Selladoor Worldwide is delighted to announce that BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL will play its long-awaited London season at the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall from Wednesday 8 December 2021 to Saturday 22 January 2022, following eight performances at the New Theatre, Peterborough from Tuesday 30 November to Saturday 4 December 2021. Tickets for the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall will be on general sale from Friday 5 March 2021. Further plans for the show in 2022 will be announced soon. www.bringitonthemusicaluk.com
As was originally announced, the production will be led by Amber Davies as ‘Campbell’ alongside Louis Smith as ‘Cameron’. Full casting to be announced soon.
Perhaps best known as the winner of ITV’s Love Island in 2017, Amber Davies made her professional stage debut in 2019 to critical and audience acclaim as ‘Judy Bernly’ in Dolly Parton’s 9 to 5 The Musical at the Savoy Theatre and subsequently on the UK tour. Whilst training at Urdang Academy, her credits included ‘Campbell’ in “Bring It On The Musical” and ‘Downing’ in “My Favourite Year”.
Four-time gymnastic Olympic medallist Louis Smith shot to fame in 2008 when he won the first British gymnastic medal in 100 years at the Beijing Olympics. Following his success at the London 2012 Olympic Games Louis later won that year’s BBC Strictly Come Dancing, before going on to win the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special in 2014. On stage he has appeared in “Rip It Up” in both the West End and on tour.
Inspired by the 2000 film of the same name, BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL features an original score by the multi award winning creator of “Hamilton”, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Pulitzer Prize winning Tom Kitt, composer of “Next To Normal”. The book is written by the Tony Award winning writer of “Avenue Q”, Jeff Whitty and the lyrics are by both Lin-Manuel Miranda and writer of the stage adaptation of “High Fidelity”, Amanda Green.
BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL is directed by Guy Unsworth and choreographed by Fabian Aloise, with set design by Libby Watson, costume design by Susan Kulkarni, lighting design by Matt Daw, sound design by Ross Portway, music supervision by Mark Crossland and musical direction from Sarah Burrell. They will be joined by Danny MacDonald as acrobatic director and Aundrea Fudge as dialect coach.
BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL takes audiences on a high-flying, energy-fuelled journey which tackles friendship, jealousy, betrayal and forgiveness – wrapped up in explosive choreography and tricks.
Cheer-royalty and newly crowned Squad Captain, Campbell, should be embarking on her most cheertastic senior year at Truman High School. When she’s forced to move to the neighbouring hard-knock Jackson High, Campbell fears her life is over. But an unlikely friendship catapults Campbell back into contention with a powerhouse squad and the fire to achieve the impossible.
BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL is produced by Selladoor Worldwide, has a libretto by Jeff Whitty, a score by Tom Kitt and Lin-Manuel Miranda lyrics by Amanda Green and Lin-Manuel Miranda. BRING IT ON THE MUSICAL is inspired by the motion picture Bring It On written by Jessica Bendinger. Performed by arrangement with Music Theatre International (Europe) Limited.
PRESENTERS AND PERFORMERS ANNOUNCED FOR 21ST ANNUAL WHATSONSTAGE AWARDS
The 2021 WhatsOnStage Awards will be streamed live from Turbine Theatre on Sunday 14 March, in a unique ceremony celebrating theatre and its audiences. The ceremony will be presented by Jodie Prenger and Tom Read Wilson, featuring Amy Hart and Oscar Conlon-Morrