: £18
Wed 14th - Sat 17th May
TADLOP PRESENTS
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS
7.30pm, Sat Mat 2.30pm.
Tickets: Stalls £12, Tier £14
Wed 28th May
THE BLUES BAND
7.30pm, Tickets: £18.50
Thur 29th May
DRIVE-IN MOVIE: GREASE
2pm & 8pm, Tickets: £20 per car
or £35 for both Days
Fri 30th May
DRIVE-IN MOVIE: TOP GUN
2pm & 8pm, Tickets: £20 per car
or £35 for both Days
Fri 30th May
OMID DJALILI LIVE
MAY 2014
BROMSGROVE’S THEATRE, CINEMA,
LIVE MUSIC AND COMEDY VENUE
HIGHLIGHTS
Friday 9th May
Friday 16th May
Saturday 17th May
THE REAL THING
AUSTENTATIOUS
MILLION SELLING SOUL
& RNB BAND
PRESENTS AN IMPROVISED
NOVEL
CHANTEL
MCGREGOR
Thursday 22nd May
Monday 26th May
Tuesday 27th May
MATT
RICHARDSON
JULIE FOWLIS
CHRIS & PUI
TOUR SUPPORTING HER
NEW ALBUM GACH SGEUL
CBEEBIES’ FAVOURITE
DOUBLE ACT RETURN TO
ARTRIX
8.00pm, Tickets: £23.00
MULTI-AWARD WINNING
BLUES MUSICIAN
Thurs 5th June
ELIO PACE PERFORMS
THE BILLY JOEL SONGBOOK
7.30pm, Tickets: £19, £17 concs
Thur 12th June
THE WORLDS WORST SERIAL
KILLER SHOW 2014 PRESENTED
BY TREVOR MARRIOTT
COMEDIAN’S HOMETOWN
HERO TOUR
7.30pm, Tickets: £13/£11 concs/
£9 students
Fri 13th June
JETHRO THE LEGEND AT LARGE
7.30pm, Tickets: £19.50
FORTHCOMING CINEMA: A Long Way Down (15)
Her (15) // The Double (15) // Rio 2 (U) // Calvary
The new Artrix brochure is available to download on www.artrix.co.uk
TWC GP 00836
For bookings & full details log onto
www.artrix.co.uk or phone 01527 577330
Artrix, Slideslow Drive, Bromsgrove B60 1PQ
Free parking on-site
Theatre May region one_Layout 1 25/04/2014 16:46 Page 8
Theatre LISTINGS
productions, including times and
dates, visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk
CRAZY FOR YOU Brownhills Musical Theatre
Company present an
amateur performance
of the Gershwin musical comedy, Tue 6 - Sat
10 May, Lichfield Garrick
EVITA Multi-award-winning hit musical by Tim
Rice and Andrew LloydWebber. Marti Pellow
stars... Tue 6 - Sat 10
May, Malvern Theatres
RSC LIVE ENCORE
RICHARD II Featuring
David Tennant in the
title role, Wed 7 May,
Much Wenlock, South
Shropshire
THE TRIALS OF OSCAR
WILDE A drama which
explores the dramatic
downfall of one of history’s most popular playwrights, Wed 7 May,
The Roses, Tewkesbury
ROAD New College
Foundation Degree students present an amateur production of Jim
Cartwright’s play, which
explores the deprived
lives of people living
along the same road in
a working class Lancashire in the 1980s,
Artrix, Bromsgrove
LES MISERABLES
Schools edition presented by Youth on
Stage, Wed 7 - Sat 10
May, Old Rep, Birmingham
THE HAIRY APE Warwick
University Drama Society present Eugene
O’Neill’s powerful and
exhilarating fantastical
story of the struggle
against the commercial,
corporate capitalist
machine, Wed 7 - Sat
10 May, Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry
AN EVENING WITH PAM
AYRES Wed 7 May,
Malvern Theatres
THE BILLIE HOLIDAY
STORY Musical play
dramatising the life of
legendary singer Billie
Holiday, and including
over twenty of Billie's
classic songs, Thurs 8
May, New Alexandra
Theatre, Birmingham
KING LEAR A National
Theatre Live screening,
Thurs 8 May, Ludlow
Assembly Rooms,
South Shropshire
'ALLO 'ALLO Stage adaptation of the BBC TV
comedy, Thurs 8 - Sat
10 May, The Belfrey
Theatre, Wellington,
Shropshire
SINGIN' IN THE RAIN
Amateur production
presented by Aldridge
Musical Comedy Society, Thurs 8 - Sat 10
May, Prince Of Wales
Centre, Cannock
DAD'S ARMY The Norbury Players present an
amateur production of
the classic BBC TV
comedy series, Thurs 8
- Sat 10 May, The Norbury Theatre, Droitwich
OPEN ALL HOURS A
stage adaptation of the
hugely popular BBC TV
comedy series, Thurs 8
- Sat 10 May, Palace
Theatre, Redditch
CIRCLES Rachel Delahay's vivid and powerful
new play which
explores violent relationships, love, trust
and friendship, Fri 9 Sat 24 May, The REP,
Birmingham
AT THE CROSSROADS:
BIBLE, BURLESQUE AND
THE BLUES... A Fired Up
Theatre production
supported by Lichfield
Mysteries, Fri 9 - Sat 10
May, Lichfield Garrick
HOT FLUSH New musical
featuring Matt Slack &
Lesley Joseph, Fri 9
May, Hereford Courtyard Theatre
IOLANTHE Coventry
Savoy Opera Society
present Gilbert & Sullivan's comic opera, Fri 9
May, Dovehouse Theatre
SPECTRA Original piece
of performance fusing
physical theatre, dance,
live music and a picnic... Fri 9 May, mac Midlands Arts Centre,
Birmingham
LIVE MET BROADCAST LA CENERENTOLA Sat 10
May, Malvern Theatres;
Much Wenlock, South
Shropshire
OLD MACDONALD HAD A
FARM Presented by
People's Theatre Company, Sat 10 May, The
SING-A-LONG-A GREASE A
brand new singalong
version of the classic
film starring Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta, Sat 10 May New
Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
CHORALE: THE HOLY
GHOSTLY & THE WAR IN
HEAVEN A double-bill of
works from American
playwright Sam Shepard, Sat 10 - Sat 17
May, Belgrade Theatre,
Coventry
AVON CALLING The
Other Way Works present a celebration of
beauty with a theatrical
twist, Sat 10 - Sun 11
May, Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry
THIS HAPPY BREED Noel
Coward's attempt to
show how ordinary
people lived between
the wars, Sat 10 - Sat
17 May, Oldbury Rep Barlow Theatre
OLD MACDONALD HAD A
FARM Presented by
People's Theatre Com-
pany, Sun 11 May, Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
BIRANGONA: WOMEN OF
WAR Komola Collective
present a fusion of
physical performance,
dance and animation
interwoven with film to
tell the story of the
1971 war of independence which tore
through Bangladesh,
Sun 11 May, The Drum,
Birmingham
THE SILKEN BURLESQUE
VARIETESE Presented by
Mina Von Vixen, Sun 11
May, Foxlowe Arts Centre, Leek, Staffs
Week Commencing
MON 12 MAY
HONOR BLACKMAN AS
HERSELF Mon 12 May,
New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme
QUARTET Presented by
Nonentitties, Mon 12 Sat 17 May, The Rose
Theatre, Kidderminster
ROCK OF AGES Mon 12 Sat 17 May, New
Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
PYGMALION Alistair
McGowan, Rula Lenska
and Jamie Foreman
star in the centenaryyear production of
Bernard Shaw's enduring masterpiece, Mon
12 - Sat 17 May, Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
SUMMER HOLIDAY Amateur production presented by the Porthill
Players, Mon 12 - Sat
17 May, Stoke Repertory Theatre
CHORALE: SAVAGE/ LOVE
& THE ANIMAL (YOU) A
double-bill of works
from American playwright Sam Shepard,
Mon 12 - Sat 17 May,
Belgrade Theatre,
Coventry
UNDER MILK WOOD A
new production of
Dylan Thomas' work of
genius, celebrating the
centenary of the playwright's birth and the
sixtieth anniversary of
the play's British premiere, Mon 12 - Sat 17
May, Malvern Theatres
FOGGY & WHIT: GIVIN' IT
GAS Described as a
'high-octane experience
for all sports fans', this
new event provides an
insight into today's
world of racing and
recalls the former glories and disasters of
four-time World Superbike champion Carl
Fogarty, Tue 13 May,
National Motorcycle
Museum
VESTA - WORCESTER’S
WONDER OF THE MUSIC
HALLS One-woman
show about the life and
music of Vesta Tilley ‘one of the most
remarkable female
entertainers that has
ever lived’, Tues 13 Wed 14 May, Swan
Theatre, Worcester
INSTITUTE Physical
dance theatre company
Gecko present an intimate, funny and revealing exploration of care,
Tues 13 - Fri 16 May,
Warwick Arts Centre,
Coventry
SISTER ACT Amateur
production presented
by WBOS, Tue 13 - Sat
17 May, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
DIAL M FOR MURDER
Lucy Bailey's acclaimed
production of Frederick
Knott's murder-mystery.
Christopher Timothy,
Kelly Hotten, Daniel
Betts, Philip Cairns and
Robert Perkins star, Tue
13 - Sat 17 May, The
REP, Birmingham
THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL
Presented by Solihull
Theatre Company, Tue
13 - Sat 17 May, Solihull Arts Complex
RENT Amateur production presented by The
Arcadians, Tue 13 - Sat
17 May, Crescent Theatre, Birmingham
THE RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN SONGBOOK A
concert-style show featuring four accomplished West End and
Broadway performers in
an evening of music
from the world’s most
prolific composers,
Wed 14 May, Crewe
Lyceum
RSC LIVE: HENRY IV PART
I Screened live from the
Royal Shakespeare
Theatre, Stratford-uponAvon, featuring Sir
Antony Sher as Falstaff,
Wed 14 May, The Edge
Arts Centre, Much Wenlock, South Shropshire;
Coventry; Roses theatre, Tewkesbury;
Malvern Theatres
STEVE HEWLETT: THINKING INSIDE THE BOX
Britain's Got Talent contestant and ventriloquist
Steve Hewlett takes to
the road with awardwinning illusionist
Richard Griffin, in a
brand new show which
promises to 'delight and
amaze the whole family', Wed 14 May, Palace
Theatre, Redditch
PRIVATE PEACEFUL A
staging of Michael Morpurgo's book, which
relives the life of Private
Tommo Peaceful, a
young First World War
soldier awaiting the firing squad at dawn,
Wed 14 - Sat 17 May,
The REP, Birmingham
GUYS AND DOLLS Music
Theatre Warwick present their version of one
of the best-loved musicals of all time, Wed 14
- Sat 17 May, Warwick
A CHORUS OF DISAPPROVAL The Lichfield
Players present an
Alan Ayckbourn's
award-winning play,
Lichfield Garrick
BLACKADDER Dudley Little Theatre present a
stage version of the
popular British sitcom,
this time set during the
Great War of 1914/18
Netherton Arts Centre,
Dudley
LITTLE SHOPS OF HORRORS Amateur production presented by TADLOP, Wed 14 - Sat 17
May, The Place, Oakengates Theatre, Telford
YOU’RE NOT LIKE ALL THE
OTHER GIRLS CHRISSY
Caroline Horton’s
poignant portrait of one
woman’s experience of
love and war, Thurs 15 Fri 16 May, mac - Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham
“YOU’RE A GOOD MAN,
CHARLIE BROWN” Performed by Junior
School Boys, Thurs 15
- Fri 16 May, Bridge
House Theatre, Warwick
VICAR OF DIBLEY
Staffordshire Stage Productions bring the hit
TV series to the stage
in a brand new production, Thurs 15 - Sat 17
May, Regent Theatre,
Stoke-on-Trent
A DREAM Krazy Kat Theatre Company fuse
puppetry, acting, music
and sign language to
tell a timeless story of
mysticism, love and forgiveness, Thurs 15 Sat 17 May, Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton
DAD'S ARMY The Norbury Players present an
the classic BBC TV
comedy series about
the Home Guard of
Walmington-on-Sea,
Thurs 15 - Sat 17 May,
The Norbury Theatre,
Droitwich
RETURN TO THE FORBIDDEN PLANET Here presented by Birmingham
Youth Theatre, Return
To The Forbidden Planet is one of the best of
all cult musicals, Thurs
15 - Sat 17 May, Old
Rep, Birmingham
HEAR THE PEOPLE SING
The Westenders present a gala concert celebrating Les Miserables
and the world’s most
popular musicals, Fri 16
May, Tamworth Assembly Rooms
MONOLOGUESLAM UK
Jimmy Akingbola hosts
an evening where
actors from all backgrounds can showcase
their skills to a panel of
people who’re in a
position to move their
careers forward, Fri 16
May, The REP, Birmingham
COWARD BY SEA Actor,
pianist and singer
Michael Lunts presents
a one-man staging of
Noel Coward's littleknown comedy, P&O
1930, Fri 16 May, Lichfield Garrick
AUSTENTATIOUS: AN
IMPROVISED NOVEL A
comedy play spun in
the inimitable style of
Jane Austen - and
based entirely on audience suggestions, Fri
16 May, Artrix, Bromsgrove
MIKE MCGEAR MCCARTNEY Mike takes audiences through his family album, with stories of
Liverpool life from childhood through to entering showbiz when,
because of Beatlemania, he had to change
his name to 'McGear',
and became an integral
part of the ’60s Merseybeat era, Fri 16 May,
Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
KING LEAR: NATIONAL
actor Simon Russell
tale, Fri 16 May,
Malvern Theatres; Warwick Arts Centre,
Coventry
BEHIND THE BLINDS Serrated Edge present a
new show for people
aged fourteen-plus
which weaves together
lyrically witty and
sophisticated songs to
reveal what goes on
behind the blinds on an
ordinary-looking suburban street, Fri 16 May,
BESIDE THE SEASIDE
Opus Theatre Company present the first play
in Leslie Sands’ trilogy
of seaside capers at the
Seaview Guest House,
Fri 16 May, Bedworth
Civic Hall
PIAF THE SONGS A powerful tribute to the
woman who became
synonymous with
French cabaret, Fri 16
May, Stafford Gatehouse Theatre
TWO-WAY MIRROR Two
related short plays by
Arthur Miller, said to be
inspired by his relationship with Marilyn Monroe, Fri 16 - Sat 17 May,
Palace Theatre, Redditch
A MURDER IS
ANNOUNCED Amateur
production of the
Agatha Christie classic,
adapted by Leslie Darbon, Fri 16 - Sat 24
May, Hall Green Little
Theatre, Birmingham
CHILDREN'S THEATRE A
short play performed by
adults especially for
children aged four to
ten, Sat 17 May, The
Norbury Theatre,
Droitwich
THAT'LL BE THE DAY
Rock’n’roll spectacular,
combining music from
the ’50s, ’60s & ’70s
with wacky comedy
routines, Sat 17 May,
QU LIVE Musical theatre
cabaret night showcasing new writers and
performers, Sat 17 May,
IOLANTHE OR THE PEER
AND THE PERI Written by
WS Gilbert and composed by Arthur Sullivan, Sat 17 May, Bridge
House Theatre, Warwick
KIDNAPPED Robert Louis
VISIT OU
WEBSITE R
T
VIEW MO O
RE
SHOWS!
Box Office 01743 281 281
Frankwell Quay,
Shrewsbury, Shropshire,
SY3 8FT
Book Online www.theatresevern.co.uk
WEDNESDAY 7 & THURDAY 8 MAY
Get your ballet fix with this
amazing selection of work from the
internationally acclaimed
Birmingham Royal Ballet.
QUATRAIN
An exciting new piece by
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s own
dancer and choreographer Kit Holder.
FAÇADE
Aldridge Musical Comedy Society presents:
’
N
I
G
SIN
IN THE
RAIN
A hilarious comic ballet based on
Edith Sitwell’s deliciously
nonsensical poetry.
BITESIZED BALLET
Best bits from our world-renowned classical ballet repertory.
SATURDAY 10 MAY
Prince of Wales Theatre, Church St, Cannock, WS11 1DE
Thurs 8th - Sat 10th May
Tickets: £12, £10 concs, £6 child
Box Office: 01543 578762
BILLY PEARCE
This amateur production is presented by arrangement
with Josef Weinberger Ltd. On behalf of Music
Theatre International of New York
One of Britain's best loved comedians,
British comedy award winner Billy Pearce
presents a night of quick fire gags as
part of his latest national tour.
Affiliated to the National Operatic and Dramatic Association
Registered Charity Number 505962
TUESDAY 20 MAY
SPIERS & BODEN
THE FOUNDERS OF BELLOWHEAD
TWICE WINNERS OF THE
BBC FOLK AWARDS
FOR BEST DUO
"Dynamic,
drive and passion"
BBC Radio 2 folk website
FRIDAY 30 & SATURDAY 31ST MAY
Tim Whitnall's Olivier Award-winning play,
starring the Olivier-nominated Bob Golding
as comedy icon, Eric Morecambe.
'...will bring sunshine into the lives of
all who see it.' DAILY TELEGRAPH
Theatre LISTINGS
productions, including times and
dates, visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk
Stevenson’s familyfriendly adventure is
here adapted by
emerging playwright
Ivan Wilkinson and presented by Sell A Door
Theatre Company, Sat
17 May, The Roses,
Tewkesbury
RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN SONGBOOK Concert-style show featuring accomplished West
End and Broadway performers, Sat 17 May,
Palace Theatre, Redditch
THE LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER’S CAT Rude Mechanicals present a stage
version of a popular
classic for children, Sun
18 May, mac - Midlands
Arts Centre, Birmingham
THE D-DAY DARLINGS
The songs that won the
war, Sun 18 May,
Bridge House Theatre,
Warwick
SWINGING AT THE COTTON CLUB Action-packed
show celebrating the
music, dance and
songs of the Cotton
Club, Sun 18 May, The
Roses, Tewkesbury
DOUBLE TROUBLE
Comedy about one
man and his boss.
Handyman Woodstock
and his boss Mr Dickance are always arguing. But when Mr Dickance finds himself in
hot water, Woodstock
plays detective to help
him out, Sun 18 May,
The Drum, Birmingham
Week Commencing
MON 19 MAY
VIVA LA DRAG Slick choreography, enticing harmonies and glamorous
costumes are the order
of the day in this 'new
sensation', featuring
original songs by Boy
George, Mon 19 May,
Belgrade Theatre,
Coventry
JOHN EDWARD - PSYCHIC
MEDIUM Mon 19 May,
New Alexandra Theatre,
Birmingham
LAST OF THE DUTY FREE
Keith Barron, Gwen
Taylor and Neil Stacy
play out the next installment in a series which
regularly pulled in TV
audiences of over 12
million viewers, Mon 19
- Sat 24 May, Regent
Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent
BUDDY - THE BUDDY
HOLLY STORY Awardwinning musical, Mon
19 - Sat 24 May,
Wolverhampton Grand
Theatre
FINDING JOY A comic,
anarchic, touching and
heroic full-mask adventure from Worcesterbased theatre company
Vamos, Tue 20 May,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
LIVE MET BROADCAST LA CENERENTOLA Tue 20
BLESS 'EM ALL Nostalgic
show, Tue 20 May, Lichfield Garrick
WAR CORRESPONDENTS
Multi-disciplined production concerning a
journalist captured
while reporting the outbreak of war, Tue 20 Wed 21 May, Malvern
Theatres
CATCH-22 Northern
Stage present the first
ever UK production of
Joseph Heller's dramatisation of his classic
novel, Tue 20 - Sat 24
May, The REP, B’ham
NOISES OFF Swan Theatre Amateur Company
present Michael Frayn's
smash-hit farce, Tue 20
- Sat 24 May, The Swan
Theatre, Worcester
EVERY BRILLIANT THING
Paines Plough &
Pentabus Theatre present a new play about
depression, and the
lengths we go to for
those we love, Wed 21
May, The Edge Arts
South Shropshire
SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE
Georges Feydeau’s
high-spirited 19th century romp, Wed 21 May,
The Roses, Tewkesbury
PEPPA PIG'S BIG SPLASH
All-singing, all-dancing
adventure full of songs,
games and muddy
puddles for children,
Belgrade Theatre,
Coventry
CONFIRMATION A play
about the gulf between
beliefs that we can’t talk
across and the way we
only choose to see the
evidence that proves
we’re right, Wed 21 Thurs 22 May, Warwick
THE CURIOUS INCIDENT
OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT
TIME A National Theatre
Live Encore performance, Thurs 22 May,
Much Wenlock, South
Shropshire; Wem Town
Hall, North Shropshire;
Coventry
LADY GOGO GOCH & A
JOURNEY ROUND MY
SKULL Double-bill of
works from Kindle Theatre, Thurs 22 May,
Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton
ENTERTAINING MR
SLOANE London Classic
Theatre present Joe
Orton's critically
acclaimed farce, Thurs
22 - Sat 24 May, Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
CIRQUE DU SOLEIL:
DRALION UK debut of
Cirque’s signature production which fuses the
three thousand-year-old
tradition of Chinese
acrobatics to explore
the ongoing quest for
harmony between
humans and nature,
Thurs 22 - Sun 25 May,
LG Arena, Birmingham
KHANDAN (FAMILY) Birmingham Repertory Theatre in association with
The Royal Court presents Gurpreet Kaur
Bhatti's tale of extended
family life, Thurs 22
May - Sat 7 June, The
REP, Birmingham
LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING Celebrating the
music of Michael Ball,
Fri 23 May, Palace Theatre, Redditch
MIKE MCGEAR MCCARTNEY Mike takes audiences through his family album, with stories of
Liverpool life from childhood through to entering showbiz when,
because of Beatlemania, he had to change
his name to 'McGear',
and became an integral
part of the ’60s Merseybeat era, Fri 23 May,
Tamworth Assembly
Rooms
MISSING In Britain, one
person goes missing
every two minutes.
Missing seeks to scrutinise the vast scale and
unique mystery of disappearance. Created
from first-hand interviews gathered by the
cast and developed in
collaboration with journalists from national
newspapers, Fri 23 Sat 24 May, Belgrade
Theatre, Coventry
THE LAST SUPPER From
Marilyn Monroe to
Rasputin, Princess
Diana to Joan Of Arc,
this is an intimate and
unusual performance
serving a set of last
statements and last
meals to a limited audience of thirty-nine, Fri
23 - Sun 25 May,
Church of St. John The
Baptist, Coventry
THE INSTITUTE OF IMPOSSIBILITY Join award-winning company LAStheatre for an immersive
adventure exploring the
evolution of all things,
from crops to legends
and satellites to stories.
Encounter real scientists and meet their
mysterious machine –
all on a journey to save
creativity from destruction, Fri 23 - Sun 25
May, Drapers Hall,
Coventry
AN EVENING WITH JULIE
ANDREWS Sat 24 May,
Birmingham
ROLL UP! ROLL UP! Language Alive present an
early-years story which
focuses on a man's
dream to one day perform in the circus, Sat
24 May, The REP, Birmingham
THE CHUCKLE BROTHERS
IN A 2014 SPACE ODDITY
A new show promising
fun for all the family, Sat
24 May, New Alexandra
Theatre, Birmingham
Stevenson’s familyfriendly adventure is
here adapted by
emerging playwright
Theatre Company, Sat
24 May, Arena Theatre,
Wolverhampton
THE MARRIAGE OF
FIGARO Swansea City
opera, Sun 25 May,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
THE WASPS Ludus Theatre present a retelling
of the ancient tale The
Wasps of Aristophanes!, Sun 25 May,
CHARITY VARIETY PERFORMANCE Showcase of
work from Stagecoach
theatre schools in
Leamington Spa, Banbury, Warwick & Kenilworth, Sun 25 May,
Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
Week Commencing
MON 26 MAY
ROCK POOL Award-winning theatre group
Inspector Sands present a new show for children featuring rock
music and splashy
dancing, Mon 26 May,
mac - Midlands Arts
Centre, Birmingham
ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS
The critically acclaimed
National Theatre production takes to the
road... Mon 26 - Sat 31
May, Birmingham Hippodrome
Royal Shakespeare
Tues 27 May, Warwick
THE NEW ADVENTURES
OF PUSS IN BOOTS
Music, magic and mayhem, with plenty of
audience participation...
Tue 27 May, Lichfield
Garrick
CHRIS & PUI Brand new
show packed with
songs, games and a
few surprises!, Tue 27
Stevenson’s familyfriendly adventure, is
here adapted by
emerging playwright
Theatre Company, Tue
27 - Sat 31 May, Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
GREASE Amateur production presented by
Five Towns Theatre
Company, Tues 27 - Sat
31 May, Stoke Repertory Theatre
THIS IS MUSIC HALL Wed
28 May, Wolverhamp-
ton Grand Theatre
WUTHERING HEIGHTS A
'bold new adaptation' of
Emily Bronte's classic
love story, Wed 28 May,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
Royal Shakespeare
Wed 28 May, Artrix,
Bromsgrove
THE JUNGLE BOOK Riverbank Productions present a stage version of
Rudyard Kipling’s
much-loved family tale,
Wed 28 May, Tamworth
Assembly Rooms
CHARLIE & LOLA'S
EXTREMELY NEW PLAY
Fusion of puppetry, live
action and music based
on the much-loved
books by Lauren Child,
The REP, Birmingham
THE TRIAL Freshblood
Theatre’s student-written adaptation of Franz
Kafka’s groundbreaking
novel, Wed 28 - Sat 31
THE TIME MACHINE Oneman adaptation of
Orson Wells’ profoundly
influential Victorian
novella, Thurs 29 May,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
THE SOOTY SHOW A
brand new family show,
Thurs 29 May, Prince Of
BANANAS IN PYJAMAS
Thurs 29 May, Bedworth Civic Hall
HUGLESS DOUGLAS Theatre for children, based
on the bestselling book
by David Melling, Thurs
29 May, The Roses,
Tewkesbury
TERRY PRATCHETT'S
WYRD SISTERS Jadis
Shadows present a
stage version of Terry
Pratchett’s cautionary
tale of ‘murderous
kings, spectres, lost
princes, demons,
jesters and “divers
alarums” galore’, Thurs
29 May, The Swan Theatre, Worcester
FOGHORN IMPROV: THE
SHERLOCK TOMES
Evening of improvised
sleuthing, Thurs 29
May, Old Joint Stock
Theatre, Birmingham
WEST SIDE STORY Amateur production presented by the Viv Kelly
Youth Theatre Group,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
DOUG SEGAL: I CAN MAKE
YOU A MENTALIST Comedy, animation, interaction and ‘mind-blowing
miracles’... Fri 30 May,
Artrix, Bromsgrove
LAURIE LEE: REFLECTIONS Local writers
Roger Elkin and
Pamela Brough-Sandford join journalist Phil
Edmeades to celebrate
the one hundredth
anniversary of the
writer’s birth, Fri 30
May, Foxloew Arts Cen-
tre, Leek, Staffs
THE FORENSICS OF A
FLAT (AND OTHER STORIES) By Francesca Millican Slater, Fri 30 - Sat
31 May, The REP, Birmingham
MORECAMBE Tim Whitnall’s award-winning
play, Fri 30 - Sat 31
Shrewsbury
OLD MACDONALD HAD A
FARM Presented by
People's Theatre Company, Fri 30 May, Solihull Arts Complex
THE MARRIAGE OF
FIGARO Swansea City
opera, Fri 30 May,
Lichfield Garrick
SEPTEMBER IN THE RAIN
Lichfield Garrick Rep
Company present John
Godber's semi-autobiographical play, loosely
based on the lives of
his own parents, Fri 30
May - Thurs 5 Jun,
Lichfield Garrick
BOBBY SOCKS AND BLUE
JEANS Sat 31 May,
Crewe Lyceum
PEPPA PIG'S BIG SPLASH
All-singing, all-dancing
adventure full of songs,
games and muddy
puddles for children,
Sat 31 May - Sun 1
June, Wolverhampton
Grand Theatre
CARNABY STREET Real
musical story set
against a backdrop of
London's West End in
the 1960s. Verity Rushworth and Aaron Sidwell star, Sat 31 May,
Lichfield Garrick
DESI PEO Gurdip Kaur
Chaudhary's 'high voltage' Punjabi comedy
which, set in London,
centres around the
clashing traditional
beliefs of Joginder and
Lucy Singh and their
British-born son Gaz,
Sat 31 May, The Drum,
Birmingham
TOOTY FROOTIES DO HOLLYWOOD A burlesque
review with a difference,
Sat 31 May, Old Rep,
Birmingham
THE COMEDY OF ERRORS
Sat 31 May, Whittington
Castle, Nr Oswestry,
North Shropshire
GRUMPY OLD WOMEN:
FIFTY SHADES OF BEIGE
Featuring Jenny Eclair,
Susie Blake & Kate
Robbins, Sat 31 May,
INHERIT THE WIND
Jerome Lawrence and
Robert E Lee’s American drama, inspired by
real-life events, Sat 31
May - Sat 14 June, New
Vic Theatre, Newcastleunder-Lyme
CRAZY FOR YOU The
Crescent Theatre present the story of Bobby
Childs, a well-to-do
1930s playboy whose
dream in life is to
dance, Sat 31 May - Sat
7 Jun, Crescent Theatre, Birmingham
Theatre REVIEWS
Below are reviews of theatre
productions we checked out last
month. For further theatre reviews, visit
The Passion
The Old Joint Stock Theatre Company here presented an original and expansive promenade
retelling of the Passion Story, set in modern-day
Birmingham and spanning three buildings and various streets in the city centre.
During the show’s run, ‘Jesus Davidson of Northfield’ was played by two actors; Seabert Henry, the
night we reviewed. He was excellent as a brooding
but fragile rogue. Alex Nikitas was perfectly cast as
Pilate - a mercilessly on-message politician - while
the large multicultural cast played their roles
superbly. But it was the surprises which really sold
the production: the audience kitbags filled with
items which enhanced various scenes, the spot-on
extras (Pilate’s campaign material, later defaced)
and, most of all, the variety and inventiveness of
the spaces used.
We entered the Old Joint Stock Theatre itself twice,
first for The Last Supper - an immersive partyturned-sour - then for a brutal Guantanamo Baystyle crucifixion.
The show felt overlong, and there was often too
much physical distance to cover between the
scenes - but for sheer ambition, creativity and commitment, this young company cannot be faulted.
James Pursglove ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Happy Days
Birmingham Hippodrome
To me as a child growing up in the 1970s, Happy Days was a bit of a phenomenon
(not sure I knew what that word meant back then, mind). Keeping on top of what the
slick-haired Fonz and his not-so-cool followers were up to in 1950s America provided
me with a reason to rush home from school (as if any reason were needed!). So why
is it that I couldn’t quite get into the spirit of this all-singing, all-dancing incarnation?
Well, if you like your musicals saccharine-sweet, chances are Happy Days The Musical
is for you. If, on the other hand, you like a bit more substance to your entertainment,
the show is likely to leave you feeling somewhat disappointed.
The narrative is a simple one - Arnold’s Diner is under threat from new fast food merchant Ronald McDonald and the heat is on to raise the cash to save Arnold’s bacon.
Enter, the Fonz!
Ex-Emmerdale star Ben Freeman is less than totally convincing as the comb-touting
main man. That said, he does grow on you, and the role allows him to demonstrate
his vocal prowess. Heidi Range can certainly belt out a tune, but on more than one
occasion she looks out of place as the Fonz’s husky-voiced love interest, Pinky Tuscadero. Cheryl Baker, by contrast, is a perfect fit as homemaker Mrs Cunningham, as
is James Paterson as her husband Howard. And there are many more performances
well worth applauding, including that of Scott Waugh, who gives the show momentum
as Richie Cunningham.
Happy Days may have the makings of a good musical but it lacks the wow factor to
take it to the next level. Maybe it’ll grow on me. Or maybe I’ve just grown up.
Patsy Moss ■ ■ ■
Theatre Box Office
Birmingham
Threepenny Opera
The REP, Birmingham
Written by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, this raucous musical here dispatched a galvanising punch
to the gut as it crashed through the topical subjects of police corruption, criminality and the
exploitation of the poor - all achieved with its
tongue set firmly in its cheek!
Relocated to contemporary London, it tells the
story of Polly (Cici Howells), whose father - the
crook, Mr Peachum (Garry Robson) - so disapproves of her marriage to notorious criminal
Macheath - dubbed Mack the Knife (Milton Lopes) that he schemes for his arrest and hanging.
The cast performed splendidly, particularly the
smoothly menacing Lopes, and revelled in the
business of presenting a tale of blackmail,
hypocrisy and moral corruption, complete with
foul-mouthed dialogue and super songs, including
Army Song and the sultry Pimp’s Ballad.
Unfortunately, the preachy parallels, with images of
David Cameron and Jimmy Savile, felt too smug in
their bid to appear ‘socially relevant’. Also distracting were the screens and onstage band, drawing
the focus away from the unfolding action.
Overall, though, a powerful commentary on undeniably pertinent themes. Malaka Chowdhury ■ ■ ■
ALEXANDRA THEATRE
0844 871 3011
BIRMINGHAM HIPPODROME
0844 338 5000
BIRMINGHAM REP
0121 236 4455
THE BLUE ORANGE THEATRE
0121 212 2643
CRESCENT THEATRE
0121 643 5858
DOVEHOUSE THEATRE
0121 706 7139
THE DRUM 0121 333 2444
HALL GREEN LITTLE THEATRE
0121 707 1874
MAC 0121 446 3232
MIXING BOWL THEATRE
0121 224 7545
OLD JOINT STOCK THEATRE
0121 200 0946
OLD REP 0121 245 4455
0121 704 6962
Black Country
ARENA THEATRE
WOLVERHAMPTON
01902 321321
BLOXWICH THEATRE
01922 653183
DUDLEY CONCERT HALL
01384 812812
FOREST ARTS CENTRE, WALSALL
01922 654555
GRAND THEATRE,
01902 429212
NEWHAMPTON ARTS CENTRE
01902 572090
OLDBURY REP, OLDBURY
0121 552 2761
Shropshire
THE BELFREY, WELLINGTON
01952 222277
THE EDGE, MUCH WENLOCK
01952 728911
01743 234970
LUDLOW ASSEMBLY
ROOMS 01584 878141
THE PLACE, OAKENGATES, TELFORD
01952 382382
THEATRE SEVERN, SHREWSBURY
01743 281281
WEM TOWN HALL
01939 232299
Staffordshire
LICHFIELD GARRICK
01543 412121
NEW VIC 01782 717962
PRINCE OF WALES
CENTRE, CANNOCK
01543 578762
REGENT THEATRE, STOKE
0870 060 6649
RUGELEY ROSE THEATRE
01889 584036
STAFFORD GATEHOUSE
01785 254653
STOKE REPERTORY THEATRE
01782 209784
Warwickshire
BEDWORTH CIVIC HALL
024 7637 6707
BELGRADE THEATRE, COVENTRY
024 7655 3055
BRIDGE HOUSE THEATRE, WARWICK
01926 776438
THE DREAM FACTORY
01926 419555
ROYAL SHAKESPEARE
THEATRE, STRATFORD-UPON-AVON
0844 800 1110
ROYAL SPA CENTRE
LEAMINGTON 01926 334418
WARWICK ARTS CENTRE, COVENTRY
02476 524524
Worcestershire
ARTRIX ARTS CENTRE,
BROMSGROVE 01527 577330
THE HIVE
01905 822866
HUNTINGDON HALL, WORCESTER
01905 611427
MALVERN THEATRE
01684 892277
NORBURY THEATRE, DROITWICH
01905 770154
PALACE THEATRE
REDDITCH 01527 65203
ROSE THEATRE,
01562 743745
SWAN THEATRE,
WORCESTER 01905 611427
Theatre WEST END
WEST END LISTINGS:
MUSICALS
Richard Armitage
Richard Armitage to star in re-imagining of Arthur Miller classic
Leicester-born actor Richard Armitage is to
take the lead in a new production of Arthur
Miller’s The Crucible at The Old Vic.
Armitage, probably best known as Thorin
Oakenshield in the Hobbit trilogy, will play
John Proctor in Miller’s drama about the
Salem witch trials.
Focusing on one man’s fight to save his
identity in a repressive Puritan community,
this new version of Miller’s modern masterpiece is brought to the stage by internationally acclaimed director Yael Farber, with the
award-winning Soutra Gilmour responsible
for set design.
Anna Madeley, who’s been described as one
of the UK’s ‘brightest and most versatile
young actresses’, returns to the West End
stage to play Proctor’s wife Elizabeth. Oxford
School of Drama graduate Samantha Colley
makes her professional stage debut as the
manipulative Abigail Williams, a central character in the play.
The Crucible opens at The Old Vic on Tues
24 June and shows until Sat 13 September.
Extended booking period for
the RSC’s Matilda The Musical
the heartbreak of being a parent and the
compromise of growing up. Numrich is
joined in the production by Anthony Calf
(Nikolia), Elaine Cassidy (Anna), Caoilfhionn Dunn (Fenichka) and Susan Engel
(Princess Olga).
Fathers And Sons
opens at The Donmar
Warehouse on 5
June and runs until
Seth Numrich
26 July.
The booking period for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Matilda The
Musical at the Cambridge Theatre has been
extended until May 2015. Written by Dennis
Kelly, and with music and lyrics by Tim
Minchin, Matilda recently clocked up its one
thousandth performance. The hit show has
received a total of forty-nine awards - including seven Oliviers and four Tonys - since its
2010 debut in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Cillian Murphy returns to the
National Theatre in new play
Casting announced for Russian
masterpiece Fathers And Sons
Seth Numrich is to return to the West End to
star in the Donmar Warehouse production of
Brian Friel’s Fathers And Sons. Numrich,
who was awarded Best Newcomer at the
Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 2013,
will play Bazarov in Friel’s dramatisation of
Ivan Turgenev’s Russian masterpiece. Set
during the course of a summer retreat at a
country estate, Fathers And Sons focuses on
Following his success playing Tommy Shelby in the Birmingham-based BBC drama
Peaky Blinders, Irish actor Cillian Murphy has
announced he’s to return to the National
Theatre (NT). Murphy will be reunited with
writer and director Edna Walsh on Ballyturk,
which plays in the Lyttleton Theatre for a fiveweek season from 11 September. An ‘ambitious and tender’ new work, Ballyturk focuses on two men as their lives unravel over the
course of ninety minutes, and is described
by the NT as ‘gut-wrenchingly funny, achingly sad, and featuring
jaw-dropping
moments of physical
comedy’.
Murphy and Walsh
last worked together
on Misterman, which
showed at the
Cillian Murphy
National in 2012.
BILLY ELLIOT –
THE MUSICAL
Victoria Palace Theatre, booking until 16
May 2015
BODYGUARD Adelphi
Theatre, booking until
30 Aug 2014
BOOK OF MORMON
Prince Of Wales Theatre, booking until 30
Aug 2014
CHARLIE AND THE
CHOCOLATE FACTORY THE MUSICAL
Drury Lane Royal,
booking until 30 May
2015
COMMITMENTS
Victoria Palace Theatre, booking until 19
Apr 2015
DIRTY ROTTEN
SCOUNDRELS
Savoy Theatre, booking until 29 Nov 2014
I CAN’T SING! THE
X FACTOR MUSICAL
London Palladium Theatre, booking until 25
Oct 2014
JERSEY BOYS
Piccadilly Theatre,
booking until 26 Oct
2014
LES MISÉRABLES
Queen's Theatre, booking until 25 Apr 2015
LION KING
Lyceum Theatre, booking until 28 Sept 2014
MADE IN DAGENHAM THE MUSICAL Adelphi
Theatre, 9 Oct 2014 28 Mar 2015
MAMMA MIA! Novello
25 Apr 2015
MATILDA THE MUSICAL
Cambridge Theatre,
booking until 21 Dec
2014
MEMPHIS THE MUSICAL
Shaftesbury Theatre, 9
Oct 2014 - 28 Mar
2015
MISS SAIGON Prince
Edward Theatre, 3 May
- 25 Oct 2014
ONCE Phoenix Theatre,
booking until 4 July
2015
PAJAMA GAME
Shaftesbury Theatre, 2
May - 13 Sep 2014
PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
Her Majesty's Theatre,
booking until 25 Oct
2014
PORGY AND BESS
Open Air Theatre,
Regents Park, 17 Jul 23 Aug 2014
STOMP
Ambassadors Theatre,
booking until 21 Dec
2014
THRILLER LIVE
Lyric Theatre, booking
until 19 Apr 2015
WE WILL ROCK YOU
Dominion Theatre,
booking until 31 May
2014
WICKED
Apollo Victoria Theatre,
booking until 25 Apr
2015
DRAMA
1984 Playhouse Theatre, 28 Apr - 19 Jul
2014
ANTONY & CLEOPATRA
Shakespeare’s Globe
Theatre, 17 May - 24
Aug 2014
DOCTOR SCROGGY’S WAR
Shakespeare’s Globe
Theatre, 12 Sept - 10
Oct 2014
FATAL ATTRACTION
Haymarket Theatre
Royal, booking until 21
Jun 2014
GHOST STORIES
Arts Theatre, booking
until 17 Aug 2014
GOLEM Young Vic
17 Jan 2015
HANDBAGGED
Vaudeville Theatre, 3
Apr - 2 Aug 2014
KING LEAR Olivier
National Theatre, booking until 28 May 2014
OTHER DESERT CITIES
Old Vic Theatre, booking until 24 May 2014
COMEDY
39 STEPS Criterion Theatre, booking until 18
Oct 2014
BLITHE SPIRIT
Gielgud Theatre, booking until 7 June 2014
RELATIVE VALUES Harold
Pinter Theatre, booking
until 21 jun 2014
TWELFTH KNIGHT
RE-IMAGINED Open Air
Theatre, Regent’s Park,
21 Jun - 12 July 2014
Made In Dagenham - Adelphi Theatre
Dance May generic_Layout 1 25/04/2014 16:20 Page 1
Dance
Lord Of The Flies
Birmingham Hippodrome, Wed 14 - Sat 17 May
Stopping off in Birmingham as part of its inaugural tour, Matthew Bourne’s latest production is an adventurous interpretation of William
Golding’s seminal exploration of the breakdown of social order. Once again bringing New Adventures’ style to a classic piece, Bourne transposes the story from a deserted island to a deserted theatre, where a group of schoolboys find themselves abandoned. With no adults to
keep order, the teenagers create their own ‘dog eat dog’ civilisation, in which a new set of rules apply. And, with tension building throughout
the show, audiences are promised an electrifying climax in true Matthew Bourne style. Featuring a mixed cast of professional and non-professional dancers, Lord Of The Flies is a joint venture between Bourne and Olivier Award-nominated choreographer Scott Ambler.
Birmingham Royal Ballet
Wed 7 - Thurs 8 May
Let’s Dance International Festival
Various locations around Leicester, until Sat 24 May
Raising the profile of dance throughout Leicester, the inaugural Let’s
Dance International Festival launched in 2011 as part of the celebrations leading up to the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Presenting
an eclectic programme of events across the city, this year’s festival
showcases a host of internationally acclaimed dancers and choreographers, including FuturPointe Dance from New York (16 - 17 May)
and Sana Budaya from Suriname (23 to 24 May). Homegrown performers include Freddie Opoku-Addaie and Henri Oguike, to name
but two. For full details of the festival and to find out who’s on where,
visit www.ldif.co.uk
Internationally acclaimed Birmingham
Royal Ballet is out on the road this
month, stopping off at Shrewsbury’s
Theatre Severn to perform three short
works from its extensive repertoire.
Quatrain, a new work from BRB
dancer and choreographer Kit Holder,
opens the triple-bill. An upbeat piece
inspired by the vibrant rhythms of
Astor Piazzolla’s The Four Seasons Of
Beunos Aires, it follows the success
of Holder’s previous work, 9-5, which
featured at International Dance
Festival Birmingham in 2012. Next up
is Frederick Ashton’s Facade. Based
on Edith Sitwell’s nonsensical poetry,
it’s a comic ballet brimming with
delightful characters. Completing the
bill is Bitesize - an opportunity to
enjoy highlights from the company’s
best-loved ballets.
Frederick Ashton’s Facade
Séquence 8
The REP, Birmingham, Thurs 8 - Sat 10 May
Montreal circus company Les 7 Doigts de la
Main (The 7 Fingers) here fuses acrobatics,
circus arts, dance and theatre in a performance described as ‘playful and profound’.
Created in 2012, the company’s Sequence 8
takes emotional dynamics to a point of
explosion and propulsion, where there are no
specific references to time or place. Instead,
there’s a contemplation of the role of the
‘other’, and how we define ourselves both
through and against it.
Company Decalage
DanceXchange, The Patrick Centre,
Birmingham Hippodrome, Fri 9 - Sat 10 May
Sylvie Guillem: 6000 Miles Away
Birmingham Hippodrome, Tues 6 - Wed 7 May
Known for its unique style, which blends various dance disciplines, Company Decalage
here presents a highly anticipated world premiere double-bill. The two new duets have
been devised by celebrated Midlands choreographer and bboy Mickael ‘Marso’ Riviere in
partnership with acclaimed Barcelona-based
choreographer, actor and dancer Guy Nader
and Egyptian-born choreographer Salah El
Brogy. The first work, Match, is a piece
where destruction and renewal, devastation
and beauty are never far apart. Halfway To
The Other Side, meanwhile, is a part-spiritual
journey and part-absurd reflection on the
human tendency to repeat and replicate.
Widely regarded as one of the world’s greatest dancers, French artist Sylvie Guillem this
month makes a welcome return to the region to showcase an evening of works by three of
today’s most renowned choreographers - Mats Ek, William Forsythe and Jirí Kylián.
Commissioned in 2011, 6000 Miles is a collaboration between Guillem and Sadler’s Wells, for
whom she is Associate Artist. The critically acclaimed work features Forsythe’s lauded duet
Rearray, presented alongside Bye, Mats Ek’s solo for Guillem which is set to Beethoven’s last
piano sonata. A duet from Kylián’s work 27’52”, performed by dancers handpicked by the
choreographer, completes the performance.
The Parisian protegee of Rudolf Nureyev, Guillem was, at nineteen, the youngest dancer to be
appointed to the Paris Opera Ballet, where she remained the top-ranking female dancer from
1984 to 1989 before arriving at Covent Garden in a blaze of publicity. In 2006 she made the
transition from ballet to contemporary dance.
Luca Silvestrini’s Protein
Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Fri 2 May
DanceXchange, The Patrick Centre,
Birmingham Hippodrome,
Tues 13 - Sat 17 May
Award-winning dance company Protein here
bring their trademark physical and verbal wit
to Birmingham with a new slice of social
commentary. Featuring international dancers
and local performers, Border Tales is a
poignant look at multi-cultural living in the
UK. Told through the eyes of the characters
on the stage, we’re presented with a satirical
gaze into the world of stereotypical thinking,
tolerance and where lines are drawn
between ‘them’ and ‘us’.
Concert Dansé.
A world premiere of a unique collaboration
between Birmingham’s Ex Cathedra, Québécois
dance company Cas Public,
Birmingham Royal Ballet and a cast
of UK performers, Concert Dansé
promises to create within
Symphony Hall an ethereal, haunting atmosphere. Featuring classical pieces from SaintSaens, Massenet and
Copland, the evening culminates in a reimagining
of Durufle’s Requiem, featuring a mix of ballet,
Kathak and contemporary
dance. Choreographed
by Helene Blackburn
and Pierre Lecours, and
with David
Massingham as creative producer, the
piece features a
performance from
trained Kathak
dancer Aakash
Odedra, a rising
star of British
South Asian
Dance.
For full dance listings, visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk 41
Dance LISTINGS
For full listing information on dance,
including times and dates, visit
LET’S DANCE INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL LEICESTER Showcasing
dancers & choreographers from around the
world, until Sat 24 May,
various locations
around Leicester.
Check www.Idif.co.uk
for details
JAMES WILTON: LAST
MAN STANDING Thurs 1
Shrewsbury
TEMPEST REPLICA In her
new dance piece,
based on motifs from
Shakespeare's The
Tempest, Canadian
choreographer Crystal
Pite stages a game of
revenge and forgiveness, reality and imagination, Fri 2 - Sat 3
May, Birmingham
Hippodrome
CONCERT DANSE A
unique collaboration
between Birmingham's
Ex Cathedra,
Quebecois dance company Cas Public, and a
cast of UK performers.
Featuring works for
choir, organ and cello,
the performance culminates in an evocative
reimagining of Durufle's
Requiem, with a mix of
ballet, Kathak and contemporary dance, Fri 2
May, Symphony Hall,
Birmingham
CINDERELLA Vienna
Festival Ballet present a
classical staging of the
world-famous fairytale,
Fri 2 May, The Roses,
Tewkesbury
THE LITTLE MERMAID
Ballet Theatre UK present a choreographed
performance of Hans
Christian Andersen's
enchanting tale, Sat 3
May, Crescent Theatre,
Birmingham
TAP FACTORY Sat 3 May,
Royal Spa Centre,
Leamington Spa
SYLVIE GUILLEM: 6000
MILES AWAY Sadler's
Wells present a mixed
programme performed
by its Associate Artist
Sylvie Guillem, Tue 6 Wed 7 May,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
AAKASH ODEDRA COMPANY A double-bill of new
work including Murmur
& Inked, Tues 6 - Wed
7 Apr, DanceXchange,
The Patrick Centre,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
BIRMINGHAM ROYAL
BALLET ON TOUR
Programme includes
Kit Holder's Quatrain,
Frederick Ashton's
Facade and Bitesize
Ballet - a series of highlights from the company's 'most-loved ballets', Wed 7 - Thurs 8
Shrewsbury
STRICTLY STAFFORD AND
STONE Featuring over
twenty local schools
who’ll grace the
Gatehouse stage in a
celebration of dance,
Stafford Gatehouse
Theatre
SEQUENCE 8 A fusion of
acrobatics, circus acts,
dance and theatre,
The REP, Birmingham
NATIONAL DANCE
COMPANY WALES A triple
bill of international
work, Fri 9 May,
Malvern Theatres
COMPANY DECALAGE
Presenting a world premiere double bill
including Match &
Halfway To The Other
Side, Fri 9 - Sat 10 May,
DanceXchange, The
Patrick Centre,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
KASAI MASAI CENTRAL
African music and
dance group, Sat 10
Shrewsbury
A SPRING CELEBRATION
Special event from
Sampad South Asian
Arts featuring live music
& Bollywood dance,
Sat 10 May, Arena
Theatre,
Wolverhampton
STARS OF STRICTLY
Featuring Pasha
Kovalev & Katya
Virshilas, Sun 11 May,
Theatre Severn,
Shrewsbury
AMY FLYNN SCHOOL OF
DANCE Showcase of
work in celebration of
the school’s first birthday, Sun 11 May,
Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury
LUCA SILVESTRINI’S PROTEIN / BORDER DANCE A
cast of international
dancers & local performers entertain & provoke with a new slice of
social commentary,
Tues 13 - Sat 17 May,
DanceXchange, The
Patrick Centre,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
LORD OF THE FLIES
Brand new show from
Matthew Bourne's New
Adventures, Wed 14 Sat 17 May,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
THE SECRET GARDEN
BALLET PRODUCTION Fri
16 - Sat 17 May,
Bramall Music Building,
Birmingham
PUT YOUR FOOT DOWN
Free dance performances in a range of
styles with everything
from street to capoeira
covered, Sat 17 May,
Bullring, Spiceal Street,
Birmingham
INTOTO DANCE Featuring
works by four up-andcoming choreographers, including former
Rambert dancer and
twice winner of the
Critics Circle
Contemporary Artist of
the Year, Ana Lujan
Sanchez, Tue 20 May,
Artrix, Bromsgrove
BREAKIN' CONVENTION A
hugely popular production hosted and curated
by UK hip hop theatre
artist Jonzi D, Tue 20 Wed 21 May,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
THE LITTLE MERMAID
Ballet Theatre UK present a choreographed
performance of Hans
Christian Andersen's
enchanting tale, Wed
21 May, Prince Of
B-TOWN A unique show
which references both
the ancient and the
futuristic while featuring
'explosive dance' from
World B-Boy
Champions Morning of
Owl (Korea) and an all
star line-up from
Funkstylerz UK collective, Wed 21 - Sat 24
May, Victoria Square,
Birmingham
PLANITES The latest
work by Greek choreographer Patricia
Apergi and her company Aerites, Thurs 22 Fri 23 May,
DanceXchange, The
Patrick Centre,
Birmingham
Hippodrome
SWAN LAKE Vienna
Festival Ballet present a
lavish production of
one of the best known
love stories of all time,
Lichfield Garrick
STARS OF STRICTLY
Featuring Pasha
Kovalev & Katya
Virshilas, Fri 23 May,
MILONGA Sidi Larbi
Cherkaoul present an
exploration of both traditional and contemporary tango, Fri 23 - Sat
24 May, Birmingham
Hippodrome
CANDOCO DANCE COMPANY: STUDIES FOR C
Celebration of difference and rebellion from
award-winning choreographer Javier de
Frutos, Sat 24 May, The
Village Green, Hurst
Street, Birmingham
DENADA DANCE THEATRE:
YOUNG MAN! Carlos
Pons Guerra’s choreographed duel of seduction which is said to put
the figure of the
Spanish ‘macho’ to the
test, Sat 24 May, The
Village Green, Hurst
Street, Birmingham
MADE OF STARS
Blending together parkour and dance, twelve
young men fly over
obstacles and spiral
through wide-open
spaces on a collision
course with each other,
Sat 24 - Sun 25 May,
Coventry city centre,
starting at Millenium
Place
DANCEXCHANGE &
SHAUN PARKER COMPANY/ SPILL A PLAYGROUND OF DANCE
Combining quirky,
dynamic dance with
high energy street gymnastics, Sun 25 May,
Cannon Hill Park,
Birmingham
THE LITTLE MERMAID
Ballet Theatre UK present a dramatic re-telling
of Hans Christian
Andersen's all-time
favourite story, Tue 27
May, Solihull Arts
Complex
PHOENIX DANCE THEATRE
Triple bill of works fea-
turing the world premieres of two exciting
new dance works, Wed
28 May, Malvern
Theatres
THE LITTLE MERMAID
Ballet Theatre UK present a dramatic re-telling
of Hans Christian
Andersen's all-time
favourite, Thurs 29 May,
Crewe Lyceum
LET'S GO A showcase of
works by Steelworks
Dance Academy, Thurs
29 - Sat 31 May,
Regent Theatre, Stokeon-Trent
HAPPY MIX Showcase of
dance routines from
street to upbeat
dances, Fri 30 May,
The Old Rep,
Birmingham
Dance Box Office
ARENA THEATRE,
WOLVERHAMPTON
01902 321321
ARTRIX, BROMSGROVE
01527 577330
BIRMINGHAM
HIPPODROME
0844 338 5000
DOVEHOUSE THEATRE
0121 706 7139
LICHFIELD GARRICK
01543 412121
LUDLOW ASSEMBLY
ROOMS, SHROPSHIRE
01584 873229
MAC, BIRMINGHAM
0121 446 3232
NEW ALEXANDRA THEATRE,
BIRMINGHAM
0121 230 9082
ROYAL SPA CENTRE,
LEAMINGTON SPA
01926 334418
0121 704 6962
STAFFORD GATEHOUSE
THEATRE
01785 254653
THEATRE SEVERN,
SHREWSBURY
01743 281281
WARWICK ARTS CENTRE,
COVENTRY
02476 524524
For full venue information visit: www.whatsonlive.co.uk
Milonga - Birmingham Hippodrome
For full dance listings, visit www.whatsonlive.co.uk 43
Film May_Layout 1 25/04/2014 15:13 Page 1
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MA 22
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X-Men: Days Of Future Past
CERT tbc
Starring Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Halle Berry, Anna Paquin,
Ellen Page, Shawn Ashmore, Nicholas Hoult, Peter Dinklage, Ian McKellen, Patrick Stewart
Directed by Bryan Singer (USA/UK)
The future is looking rather grim again, so Wolverine (Jackman) is sent back in time to alter the course of
history. If that sounds like a familiar concept (in cinematic terms), it does provide a wonderful opportunity for
cramming two Xaviers into one movie (played by James McAvoy and Patrick Stewart). In fact, Days Of
Future Past presents a cast to die for and is also significant for reintroducing real-life lovebirds Jennifer
Lawrence and Nicholas Hoult (who met on the set of X-Men: First Class). Incidentally, a similar narrative ruse
was used in another Patrick Stewart vehicle, Star Trek Generations, when both commanders of the starship
Enterprise were levered into the same movie. In 3D.
Godzilla CERT tbc
Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken
Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette
Binoche, Sally Hawkins, David
Strathairn, Bryan Cranston
Directed by Gareth Edwards (USA)
m
Fro
15
THUAY
M
It’s a strange old world. Gareth
Edwards’ last film was a monster
pic called, er, Monsters, and cost
$500,000 to make. No wonder: he
whipped up all the special effects
on the computer in his bedroom.
Now he takes on the might of
Hollywood and a $160million budget for the ultimate monster movie, a
reboot of the cult Japanese sci-fi
thriller. The last version (1998),
which starred Matthew Broderick,
was a critical flop, so it’ll be interesting to see what Edwards does with
the material. He’s certainly got a
first-rate cast, with the High
Wycombe-born Taylor-Johnson
leading the human beings, while old
Godzilla himself battles a horde of
malevolent creatures that “threaten
our very existence”. In 3D.
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Emma Rigby, Graham McTavish, Thomas
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Based on real events, this comedy thriller
focuses on a group of students whose credit card fraud
lands them in hot water with a
ruthless crime boss. So
they’re given two weeks to
raise £2million, which they
attempt to do by engineering
an audacious diamond heist
in Miami.
Released from Fri 2 May
Brick Mansions CERT 15 (91 mins)
Starring Paul Walker, David Belle, RZA
Directed by Camille Delamarre
(France/Canada)
Tarzan CERT PG (99mins)
Bad Neighbors CERT 15 (97 mins)
Featuring the voices of Kellan Lutz, Spencer
Locke, Jaime Ray Newman
Directed by Reinhard Klooss (Germany)
Luc Besson’s District 13 (2004) was an adrenaline-pumping thriller featuring the phenomenon
of ‘free running’. It starred Dave Belle (best
known at the time for appearing in the BBC’s
‘rooftop’ trailer), who returns in this FrancoCanadian remake. This time he’s paired up with
the late Paul Walker (as an undercover cop)
and the location has been switched from Paris
to Detroit. Expect a lot of ghetto life, ghetto
thugs, a neutron bomb and athletic sprinting.
It really doesn’t seem that long ago that Disney
brought us an animated version of Edgar Rice Burroughs'
Apeman (with songs by Phil
Collins). However, this edition
was filmed in motion capture
in Munich and pits Tarzan and
Jane against an army dispatched by ‘Greystoke
Energies’. In 3D.
Starring Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose
Byrne, Dave Franco, Christopher MintzPlasse, Lisa Kudrow, Craig Roberts
Directed by Nicholas Stoller (USA)
‘Bad Neighbours’ could actually be the
name given to a sub-genre of American
comedy. Here, the deal is that family man
Seth Rogen (with new-born baby girl)
moves next door to a frat house run by
the unruly, beer-swigging Efron. Expect
some pretty strong language, nudity and
‘crude sex references’.
For full film listings,
showings
and booking links
visit: whatsonlive.co.uk
View the latest trailers on line
Pompeii CERT 12a (104 mins)
Starring Kit Harrington, Emily Browning,
Kiefer Sutherland, Jared Harris, Jessica
Lucas, Carrie-Anne Moss, Paz Vega
Directed by Paul W. S. Anderson (USA)
It’s 79 AD and former slave Milo (Harrington,
from Game Of Thrones) is now an invincible
gladiator. He’s in love with Cassia (Browning),
who is betrothed against her will to the corrupt
senator Corvis (Sutherland). And then all hell
breaks loose when Mount Vesuvius upstages
all the melodrama. In 3D.
Fro
FRI m
MAY9
The Wind Rises CERT PG (127 mins)
Before The Winter Chill
Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sam
Worthington, Olivia Williams, Terrence
Howard, Joe Manganiello, Mireille Enos
Directed by David Ayer (USA)
Featuring the voices (for the dubbed version) of
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, John
Krasinski, Martin Short, Werner Herzog,
William H. Macy
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki (Japan)
CERT 15 (103 mins)
Having robbed a drug cartel safe house, members of an elite DEA task force find themselves
picked off one by one. David Ayer previously
directed the edgy, uncompromising Harsh
Times and End Of Watch, so he may have a
chance at getting something credible out of
what sounds like a rather formulaic actionthriller. Expect extreme violence, scenes of torture and big bangs. Don’t expect subtext.
Hayao Miyazaki is one of the leading talents
in animation today, having won countless
awards and even an Oscar (for his peerless
2001 fantasy Spirited Away). Here, he’s
adapted his own manga comic, a fictionalised biography of the aircraft designer Jiro
Horikoshi. It was the highest grossing
Japanese film in Japan last year and earned
Miyazaki another Oscar nomination this year.
At first glimpse, Philippe Claudel’s third feature looks like a stodgily paced, middle-aged
domestic drama. But should one pay attention, one might notice sinister depths to this
cosy, typically bourgeois scene. As Lucie, the
Anglo-French wife of an eminent brain surgeon, Kristin Scott Thomas does the gardening and holds convivial lunch parties al fresco
- before, of course, the winter chill. As Paul,
the surgeon, Daniel Auteuil works long hours
and is beloved by his patients - because, like
all good doctors, he treats the person as well
as the malady. And at home in their luxurious
modern house, Paul and Lucie enjoy quality
time together. We know this because in one
scene Claudel shows the couple dancing
together in a marital embrace and gives the
actors time to register their content. It’s hard
to imagine any American movie, or even an
English one, that would allow a scene like
this to linger; to permit the actors to think
their way into the moment. And yet the hibernal chill does come, in imperceptible flakes
that might melt before one catches them: in
the choice of a computer password, an unanswered question, a half-glimpsed photograph… but the director never overplays his
hand. Claudel is a master of the misconstrued incident - as illustrated so profoundly
with his 2008 masterpiece, I’ve Loved You So
Long (also with Scott Thomas) - and here he
doesn’t disappoint. Just pay attention.
Sabotage CERT 15 (109 mins)
Enemy CERT 15 (90 mins)
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mélanie Laurent,
Sarah Gadon, Isabella Rossellini, Stephen R.
Hart Directed by Denis Villeneuve
(Canada/Spain)
Frank CERT 15 (95 mins)
Starring Michael Fassbender, Domhnall
Gleeson, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Scoot McNairy,
Tess Harper Directed by Leonard Abrahamson
(UK/Ireland)
Eccentricity is the order of the day in this smallscale indie Irish comedy. Frank (Fassbender) is
the lead singer of a band called Soronprfbs
[sic], who wears a large papier-mâché mask,
not only when he performs, but when he sleeps
and showers, too. Jon Burroughs (Gleeson) is
the wannabe musician who joins the band
when they move to Ireland to cut an album.
Doppelgängers are all the rage at the moment.
Following a double helping of Jesse Eisenberg
in The Double, now comes Jake Gyllenhaal,
who spots his
double in an erotic movie. He then
watches all of the
actor’s films and
starts moving in
on the actor’s
real life… Based
on José
Saramago's 2002
novel The
Double.
Starring Daniel Auteuil, Kristin Scott
Thomas, Leïla Bekhti, Richard Berry
Directed by Philippe Claudel
(France/Luxembourg)
In Secret CERT 15 (107mins)
Starring Elizabeth Olsen, Oscar Isaac, Tom
Felton, Jessica Lange, Matt Lucas, Shirley
Henderson Directed by Charlie Stratton (USA)
Based on Émile Zola's classic 1867 novel
Thérèse Raquin, In Secret stars Elizabeth Olsen
as the repressed Thérèse who seeks solace
from her loveless marriage in the arms of
Laurent LeClaire (Oscar Isaac). Expect quite a
bit of heaving décolletage and some ‘strong
sex’.
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The Two Faces Of January
CERT 12a (96mins)
Starring Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst,
Oscar Isaac, Yigit Ozsener
Directed by Hossein Amini (USA)
The ubiquitous Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn
Davis) is back in this thriller based on the novel
by Patricia Highsmith. He plays Rydal, a tour
guide who shows an American couple around
the Acropolis of Athens. But Rydal is not all he
seems and neither, for that matter, is his new
friend Chester MacFarland (Mortensen)…
From
FRI 3
MAY 0
Postman Pat The Movie
CERT U (88mins)
Featuring the voices of Stephen Mangan, Jim
Broadbent, Rupert Grint, Ronan Keating,
David Tennant Directed by Mike Disa (UK)
It had to happen (think The Magic Roundabout
and Thomas the Tank Engine), but Postman
Pat now has his own (computer-animated)
movie. But who thought that Ronan Keating
would end up singing for the friendly postman
of Greendale? Yep, PP enters a TV talent show,
leaving his postal duties to a line of rather suspicious robots. The movie of Paddington Bear
arrives in November.
A Million Ways To Die In The West
CERT tbc
Starring Seth MacFarlane, Charlize Theron,
Amanda Seyfried, Liam Neeson, Giovanni
Ribisi, Sarah Silverman
Directed by Seth MacFarlane (USA)
With his live-action directorial debut, Seth
MacFarlane introduced us to the world of a
foul-mouthed teddy bear (called Ted). Now he’s
into sheep and takes the lead himself, as a
cowardly sheep farmer who loses his girlfriend
(Seyfried) through an act of pusillanimity. Then
he meets Anna (Theron), who teaches him to
man up. The only problem is her husband, a
ruthless gunman (Neeson).
Blended CERT 12a (117mins)
Starring Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore,
Bella Thorne, Terry Crews, Joel McHale
Directed by Frank Coraci (USA)
While hardly Tracy and Hepburn, Sandler and
Barrymore team up for the third time in this
romantic comedy. Following a blind date that
misfired, Jim (Sandler) and Lauren (Barrymore)
find themselves stuck together at a family
resort… Coraci previously directed Sandler in
The Wedding Singer, The Water Boy and Click.
Jimmy’s Hall CERT tbc
Edge Of Tomorrow CERT tbc
Starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill
Paxton, Lara Pulver, Jeremy Piven
Directed by Doug Liman
(USA/UK/Australia/South Korea)
In the near future, the world is under siege by
an alien race, apparently unstoppable by the
military. But then Lt. Col. Cage (Cruise) finds
himself trapped in a time loop, re-visiting the
same battle over and over again. And along
the way, he finds himself sharpening up his
tactics… Think Groundhog Day with big
guns. Based on the novel by Hiroshi
Sakurazaka. Shown in 3D and the IMAX format.
Maleficent CERT tbc
Starring Angelina Jolie, Sharlto Copley, Elle
Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Juno
Temple, Lesley Manville
Directed by Robert Stromberg (USA)
Following the success of the live-action
Mirror Mirror and Snow White And The
Huntsman, Disney now serves up their own
version of a fairy tale with this retelling of
Sleeping Beauty. The twist is that it’s told
from the viewpoint of the wicked fairy
‘Mistress of All Evil,’ as created in the original
1959 cartoon. Angelina Jolie should certainly
do her justice. Shown in 3D and the IMAX
format.
Starring Barry Ward, Simone Kirby, Andrew
Scott, Jim Norton, Brían F. O'Byrne
Directed by Ken Loach (UK/Ireland/France)
Ken Loach and the screenwriter Paul Laverty
have worked together on Sweet Sixteen, Ae
Fond Kiss... and The
Wind That Shakes The
Barley, so one’s expectations for this should be
pretty high. Barry Ward
plays the real-life political
activist Jimmy Gralton,
who becomes the only
Irishman ever to be
deported from Ireland.
This is the story of the
dance hall he built.
Film A-Z LISTINGS
makes for a fascinating
story and one that
deserves to be seen on
the big screen. Showing
at Foxlowe Arts Centre,
Leek, Staffordshire
All films are currently on general release
unless otherwise stated. For full listing
information, including times and dates,
The Dallas Buyers Club
15
A Long Way Down 15
Berlin International Film
Festival. Showing at The
Hive, Shrewsbury, Thurs
29 May
The story of four people
who decide to commit
suicide by jumping off a
tall building in London on
New Year’s Eve. The twist
is that they’re all strangers
and each character’s
attempt to end his life in
solitude is ruined by the
appearance of the others.
Pierce Brosnan & Toni
Collette star. Showing at
Festival Drayton Centre,
Market Drayton, Fri 2 - Sat
3 May; Artrix, Bromsgrove,
Sat 10 - Mon 12 May;
Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Mon 26 Tues 27 May
Calvary 15
Brendan Gleeson plays a
priest - a good one, to
boot - who is constantly
disappointed by the
small-mindedness of his
flock. He’s then threatened during a routine
confession and finds that
he must combat a very
real evil head-on. Also
stars Chris O’Dowd.
Showing at mac,
Birmingham, Fri 2 - Thurs
8 May; Stoke Film Theatre,
Stoke-on-Trent, Fri 23 - Sat
24 & Tues 27 May; Wem
Town Hall, North
Shropshire, Weds 28 Thurs 29 May; Artrix,
Bromsgrove, from Fri 30
May
The Armstrong Lie 15
The extraordinary story of
the Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, his
fight with testicular and
brain cancer, his astonishing comeback and then
his terrible shame.
Showing at Old Market
Hall, Shrewsbury, until
Thurs 1 May
Back To The
Garden 12a
WATCH
THE FILM T
A
TRAILERS k
A year after the
death of an inspirational theatre
director and
teacher, his widow is
struggling to come to
terms with her loss. A
group of close friends
come to spend the weekend with her, to offer their
support before they scatter her husband’s ashes
in the garden. Showing at
Stoke Film Theatre, Stokeon-Trent, Thurs 1 May
ve.co.u
whatsonli
Behind The Candelabra
15
The film follows Liberace’s
six-year relationship with
the considerably younger
Scott Thorson, and is
based on the latter’s autobiography. Stars Michael
Douglas, Matt Damon.
Showing at The Norbury
Theatre, Weds 21 May
Caesar Must Die 12
Inmates at a high-security
prison in Rome prepare
for a public performance
of Shakespeare’s Julius
Caesar. Winner of the
Golden Bear at the 62nd
Catching History On
The Wings tbc
A documentary about
Ambalavaner Sivanandan,
a highly influential thinker
on race, racism, globalisation and resistance. Since
1972, he has been the
director of the Institute of
Race Relations (IRR).
Showing at The Drum,
Birmingham, Sun 11 May
Chasing Ice tbc
National Geographic photographer James Balog
risked his life to travel
across the arctic and capture climate change in
action. Using revolutionary time-lapse cameras,
he collected images from
a three-year period of the
glaciers and landscapes
changing. The result
CINEMA Box Office
Based on a lengthy article
in the Dallas Morning
News, this is a true story
about a homophobic
rodeo jock who contracts
Aids. Matthew
McConaughey and
Jennifer Garner star.
Showing at Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury, Sat
17 - Tues 20 May
Diana 12
Here, the former Princess
of Wales is portrayed by
the Anglo-Australian
actress Naomi Watts, and
the film recounts the last
two years of Diana’s life.
Showing at Forest Arts
Centre, Walsall, Thurs 29
May
Divergent 12a
A futuristic Chicago in
which the populace are
divided into five distinct
classes of personality or
‘virtues’. But Beatrice 'Tris'
Prior is a ‘divergent’,
which means she’s without an official virtue which makes her very
dangerous. But ‘why’,
she wonders? Stars
Shailene Woodley.
Showing at Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury,
from Sat 31 May
The Double 15
Based on the novella by
Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Jesse Eisenberg stars as
a man gradually driven
nuts when he realises that
his life has been taken
over by his double.
Showing at Stoke Film
Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, Fri
16 - Sat 17 May; Artrix,
Bromsgrove, Sun 18 - Fri
23 May; mac,
Birmingham, Tues 20 Thurs 22 May
Dustbin Baby PG
Abandoned as a baby in
a bin outside a pizza parlour, teenager April lives
with her foster mother
Marion. After an argument
with Marion on her 14th
birthday, April runs away
from home to find her
birth mother. Stars Dakota
Blue Richards, Juliet
Stevenson. Showing at
Coventry, Sun 25 May
WALSALL 01922 645 555
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Birmingham
CINEWORLD Broad St, B’ham
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0871 200 2000
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240 240
Black Country
CINEWORLD W’HAMPTON
0871 200 2000
LIGHT HOUSE MEDIA CENTRE, W’HAMPTON 01902
716055
ODEON MERRY HILL,
DUDLEY 0871 22 44007
SHOWCASE, DUDLEY
0871 220 1000
FOREST ARTS CENTRE,
CINEWORLD, SHREWSBURY
0871 200 2000
THE EDGE ARTS CENTRE,
MUCH WENLOCK
01952 728 911
FESTIVAL DRAYTON CENTRE,
MARKET DRAYTON
01630 654 444
01743 234 970
LUDLOW ASSEMBLY ROOMS
01584 878 141
MAJESTIC, BRIDGNORTH
01746 761815
Five Broken Cameras
PG
Made by West Bank villager Emad Burnat, this
film tells the story of
protests and conflict
around the building of the
West Bank security wall.
Showing at The Hive,
Shrewsbury, Fri 9 May
Frozen PG
Loosely based on Hans
Christian Andersen’s The
Snow Queen, in which
the kingdom of Arendelle
is turned into an eternal
winter by Princess Elsa.
Showing at Edge Arts
Mon 12 May; Hereford
Courtyard Theatre, from
Sat 31 May
The General U
The true story of a train
(The General) that is
stolen by Union soldiers,
the movie stars Buster
Keaton as an engineer
who is both obsessed
with the locomotive of the
title and the girl who
rejects him for being a
coward. Showing at
Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Sun 4 May
Gone With The Wind
12a
A manipulative Southern
belle carries on a turbulent affair with a blockade
runner during the
American Civil War. Stars
Clark Gable and Vivien
Leigh. Showing at Ludlow
Assembly Rooms, South
Shropshire, Fri 16 May
The Grand Budapest
Hotel 12a
The adventures of the legendary concierge
Gustave H (Ralph
Fiennes) an articulate,
manipulative and brazen
fellow who abuses his
position with startling zeal.
Accused of murder and
chased all over the shop,
he never loses his nerve.
Showing at Artrix,
Bromsgrove, until Mon 5
May; Wem Town Hall,
North Shropshire, Weds 7
- Thurs 8 May; Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury, Sun
25 - Fri 30 May
29 May; Stoke Film
Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent,
Thurs 29 May
Her 12a
In the not-too-distant
future, Theo, who’s going
through a divorce, downloads a voice-activated
operating system.
Choosing a female identity for his new programme,
he finds himself becoming
totally reliant on ‘Her’.
Stars Joaquin Phoenix
and the voice of Scarlett
Johansson. Showing at
Artrix, Bromsgrove, Tues
13 - Fri 16 May
King Lear tbc
Grigori Kozintsev’s blackand-white King Lear is set
in a stark landscape of
windswept moors and
marshes, bare castles
and wandering beggars.
The well-known
Shostakovich score
underpins the drama of
Shakespeare’s great
tragedy. Showing at
Coventry, Thurs 8 May
Labor Day 12a
Adele Wheeler is suffering
from a degenerative psychological disorder, her
thirteen-year-old son is
taking on the responsibilities of the house and Mr
Wheeler has run off with
another woman. Then a
killer forces his way into
their home… Kate Winslet
and Josh Brolin star.
9 - Sat 10 May; Festival
Drayton Centre, Market
Drayton, Fri 16 - Sat 17
May
The Lego Movie U
The computer-animated
movie is set in the ‘Lego
universe’ and features
such ‘minifigures’ as
Batman, Superman and
Spaceman Benny. With
the voices of Chris Pratt
and Elizabeth Banks.
Showing at Hereford
Courtyard Theatre, Sat 17
- Sun 18 May; Ludlow
Shropshire, Sat 24 - Tues
27 May
Half A Yellow Sun 15
The film adaptation of
Chimamanda Ngozi
Adichie's Orange Prizewinning novel, set during
the Nigerian-Biafran War
of 1967-1970. Stars
Thandie Newton, Chiwetel
Ejiofor. Showing at mac,
Locke 15
While driving from
Birmingham to London, a
construction manager
receives a phone call. The
remainder of the film sees
Ivan Locke attempting to
salvage his life via mobile
phone as he continues to
race home. Stars Tom
ODEON TELFORD
0871 224 4007
OMH SHREWSBURY
01743 281281
WEM TOWN HALL
01939 232299
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0871 224 4007
Staffordshire
CINEWORLD, BURTON-UPONTRENT 0871 200 2000
THE STAFFORD CINEMA,
STAFFORD
0207 438 9580
FOXLOWE ARTS CENTRE,
LEEK 01538 386 112
STOKE FILM THEATRE, 01782
411188
Warwickshire
ODEON COVENTRY
0871 224 4007
ODEON NUNEATON
0871 224 4007
SHOWCASE, COVENTRY
0871 220 1000
VUE, LEAMINGTON SPA
08712 240 240
PICTURE HOUSE,
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON
0871 902 5741
WARWICK ARTS CENTRE
COVENTRY 02476 524524
Hardy, with the voices of
Tom Holland, Olivia
Colman. Showing at
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Mon 19 - Tues 20
May; mac, Birmingham,
Fri 23 - Tues 27 May;
Stoke Film Theatre, Stokeon-Trent, Fri 30 - Sat 31
May
The Monuments Men
12a
Based on the book by
Robert M Edsel, this is the
true story of a group of art
historians and curators
who’re conscripted to infiltrate Nazi Germany in
order to track down
invaluable works of art.
Starring George Clooney,
Matt Damon. Showing at
Old Market Hall,
Shrewsbury, until Thurs 1
May; Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Sat 3 - Tues 6
May
Muppets Most Wanted
12a
This time, the gang are on
tour in Europe (London,
Berlin, Madrid) and find
themselves involved in an
international crime racket
headed by Kermit’s double. Stars Ricky Gervais,
Ty Burrell. Showing at
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Fri 23 - Fri 30
May; Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Mon 26 Tues 27 May; Ludlow
Shropshire, Thurs 29 - Sat
31 May
A New York Winter’s
Tale 12a
When burglar Peter Lake
breaks into a Manhattan
property, an heiress dies
in his arms. What follows
is a mystical, romantic
fantasy that spans almost
a century as he attempts
to be reunited with the late
heiress. Colin Farrell and
Jessica Brown Findlay
star. Showing at Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury, Sun
11 May
Noah 12a
Russell Crowe stars as
Noah, rounding up a formidable menagerie of
species to rescue them
from the flood. It makes
our recent moans about
the wet weather seem
incredibly feeble. Showing
at Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Sat 17 - Weds 21
May; Ludlow Assembly
Rooms, South Shropshire,
Sat 24 - Mon 26 May;
Roses Theatre,
Worcestershire
ARTRIX, BROMSGROVE
01527 577330
MALVERN THEATRE
0845 287 2146
THE NORBURY THEATRE,
DROITWICH SPA
08444 777 1000
WAREHOUSE,
KIDDERMINSTER
01562 747773
VUE, WORCESTER
0871 224 0240
THE ROSE’S THEATRE,
TEWKESBURY
01684 295 074
Tewkesbury, from Sat 31
May
Only Lovers Left Alive
15
A reclusive, centuries-old
vampire rock star is finding it hard to keep up with
modern technology. In
fact, it’s all getting so
much that he decides to
take his own life… Tom
Hiddleston, Tilda Swinton
star. Showing at Hereford
Courtyard Theatre, Weds 7
- Thurs 8 May
The Past 12a
A study of modern family
life in emotional flux, The
Past is set in a Paris suburb, where Ahmad arrives
from Tehran to divorce his
tempestuous, estranged
wife Marie. Stars Ali
Mosaffa, Bérénice Bejo.
Showing at mac,
Birmingham, until Thurs 1
May; Stoke Film Theatre,
Stoke-on-Trent, Tues 20
Weds 21 - Fri 23 May
Paths Of Glory PG
When soldiers in World
War One refuse to continue with an impossible
attack, their superior officers decide to make an
example of them. Starring
Kirk Douglas, directed by
Stanley Kubrick, and
adapted for film from the
novel of the same name
by Humphrey Cobb.
Showing at mac, B’ham,
Tues 20 Thurs 22 May
Rio 2 U
A couple of love-struck
Spix's macaws, this time
with three kids in tow. On
a trip to the Amazon, they
meet up with family and
discover that the rainforest
is threatened… Expect
songs. With the voices of
Anne Hathaway and
Jesse Eisenberg.
Showing at Hereford
Courtyard theatre, Fri 23 Thurs 29 May; Artrix,
Bromsgrove, Mon 26 Thurs 29 May; Festival
Drayton, Tues 27 & Thurs
29 May; Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Weds 28 May
The Rocket 12a
The Rocket explores the
displacement of a rural
Lao community as a new
dam is constructed. The
central character is Ahlo, a
ten-year-old boy believed
to bring bad luck wherever he goes. Showing at
Stoke Film Theatre, Stokeon-Trent, Tues 6 May;
Roses Theatre,
Tewkesbury, Mon 12 May
Rush PG
A film which charts the
fierce rivalry between
Formula One racers
James Hunt and Niki
Lauda as they compete
for the 1976 World
Championship. Chris
Hemsworth and Daniel
Brühl star. Showing at
Forest Arts Centre, Walsall,
Fri 23 May
Saving Mr Banks PG
Biog of PL Travers, the
author of Mary Poppins.
The film is divided
between Travers’ early
years in Australia and the
later negotiations with
Disney to make a film of
her popular children’s
novel. Emma Thompson
and Tom Hanks star.
Showing at Edge Arts
Mon 19 May
The Secret Of Kells PG
Follow 12-year-old
Brendan as he battles
Vikings and confronts an
ancient serpent god on a
mission to locate a legendary crystal and complete the mythical Book of
Kells. With the voices of
Brendan Gleeson and
Liam Hourican. Showing
at mac, Birmingham, Sat 3
May
Starred Up 18
The story of a teenage
inmate who, because of
his predilection for violence, is moved from a
young offender’s institution to an adult jail. Jack
O'Connell stars. Showing
at Ludlow Assembly
Mon 19 - Tues 20 May;
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Tues 20 - Weds
21 May
Stuart Hall Project tbc
This film from award-winning documentarian John
Akomfrah (The Nine
Muses) is a portrait of cul-
tural theorist Stuart Hall.
Showing at The Drum,
Birmingham, Thurs 29
May
A Touch Of Sin 15
Four independent stories
set in modern China
about random acts of violence, inspired by four
shocking (and true)
events that forced the
world's fastest-growing
economy into a period of
self-examination. Showing
at mac, Birmingham, Fri
16 - Mon 19 May
Tracks 12a
Director John Curran
brings to the screen the
1980 memoir by Robyn
Davidson which chronicles her 1,700-mile trek
across the Australian
Outback with just a dog,
four camels and the
National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan.
Stars Mia Wasikowska.
Showing at mac,
15 May; Hereford
Courtyard Theatre, Fri 23 Thurs 29 May
Twenty Feet From
Stardom tbc
A wonderfully exuberant
tribute to the fabulous
backing singers who
worked on classic albums
through the 1960s & ’70s.
Millions loved their voices
but no one even knew
their names. Stars
Darlene Love, Lisa
Fischer. Showing at
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Mon 12 - Thurs
15 May; mac,
Birmingham, Tues 13 thurs 15 May; Stoke Film
Thurs 15 May; The Roses
Theatre, Tewkesbury, Tues
27 May
Two Brothers U
The tale of two tiger siblings who are separated
as cubs. After an intrepid
hunter kills their father,
one cub ends up in a circus while his brother languishes in a royal
menagerie. But their separation is brought to an
unfortunate close, when a
traditional tiger fight pits
brother against brother.
Showing at Warwick Arts
Centre, Coventry, Sat 10
May
Under The Skin U
This science fiction thriller
stars Scarlett Johansson
as an alien who preys on
hitchhikers in Scotland.
2 - Sat 3 May; Warwick
Arts Centre,Coventry, until
Thurs 1 May
We Are The Best 15
Three 13-year-old girls
who roam the streets:
brave and tough, strong
and weak, confused and
weird. Taking care of
themselves way too early,
they find joy in starting a
punk band without any
instruments, even though
For full listings visit:
everybody says that punk
is dead. Showing at mac,
8 May
Yves Saint Laurent 15
This is a biog of the man
once described as the
most influential fashion
designer of the latter part of
the twentieth century. A
story which explores Saint
Laurent’s long-term friendship, love affair and business partnership with Pierre
Bergé. Pierre Niney &
Guillaume Gallienne star.
Showing at Festival
Drayton, Fri 9 & Mon 12
Sat 10 & Tues 13 May;
Wem Town Hall, North
Shropshire, Weds 14 Thurs 15 May; Hereford
Courtyard Theatre, Sat 17 Weds 21 May; Stoke Film
Thurs 22 May
The Zero Theorem 15
A science fiction fantasy
about a computer hacker
looking for the meaning of
life. Of course, it’s all there
in the algebra, except that
Life keeps on getting in the
way… Stars Christoph
Waltz, directed by Terry
Gilliam. Showing at Stoke
Film Theatre, Stoke-onTrent, Thurs 8 May;
Hereford Courtyard
Theatre, Sat 11 - Thurs 15
May
DVD NEW RELEASES
The Railway Man 15
The railway in question is
the Thai-Burma Railway
and the man is Eric Lomax,
who helped to build it during his internment in a
Japanese POW camp.
Years later, Lomax decides
to track down the officer
who tortured him while he
was there. Stars Colin Firth.
Released 5 May
Paranormal Activity:
The Marked Ones 15
Once again, everything is
relayed through the use of
an investigative camera,
as a group of partygoers
attempt to find why a
woman died in the apartment beneath them. Stars
Andrew Jacobs and
Richard Cabral.
Released 12 May
12 Years A Slave 15
Solomon Northup is kidnapped and sold into
slavery in 1841.The film is
adapted from his1853
autobiography. Stars
Chiwetel Ejiofor and
Michael Fassbender.
Released 12 May
47 Ronin 15
A famous Japanese story
of revenge and honour.
When the leader of a group
of ronin (samurai) is killed,
the 47 warriors embark on
a journey of retribution.
Stars Keanu Reeves and
Rinko Kikuchi.
Released 12 May
The Wolf Of Wall
Street. PG
The Best Man
Holiday 15
It’s fourteen years since the
romantic comedy The Best
Man. Now comes the
sequel, in which the characters meet at Christmas
for a reunion. Rivalries are
reignited, new relationships formed - how much
they have all changed in
the interim…
Released 12 May
From the American
dream to corporate
greed, Jordon Belfort
goes from penny stocks
and righteousness to
founding the brokerage
firm Stratton Oakmont
earning him the title ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’.
Stars Leonardo De
Caprio.
Released 19 May
August: Osage
County 15
Adapted from the 2007
play by Tracy Letts, this is a
black comedy set in an
Oklahoma household
where a crisis reunites the
women in the family.
Starring Meryl Streep and
Julia Roberts, both of
whom were nominated for
an Oscar for their roles as
mother and daughter.
Released 26 May
I, Frankenstein 12a
Inside Llewyn Davis 15
Actually, the lead character
is Frankenstein’s monster,
but I, Frankenstein’s
Monster just doesn’t have
the same ring to it. Anyway,
Frankenstein’s Monster has
actually taken the name
Adam and, far from the
imagination of Mary
Shelley, becomes involved
with two warring tribes of
immortal status. Adapted
from the graphic novel by
Kevin Grevioux (who also
wrote the screenplay). Stars
Aaaron Eckhart and Bill
Nighy. Released 26 May
Llewyn Davis (Oscar
Isaac) is a struggling folk
singer in Greenwich
Village, New York, 1961.
The film is loosely based
on the memoir of the late
Dave Van Ronk.
Released 26 May
Festivals May 2014_Layout 1 25/04/2014 15:53 Page 1
Festivals
Wychwood Festival
Cheltenham Racecourse, Fri 30 May - Sun 1 June
Regularly nominated in the Best Family Festival
category in the UK Festival Awards, the annual
Wychwood Festival features over one hundred
bands on four stages, more than one hundred
workshops, a kids literature festival, a real ale festival and much more.
A line-up featuring The Boomtown Rats, The
Levellers, The Stranglers, Wolf Alice, Newton
Faulkner, comedians Jellybean Martinez and Gary
Delaney and Cbeebies favourite Justin Fletcher
bear testament to the festival’s broad appeal.
Shaanti’s Eastern
Electronic Festival
Various locations in and around Birmingham,
Tues 6 - Sat 31 May
Now in its third year, Shaanti’s Eastern Electronic
Festival is an artist-led event which presents an
‘eclectic mix of some of the best performers
across film, music, visual-digital arts, spoken word
and new music’.
Taking place at numerous venues across the city,
the twenty-six-day festival weaves together a programme of twenty-nine events under the theme of
empowerment. Highlights include Champion
Sound Live - a showcase for new British music at
Symphony Hall; a screening of Sita Sings The
Blues at mac; an Eastern Pride parade (part of
Birmingham Pride) in the city’s Gay Village; and
the Rivers Of British-Asian Blood exhibition at The
Old Print Works.
For full listings visit, www.easternelectronicfestival.co.uk
Birmingham Pride
The All American Rejects
Slam Dunk Festival
Wolverhampton Civic Hall, Mon 26 May
The UK’s biggest independent touring festival, Slam Dunk returns to the Midlands this
month to celebrate the best of Pop-Punk, Ska and Emo.
The All American Rejects headline the seven-stage event, making their only UK appearance in 2014. Fans of the Oklahoma rockers can expect hits from each of their four
albums, including Dirty Little Secrets, Gives You Hell and Swing Swing.
Slam Dunk is now in its ninth year, and as usual features an international line-up of
artists. Performers include Los Angeles hardcore band The Ghost Inside, Australia’s I
Killed The Prom and British pop-rock band The New Forest. There’s also an exclusive
appearance by Washington crooner Ben Liebsch, who brings his brainchild You, Me,
And Everyone We Know to the UK for the very first time.
Championing up-and-coming acts, this year’s Slam Dunk welcomes State Champs,
one of the most talked-about bands of the year, who’ll be making their UK festival
debut at the event.
Gay Village, Birmingham, Sat 24 - Sun 25 May
Celebrating the city’s diverse LGBT community,
Birmingham Pride is the largest two-day festival of
its kind in the UK. Taking place in the heart of
Birmingham’s Gay Village, this annual event regularly attracts visitors from a cross-section of communities.
Festivities begin with a colourful Carnival Parade.
Celebrating equality and freedom around the
world, the parade sets off from the city’s Victoria
Square at 12noon on the Saturday, winding its
way to the main festival area where a host of
attractions await. High-profile performers Gabrielle,
Ms Dynamite, Stooshe, S Club, Fuse ODG and
Tich feature on the Pride Main Stage, while numerous popular acts from
across the UK share the
limelight on the Village
Cabaret Stage.
Pride 2014 also features
a Community Village
Green, a Women’s
Arena and the Chic
Dance Arena (with DJs
The Artful Dodger and
Chris Steele).
Visit www.birminghampride.com for further
Gabrielle
details.
Acoustic Festival Of Britain
Seth Lakeman
Uttoxeter Racecourse,
Fri 30 May - Sun 1 June
As usual, the Acoustic Festival of Britain
this year welcomes an eclectic line-up of
performers, with high-profile contributors
including folk musician Seth Lakeman,
rock group Terrorvision, Steve Harley and
Cockney Rebel, X Factor winner Matt
Cardle, Grammy Hall of Fame Award-winners The Animals and widely acclaimed
singer/songwriter Nick Harper.
The festival also features a special performance of greatest hits from English folk
rock group Fairport Convention, who’ll be
picking up the event’s bi-annually presented Lifetime Achievement Award.
In addition to its promise of great music,
the Acoustic Festival this year features a
Sessions Marquee - hosting various folk
and blues clubs - music workshops, an
open-mic tent, a vintage T tent, a classic
car show, an antique fair, a variety of family activities, roaming performers, and two
real ale tents.
What else could a festival-goer possibly
wish for?...
Fairport Convention
Festivals Listings
For full listing information on festivals,
including dates and line-up, visit
MAY
CHELTENHAM JAZZ FESTIVAL Featuring Jamie
Cullum, Billy Cobham,
Laura Mvula & Jools
Holland, Wed 30 Apr Mon 5 May, Montpellier
Gardens, Cheltenham
HANDMADE FESTIVAL
Featuring Grace Petrie
and the Benefits Culture,
Woahnows, Emperor &
Katie Malco, Fri 2 - Sun
4 May, Old Town
Quarter, Leicester
UPTON FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring Andrew
McKay, Carole Etherton,
Acoustic Collective &
David Gibb and Elly
Lucas, Fri 2 - Mon 5
May, Various locations
throughout Worcester
BATTLEFIELD MUSIC FESTIVAL Featuring Andy
O’Brien, Stu Jennings,
Not For Real & Two
Blank Pages, Fri 2 - Mon
5 May, Battlefield,
Shrewsbury
TROYFEST Featuring Dr
Meaker, Joe Driscoll,
Seckou Kouyate &
Smoove and Turrell, Fri 2
- Mon 5 May, Baskerville,
Powys
LEAMINGTON MUSIC FESTIVAL WEEKEND Featuring
Ensemble 360, Marek
Bracha, Royal String
Quartet & Longbow, Fri
2 - Mon 5 May, Royal
Pump Rooms,
Leamington Spa
ASHLEYHAY FESTIVAL
2014 line-up to be
announced, Sat 3 - Sun
4 May, Sycamore Farm,
Derbyshire
CLUN GREEN MAN FESTIVAL Featuring The
Rhythm Thieves, Naomi
Payne Hotsy Totsy Band,
AT James & Les Amis
D’onno, Sat 3 - Mon 5
May, Clun Castle,
Shropshire
EVERYWHERE FESTIVAL
Featuring Artwork,
Blonde, Skream &
Hannah Wants, Sun 4
May, various venues
around Nottingham
SWINGAMAJIG FESTIVAL
Featuring Molotov
Jukebox, Electric Swing
Circus, The Destroyers &
Renegade Brass Band,
Sun 4 May, Spotlight,
Birmingham
FUDGESTOCK 2014
Featuring Bekah & the
Sounds, Crazy Horses,
Bethan & the Morgans
& Dead Sea Skulls, Sun
4 May, The Robin,
Bilston
SHAANTI’S EASTERN
ELECTRONIC FESTIVAL
2014 Artist-led festival
presenting an eclectic
mix of film, music, spoken word & new music,
Tues 6 - Sat 31 May,
various locations
across Birmingham
DOOM FOR THE DOOMED
FESTIVAL Featuring
Snowblind, Purson,
Goatess & Iron Void, Fri
9 - Sun 11 May, The
Asylum, Birmingham
LUDLOW SPRING FESTIVAL Featuring The Hip
Joints, Anthony Doyle,
Gino Kemp & Sam
Thomas and Ben
Walsh, Sat 10 - Sun 11
May, Ludlow Castle,
Shropshire
STOURBRIDGE BLUES
FESTIVAL Featuring
Virgil & The
Accelerators, Dani
Wilde, SwampCandy &
Tom Walker Trio, Fri 16
- Sat 17 May, Old
Halesonians,
Stourbridge
BEARDED THEORY
Featuring UB40, Peter
Hook, Oysterband,
Wilko Johnson, Thur 22
- Sun 25 May, Catton
Hall, Derby
HOWTHELIGHTGETSIN
Featuring Mr Scruff,
Emmy The Great,
Moulettes, The
Hoosiers, Thurs 22 May
Outkast - Wireless Festival, Birmingham
- Sun 1 June, Hay-onWye, Powys
CHESTER FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring Jez Lowe and
the Big Bad Pennies,
Jim Moray, Fay Hield
and the Hurricane Party
& Lucy Ward, Fri 23 Mon 26 May, Kelsall
Village, Nr Cheshire
GLASTONBUDGET
Featuring Abba Revival,
Who’s Who, Hot Red
Chili Peppers & Talon,
Fri 23 - Sun 25,
Turnpost Farm,
Wymeswold,
Leicestershire
OFF THE TRACKS SPRING
FESTIVAL Featuring The
Neville Staple Band,
Big Country, Moulettes
& Eat Static, Fri 23 Sun 25 May, Donington
Park Farmhouse,
Derbyshire
LEFTFOOT BANK HOLIDAY
WEEKENDER Featuring
Ben UFO, Troumaca &
Hot 8 Brass Band, Fri
23 - Sun 25 May, Hare
OSFEST Featuring Wiley,
Nina Nesbitt, Foxes &
Elyar Fox, Sat 24 - Sun
25 May, Oswestry
Showground,
Shropshire
BIRMINGHAM PRIDE FESTIVAL Featuring
Gabrielle, Ms Dynamite,
Chris Steele & Stooshe,
Gay Village,
Birmingham
ROCK AND BOWL FESTIVAL Featuring The
Superskas, UK Foo
Fighters, Jim
Kirkpatrick’s Heavy
Weather & Sons Of
Clogger, Sat 24 - Mon
26 May, The Picnic
Area, Market Drayton,
Shropshire
DOT TO DOT FESTIVAL
Featuring Peace, The
Midnight Beasts, Real
Estate & We Were
Evergreen, Sun 25 May,
Various locations
around Nottingham
FARM FEST Featuring
Peter Hook and the
Light, Stealing Sheep,
Wirrall Ukulele
Orchestra & Emilio
Pinchi, Sun 25 - Mon
26 May, Claremont
Farm, Cheshire
WYCHWOOD FESTIVAL
Ghetts - BASS Festival, various venues, Birmingham
Featuring Levellers,
Reef, Peter White &
King Charles, Fri 30
May - Sun 1 June,
Cheltenham
Racecourse
THE ACOUSTIC FESTIVAL
OF BRITAIN Featuring
10CC, The Attix, Gaudy
Orde & Andrew
Bazeley, Fri 30 May Sun 1 June, Uttoxeter
Racecourse,
Staffordshire
LEAMINGTON MUSIC FESTIVAL WEEKEND
Featuring Ensemble
360, Marek Bracha,
Royal String Quartet &
Longbow, Fri 30 May Sun 1 June, Royal
Pump Rooms,
Leamington Spa
ASPARAFEST 2014 lineup to be announced,
Sat 31 May - Sun 1
June, Ashdown Farm,
Worcestershire
JUNE
BASS FESTIVAL
Featuring Ghetts,
Harleigh Blu, Brinsley
Forde & Call Me
Unique, Sun 1st - Sat
14 June, various venues around
Birmingham
ENGLISH HAYDEN FESTIVAL Featuring The
Chiaroscuro String
Quartet, The Salomon
String Quartet, The
Barbican Piano Trio,
The English Hayden
Orchestra, Tues 3 - Sun
8 June, Various locations around Bridgnorth
SOUTHWELL FOLK FESTIVAL Featuring Feast Of
Fiddles, The Kennedys,
The Henry Girls & The
Poozies, Thurs 5 - Sun
8 June, The
Workhouse,
Nottinghamshire
WELFEST ON THE MEADOW Featuring Medicine
Head, SO2F, Jazz
Morley & Wes Finch,
Sat 7 June, Synder
Meadow, Stratford
Upon Avon
DETONATE FESTIVAL
Featuring Bonobo,
David Rodigan, LTJ
Bukem & Bad
Company, Sat 7 June,
Nottingham
Racecourse
NO TOMORROW FESTIVAL
Featuring London
Grammar, Sam Smith,
Clean Bandit, Duke
Dumont, Sat 7 June,
Wollaton Park,
Nottingham
MUCH WENLOCK FESTIVAL Featuring Ceilidh &
Male Voice Choir, Sat 7
- Sat 21 June, Various
locations around Much
Wenlock
DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL
Featuring Linkin Park,
Aerosmith, Avenged
Sevenfold & Killswitch
Engaged, Wed 11 June
- Mon 16 June,
Donington Park, Derby
FOLK ON THE PARK
Featuring Jinski,
Jonathan Day Trio,
Keith Donnelly &
Sunjay Brayne, Fri 13 Sun 15 June, Lower
Lacon Caravan Park,
Shropshire
GREGYNOG FESTIVAL
Featuring BBC National
Orchestra Wales, The
Nash Ensemble,
Flemish Radio Choir &
Alamire, Fri 13 - Sun 29
June, Powys
LEAMINGTON PEACE FESTIVAL 2014 line-up to
be announced, Sat 14 Sun 15 June, Pump
Room Gardens,
Leamington Spa
LINTON MUSIC FESTIVAL
Featuring Walter Trout,
Vintage Trouble, Geno
Washington, Pat
McManus, Fri 20 - Sun
22 June, The Alma Inn,
Hertfordshire
LAINFEST Featuring
Young Kato, I Am I
Love, The Other Tribe,
Jaws, Fri 20 - Sun 22
June, Gopsall Hall
Farm, Leicestershire
FOXTON LOCKS FESTIVAL
2014 line-up to be
announced, Sat 21 Sun 22 June, Foxton
Locks, Leicestershire
KINETON MUSIC FESTIVAL
Featuring Bad Janet,
Battered Soul, Nik
Lowe, Klasside, Sat 21
June, Kineton Sports
and Social Club,
Warwickshire
EXILE MUSIC FESTIVAL
Featuring Blue
Wallpaper
Incorporated, The Cats
Charis, Rita Payne, The
Lucky Stikes, Fri 27 Sun 29 June, Sabine
Hay, Derbyshire
HOLI ONE FESTIVAL
BIRMINGHAM Featuring
Piloy, Hard Rock Sofa,
Goodluck, Florian
Kunicke, Sat 28 June,
The Rainbow Venues,
Birmingham
SUTTON COLDFIELD CARNIVAL 2014 line-up to
be announced, Sun 29
June, Meadow Platt,
Sutton Coldfield
JULY
LICHFIELD FESTIVAL
2014 line-up to be
announced, Thurs 3 Sat 13 July, Various
venues around Lichfield
THE MOSTLY JAZZ FESTIVAL Featuring Fun
Lovin’ Criminals, Earth
Wind & Fire Experience
ft Al McKay, Craig
Charles, Radio Riddler,
Fri 4 - Sun 6 July,
Moseley Park,
Birmingham
NATIONAL FOREST FOLK
FESTIVAL Featuring
Steeleye Span,
Shoolenifty, The Mighty
Doonans, The Shee, Fri
4 - Sun 6 July, Conkers,
Leicestershire
GODIVA FESTIVAL
Featuring Happy
Mondays, Funeral For A
Friend, We Are
Scientists & Buzzcocks,
Fri 4 - Sun 6 July,
Memorial Park,
Coventry
WIRELESS FESTIVAL
Featuring Kayne West,
Outkast, Bruno Mars,
Drake, Fri 4 - Sun 6
July, Perry Park,
Birmingham
BLUES AT THE FOLD
Featuring Steve
Morrison, MumboJumbo, Wily Bo Walker
and the Mescal Canyon
Troubadours & The
Blues Duo featuring
Festivals Listings
For full listing information on festivals,
including dates and line-up, visit
Tommy Allen and
Johnny Hewit, Sat 5
July, The Fold,
Worcester
BUXTON FESTIVAL
FRINGE 2014 line-up to
be announced, Wed 9 Sun 27 July, Various
venues around Buxton
2000TRESS FESTIVAL
Featuring Frightened
Rabbit, The Bronx, Kids
In Glass Houses, Blood
Red Shoes, Thurs 10 Sat 12 July, Upcote
Farm, Cheltenham,
Gloucestershire
NAPTON FESTIVAL
Featuring Grace Solero,
Voodoo Vegas, Nina
Baker & The Fallows,
Fri 11 - Sat 12 July,
Napton Village Hall
Grounds, Warwickshire
MOSTLY JAZZ, FUNK &
SOUL FESTIVAL
Featuring Mavis
Staples, Earth Wind &
Fire Experience featuring Al McKay, Fun
Lovin’ Criminals &
Omar Souleyman, Fri
11 - Sun 13 July,
Moseley Park, B’ham
BROMSGROVE FOLK FESTIVAL Featuring Dougie
Mclean, Richard
Digance, Anthony John
Clarke & Mike Silver, Fri
11 - Sun 13 July, The
Bowling Green,
Bromsgrove,
Worcestershire
WORKHOUSE FESTIVAL
Featuring Ash
Mandrake, Bleedin
Noses, Soul Preachers
& The Misty Blue Trio,
Fri 11 - Mon 14 July,
Llanfyllin, Powys
BIRMINGHAM FEST 2014
line-up to be
announced, Fri 11 Sun 27 July, Various
locations throughout
Birmingham
NOISILY FESTIVAL
Featuring Max Cooper,
Slam, Gaudi &
Symphonix, Fri 11 Sun 13 May, Coney
Woods, Leicestershire
TRIUMPH LIVE 2014 lineup to be announced
Sat 12 July, Heritage
Motor Centre,
Warwickshire
THE ROCK AND BIKE FEST
Featuring White Coast
Rebels, Chase The
Ace, Snakecharmer &
Evil Scarecrow, Thurs
17 - Sun 20 July,
Carnfield Hall, Derby
BIRMINGHAM INTERNATIONAL JAZZ AND BLUES
FESTIVAL 2014 line-up
to be announced, Fri
18 - Sun 27 July,
Various locations
throughout Birmingham
L FEST 2014 line-up to
be announced, Fri 18 Mon 21 June, Uttoxeter
Racecourse,
Staffordshire
HOLE IN THE WALL Blind
Lemon, The Bookends,
Mummy Mia! & The
Quo AKA Four Rossis,
Fri 18 - Sun 20 July,
Hopton Court,
Kidderminster
ALIVE AT DELAPRE PARK
Featuring Simple
Minds, Boyzone,
Bananarama & Rick
Astley, Fri 18 - Sun 20
July, Delapre Park,
Northamptonshire
SPLENDOUR Featuring
Tom Odell, Happy
Mondays, Boomtown
Rats & Reverend And
The Makers, Sat 19
July, Wollaton Park,
Nottingham
FOLK BY THE OAK
Featuring Seth
Lakeman, Kathryn
Tickell & The Side,
Josienne Clarke & Ben
Walker, Sun 20 July,
various venues around
Nottingham
SIMMER DOWN FESTIVAL
2014 line-up to be
announced, Sun 20
July, Handsworth Park,
Birmingham
ROCK AND BLUES OLD
SCHOOL WEEKENDER
Featuring Toseland,
Eddie and the Hot
Rods, Pig Iron &
Slaveout, Thurs 24 Sat 26 July, Coney
Grey Showground,
Derbyshire
WARWICK FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring Habadekuk,
John Tams and Barry
Coope, Gordie
MacKeeman and his
Rhythm Boys &
Breabach, Thurs 24 Sun 27 July, various
venues around
Warwickshire
GLOBAL GATHERING
Featuring Prodigy,
Chase & Status, David
Guetta & Knife Party, Fri
25 - Sat 26 July, Long
Marston Airfield,
Stratford upon Avon
DEERSTOCK Featuring
This Wicked Tongue,
Cadets, Parasite,
Bongolistic Intent, Fri
25 - Sun 27 July,
Newton, Nottingham
SINGING STICKS FESTIVAL Featuring Los
Monkeys Musica, Inta
Africa, Dub Didge &
Super Roo, Fri 25 - Sun
27 July, The Overstone
Scout Camp,
Northamptonshire
INDIETRACKS MUSIC FESTIVAL Featuring Gruff
Rhys, Allo Darlin’, Dean
Wareham & Spearmint,
Fri 25 - Sun 27 July,
Butterley Station,
Derbyshire
BAREFOOT FESTIVAL
Featuring SuperEvolver,
DC Fontana & Laurel
Canyons, Fri 25 - Sun
27 July, Prestwold Hall,
Leicestershire
LEICESTER MUSIC FESTIVAL Featuring Professor
Green, Tinie Tempah,
Kool & The Gang,
Labrinth, Sat 26 - Sun
27 July, Welford Road
Stadium, Leicestershire
CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL Featuring Van
Morrison, Sinead
O’Connor, Newton
Faulkner & Ladysmith
Black Mambazo, Thurs
31 - Sun 3 Aug, Cherry
Hinton Hall Ground,
Cambridge
AUGUST
Y-NOT Featuring Dizzee
Rascal, White Lies,
Frank Turner and The
Sleeping Souls & The
Fratellis, Fri 1 Aug Sun 3 Aug, Mouldrige
Lane, Derbyshire
CARFEST NORTH
Featuring Jools
Holland, Seasick Steve,
Erasure & Eliza
Doolittle, Fri 1 - Sun 3
Aug, Oulton Park Race
Circuit, Cheshire
NOZSTOCK Featuring
Roots Manuva, The
Heavy, The Skints &
Molotov Jukebox, Fri 1
- Sun 3 Aug, The Farm,
Bromyard,
Worcestershire
LOUNGE ON THE FARM
Featuring Fun Lovin’
Criminals, Peter Hook
and the Light, DJ Yoda
& Courtney Pine, Sat 2
May, Merton Farm,
Barkby, Nr Leciester
BULLDOG BASH
Featuring Dirty DC,
Aynt Skynyrd, The
Kommitments, Half
Deaf Clatch, Thurs 7 Sat 9 Aug,
Shakespeare County
Raceway, Stratford
Upon Avon
BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR
Featuring Megadeth,
Down, Emperor &
Carcass, Thurs 7 - Sun
10 Aug, Catton Park,
Derbyshire
STRAWBERRY FIELDS
FESTIVAL Featuring
Reverend And The
Makers, Steve Lawler,
The Rifles & Catfish
and the Bottlemen, Fri
8 - Sun 10 Aug, Cattow
Farm, Leicester
FARMER PHIL’S FESTIVAL
Featuring The Orb, The
Blockheads, Ferocious
Dog & The Delray
Rockets, Fri 8 - Sun 10
Aug, Gatten Farm,
Shrewsbury
JUNCTION 16 Featuring
Katherine Jenkins, Fri 8
- Sun 10 Aug, Betley
Court Farm, Crewe,
Cheshire
LAKEFEST Featuring The
Bad Shepherds,
Buzzcocks, Shed
Seven, Lightning
Seeds, Fri 8 - Sun 10
Aug, Croft Farm
Waterpark, Tewkesbury
RUGBY MUSIC FESTIVAL
Featuring Dead
Frequency, White Men
Can’t Funk, Soul
Rhymaz & Paper Street,
Sat 9 Aug, Whitehall
Recreational Grounds,
Rugby, Warwickshire
THE GREEN MAN FESTIVAL Featuring Beirut,
First Aid Kit, Neutral
Milk Hotel & The
The Killers - V Festival, Weston Park, Staffordshire
Waterboys, Mon 11 Sun 17 Aug, Glanusk
Park, Powys
V FESTIVAL Featuring
Justin Timberlake, The
Killers, Ed Sheeran &
Paolo Nutini, Fri 15 Sun 17 Aug, Weston
Park, Staffordshire
ALT-FEST Featuring The
Cult, Gary Numan,
Cradle Of Filth & Arch
Enemy, Fri 15 - Sun 17
Aug, Boughton House,
Northamptonshire
THE JUST SO FESTIVAL
Featuring Gabby Young
and Other Animals,
Perhaps Contraption,
Mr Wilson’s Second
Liners & Kidnap Alice,
Fri 15 - Sun 17 Aug,
Rode Hall Parkland,
Cheshire
PERSHORE JAZZ FESTIVAL Featuring Adrian
Cox Quartet, Alan
Barnes, Bohem
Ragtime Jazz Band &
Craig Milverton, Fri 15 Sun 17 Aug, Pershore
College, Worcestershire
THE MOIRA FURNACE
FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring Blackbeard’s
Tea Party, Other Roads,
Lucy Ward, Something
Nasty In The
Woodshed, Fri 15 - Sun
17 Aug, Moira Furnace
Museum and
Monument Site,
Derbyshire
BAKEWELL MUSIC FESTIVAL Featuring Chas
Hodge’s Band, John
Coghlan’s Quo, Lucy
Ward & George
Borowski, Fri 15 - Sun
17 Aug, The
Showground,
Derbyshire
LICHFIELD FAKE FESTIVAL
Featuring Supreme
Queen, Oasish &
Coldplace, Sat 16 Aug,
Beacon Park, Lichfield,
Staffordshire
SHAMBALA FESTIVAL
Featuring Mulatu
Astatke, Collie Buddz,
Public Service
Broadcasting &
Cumbria All Stars, Thur
21 - Sun 24, Secret
location in The
Midlands
CREAMFIELDS Featuring
Avicii, Deadmau5,
Fatboy Slim & Above
and Beyond, Fri 22 Sun 24 Aug, Daresbury,
Cheshire
THE SUMMER RETREAT
2014 line-up to be
announced, Fri 22 Sun 24 Aug, The
Overstone,
Northamptonshire
BEERMAGEDDON
Featuring Lawnmower
Deth, Skreamer, The
Starry Wisdom Cult &
Kambrium, Fri 22 - Sun
24 Aug, Stoke Prior
Country Club,
Bromsgrove
SHREWSURY FOLK FESTIVAL Featuring
Bellowhead, Seth
Lakeman, Blackie and
the Rodeo Kings & Lau,
Fri 22 - Mon 25 Aug,
West Midland
Showground,
Shrewsbury
MOSELEY FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring Johnny Marr,
The Waterboys,
Richard Thompson &
Lau, Fri 29 - Sun 31
Aug, Moseley Park,
Birmingham
WORCESTER MUSIC FESTIVAL 2014 line-up to be
announced, Fri 29 Sun 31, Various locations around Worcester
OFF THE TRACKS SUMMER FESTIVAL 2014 lineup to be announced,
Fri 29 - Sun 31 Aug,
Donington Park
Farmhouse, Derbyshire
REWIND FESTIVAL
Featuring Billy Ocean,
Boomtown Rats, Holly
Johnson & Hall and
Oates, Fri 29 - Sun 31
Aug, Capesthorne Hall,
Cheshire
FUSION FESTIVAL
Featuring Jessie J,
Pitbull & Dizzee Rascal,
Sat 30 - Sun 31 Aug,
Cofton Park,
Birmingham
Wales
ONBOARD THE CRAFT
FESTIVAL Featuring PreMad, Moulettes,
Leatheratm Harvey
Bainbridge &
Flutatious, Fri 5 - Sat 6
Sept, Stoke Prior
Country Club,
Bromsgrove
WHITWELL FESTIVAL OF
MUSIC Featuring Doctor
and the Medics, James
Warner Prophecies,
Dirtbox Disco & I Set
The Sea On Fire, Fri 5 Sun 7 Sept, Community
Centre, Whitwell,
Derbyshire
STOURBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL 2014 line-up to be
announced, Fri 5 - Sun
7 Sept, Red House
Glass Cone,
Stourbridge
ZOO PROJECT Featuring
Groove Armada, Mr
Scruff, Ten Walls & Ben
UFO, Fri 12 - Sun 14
Sept, Donington Park,
Derbyshire
SHREWSBURY FIELDS
FOREVER FESTIVAL
Featuring Tinie Tempah
and more tbc, Fri 12 Sun 14 Sept, West
Midland Showground,
Shrewsbury
ROCK AND METAL CIRCUS
FESTIVAL Featuring
Voodoo Six, Exit State,
Gehtika & Triaxis, Fri 12
- Sun 14 Sept, Sywell
Aerodome,
Northamptonshire
BROMYARD FOLK FESTIVAL Featuring
Oysterband, Vin
Garbutt, The Old Dance
School & Whapweasel,
Fri 12 - Sun 14 Sept,
Various locations
around Bromyard
SNODFEST 2014 line-up
to be announced, Sat
13 Sept, The Park,
Worcestershire
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
FESTIVAL NO.6 Featuring
Beck, London
Grammar, Bonobo &
Neneh Cherry &
Number Nine, Thurs 4 Sun 7 Sept,
Portmeirion, North
DERBY FOLK FESTIVAL
Featuring David Gibb,
Elly Lucas, Cardboard
Fox & Greg Russell, Fri
3 - Sun 5 Oct,
Assembly Rooms,
Market Place, Derby
Visual Arts May Region One_Layout 1 25/04/2014 15:17 Page 1
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The most comprehensive what’s on listings website
for Birmingham and the West Midlands
Visual Arts May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 15:08 Page 1
Visual Arts
Justyna Ptak: The House
Wolverhampton Art Gallery, until Sat 12 July
This highly rated collection of photographs and
large transparencies offers plenty of opportunity to
admire the talent of the award-winning Justyna, a
recent postgraduate of the University of
Wolverhampton who won the West Midlands
Open ‘best in show’ prize in 2012.
An exploration of the relationship between thought
and image, The House seeks to capture the significant and intangible in the everyday. “While the
overall aim is to concentrate on the quiet beauty
of everyday surroundings,” says Justyna of her
work, “the immediate ambition is to encourage
the viewer to really see their everyday. The signification of visual effect and the nature of transparencies explore the relationship between known
and unknown, thought and image, in the same
manner as photographed objects explore the relationship between known and forgotten, thought
and deed.”
Marvellous Machines: Rowland Emett Exhibition
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, Thurs 1 May - Mon 1 September
Brum Creatives
Stryx Gallery, Digbeth, Birmingham,
Thurs 8 - Sun 18 May
Known for his quirky paintings, cartoons and fantastical mechanical contraptions,
Rowland Emett took a lighthearted and modest approach to his art. "It’s a well-known
fact that all inventors get their first ideas on the back of an envelope,” he once said. “I
take slight exception to this; I use the front, so that I can incorporate the stamp - and
then the design is already half done". This new presentation of the work of Emett, who
died in 1990 aged eighty-four, is the largest ever display of his extraordinary creations.
Commenting on the exhibition, Tim Griffiths, founder of the Rowland Emett Society, says:
“Rowland Emett was a very familiar figure during the post-war decades but has been
largely forgotten - until now. We will have twelve of the fifteen machines known to have
survived in the UK on display, alongside many of his distinctive original drawings.”
The idea for Brum Creatives came about after
photographer Ian Davies and award-winning stylist Sy Anne Holden had been required to shoot
some portraits of local creative-industry professionals. The experience got the pair thinking
about the possibility of putting together a series of
portraits of some of Birmingham’s most creative
people - from artists, writers and filmmakers
through to celebrity-status figures. Partnered by
the Arts Council-funded Birmingham Loves
Photography Spring/Summer programme, the
exhibition features portraits of, among others,
Jasper Carrott, Patti Bell, Glynn Purnell, Brian
Travers and Steve Knight (pictured).
Staffordshire Open Art Exhibition
Shire Hall Gallery, Stafford, Sat 17 May - Sun 6 July
A significant event in the Shire Hall gallery’s calendar, the Staffordshire Open Art exhibition provides an opportunity for the region’s newly emerging artists to display their work,
often for the very first time. The exhibition is open to any artist who lives, works, studies
or was born in the county, and features paintings, drawings, prints, photography, film,
animation and sculpture. Most of the work is for sale and, according to organisers, the
exhibition usually features something to suit ‘all tastes and pockets’.
VisualArts PREVIEWS VisualArts LISTINGS
Further exhibitions
The Frank Cohen Collection
Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery,
until Mon 30 June
“As a collector,” says Frank Cohen, “there’s
great pleasure in acquiring artworks, but
there’s also great satisfaction in being able to
share, so that others may discover and enjoy
these works, as I have. I’ve welcomed the
opportunity to collaborate with Shrewsbury
Museum & Art Gallery, as I sincerely believe
that, where possible, collections like mine
should support regional ambitions in making
access to great art possible.”
The newly opened art gallery’s Cohen exhibition takes an animal theme, with the pieces
having being selected for the way in which
they resonate with the museum’s historic collections. The show features artwork by,
among others, Tracey Emin, Jake and Dinos
Chapman, Damien Hirst and Charming
Baker, as well as pieces from rising stars of
the art world who’re being championed by
Cohen
Ceramic Empire: The Trade
In Staffordshire Pottery
The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery, Stokeon-Trent, Sat 24 May - Sun 7 September
The publication of MP Tristram Hunt’s new
book Ten Cities That Made An Empire has
provided the inspiration for this fascinating
new exhibition, which looks at the growth of
the British Empire in terms of Staffordshire’s
potters. As Britain’s overseas influence
expanded, the potters began to supply the
new markets with their wares, their pottery
often depicting the latest world events and
discoveries, as well as the global politics of
the Empire. The exhibition draws on the
museum & art gallery’s own extensive holdings, supplemented by loans from a number
of private and public collections.
The Last Post: Remembering
The First World War
Coalbrookdale Gallery, Ironbridge Gorge,
Shropshire, until Fri 27 March 2015
Curated by the British Postal Museum &
Archive (BPMA) in partnership with the
Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, Last Post
explores the effect of the Great War on the
Post Office and its people, as well as explaining the contribution of postal communications to the war effort.
“The First World War Centenary is an opportunity to reflect on the impact that this cataclysmic conflict had upon everyone,” says Dr
Adrian Steel, Director of BPMA, “not just
those fighting on the Front Line. Few organisations had a greater role to play, or a
greater impact, over the five years of hostilities than the British postal service.”
The exhibition encompasses a variety of
themes. Alongside its
presentation of
objects of military and
postal importance, it
also includes stories
from a Shropshire
perspective.
For full listing information on Visual Art
exhibitions, including times and dates,
PAT LANDON RBSA Solo
show which focuses on
the artist’s year of travelling, until Sat 3 May,
RBSA, Birmingham
MADE AT MAC: FROM THE
INSIDE Featuring artworks from the
Introduction To Art
Techniques course, led
by artist-tutor Helen Tarr,
until Sun 4 May, mac Midlands Arts Centre,
Birmingham
ALL IN A DAY’S WORK
Insight into some of the
large manufacturing
companies which once
made their home in the
Black Country, until Mon
5 May, Bantock House,
Wolverhampton
ENJOY ART EXHIBITION
Display of works based
within Lord Lichfield’s
private cinema, until
Mon 5 May,
Shugborough,
Staffordshire
SPRING SHOWCASE
Featuring an eclectic
mix of ceramics, textiles,
homewares and delicate
paper jewellery, until Sat
10 May, Bilston Craft
Gallery
UKCPS ANNUAL EXHIBITION A selection of work
by coloured pencil
artists from the UK and
around the world, until
Sat 10 May, RBSA
Gallery, Birmingham
HERE IS THE YARD: MAIA
CONRAN Solo exhibition
comprising three works
which transform short
video recordings of
brief moments filmed or
found by the artist; a
large-scale panorama, a
sculptural sound installation & a discrete video
work, until Sat 10 May,
Grand Union,
Birmingham
NEW ART WEST MIDLANDS A showcase of
‘high quality, innovative
work’ by the best new
talent in the region, until
Sat 10 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
GRAYSON PERRY: THE
VANITY OF SMALL DIFFERENCES Exhibition charting the story of class
mobility while examining
the influence of social
class on aesthetic taste,
until Sun 11 May,
Birmingham Museum &
Art Gallery
REINCARNATED RUBBISH
Retrospective exhibition
encompassing the
whole spectrum of Val
Hunt’s creative recycling, until Sun 11 May,
Shire Hall Gallery,
Stafford
PAPEROLOGY Exhibition
of prints, jewellery &
paper sculptures
inspired by natural history, until Sun 11 May,
Shire Hall Gallery,
Stafford
ANDREW MATHESON RBSA
Solo show featuring a
display of forms in
porcelain, experimenting with barium glaze,
until Sat 17 May, RBSA,
Birmingham
COLD TEA Exploration of
the phenomenology of
colour and unreality
executed through the
materiality of paint and
photographic images,
until Sat 17 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
CONNECTIONS: LAND &
SKY Showcasing the
works of three textile
artists - Susan Walker,
Val Brewin and Dorothy
Deakin, until Sat 17
May, Bilston Craft
Gallery
NEW ART WEST MIDLANDS Showcase of
works from twenty-four
artists, all of whom have
graduated from one of
the region’s undergraduate or postgraduate
fine art degree courses
within the past three
years, until Sun 18 May,
Birmingham Museum &
Art Gallery
KEITH NOBLE EXHIBITION
Featuring works
inspired by architectural
subjects in London and
Oxford, until Sat 24 May,
Silk Top Hat Gallery,
Ludlow, South
Shropshire
FAMILY CIRCLES
Featuring contributions
from some of the greatest masters in miniature
portraiture, until Mon 26
May, The Barber
NIGEL PRIDDEY RBSA
Solo show featuring a
selection of watercolour
paintings which explore
pattern and colour in
the landscape, until Sat
31 May, RBSA Gallery,
Birmingham
BP PORTRAIT AWARDS
Showcasing fifty-five of
the 'most outstanding
and innovative new portraits from around the
world', until Sat 31 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
NADIA KISSELEVA: DOCUMENT Featuring a series
of portraits of people
imprisoned during the
Stalinist era in the former Soviet Union, until
Sun 1 June, mac,
Birmingham
BARBARIANS: THE AGE OF
IRON Showcasing new
research, artefacts and
prehistoric skeletons
which tell the story of
Worcestershire over two
thousand years ago,
until Sat 7 Jun,
Worcester City Art
Gallery & Museum
CHROMA COLLECTIVE
Exhibition featuring
works from four contemporary jewellers with
a shared goal of raising
awareness of the craft
within Birmingham’s
Jewellery Quarter, until
Sat 7 June, Museum of
the Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
TIM SHAW: RA BLACK
SMOKE RISING The first
solo exhibition from
Belfast-born sculptor
Tim Shaw, who grapples with contemporary
and political realities
whilst evoking the mythical and metaphysical,
until Sun 8 June, mac Midlands Arts Centre,
Birmingham
BILL DRUMMOND: THE 25
PAINTINGS Unique exhibition marking the
beginning of a ten-year
journey which, starting
off beneath Spaghetti
Junction, will see
Drummond tour twelve
cities across the world,
until Sat 14 June,
Eastside Projects,
Birmingham
BESIDE THE SEA
Showcase of craft
inspired by British
beaches, life on the
coast and seaside holidays, until Sat 14 June,
Bilston Craft Gallery
A BIG BANG: THE ORIGINS
OF POP ART COLLECTION
The first in a two-part
display exploring some
of the biggest names in
the Pop Art industry,
until Sat 21 June,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
IKON ICONS: IAN EMES
The second in a series
of five exhibitions to be
presented in Ikon's
Tower Room as part of
the gallery's birthday
celebrations, until Sun
22 Jun, Ikon Gallery,
Birmingham
RICHARD LONG: PRINTS
1970 - 2013 Featuring all
of the artist’s prints,
made over a forty-year
period, until Sun 22
June, The New Art
Gallery, Walsall
MICHAEL FRANCOIS
Sculpture, film, paintings, prints and photography are brought
together in this, the
most comprehensive
exhibition to date of
work by Belgium artist
Michel Francois, until
Sun 22 June, Ikon
Gallery, Birmingham
SECRET GARDEN CRAFT
EXHIBITION Collection of
jewellery, ceramics and
textiles exploring fairytales and narratives,
until Sat 28 Jun, RBSA
Gallery, Birmingham
ROMANTIC RUINS
Featuring paintings
from the museum’s collection, until Sat 28
June, Dudley Museum
& Art Gallery
FOR THE RECORD
Exploring themes of
preservation and
recording in the work of
female artists, until Sun
29 June, Birmingham
Museum & Art Gallery
40 YEARS OF WOMEN
ARTISTS The strong
female characters in the
Garman Epstein family
and their circle of
friends are captured in
this exhibition of works
from the gallery's
Permanent Collection,
until Sun 29 Jun, The
New Art Gallery, Walsall
FRANK COHEN EXHIBITION
Featuring works by
Tracey Emin, Damien
Hirst, Charming Baker
and Jake & Dinos
Chapman, until Mon 30
June, Shrewsbury
OPEN ART AND CRAFT
EXHIBITION 2014 until
Wed 2 Jul, Newcastle
Borough Museum & Art
Gallery, Newcastleunder-Lyme, Staffs
RICHARD LONG: SPRING
CIRCLE, 1992 until Wed 9
July, The New Art
Gallery, Walsall
JUSTYNA PTAK A series
of photographs which
draw from domestic,
architectural and rural
environments while
seeking to capture the
significant and intangible in the everyday, until
Sat 12 July,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
ARTISTS’ STUDIO: SARAH
TAYLOR SILVERWOOD
Exhibition from
Birmingham-based
artist Sarah Taylor
Silverwood, whose
practice is grounded in
drawing, narrative and
landscape, until Sun 20
July, New Art Gallery,
Walsall
WE WORKED AT THE
PORCELAIN Photographic
exhibition focusing on
some of Royal
Worcester’s many
craftsmen and women,
until Fri 1 Aug, The
Museum of Royal
Worcester
THE ROGER PILKINGTON
GLASS COLLECTION
Exhibition which shows
the development of
English drinking glasses
from the late-seventeenth to the late-nineteenth century, until Sun
10 Aug, Broadfield
House Glass Museum,
Dudley
ILIFE ON THE EVE OF WAR
Exhibition which takes a
look at 1914
Shugborough, until Fri
24 Oct, Shugborough
Estate, Staffordshire
TOM, FRANK AND MAY
Original material, uniforms, handling activities and a short film
which demonstrate the
role played by the
Merry family during
World War One, until
Sun 2 Nov, Blakesley
Hall, Birmingham
BACK TO FRONT: 40 PERMANENT COLLECTION
GEMS Exhibition which
celebrates the fortieth
anniversary of the
VisualArts LISTINGS
For full listing information on Visual Art
exhibitions, including times and dates,
gallery’s Garman Ryan
collection, until Sat 16
Nov, New Art Gallery,
Walsall
FAITH AND FORTUNE
Exhibition exploring the
early histories of two of
the world’s great religions, until Sun 30 Nov,
The Barber Institute,
Birmingham
THE JEWELLERY QUARTER
DURING THE FIRST
WORLD WAR Exhibition
of artefacts, images and
oral histories relating to
the recruitment of soldiers from the Jewellery
Quarter, until Sun 14
Dec, Museum of the
Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
TRACED Permanent exhibition tracing the success of art & design in
Wolverhampton while
bringing together works
by local artists from the
museum’s collection,
until Wed 31 Dec,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
CRAFTSENSE Featuring
over one hundred of the
world-renowned Bilston
enamels, until Wed 31
Dec, Bilston Craft
Gallery
SENSING SCULPTURE
Featuring new sculptures alongside old
favourites, until Wed 31
Dec, Wolverhampton
Art Gallery
THE ROAD TO WAR Sat 3
May - Mon 4 Aug,
Dudley Museum & Art
Gallery
ALL THAT GLISTERS
Showcase of eighteenth
century steel jewellery,
Fri 9 May - Sun 10 Aug,
Bantock House
Museum
50 YEARS ON: THE CENTRE OF CONTEMPORARY
CULTURAL STUDIES
Featuring the work of
eminent artists including Trevor Appleson
and David Batchelor,
Sat 10 May - Sun 29
June, mac, Birmingham
SUMMER SHOWCASE
Featuring textiles,
ceramics, homewares
and delicate paper jewellery, Tues 13 May - Sat
16 Aug, Bilston Craft
Gallery
CHINESE LIVES IN BIRMINGHAM A display which
demonstrates the origins and rich culture of
Birmingham's diverse
Chinese community,
Sat 17 May - Sun 18
June, The Barber
STAFFORDSHIRE OPEN
ART 2014 Sat 17 May Sun 6 July, Shire Hall
Gallery, Stafford
MADE AT MAC - CERAMICS Led by tutors Sue
Dyer and Wendy
Tournay, the exhibition
puts a spotlight on
ceramics and is set to
inspire audiences and
students alike, Sat 17
May - Sun 31 Aug, mac,
Birmingham
MUSIC, ART AND BEER An
exhibition of new visual
works by five local
artists, Sat 24 May - Sat
21 June,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
LANDSCAPES: CHAPTERS
OF IMPERMANENCE
Exhibition which brings
together two different
artists responding to the
same landscapes from
different perspectives,
Sat 24 May - Sat 21
June, Bilston Craft
Gallery
A TRIO OF ARTISTS An
exhibition featuring the
work of artists Anne
Hackett, Chris Tarplee
and Claire Sherwin, Sat
24 May - Sun 3 Aug,
Red House Glass Cone,
Stourbridge
COME CREATE Exhibition
to inspire visitors to
explore and demon-
strate their creativity
through displays,
hands-on interactives
and fun activities, Sat
24 May - Sun 7 Sept,
Thinktank, Birmingham
CERAMIC EMPIRE: THE
TRADE IN STAFFORDSHIRE
POTTERY Exhibition
exploring the supply
and representation of
the Empire in
Staffordshire pottery,
Sat 24 May - Sun 7
Sept, The Potteries
Museum & Art Gallery,
Stoke-on-Trent
SYMMETRY IN SCULPTURE Focusing on the
recent work of one of
the UK’s most exciting
British Asian artists,
Zarah Hussain, Sat 24
May - Sun 2 Nov,
Birmingham Museum &
Art Gallery
RIVERS OF BRITISH-ASIAN
BLOOD EXHIBITION
Display of images of
influential British Asians
over the past forty
years, Mon 26 May Sun 1 June, The Old
Print Works,
Birmingham
Museums & Art Galleries
Birmingham
ARTIFEX Sutton Coldfield
0121 323 3776
BARBER INSTITUTE
0121 414 7333
BIRMINGHAM MUSEUM &
ART GALLERY 0121 303
2834
THE BURROWS GALLERY,
THE CUSTARD FACTORY
0121 224 7344
CASTLE GALLERIES
0121 633 0015
GRAND UNION
0121 643 9079
IKON GALLERY
0121 248 0708
NUMBER NINE THE GALLERY
0121 643 9099
RBSA GALLERY
0121 2364353
THREE WHITE WALLS
GALLERY
0121 643 0078
Black Country
BANTOCK HOUSE
WOLVERHAMPTON
01902 552195
BILSTON CRAFT GALLERY
01902 552507
BROADFIELD HOUSE GLASS
MUSEUM, DUDLEY
01384 812745
DUDLEY MUSEUM & ART
GALLERY
01384 815575
LIGHT HOUSE MEDIA CENTRE
WOLVERHAMPTON
01902 716055
THE NEW ART GALLERY
WALSALL 01922 654400
RED HOUSE GLASS CONE
01384 812750
WOLVERHAMPTON ART
GALLERY 01902 552055
Shropshire
BEAR STEPS GALLERY,
SHREWSBURY
01743 344994
TWENTY TWENTY GALLERY,
MUCH WENLOCK
01952 727952
THE WILLOW GALLERY,
OSWESTRY
01691 657575
Staffordshire
NEWCASTLE BOROUGH
MUSEUM & ART GALLERY
01782 232323
THE POTTERIES MUSEUM &
ART GALLERY 01782 232323
SHIRE HALL GALLERY
STAFFORD 01785 278345
STAFFORDSHIRE MUSEUM,
SHUGBOROUGH
01889 881388
Warwickshire
COMPTON VERNEY GALLERY
01926 645500
HERBERT ART GALLERY
COVENTRY 02476 832386
MEAD GALLERY WARWICK
02476 524524
ROYAL PUMP ROOMS
01926 742700
Worcestershire
WORCESTER CITY ART
GALLERY 01905 25371
Visit whatsonlive.co.uk
for venue website details
For more visual arts listings, visit, www.whatsonlive.co.uk 61
Events May Region Two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 18:20 Page 1
Events
The Baby Show NEC, Birmingham, 16 - 18 May
As the UK’s leading pregnancy and parenting event, this Fisher Pricesponsored show offers a plethora of advice on a wide range of associated topics. BBC presenter and authority on child development
Professor Robert Winston is confirmed as this year’s headline speaker. Appearances from child nutrition practitioner Annabel Karmel,
twins and baby sleep specialist Jo Tantum, and learning-through-play
expert Dr Julie Coultas are also programmed during the three-day
event. Showcasing the very latest in maternity and baby brands, The
Baby Show offers one-to-one demonstrations and the chance to
‘touch, feel and compare’ items, enabling shoppers to make an
informed decision about their purchases.
Other highlights include daily fashion shows for mums-to-be, babies
and toddlers, numerous competitions, an activity zone and a variety
of workshops.
Corey Baker: A Haka Day Out
Centenary Square, Birmingham, Sat 10 May
Bringing a traditional Maori experience to the
streets of Birmingham, this unique drop-in
event looks like a fun way to spend a
Saturday afternoon. Led by esteemed choreographer and New Zealander Corey Baker, A
Haka Day Out forms part of International
Dance Festival Birmingham 2014 and features
free tribal Haka workshops with native Maori
performers at half-hour intervals between
12noon and 2.30pm. The sessions, which are
followed by a live Haka performance, are
described as ‘suitable for everyone’. All you
have to do is turn up and have a go...
Energy On The Move
Enginuity, Ironbridge, Shropshire, Sat 24 May - Sun 1 June
Enginuity offers all-year-round hands-on fun for kids of all ages, with the chance to pull a
five-ton locomotive, control the flow of a ‘river’ in order to generate electricity, and look
inside common objects such as mobile phones and x-ray machines all being part of the
standard package. Alongside these static attractions, the venue also provides a programme
of activities for the school holidays, many of which vary on a day-to-day basis. During the
Whitsun school holidays, Energy On The Move invites visitors to create a ‘dancing jitterbug’
using craft materials and an electric motor. Workshops are held daily between 10.30am and
3.45pm.
Events PREVIEWS
Ludlow Spring Festival
Ludlow Castle, South Shropshire,
Fri 9 - Sun 11 May
This annual festival ably illustrates why
Ludlow is one of the country’s most reputable foodie towns. The three-day event features more than one hundred-and-ninety
beers (from more than fifty local brewers)
alongside an array of food stalls, with vendors offering delectable delights ranging
from artisan flours to charcuterie, award-winning cakes, gourmet sausage rolls and local
cheeses. A hugely popular element of the
festival is its talks and demonstrations, which
take place in the Inner Bailey. This year’s
programme features Suree Coates - from
award-winning Shropshire restaurant King &
Thai - World Cheese Awards founder Juliet
Harbutt, and TV chef and local cookery
school owner Marcus Bean.
For younger visitors, the festival offers
hands-on cookery classes in the Castle
Gardens Arena. The Marches Transport
Festival and a wealth of musical entertainment - from jazz and blues to latin and folk completes the weekend’s programme of
attractions.
Heritage Bus Tours
Birmingham City Centre, Sun 4 May
Made available by Birmingham tours, the
Heritage Bus Tour enables passengers to
explore and discover the city’s unique community museums. Departing Victoria Square
at various intervals throughout the day, the
tour’s first stop is Aston Hall, where visitors
can experience the splendour of a grand
Jacobean House and relive its role in the
English Civil War. Soho House, the Georgian
home of industrialist and entrepreneur
Matthew Bolton, is the next destination, with
the bus’s final stop being the Pen Room at
the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter.
Donington Historic Festival
Donington Park, Sat 3 - Mon 5 May
Since its debut in 2011, the Donington Historic Festival has become a major fixture on the
international racing calendar, and in 2014 sees more than four hundred racing cars from the
1920s through to the 1980s taking to the track to compete. This year marks the ninetieth
anniversary of Motor Sport magazine, and the Donington Historic Festival is acknowledging
the occasion with a pre-war sports car race. Meanwhile, a Maserati-only race marks the one
hundredth anniversary of the marque. John Surtees OBE - the only man to have won World
Championships both on two and four wheels - is the show’s Guest of Honour, and will be
signing autographs for fans on the Sunday and Monday. Other noteable features at this bank
holiday weekend event include an open paddock - where spectators can get up close to
priceless racing machines - historic rally and karting action, and ‘living motoring museum’
car club displays.
and sets from classic live-action programmes like Space 1999 and UFO promise
to take visitors back in time to the 1960s and
’70s, as do much-loved characters from
Thunderbirds - not to mention Joe 90, Steve
Zodiac, Captain Scarlet and his evil nemesis
Captain Black.
Numerous talks and question-and-answer sessions
also feature, with Sylvia
Anderson herself taking
top billing on both days.
The exhibition is free to
attend, with entry to the
Q&A sessions priced at
£25 per day.
Ironbridge Walking Festival
Various locations in Ironbridge,
Sat 3 - Sun 11 May
Flights Of Fancy
RAF Cosford, Nr Wolverhampton,
Sat 17 - Sun 18 May
Puppetry and memorabilia from Gerry and
Sylvia Anderson’s iconic science fiction TV
shows lie at the heart of this nostalgic weekend. Models, costumes, full-sized vehicles
Now in its ninth year, this annual spring festival features more than fifty guided scenic
walks, offering participants the chance to
enjoy the many and varied delights of
Shropshire’s beautiful countryside.
Promising to be bigger and better than ever
before, the 2014 event has the added appeal
of twenty new walks - including the One
Hundred Mile
Ironbridge
Challenge.
The nine-day festival also features
family adventures,
historic trails and
wildlife walks,
ensuring it’s an
experience that
caters for all ages
and abilities.
Stafford Cheese
And Ale Festival
Market Square and The Swan Hotel,
Stafford, Sat 17 May
This debut event promises to be a mouthwatering affair with more than twenty
exhibitors, selling a wide range of cheese
and fine ales, booked to showcase their
fayre. Held within two marquees - ensuring
the weather doesn’t hinder enjoyment - the
Stafford Cheese And Ale Festival has a programme of talks and demonstrations lined
up for visitors. So if you fancy learning about
the art of beer barrel
making or how to
make homemade
cheese, pop along and
take note. A number of
talks and cookery
demonstrations from
top chefs from restaurants around
Staffordshire, also feature.
Shropshire County
Agricultural Show
The West Mid Showground, Shrewsbury,
Sat 24 May
One of the country’s oldest-surviving agriculture events, the Shropshire County
Agricultural Show showcases local livestock,
businesses and produce. This year’s event
welcomes the return of the County Horse
Show after a two-year absence, and also features Edible Shropshire, a presentation of
produce from food and drink suppliers
across the county.
Events PREVIEWS
Queen Victoria’s
Birthday Celebrations
Blists Hill, Ironbridge, Shropshire,
Sat 24 - Mon 26 May
Join the residents of Blists Hill Victorian Town
as they celebrate the birthday of their
beloved Queen Victoria with plenty of pomp
and pageantry. With the town decked out in
a blaze of colour, visitors can enjoy live reenactments of popular plays performed by
the Prince Albert Players and listen to sessions by the bagpipe players and drummers
from the Seaforth Highlanders band (in full
Scottish costume!). A Punch & Judy show, a
lost toys trail, hands-on activities and themed
games ensure younger visitors have plenty
to enjoy, in addition to the site’s usual attractions.
British Falconry And Country Fair
Chetwynd Park, Newport, Shropshire, Sun 4 - Mon 5 May
The Chilli Festival
Celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary by moving to a new venue, the British Falconry and
Country Fair is considered to be the UK’s leading falconry and hawking event, covering all
aspects of country pursuits. Taking place over the spring bank holiday weekend, highlights
include continuous main arena events, falconry flying displays, a static display and parade of
vintage Land Rovers, and a plethora of ‘have a go’ attractions such as shooting, shotgun
coaching, fly-casting, dog agility sessions and archery. Children’s amusements, a funfair and
pony rides are available for younger visitors. New for 2014, kids under fifteen go free with a
paying adult.
Eastnor Castle, Ledbury, Sun 4 - Mon 5 May
Promising to heat up the Bank Holiday weekend, Eastnor’s third annual Chilli Festival
showcases an abundance of spiced-up
entertainment for all the family to enjoy. The
castle courtyard will be transformed into a
chilli market for the event, where visitors can
both try and buy the selection of chilliinfused delights on offer - including chocolate, bread, cakes, vodka, cocktails and chutney. There’s also a selection of specialist hot
food suppliers on hand, selling authentic
Asian curries and a variety of other spicy
foods... Aside from the gourmet element, the
two-day event features musical entertainment
from Hereford-based Mexican band Los
Squideros, a Cookery Theatre in which
Shropshire chef Suree Coates demonstrates
her authentic cookery skills, the chance to
make Egyptian mezze with Marina Ibrahim,
and an opportunity to find out about Italian
culinary delights with Felice Tocchini.
Younger visitors are well catered for too,
courtesy of the Easy Peasy Children’s
Cookery Theatre.
Museums at Night
Museums At Night is an annual UK-wide initiative which sees museums, galleries and
heritage sites throwing open their doors after
hours and putting on special events. Here’s
just a taster of what’s happening in the
Midlands...
Galleries Night: Art Bus
Various locations, Birmingham City Centre,
Thurs 15 May
Birmingham's Art Bus is back on the road
this month, transporting art lovers between
the city’s various galleries. The city centre
route is available between 5pm and 9pm,
and links the Barber, Ikon, RBSA, BMAG,
Eastside Projects and mac Birmingham.
Guided tours are available at selected venues, and timetables can
be picked up from participating galleries,
tourist information centres and public libraries,
or can be downloaded
from the galleries' websites.
Transient Live Art
The Pen Museum, Birmingham,
Thurs 15 - Sat 17 May
Transient Art visits the Pen Museum as part
of the Museums At Night initiative.
Intertwining with the venue’s exhibits will be
artists presenting performance art, video, live
ink making, sculpture, writing and drawing.
Based around the notion of the scribe, draw-
ing, writing and the concept of the pen itself,
the initiative explores the museum’s traditions, and their place both in history and in
modern society. The artwork on show will
embrace the nature of the museum, juxtaposing history with contemporary examination.
Red By Night
Black Country Living Museum, Dudley,
Sat 17 May
Red By Night is a new addition to the
Museums At Night initiative. It uses human
soundscapes, physical theatre and promenade drama scenes to tell the story of the
hard-working people of the area who created
a turning point in Britain’s national story. A
unique event, it offers a rare opportunity to
see all of the museum’s industrial areas in
action, including the
rolling mill, chainmakers and brass foundry.
Please note this is an
‘advanced booking
only’ event.
Giant Patchwork Quilt
Enginuity, Ironbridge, Shropshire, Sat 17 May
This unique event is looking for visitors to
become part of a modern take on traditional
needlework skills. Images of faces will be
etched onto sheets of brightly coloured
acrylic; then - at the end of the evening - the
artwork will be illuminated, to reveal all the
colours and etchings.
The individual panels will then be joined
together with cable ties. Once complete, the
finished quilt will hang in Enginuity as a lasting reminder.
SAVE £££’S
AND GET YOUR
DISCOUNTED
ADVANCE TICKETS
NOW!
SAT 24 & SUN 25 MAY - Spring Bank Holiday Weekend
Birmingham Gay Village
MAIN STAGE
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NORMA LEWIS I JOSEPH WHELAN I REWIND I VANQUISH I GTF I STACEY JACKSON I FAYE BAGLEY I SCARLETT’S ROSES
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Events LISTINGS
For full listing information on Events,
from
THUR 1 MAY
SIR EDWARD GERMAN
MUSIC FESTIVAL A celebration of the life of
composer Sir Edward
German, who was born
in Shrewsbury. The festival includes a
Commemorative
Concert and events
connected to the Great
War Legacy, including
visits to firing ranges at
Whixall and Fenns
Mosses, and a visit to
the National War
Graves Arboretum, until
Fri 2 May, The Parish of
St. Alkmund,
Whitchurch
2014 PREMIER LEAGUE
DARTS Darts' biggest
roadshow event will
celebrate its tenth staging, with reigning
champion Michael van
Gerwen set to defend
his title against the likes
of six-time winner Phil
Taylor, Thurs 1 May,
Birmingham
MAYPOLE DANCING Enjoy
watching traditional
maypole dancing on
the Green at Blists Hill
Victorian Town. You
may even feel compelled to join in the fun
as well! Thurs 1 May,
Blists Hill, Ironbridge
BANK HOLIDAY
WEEKEND
ANIMAL MAGIC TRAIL
Follow the clues and
track down the animals
hiding around the
museum, Thurs 1 May Sat 28 June, Gladstone
Pottery Museum,
Stoke-on-Trent
PAUL HOLLYWOOD - GET
YOUR BAKE ON TV's baking star Paul Hollywood
brings his first ever live
show to the UK Fri 2
May, Civic Hall,
Wolverhampton
DIGBETH FIRST FRIDAY
Exhibitions, late-night
openings, special
events, culture in unexpected places, live
music, street food and
more, Fri 2 May,
Digbeth, Birmingham
SATURDAY NIGHT
SPECIAL Run What Ya
Brung till late. Track
open from 9am-8pm
with evening entertainment and camping, Sat
3 May, Santa Pod
Raceway, Northampton
FARMER'S MARKET Sat 3
May, The Discovery
Centre, Craven Arms,
Shrewsbury
HISTORY SEEKERS
Discover fascinating
facts about history, and
hear amazing stories
about local people and
events from the past
using real historical
documents at the City
Archives. Suitable for
children aged 8 plus,
Sat 3 May,
Wolverhampton City
Archives
GALLERY TOUR An
opportunity to find out
more about the gallery
and its collections, Sat
3 May, Wolverhampton
Art Gallery
VINTAGE & HANDMADE
FAIR Sat 3 May,
Blakesley Hall,
Birmingham
Shropshire
HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIPPER
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sat 3 May,
Shrewsbury Baptist
Church
BIG BRUM OPEN TOP BUZ
SIGHTSEEING TOUR Sat 3
May, Starting Victoria
Square, ending at
Colmore Row,
Birmingham
FRIENDSHIP AND FUN IN
SECRET KINGDOM
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sat 3 May,
Shropshire Wildlife
Trust
ADVENTURE IN THE
SQUARE Storytelling,
craft activities, live
dance & theatre, a
book swap and tons
more... A Shrewsbury
Bookfest event, Sat 3
May, The Square,
Shrewsbury
BEAST QUEST & SEA
QUEST Interactive event
for children aged
seven-plus. A
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sat 3 May,
Shropshire Wildlife
Trust
GO ADVENTURING WITH
THE FAMOUS FIVE Join
Julian from The
Famous Five as he
demonstrates some
mystery-solving techniques and tips!, Sat 3
May, Shropshire
Wildlife Trust
EVENING SCENIC
SPECIALS A scenic
evening ride, with the
added option of traditional fish and chip
supper, Sat 3 May,
Severn Valley Railway,
Kidderminster
3D SEASIDE POSTCARDS
WITH LAUREN VAN HELMOND Learn techniques
devised by the artist to
combine transfer-printed designs with recycled materials such as
old biscuit tins, wire
and fabrics to depict a
charming holiday
scene, Sat 3 May,
OXFORD WORD WIZARDS
With Marcus Moore &
Sarah-Jane Arbury. A
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sat 3 May, The
Hive, Shrewsbury
THE ROALD DAHL
FUN AT THE FORT! May
Day fun with Bert &
Gert’s market and a
series of fun activities,
Sat 3 - Sun 4 May, Fort
Shopping Park,
Birmingham
EMBROIDERY WORKSHOP
Suitable for beginners
and experienced
embroiderers alike Sat
3 May, Wightwick
Manor, Wolverhampton
HISTORIA NORMANNIS
Three-day re-enactment, Sat 3 - Mon 5
May, Whittington
Castle, Oswestry, North
Shropshire
DONINGTON HISTORIC
FESTIVAL A major fixture
on the international racing calendar, showcasing hundreds of worldclass historic racing
cars, Sat 3 - Mon 5 May
Donington Park
SHREWSBURY
CHILDREN'S BOOKFEST
Sat 3 - Mon 5 May, various Locations around
Shrewsbury
GAME ON! BIG SPORT
WEEKEND Meet local
sports groups, try taster
sessions and challenge
your friends & family to
a game or two... Sat 3 Mon 5 May, Attingham
Park, Nr Shrewsbury
PIRATE WEEKEND
Featuring plenty of seafaring fun to amuse, Sat
3 - Mon 5 May,
Cadbury World,
Birmingham
IRONBRIDGE GORGE
WALKING FESTIVAL Sat 3
- Sun 11 May,
Ironbridge, Shropshire
RUN WHAT YA BRUNG
Regular event which
provides an opportunity
to take your car or
motorcycle out on the
famous quarter-mile
dragstrip and test its
performance limits in a
safe and legal environment, Sun 4 May, Santa
Pod Raceway,
Northampton
ZIGZAG ENSEMBLE A
composing and improvising group for twelveto-sixteen-year-olds,
Sun 4 May, CBSO
Centre, Birmingham
BLUEBELL WALK Stroll
among the nodding
bluebells on a walk
through the woods that
takes in the best displays as they start to
bloom Sun 4 May,
Attingham Park, Nr
Shrewsbury
DARWINS CHALLENGE
AQUATHLON Sun 4 May,
Shrewsbury School
MUDTASTIK MUD RUN
Test your endurance,
physical ability and
determination via a
range of challenging
climbs, drops, muddy
tracks and deep water
pools, all whilst raising
money for charity. For
further details, visit,
www.cavaliercentre.org/
mud-run/ Sun 4 May
Fox Trax, Marchamley,
Shropshire
LEDBURY WAYTES,
MEDIEVAL MUSIC AND
DANCE Meet the
Medieval Minstrels, listen to their music, talk
to them about their costumes and try on some
armour, Sun 4 May,
Brockhampton Estate,
Worcestershire
CONTEMPORARY CRAFT
MARKET Sun 4 May,
mac - Midlands Arts
Centre, Birmingham
MUSIC MAZE Creative
participatory workshops
for children aged eight
to eleven inclusive, Sun
4 May, CBSO Centre,
Birmingham
HERITAGE BUS TOUR
Discover Birmingham’s
unique community
museums, Sun 4 May,
Starting Victoria
Square, ending at
Colmore Row,
Birmingham
CREATE A PICTURE BOOK
WITH TOM PERCIVAL A
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sun 4 May,
Shrewsbury High Prep
School
MATHS, MAGIC &
MYSTERY A Shrewsbury
Bookfest event, Sun 4
May, Shrewsbury High
Prep School
AFTERNOON CAKE WITH
CATHY CASSIDY A
Shrewsbury Bookfest
event, Sun 4 May,
Shrewsbury Baptist
Church
STEAM WEEKEND See
Blists Hill Victorian
Town’s steam machines
in their full working
splendour at this popular steam weekend,
Sun 4 - Mon 5 May,
Blists Hill, Ironbridge,
Shropshire
BRITISH FALCONRY AND
COUNTRY FAIR The ultimate event for enthusiasts and experts alike,
with continuous main
arena events, demonstrations, a craft fair,
sporting & wildlife
artists, a fun dog show,
displays of vintage land
rovers, children's activities and much, much
more... Sun 4 - Mon 5
May, Chetwynd Park,
Newport, Shropshire
SPRING FAIR Sun 4 Mon 5 May, Weston
Park, Staffordshire
MEDIEVAL THEMED REENACTMENT Knights,
armour, chivalry and
military strategy, Sun 4
- Mon 5 May, Red
House Glass Cone,
Dudley
CHILLI FESTIVAL A
unique event celebrating the different
flavours of all things
chilli... a cookery theatre, live music and a
chilli-eating competition
also feature, Sun 4 Mon 5 May, Eastnor
Castle Deer Park
PAUL HOLLYWOOD - GET
YOUR BAKE ON TV's baking star Paul Hollywood
brings his first ever live
show to the UK, Mon 5
May, Symphony Hall
YUMMY BRUMMIE Free
family event all about
food, Mon 5 May,
Museum of the
Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
TRADITIONAL MAY DAY
Featuring maypole
dancing, country crafts,
music, food and traditional Morris dancing,
Mon 5 May, Avoncroft
Museum, Bromsgrove
PIG WASH DAY Watch on
as the staff give the
site's porkers a good
scrub followed by a
generous massage of
oil and sunscreen - on
the hour throughout the
day, Mon 5 May,
Shugborough Historic
Working Estate,
Staffordshire
MAY DAY CELEBRATIONS
Welcome in May, add
your wish to
Dudmaston's traditional
May tree and join in the
dancing, music & festivities, Mon 5 May,
Dudmaston Estate,
Bridgnorth
EYTON RACES NORTH
SHROPSHIRE HUNT
POINT-TO-POINT Point-toPoint at Eyton is an
amateur form of steeple
chasing, set in a beautiful location, with
panoramic views of
Wenlock Edge. Mon 5
May, Eyton
Racecourse, Eaton
Consadine, Shropshire
BIT OF A DO Family fun
day organised by the
Friends of Bantock
House Museum, with
Punch & Judy, donkeys, music, stalls and
activities, Mon 5 May,
Bantock House
Museum,
Wolverhampton
HISTORIC LONGTON WALK
Join local historian Phil
Rowley on a guided
walk around Longton,
Mon 5 May, Gladstone
Pottery Museum,
Stoke-on-Trent
from
TUES 6 MAY
TILE DECORATING
WORKSHOPS Drop-in
sessions where participants use the technique known as tube
lining to decorate their
very own tile to take
home, Tue 6 May,
Jackfield Tile Museum,
LUNCHTIME TALK: THE
TREASURES OF BANTOCK
HOUSE A talk by the
curator of Bantock
House Museum on the
history of the house
and its collections, Tues
6 May, Bantock House
Museum,
Wolverhampton
DISCOVER THE
COLLECTION Meet the
conservation team
who'll tell you about
interesting items in the
collection and demonstrate how they're
looked after, Tue 6 May,
Moseley Old Hall,
Wolverhampton
LIVE FLOWER DEMO Wed
7 May, Solihull Arts
Complex
STAFFORDSHIRE HOARD
TOUR & VISIT TO CON-
SERVATION STUDIO Wed
7 May, Birmingham
ARTFORUM GOLD CLUB
Art club where young
people aged fourteen
to twenty-five can
explore exhibits, work
with artists and try new
techniques, Wed 7 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
LONDON CALLING ALE
FESTIVAL Thurs 8 - Sun
11 May, Route 44,
Acocks Green,
Birmingham
COREY BAKER DANCE: A
HAKA DAY OUT
International Dance
Festival Birmingham
Resident
Choreographer Corey
Baker brings a traditional Maori experience
to Birmingham city centre as he leads tribal
Haka (war dance) workshops with native Maori
performers, followed by
a live Haka performance. Just turn up and
take part... Sat 10 May,
Birmingham City Centre
OPEN COCKPITS EVENING
This annual event
allows visitors the
chance to get up close
and personal to the
workings of a wide
range of the museum’s
aircraft. Enthusiasts
young and old will be
able to get a feel for
what it was like to fly
these much-loved
machines, as well as
gain out-of-hours
access to the museum,
Sat 10 May, RAF
Cosford,
Wolverhampton
TALK AND WALK Learn
more about one of
Birmingham’s hidden
gems and join the
museum’s resident
experts for an illustrated talk and tour of the
ruins, Sat 10 May,
Weoley Castle,
Birmingham
SPORTS & SALOON CAR
RACES Sat 10 - Sun 11
May, Donington Park
SPRING GALA WEEKEND
Miniature railway special opening, Sat 10 Sun 11 May, Electric
Railway Museum,
Baginton, Coventry
WORLD CUP WARM-UP
Weekend dedicated to
footie fun, Sat 10 - Sun
11 May, Cadbury
World, Birmingham
LUDLOW SPRING
FESTIVAL Popular annual event featuring live
music, more than one
hundred-and-eighty
real ale trails, eighty
food and drink stalls,
displays of classic
motor cars and various
children's events including hands-on
cookery workshops,
Ludlow Castle, South
Shropshire
MIDNIGHT WALK
Featuring an ’80s
theme, this year's event
is open to men, while
raising funds for
Shrewsbury's Severn
Hospice, Sat 10 - Sun
Events LISTINGS
11 May, Telford College
Of Arts And
Technology, Shropshire
SIGHTSEEING TOUR Sat
10 - Sun 11 May,
Starting Victoria
Square, ending at
Colmore Row,
Birmingham
FAMILY WEEKEND FUN
Enjoy a steam train ride
on the Severn Valley
Railway and see your
favourite characters,
Peppa Pig and George
along the way, Sat 10 Sun 11 May, Severn
Valley Railway,
Kidderminster
A LOAD OF OLD
NONSENSE Join the
Prince Albert Players as
they read from the
works of Edward Lear
and invite visitors to
recite some of the
poet’s limericks, including The Owl And The
Pussycat - a favourite in
Victorian times, Sat 10 Mon 12 May, Blists Hill,
WALK FOR
REMEMBRANCE
Sponsored 5km &
10km walk in support
of National Memorial
Arboretum, Sun 11
May, National Memorial
Aboretum, Staffordshire
THE NATIONAL GLASS
FAIR Featuring
exhibitors offering a
wide choice of glassware, from eighteenth
century drinking glasses through to contemporary studio glass,
Sun 11 May, National
Motorcycle Museum
BLUEBELL TOURS Enjoy
a guided tour in
Blackwell's Wood to
see the bluebells, Sun
11 May, Upton House &
Gardens
NATIONAL VINTAGE
COMMUNICATION FAIR
Sun 11 May,
Warwickshire Exhibition
Centre
GLASS CRAFTS ENGRACE A TEA LIGHT
Sun 11 May, Broadfield
Glass Museum,
Kingswinford
NATIONAL MILLS DAY
Celebrate National Mills
Day by visiting the
world's only surviving
water-powered scouring mill. Find out about
workers in the Victorian
needle industry with
Redditch Amateur
Theatre Society, Sun 11
May, Forge Mill Needle
Museum, Redditch
BATTLE ACOUSTICA /
BATTLE OF THE BANDS
FINAL Sun 11 May,
Lichfield Guildhall
VILLAGE LACEMAKERS
Featuring a demonstration from the skilful
Village Lacemakers.
Visitors will also be
given an opportunity to
have a go, Sun 11 May
Moseley Old Hall,
Wolverhampton
BRITISH MINI DAY
Examples and variations of the iconic car
made famous in the
film, The Italian Job.
Sun 11 May, Himley
Hall & Park, Dudley
BBC INSPIRE COMPOSER
LAB Day-long composing workshop for
twelve-to-eighteen-yearolds, Sun 11 May,
CBSO Centre,
Birmingham
Week Commencing
MON 12 MAY
SALLY MORGAN: PSYCHIC
SALLY ON THE ROAD Mon
12 May, Civic Hall,
Wolverhampton
BAKE AND MAKE - THE
ART OF BREAD AND BUTTER Find out how people in the seventeenth
century ran their home,
bake a loaf of bread
and make butter Mon
12 May, Moseley Old
Hall, Wolverhampton
TILE DECORATING
WORKSHOPS Drop-in
home Tue 13 May
DISCOVER THE
COLLECTION Meet the
conservation team
looked after, Tue 13
May, Moseley Old Hall,
Wolverhampton
BRITISH PIG AND
POULTRY FAIR A biennial
two-day event featuring
over three hundred
exhibitors showcasing
their latest products &
services Tue 13 - Wed
14 May, Stoneleigh
Park, Warwickshire
DRIFT WHAT YA BRUNG
Chance to practise
drifting in safe and
legal conditions on
some of the Pod's thirty
acres of open tarmac,
where there are beginners, intermediate and
advanced tracks open
at the same time each
DWYB day, Wed 14
May, Santa Pod
BIRMINGHAM AND THE
BLACK COUNTRY A talk
by Chris Upton about
two tales of the industrial West Midlands. Free
entry. Wed 14 May,
Wolverhampton City
Archives
'PEN' (MUSEUMS AT
NIGHT) - TRANSIENT ART
An annual UK-wide fes-
tival which seeks to
encourage visitors into
museums, galleries &
heritage sites by throwing open their doors
after hours and putting
on special evening
events. During this project, Transient Art will
temporarily become
part of the Pen
Museum, with numerous artists covering
performance art, video,
live ink making, sculpture, writing and drawing. Visit: www.transient-art.com, Thurs 15
- Sat 17 May, The Pen
Museum, Jewellery
Quarter, Birmingham
ART SPEAKING Free
audio-described tour of
the Victorian Gallery for
people with visual
impairment, Fri 16 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
HOARD BY TORCHLIGHT
Explore the
Staffordshire Hoard by
the light of candles &
torches and listen to
some of the tales that
thrilled our AngloSaxon ancestors, Fri 16
May, The Potteries
Museum & Art Gallery,
Stoke-on-Trent
THE BABY SHOW Fri 16 Sun 18 May, NEC,
Birmingham
HANDICRAFT WEEKEND
Featuring demonstrations by local craft
groups, including the
Wrekin branch of the
Embroiderers' Guild
and Shrewsbury
Lacemakers Fri 16 Mon 19 May,
Sunnycroft, Wellington,
Shropshire
NAYLOR CAR CLUB 20TH
BIRTHDAY Sat 17 May,
Heritage Motor Centre,
Gaydon, Warwickshire
RUN WHAT YA BRUNG
Offering the chance to
take your car or motorcycle out on the
famous quarter-mile
dragstrip and test its
performance limits in a
safe and legal environment, Sat 17 May,
Santa Pod Raceway,
Northampton
SILVER EARRING JEWELLERY WORKSHOP Sat
17 May, Museum of the
Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
EARLY MORNING BIRD
WALK Sat 17 May,
National Memorial
Aboretum, Stafford
EVENING SCENIC
SPECIALS A scenic
evening ride with the
added option of a traditional fish and chip
supper, Sat 17 May,
Kidderminster
RED BY NIGHT Join the
Black Country Living
Museum in its annual
Night At The Museum
celebration, Sat 17
May, Black Country
Living Museum,
Coventry
TOILETS BY TWILIGHT
Explore Flushed With
Pride after dark and
visit the Modern Toss
‘Cistern Chapel’ exhibi-
tion to celebrate a
decade of their edgy
humour, Sat 17 May,
Gladstone Pottery
Museum, Stoke-onTrent
THE SOOTY SHOW Sat 17
- Sun 18 May, Cadbury
World, Birmingham
COSFORD FLIGHTS OF
FANTASY Sat 17 - Sun
18 May, RAF Cosford,
Wolverhampton
CRAFT FAYRE Sat 17 Sun 18 May, Red
House Glass Cone,
Stourbridge
SPRING CRAFT MARKET
Featuring May crafts &
May Day dancers, Sat
17 - Sun 18 May, Red
House Glass Cone,
Dudley
NATIONAL MOTORCYCLE
RACES Sat 17 - Sun 18
May, Donington Park
POND DIPPING AND BUG
HUNTING An actionpacked afternoon looking for mini-beasts and
micro-monsters in the
Powis gardens Sat 17 Sun 18 May, Powis
Castle and Garden, Nr
Welshpool, Powys
SPECIALIST TALK: LIZZIE
SIDDAL, THE FIRST PRERAPHAELITE LADY Join
the House Steward for
a relaxed talk followed
by a walking tour of the
collection, featuring
items not usually on
public display, Sat 17
May, Wightwick Manor,
Wolverhampton
RAG RUG WORKSHOP
Make a rag rug with
specialist Jessie
Lindon, Sat 17 May,
Birmingham Back to
Backs
LINOCUT PRINTMAKING
WORKSHOP WITH IAN
PHILLIPS Explore a variety of reduction linocut
techniques and handburnishing printmaking
with an experienced
professional printmaker
Sat 17 May The Willow
Gallery, Oswestry,
Shropshire
TRY SAILING Short free
taster sessions on the
Great Pool with a qualified YRA instructor.
Booking essential, Sat
17 May, Himley Hall &
Park, Dudley
17 - Sun 18 May,
Starting Victoria
Square, ending at
Colmore Row,
Birmingham
WWE LIVE 2014 Fans
can watch their
favourite WWE superstars, including World
Heavyweight champion
John Cena, Alberto Del
Rio, Randy Orton, CM
Punk, AJ, The Bella
Twins and many more,
Sun 18 May, National
Indoor Arena,
Birmingham
PEAK PERFORMANCE
TEST & TUNE DAY RWYB
with maximum track
time for serious enthusiasts. Car clubs, performance specialists
and individuals all welcome, Sun 18 May,
Santa Pod Raceway,
Northampton
BLUEBELL AND
RHODODENDRON WALK
Join head gardener
Martin Gee for a threeand-a-half mile guided
walk through carpets of
bluebells, avenues of
azaleas and Capability
Brown’s pleasure
grounds Sun 18 May,
Weston Park,
Staffordshire
DRAGON BOAT RACING
All-action event with
teams battling it out on
the Great Pool in
Chinese Dragon Boats.
A charity event organised by Wolverhampton
Rotary Club, Sun 18
May, Himley Hall &
Park, Dudley
Week Commencing
MON 19 MAY
TILE DECORATING
WORKSHOPS Drop-in
home Tue 20 May,
MEET ME AT BANTOCK
Regular conversation
club for people aged
fifty-plus, Tues 20 May,
Bantock House
Museum,
Wolverhampton
DISCOVER THE
COLLECTION Meet the
conservation team
Wolverhampton
DRESSING THE QUEEN
Wed 21 May,
Kenilworth Castle,
Warwickshire
ARTFORUM GOLD CLUB
Art club where young
people aged fourteen
to twenty-five can
explore exhibits, work
with artists and try new
techniques, Wed 21
May, Wolverhampton
Art Gallery
ATTINGHAM PARK RELAYS
Three-stage relay
around the park, Thurs
22 May, Attingham
Park, Shrewsbury
THE LATE NIGHT WORSHIP CONCERT Featuring
Fred Hammond and
Jason Nelson, Fri 23
May, Bethel Convention
Centre, Birmingham
CERAMIC EMPIRE Public
lecture by Tristram Hunt
MP to open the exciting
new Ceramic Empire
exhibition, Fri 23 May,
The Potteries Museum
& Art Gallery, Stoke-onTrent
BANK HOLIDAY
WEEKEND
FIM SUPERBIKE WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIP Fri 23 Sun 25 May, Donington
Park
GRACE AND FAITH Fourday event with teachings and worship for all
ages, Fri 23 - Mon 26
May, Telford
International Centre,
Shropshire
FIA/FIM EUROPEAN
CHAMPIONSHIPS ROUND 1 Santa Pod’s
flagship championship
event, attracting over
two hundred-and-fifty of
Europe’s top drag racing teams, including
300mph Top Fuel
Dragsters, FIM Drag
Bikes, jet cars, air displays, stunts, monster
trucks, traders,
sideshows and family
entertainment, Fri 23 Mon 26 May, Santa Pod
MAKE AND TAKE ART SESSIONS With local artist
Benny Semp, Sat 24
May, Birmingham
SPRING TILE DECORATING
WORKSHOPS Get creative by using the tube
lining technique to produce your very own tile
to take home. Activities
vary from day to day,
Sat 24 May, Jackfield
Tile Museum,
EVENING SCENIC
SPECIALS A scenic
evening ride with the
supper, Sat 24 May,
Kidderminster
SHROPSHIRE COUNTY
AGRICULTURAL SHOW A
prestigious annual
event featuring some of
the finest livestock
competing against
each other, as well as
items for sale from
dozens of traders, Sat
24 May, West Midland
Showground,
Shropshire
24 - Sun 25 May,
Starting Victoria
Square, ending at
Colmore Row,
Birmingham
LAND ROVER SHOW
Featuring an array of
vehicles, displays and
more... Sat 24 May Sun 25 May, Eastnor
Castle Deer Park,
Herefordshire
QUEEN VICTORIA'S
BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS
Join the residents of
Blists Hill Victorian
Town as they celebrate
the birthday of their
much-loved Queen
Victoria with style,
pomp and pageantry...
Sat 24 - Mon 26 May,
Shropshire
CHILDREN'S ACTIVITY
DAYS - SECRET GARDEN
TRAIL Head out on a
mystery tour around
the gardens and learn
about its hidden
secrets Sat 24 - Wed 28
May, Dudmaston
Estate, Nr Bridgnorth
DRAWING FROM NATURE
Use natural objects as
inspiration to create
your own still life Sat 24
Events LISTINGS
- Fri 30 May,
Compton Verney
Gallery, Warwickshire
FAMILY TRAIL Sat 24 Sat 31 May, Dudley
HALF TERM POTTERY
PAINTING Get creative
and decorate a critter
to take home, Sat 24 Sat 31 May, Gladstone
Pottery Museum,
Stoke-on-Trent
HALF-TERM FAMILY
ACTIVITIES A variety of
family-friendly trails,
crafts and outdoor
activities, Sat 24 May Fri 30 May, National
Memorial Aboretum,
Staffordshire
SWEET AND TREAT See
the re-launch of the
sweet-shop boiler and
try your hand at traditional board and street
games Sat 24 May Sun 1 June, Black
Country Living
Museum, Dudley
ENERGY ON THE MOVE
Interactive activities
allowing visitors to discover more about different types of energy
and how energy transfers. Make your own
dancing jitterbug and
see how it transfers
electrical energy into
kinetic energy, Sat 24
May - Sun 1 June,
Enginuity, Ironbridge,
Shropshire
FAMILY DROP-IN
ACTIVITIES Dip your own
colourful candles, play
with Victorian games &
toys and colour oldfashioned pictures.
Activities vary from day
to day, with some carrying an extra charge, Sat
24 May - Sun 1 June,
Shropshire
HALF-TERM FAMILY FUN
Join Professor Chuckle
as he battles to save
his lab with the help of
his ‘Instant Chocolate
Making Machine’, Sat
24 May - Sun 1 June,
Cadbury World,
Birmingham
HALF-TERM FAMILY
ACTIVITY WEEK A time
for the kids to have fun
in the wilderness, build
dens, take a train ride
and feed the animals,
Sat 24 May - Sun 1
June, Shugborough
Historic Working Estate,
Staffordshire
HALF-TERM FAMILY
TRAILS Explore the
grounds with a different
theme every holiday;
there's something new
to discover every time
you visit, Sat 24 May Sun 1 June, Attingham
Park, Shrewsbury
TIME LORD FAMILY TRAIL
Sat 24 May - Sun 1
June, Broad House
Glass Museum,
Kingswinford
FAMILY TRAIL Sat 24 Sun 1 June, Red House
Glass Cone,
Stourbridge
FOOD MARKET Monthly
event featuring an array
of fine food, Sun 25
May, mac - Midlands
Arts Centre,
Birmingham
SPILL: A PLAYGROUND OF
DANCE Back by popular
demand, Spill: A
Playground Of Dance
combines quirky,
dynamic dance with
high-energy street gymnastics, as dancers
blaze a colourful trail
across the structures
and landscapes of the
playground. Each performance is unique, as
the show scrambles
around, over, under
and through swings,
slides and roundabouts, Sun 25 May,
Cannon Hill Park,
Birmingham
GROWING UP IN THE
WALLED GARDEN: SALAD
DAYS Join the Walled
Garden team to find out
about the range of
salad plants grown on
the estate, see how
they avoid pests, find
out which are the tastiest varieties and how to
combine them to best
effect on the plate, Sun
25 May, Attingham
Park, Shrewsbury
SHREWSBURY CYCLE
GRAND PRIX Sun 25
May Shrewsbury Town
Centre
FLOAT YOUR BOAT Fun
afternoon especially for
families with school-age
children, Sun 25 May,
Sarehole Mill,
Birmingham
SPRING GARDENING FAIR
Featuring a Secret
Garden trail, craft activities and a Q&A with the
experts, Sun 25 - Mon
26 May, Dudmaston
Estate, Bridgnorth
VINTAGE FAMILY FUN A
day packed with nostalgia and featuring the
sounds of Sauce City
Jazz, a Punch & Judy
show, impressive displays of steam engines,
vintage carousel, model
steam engine and pony
rides, Sun 25 - Mon 26
May, Eastnor Castle
Deer Park,
Herefordshire
MEDIEVAL LIVING
HISTORY EVENT Travel
back in time to the
medieval period and
learn about costumes,
cooking methods and
how the people of the
day kept themselves
entertained, Sun 25 Mon 26 May,
Harvington Hall,
Kidderminster
ROMANS INVADE!
Witness the might of
the Roman Army as it
invades Wroxeter
Roman City, Sun 25 Mon 26 May, Wroxeter
Roman City, Nr
Shrewsbury
BANK HOLIDAY ANIMAL
RACING Day of racing
mayhem featuring
sheep, ducks & guinea
pigs. Dragon-themed
trails and activities in
the Mansion and
Servants' Quarters, garden games and dressup scarecrows in the
walled garden also feature Mon 26 May,
Shugborough Historic
Working Estate,
Staffordshire
SPRING FOOD & CRAFT
FAYRE Featuring over
sixty stalls ranging from
local produce to handmade craft, art & gifts,
Mon 26 May, Weston
Park, Staffordshire
BATTLE HERITAGE
MEDIEVAL EXPERIENCE
Real medieval experience featuring soldier
encampment, medieval
music & dancing,
jesters, birds of prey,
face painting and havea-go archery with real
weapons, Mon 26 May,
Ludlow Castle, South
Shropshire
FLOWER POWER PLANT
FAIR Mon 26 May,
Blakesley Hall,
Birmingham
BANTOCK MUSIC LIVE
Afternoon of live
acoustic music showcasing talented local
musicians. Free entry!
Mon 26 May, Bantock
House Museum,
Wolverhampton
MAY BANK HOLIDAY
FAMILY FUN DAY Mon 26
May, Avoncroft
Museum, Bromsgrove
SPRING TILE DECORATING
WORKSHOPS Get creative by using the tube
lining technique to produce your very own tile
to take home. Activities
vary from day to day,
Mon 26 - Fri 30 May,
BUG MAKING
WORKSHOPS Join in the
hands-on workshops to
make and decorate
ceramics to take home.
Monday's theme is garden-inspired mugs.
Tuesday and Friday,
visitors can sculpt their
own bughouse, plantmarker or sundial from
terracotta clay, Mon 26
- Fri 30 May, Coalport
China Museum,
WOMEN IN AVIATION Mon
26 - Fri 30 May, RAF
Cosford,
Wolverhampton
HALF TERM CRAFT ACTIVITY - STEALTHY SQUIRRELS Make a pop-up
squirrel puppet that can
hide in its tree, Tues 27
- Fri 30 May, The
Potteries Museum & Art
Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent
TRUSTY'S TUESDAY CLUB
Holiday fun featuring
craft sessions and fun
in the park, Tue 27 May,
Attingham Park,
Shrewsbury
Tile Decorating Workshops - Jackfield Tile Museum, Ironbridge
DISCOVER THE
COLLECTION Meet the
conservation team,
Wolverhampton
SAND ART POSTCARDS
Design a holiday postcard and use brightly
coloured sand to colour
it in. Booking required,
Tues 27 May, Bilston
Craft Gallery
ONCE UPON A TIME...
Storytelling followed by
craft activities, Tues 27
May, Bantock House
Museum,
Wolverhampton
KIDS’ ACTIVITIES Tues 27
- Thurs 29 May,
Blakesley Hall,
Birmingham
MEET ME AT WAG
Regular conversation
club for people aged
fifty-plus, Wed 28 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
POP ART WORKSHOP
Print a Pop Art poster
using bright colours
and imaginative
designs. Learn painting
techniques. Booking
required. Wed 28 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
SPORTY WEDNESDAYS
Featuring activities for
the whole family, Wed
28 May, Attingham
Park, Nr Shrewsbury
50 THINGS TO DO BEFORE
YOU’RE 11 AND 3/4 Join
Simon Airey and his
vast array of exotic animals. Have a go at
holding a snake or
tarantula, Wed 28 May,
Powis Castle and
Garden, Nr Welshpool,
Powys
TARDIS FUSED TILE
WORKSHOP Wed 28
May, Broadfield House
Glass Museum,
Kingswinford
CRAFTY WEDNESDAY!
Make-and-take activity,
Wed 28 May, Aston
Hall, Birmingham
TEXTILE GROUP
Excellent opportunity to
meet likeminded people in a creative environment, Wed 28 May,
MAKING METAL BOOKMARKS Family craft
workshops, Wed 28
May, Museum of the
Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
TRUSTY'S THURSDAY
PICNICS Take along a
picnic and enjoy some
storytelling and games
at Trusty's weekly picnic Thurs 29 May,
Attingham Park, Nr
Shrewsbury
DRIVE IN MOVIE: GREASE
Cineworld are sponsoring Telford’s first drivein event and will be
handing out free popcorn, to provide a fully
authentic drive-in experience Thurs 29 May,
Telford International
Centre, Shropshire
CREATIVE ARTS: FLASH,
BANG, WALLOP Victorian
dressing up & photo
shoot, Thurs 29 May,
Bantock House
Museum,
Wolverhampton
MAKE-AND-TAKE ACTIVITY
Family-friendly event,
Thurs 29 May, Museum
of the Jewellery
Quarter, Birmingham
VALUATION DAY: FINE ART
& ANTIQUES Hosted by
Fielding Antiques,
Thurs 29 May, Bantock
House Museum,
Wolverhampton
DECORATIVE PHOTO
FRAME WORKSHOP
Facilitated by SCARF Wolverhampton’s
Schools and
Community Arts
Resource Facility, Thurs
29 May, Bilston Craft
Gallery
VICTORIAN STEAMPUNK
PARTY Art activities, storytelling, dressing up &
music, Thurs 29 May,
Wolverhampton Art
Gallery
CRAFTPLAY MAY HOLIDAY
SESSION Booking
required, Thurs 29 May,
MAKE A KITE WORKSHOP
Fri 30 May, Weoley
Castle, Birmingham
STORYTELLING: MEET
QUEEN VICTORIA History
comes alive with this
event, based upon
Queen Victoria’s
famous visit to
Wolverhampton, Fri 30
May, Wolverhampton
City Archives
ANIMAL MANIA Meet the
animals 12noon to
3pm, Fri 30 May,
Blakesley Hall,
Birmingham
DRIVE IN MOVIE: TOP GUN
Cineworld are sponsoring Telford’s first drivein event and will be
handing out free popcorn, to provide a fully
authentic drive-in experience, Fri 30 May,
Telford International
Centre, Shropshire
FAMILY CRAFT ACTIVITY
Fri 30 May, Museum of
the Jewellery Quarter,
Birmingham
31 May, Starting
Victoria Square, ending
at Colmore Row,
Birmingham
SPORTS & SALOON CAR
RACES Sat 31 May Sun 1 June, Donington
Park
EVENING SCENIC
SPECIALS A scenic
evening ride, with the
supper, Sat 31 May,
Kidderminster
FELT FLOWER-MAKING
WORKSHOP Susan
Mulcock demonstrates
a variety of felt-making
techniques to help participants create their
very own flowers for
corsages, bags, hair,
hats and general decorations, Sat 31 May,
The Willow Gallery,
Oswestry, Shropshire
MIDNIGHT WALK
Featuring an ’80s
theme, this year's event
is open to men while
raising funds for
Shrewsbury's Severn
Hospice Sat 31 May Sun 1 June,
Shrewsbury Sports
Village
Eating Out May Region two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 19:05 Page 1
Eating Out
Book launch for
Shropshire chef
Shropshire-based lovers of Asian food who fancy
cooking a few Far Eastern dishes in the comfort
of their own home are set to be given a helping
hand next month with the launch of a brand new
book. Momo.No.Ki is a recipe book written by
Chris Burt, the award-winning Executive Head
Chef of Shrewsbury’s hugely popular Peach Tree
restaurant. Featuring a wide selection of Asian
dishes that Chris has developed during his many
years of travelling, the book is being launched at
the second Shrewsbury Food Festival, which
takes place in and around the town on 28 & 29
June.
Chris Burt
Food event a welcome addition to
Birmingham culinary scene
Organisers of a new independent food fare taking
place at Millennium Point in September have
announced initial plans for the event. A welcome
addition to the city’s ever-growing culinary scene,
the Birmingham Independent Food Fair will provide a platform on which to showcase the city’s
finest food and drink. Organised by Dine
Birmingham and supported by Visit Birmingham,
the one-day event takes place on Saturday 13
September and will feature a wines & spirits area
sponsored by Birmingham’s own gin brand,
Langley’s No.8.
Carluccio’s the man about town
Famous Italian food chain Carluccio’s has added
to its empire by opening a new restaurant in the
market town of Shrewsbury. The company has
been on the lookout for a venue in the town for
quite some time and have struck lucky with a
prime location. Antonio Carluccio recently headed to Shropshire for the restaurant’s official
launch, and What’s On were lucky enough to get
papped with the Italian Godfather of Gastronomy.
Lauren Foster and Enya Loughnane with Antonio Carluccio
The Clive: One of Ludlow’s best
REVIEW
Anyone driving to the
south of the county will
have noticed The Clive
(formerly The Cook
House, but The Clive Arms
when I was a nipper) sitting proudly alongside the
A49 at Bromfield, a couple
of miles north of Ludlow.
Originally an eighteenth
century farmhouse, it's
long been established as
a good-quality restaurant.
The bar there is a real
favourite of mine because
of its roaring log fire.
However, I hadn’t tried out
the restaurant since its
acquisition by the owners
of the fantastic Ludlow
Kitchen, which sits right
next door.
The two eateries will complement each other nicely;
the Kitchen serving breakfasts and lunches, The
Clive catering more for
evening diners and
overnight guests.
Like its neighbour, The
Clive benefits from being
situated less than a localsausage's throw away
from the award-winning
Ludlow Food Centre - and
this is evident in the quality of the cuisine on offer.
A warm, smiley welcome
greeted us on our arrival.
The atmosphere, though
relaxed and informal, still
retained the smart and
sophisticated feel of a
high-end restaurant.
Quite busy for a midweek
evening, the venue’s
slightly dimmed lighting
and the gentle hum from
fellow diners made for the
perfect ambience.
On to the starters - chicken & duck liver pate with
brioche was my choice
(and a good one at that!),
while my wife went for
duck spring roll with pak
choi. Both were beautifully
presented and packed
with flavour.
Expectations were running
high for the main courses.
Sure enough, out came
my chicken breast stuffed
with sun-blanched tomatoes and cream cheese,
with crushed new potatoes and a basil cream
sauce - all expertly cooked
and presented. It was
hoovered up as quickly as
is acceptable in these situations!
My wife, meanwhile,
chose the pan-fried fillet of
Shropshire beef, which
was accompanied by
caramelised baby shallots,
girolle mushrooms and
pomme-neuf potatoes. I
can't be sure, as I was too
engrossed in my own
plate, but I do recall
sounds of approval and
delight, so I presume it
was every bit as good as
my dish.
Top marks so far.
Next came the obligatory
and irresistible desserts.
Delicious vanilla panna
cotta and a chocolate &
salted caramel pot made a
brief appearance before
being polished off.
All in all, then, a distinctive, delicious dining experience, complete with an
accompanying lovely
atmosphere.
The Clive is definitely up
there with Ludlow's best.
Matt Morris
Food:
■■■■■
Service:
■■■■■
Ambience: ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
Overall value ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
OVERALL ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
The Clive Restaurant
Bromfield
Ludlow
Shropshire
SY8 2JR
Tel: 01584 856565
Eating Out May Region two_Layout 1 25/04/2014 19:05 Page 2
Restaurant LISTINGS
For full listing information on restaurants, including opening times and
type of cuisine, visit: www.whatsonlive.co.uk
Birmingham
AALTO RESTAURANT Hotel
La Tour, Albert Street,
Birmingham B5 5JT
0121 718 8000
AIR RESTAURANT LG
Arena, Bickenhill Rd,
0844 338 0333
BANK 4 Brindleyplace,
B1 2JB 0121 633 4466
BAR ESTILO 10-114
Wharfside St, The
Mailbox, B1 1RF 0121
643 3443
BARAJEE 265 Broad
Street, B1 2DS 0121 643
6699
BELLA ITALIA 102 New
Street, B2 4HQ 0121
643 1548
BLUE MANGO Regency
Wharf, Broad St, B1 2DS
0121 633 4422
BLUE PIANO RESTAURANT
AND BAR 24-26 Harborne
Rd, B15 3AA 0121 454
6877
BUONISSIMO 1 Albany
Rd, Harborne, B17 9JX
0121 426 2444
CAFE OPUS 1 Oozells
Square, Brindleyplace,
B1 2HS 0121 248 3226
CARLUCCIO’S The Water’s
Edge, Brindleyplace
B1 2HP 0121 633 9262
CENTENARY BAR &
BRASSERIE Broad Street,
B1 2EP 0121 245 2080
CHUNG YING
16-18 Wrottersley Street,
B5 4RT 0121 622 5669
CHUNG YING GARDEN 17
Thorpe St, B5 4AT
0121 666 6622
CIELO 6 Oozells Square,
Brindleyplace, B1 2JB
0121 632 6882
COAST TO COAST 9
Brindleyplace, Broad
Street, B1 2HJ
COTE The Mailbox,
B1 1RX 0121 631 1587
CUCINA RUSTICA 24
Ludgate Hill, B3 1DX
0121 233 2277
DEL VILLAGGIO
Unit 528, Middle Mall,
The Bullring. B5 4BE
0121 643 1400
EDMUNDS 6 Brindley
place, B1 2JB 0121 633
4944
FLEET STREET KITCHEN
Fleet Street, Islington
Gates, B3 1JH 0121 236
0100
ITIHAAS 18 Fleet St, B3
1JL 0121 212 3383
JAMIE’S ITALIAN Middle
Mall, Bullring Shopping
Centre, B5 4BE
0121 270 3610
JIMMY SPICES Regency
Wharf, Broad St, B1 2DS
0121 643 2111
LAS IGUANAS Arcadian
Centre, Hurst St, B5 4TD
0121 622 4466
LASAN 3-4 Dakota
Buildings, James St, St
Paul’s Square, B3 1SD
0121 212 3664
THE LOFT LOUNGE
143 Bromsgrove St,
B5 6RG 0121 622 2444
LOVES The Glasshouse,
Browning St, B16 8FL
0121 454 5151
MECHU 47 - 59 Summer
Row, B3 1JJ 0121 212
1661
METRO BAR & GRILL 73
Cornwall St B3 2DF
0121 200 1911
MINT Yew Tree Retail
Park, Stoney Lane
Yardley, B25 8YP
0121 789 8908
MOUNT FUJI The Bullring,
B5 4BH 0121 633 9853
OPUS 54 Cornwall St,
B3 2DE 0121 200 2323
THE ORIENTAL The
Mailbox, 128-130
Wharfside St, B1 1RQ
0121 633 9988
PEACHYKEENS 1741
Coventry Road, B26
1DS 0121 764 5519
PENNY BLACKS
The Mailbox, 132-134
Wharfside St, B1 1XL
0121 632 1460
PICCOLINO
9 Brindleyplace B1 2HS
0121 634 3055
PITCHER & PIANO
Brindleyplace, B1 2HP
0121 643 0214
POPPY RED Arcadian
Centre, Birmingham B5
4TD 0121 687 1200
PURNELL’S 55 Cornwall
St, B3 2DH 0121 212
9799
PURNELL’SBISTOR & GINGER’S BAR 11 Newhall
Street, B3 3NY, 0121
2000 1588
THE RECTORY 50-54 St
Paul’s Sq, B3 1QS
0121 605 1001
RED PEPPERS 117
Wharfside St, B1 1RF
0121 643 4202
SAN CARLO 4 Temple St,
B2 5BN 0121 633 0251
SHIMLA PINKS 215 Broad
St, B15 1AY 0121 633
0366
SIMPSONS, 20 Highfield
Rd, Edgbaston B13 3DU
0121 454 3434
THE SLUG AND LETTUCE,
Brindley Place,
Birmingham B1 2HL
0121 633 3049
STRADA 109-111
Wharfside St, The
Mailbox B1 1XL
0121 643 7279
THAI EDGE 7 Oozells Sq,
B1 2HL 0121 643 3993
WAGAMAMA Brindley
Place, birmingham B1
Black Country
ARBOUR LIGHTS 127-128
Lichfield Street, Walsall
WS1 1SY 01922 613361
BANKS BISTRO Chapel
Ash, Wolverhampton
WV1 4EP 01902 238433
BELLA 82 Chapel Ash,
Wolverhampton. 01902
427555
BENGAL FUSION 174 High
St, Lye, Stourbridge DY9
8LN. 01384 891111
BILASH 2 Cheapside,
Wolverhampton, WV1
1TU 01902 427762
THE BLUE BRICK
Broad Gauge Way,
Wolverhampton WV1
1AA 01902 875301
BRAVACCIOUS 4 Upper
Green, Wolverhampton
WV6 8QQ 01902
756052
CAFE CHAMPAGNE 253255 Bilston Road,
Wolverhampton WV2
2JN 01902 458024
CASA CASITA Upper
Gornal, Dudley. DY3
1UP 01902 676754
CATELLANI’S 6 School St,
Wolverhampton, WV1
4LR 01902 428928
CINNAMON COURT Bentley
Mill Way, Walsall WS2
0BP 0121 568 6664
THE COWSHED Clive
Farm Clive Rd,
Pattingham, WV6 7EN
01902 701888
THE CROOKED HOUSE
Coppice Hill, Himley DY3
4DA 01384 238583
THE DITCH 1 Town Hill,
Walsall, WS1 2EU
01922 643215
DON SALVO 25 Darlington
Street, Wolverhampton
WV1 4HW 01902 712819
DUNSLEY HALL Dunsley
Rd, Kinver, DY7 6LU
01384 877077
FARADAYS The
Waterfront, Brierley Hill,
Dudley, DY5 1UR
01384 482 882
FIVE RIVERS Vicarage
Place, Walsall WS1 3NA
01922 646164
FOUR STONES Adam’s
Hill,Clint, Stourbridge,
DY9 9PS 01562 883260
FRANZLS 151 Milcote Rd,
Smethwick, B67 5BN
0121 429 7920
FRENCH CONNECTION
3 Coventry St,
Stourbridge DY8 1EP
01384 390940
FRENCH HEN Bromsgrove
Rd, Clent, Stourbridge
DY9 9PY 01562 883040
GOLDEN MOMENTS 2-3
Ablewell St, Walsall WS1
2EQ 01922 640363
LE BRASSERIE 5 Lower
Mill Street,
Kidderminster. DY11
6UU 01562 744976
MADE IN THAI Darlington
St, Wolverhampton WV1
4HW 01902 312512
PARADISE BALTI 7 Lower
Mill Street, Kidderminster
DY11 6UU 01562 60479
THE PIE FACTORY 50 Hurst
Lane, Tipton DY4 9AB
0121 557 1402
RED FORT Fold St,
Wolverhampton, WV1
4LP 01902 424440
RISTORANTE ROMAGNA 4
Upper Green, Tettenhall,
Wolverhampton WV6
8QQ 01902 756052
SAFFRON Wolverhampton
Road, Oldbury B69 4RR
0121 552 1752
SIMON’S 520 Chester Rd,
Aldridge, Walsall, WS9
0PU 0121 580 9293
SPICES Hollywell Rd,
Wednesbury. WS10 7PA
0121 502 0720
THE SPRINGHILL
Warstones Rd, Penn,
Wolverhampton WV4
4LB 01902 342530
THE SUMMERHOUSE 92
Gospel End Rd, Dudley
DY3 4AN 01902 676
102
THORNESCROFT
Bridgnorth Rd,
Wolverhampton, WV6
7EQ 01902 700 253
THE WOODMAN Claverley,
Wolverhampton WV5
7DG 01746 710 553
Shropshire
AFTAB 25 High St,
Ironbridge TF8 7AD
01952 432055
ALBRIGHT HUSSEY
Ellesmere Rd,
Shrewsbury, SY4 3AF
01939 290 523
BISTRO JACQUES 77/77a
Mardol, Shrewsbury SY1
1PZ 01743 272586
BUFFALO STEAK HOUSE
125 Frankwell,
Shrewsbury SY3 8JX
01743 537523
BUTLERS Park St, Shifnal,
TF11 9BA 01952
460662
CASA NARANJO Barracks
Passage, Wyle Cop,
Shrewsbury SY1 01743
588165
CASA RUIZ 45 High
Street, Bridgnorth, WV16
4DX 01746 218 084
CHEZ MAW Best Western
Valley Hotel, Buildwas
Rd, Ironbridge, TF8 7DW
01952 432247
THE COTTAGE Tern Hill,
Market Drayton TF9 3PX
01630 638984
CROMWELLS 11 Dogpole,
Shrewsbury SY1 1EN
01743 361440
DA VINCI’S 26 High St,
Ironbridge, TF8 7AD
01952 432250
DORRINGTON OLD HALL
PERSIAN CUISINE Main
Road, Dorrington,
Shropshire SY5 7JD
01743 719100
DRAPERS 10 St Mary’s St
Shrewsbury, SY1 1DZ
01743 344679
THE FEATHERS Brockton,
Much Wenlock TF13
6JR 01746 785202
FENNELS 8 Market Place,
Shifnall TF11 9AZ
01952 463020
THE FOX INN 46 High St,
Much Wenlock TF13
6AD 01952 727292
FRANK CAFE BAR 129
Frankwell, Shrewsbury
SY3 8JX 01743 354422
THE GOLDEN CROSS 14
Princess St, Shrewsbury,
SY1 1LP 01743 362507
GRANARY BAR & GRILL
Weston Park, Westonunder-Lizard, Nr Shifnal,
TF11 8LE 01952
852107
THE GLUTTON CLUB 165167 Frankwell,
Shrewsbury SY3 8LG
01743 361672
HADLEY PARK HOUSE
Hadley Park, Telford TF1
6QJ 01952 677269
THE HAYWARDS at The
Lion Hotel, Wyle Cop,
Shrewsbury SY1 1UY
01743 353107
HENRY TUDOR HOUSE
Barracks Passage
Shrewsbury SY1 1XA
01743 361666
HILL VALLEY HOTEL
Tarporley Road,
Whitchurch SY13 4HA
0844 879 9049
THE INN AT GRINSHILL
The High Street,
Grinshill, Shrewsbury,
SY4 3BL 01939 220410
KING & THAI Avenue Rd,
Broseley, Telford TF12
5DL 01952 882004
THE KNIGHTON HOTEL
Broad Street, Knighton,
Powys LD7 1BL 01547
520530
LA BÉCASSE 17 Corve St,
Ludlow, SY8 1DA 01584
872 325
LA DOLCE VITA 35 Hills
Lane, Shrewsbury SY1
1QU 01743 249126
LA LANTERNA The Old
Vestry, St Julian's
Church, Shrewsbury
SY1 1UH 01743 233552
LION & PHEASANT 50
Wyle Cop, Shrewsbury
SY1 1XJ 01743 770345
THE LION QUAYS Moreton,
Oswestry SY11 3EN
01691 684300
LOCH FYNE Talbot House,
Market Street,
Shrewsbury SY1 1LG
01743 277140
LUDLOW KITCHEN
Bromfield, Ludlow, SY2
2JR 01584 856020
THE MALTHOUSE The
Wharfage, Ironbridge
TF8 7NH 01902 433712
MORGANS 1 Bellstone,
Shrewsbury SY1 1HU
01743 239114
MR UNDERHILLS Dinham
Weir, Ludlow Shropshire
SY8 1EH 01584 874431
THE MYTTON & MERMAID
Atcham, Shrewsbury,
SY5 6QG 01743 761220
THE OLD ORLETON INN
Holyhead Rd, Wellington,
TF1 2HA 01952 255011
THE OLD RECTORY HOTEL &
RESTAURANT Lowe Hill
Road, Wem, Shropshire
SY4 5UA 01939 233233
THE PEACH TREE 21 Abbey
Foregate,
Shrewsbury, SY2 6AE
01743 355055
THE PLUME OF FEATHERS
Harley, Shrewsbury SY5
6LP 01743 727360
PORTER HOUSE 15 St
Mary’s St, Shrewsbury,
SY1 1EQ 01743 358870
THE POUND AT LEEBOTWOOD Leebotwood, Nr
Church Stretton SY6 6ND
01694 751477
RENAISSANCE, 29a
Princess St, Shrewsbury,
SY11LW 01743 354289
ROMOLO Victoria Avenue,
shrewsbury SY1 1HH
01743 233244
SARACENS Shrewsbury
Rd, SY4 4AG 01939
210877
SEBASTIANS 45 Willow St,
Oswestry SY11 1AQ
01691 655444
SHALIMAR 23 Abbey
Foregate, Shrewsbury
SY2 6AE 01743 366658
SHERAZ 79 Wyle Cop,
Shrewsbury SY1 1UT
01743 242321
THE SILVERTON the Old
Dairy, 9-10 Frankwell,
Shrewsbury SY3 8JY
01743 248000
TIN TINS Wellington Road,
Telford TF2 8AJ
01952 608688
TRAITORS GATE Castle St,
Water Lane, Shrewsbury
SY1 2BX 01743 249152
THE WALLS Welsh Walls,
Oswestry SY11 1AW
01691 670970
ZIZZI RISORANTE 39-40
High Street, Shrewsbury
SY1 1SF 01743 353232
Staffordshire
NO 5 Gaol Mews, Stafford
ST16 3AN 01785 22 9900
95 HIGH GREEN Cannock.
WS11 1BH 01543
573905
1709 THE BASSERIE 3-5
Lombard St, Lichfield.
WS13 6DP 01543
257986
BELLA ITALIA 20 Greengate
St, Stafford, ST16 2HS
01785 211968
CHANDLERS Corn
Exchange, Conduit St,
Lichfield, WS13 6JU
01543 416688
THE CORNER HOUSE
Second Avenue, BurtonOn-Trent DE14 2WF
01283 542321
CURRY KUTEER 31
Greengate Street, Stafford
ST16 2HY
01785 253279
ESSENCE OF THE ORIENT
27 Broad Eye, Stafford
ST16 2QB 01785
229988
FOUR SEASONS Swinfen
Hall Lichfield, WS14
9RE 01543 481494
THE GREEN ROOM Castle
Dyke, Lichfield WS13
6HR 01543 412121
INDIAN VILLAGE
8 Lombard St, Lichfield.
WS13 6DR 01543
253415
INDICA Virage Park,
Cannock. WS11 0HN
08712 070417
LA DOLCE VITA 19 Stafford
St, Stone ST15 8QW
01785 817 985
THE LODGE 24
Birmingham Road,
Shenstone. WS14 0LQ
01543 483334
MALABAR 1-2 Water
Street, Stafford, ST16
2AG 01785 227 500/600
MARLOES 13 London
Road, Newcastle under
Lyme, ST4 1LQ 01782
661983
THE MILL 1 Mill St, Stone,
ST15 8BA 01785
818456
THE NAVIGATION INN
Newport Road, Gnosall,
Stafford ST20 0BN
01785 822327
OLD VICARAGE 2 Main St,
Branston, Burton, DE14
3EX 01283 533222
PASTICHE BISTRO 1 - 2 Mill
Street, Stafford, ST16
2AJ 01782 263 737
THE PEAR TREE Swinfen,
Nr. Lichfield, WS14 9QR
01543 481807
PORTOFINO 38-40 Marsh
St Stoke-On-Trent, ST1
1JD 01782 209444
THE RED ROOM 7
Newcastle Road,
Congleton CW12 4HN
01260 297871
THORNBURY HALL, RASOI
Lockwood Rd, Kingsley
Holt, Stafford ST10 2DH
01538 750831
WOLSELEY ARMS
Wolseley Bridge, Stafford
ST17 0XS
01889 883179
For full Restaurant listings
visit: www.whatsonlive.co.uk
p75 (IBC) R2_Layout 1 25/04/2014 09:24 Page 1
A great offer from your favourite
independent Shrewsbury restaurant
THE EVENING
£10
DEAL
2 COURSES!
...available every night!*
*Offer available Sun until Thurs from 5.30pm until 7.30pm. Fri/Sat from 4pm until 6.30pm.
BOOK ONLINE: www.thepeachtree.co.uk
18-21 Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury, SY2 6AE. Tel 01743 355055
For full Restaurant listings
visit: whatsonlive.co.uk
Read the reviews online
grand_whatson FP May 1_Layout 1 25/04/2014 15:49 Page 1
GreatTheatre
Theatre at the
Great
theGrand!
Grand!
SUN 18 MAY
MON 19 - SAT 24 MAY
SAT 31 MAY - SUN 1 JUNE
TUES 3 JUNE - SAT 12 JULY
TUE 13 - SAT 17 MAY
BILL KENWRIGHT PRESENTS
AN AMATEUR
PRODUCTION
MUSIC BY
LYRICS BY
ALAN MENKEN
GLEN SLATER
BOOK BY
CHERI STEINKELLNER & BILL STEINKELLNER
ADDITIONAL BOOK MATERIAL
DOUGLAS CARTER BEANE
AN AMATEUR PRODUCTION
IT’S BACK - AND IT’S GONNA LIVE FOREVER!
BASED IN TOUCHSTONE MOTION PICTURE ‘SISTER ACT’ WRITTEN BY JOSEPH HOWARD
WED 28 MAY
Brand new
live show!
SUMMER
SON
PLAY SEA
12 JULY
3 JUNE -
BOOK YOUR SEASON TICKET AND SAVE £££s!
JUNE 3-7 LADIES IN RETIREMENT
JUNE 17-21 DESIGN FOR MURDER
JULY 8-12 CARMILLA
THREE PLAYS, ONE GREAT PRICE
ALSO BOOKING
ALSO BOOKING
TUES 10 - SAT 14 JUNE
TUES 24 - SAT 28 JUNE
SAT 22 MARCH
MON
5 - SAT
10 MAY
LESLEY
JOSEPH
DERREN BROWN
- INFAMOUS
HOT FLUSH
. .. ....... . . . ....... . . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . ....... .. . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . .....
SUN
30 29
MARCH
THURS
MAY
THE HILARITY
SOLID SILVER
60s SHOW
THE
CHARITY
GALA
..............................................................................
............................................................................................
SUN 15
6 APRIL
SUN
JUNE
THE FAAABULOUS
OLD. .MACDONALD
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .CERI
. . . . . . . . . . DUPREE
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .SHOW
...............................
............................................................................................
MON 30
JUNE
- SAT 5 JULY
SUN
13 APRIL
20TH CENTURY
BOY
BEYOND
THE BARRICADE
. .. ....... . . . ....... . . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . ....... .. . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . ......... . . ......... . . .. ....... . . . .....
MON 14
- TUES
15 APRIL
SUN
13 JULY
TAP OF
FACTORY
MAGIC
MOTOWN
............................................................................................
..............................................................................
THE MIKADO ( S A T U R D A Y )
I O LA N T H E ( T H U - F R I )
The Pirates of Penzance
★★★★
FRI-18
APRIL
TUE 15
WED
16 JULY
Daily Mail
(TU ES-W E D)
★★★★
Daily Express
THAT’LL
BE MOB
THE DAY
FLASH
............................................................................................
..............................................................................
SAT 19 APRIL
17 - SUNBROTHERS’
20 JULY
THE THU
CHUCKLE
SCOOBY
DOO
SPACE
ODDITY
..............................................................................
............................................................................................
FROM
6 DECEMBER
TUES
29 APRIL
- SAT 3 MAY
THE PLAY
THATCLARY
GOESINWRONG
JULIAN
CINDERELLA
Follow us on
@WolvesGrand
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Box Office 01902
42 92 12
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Festivals - What`s On Live

Transcription

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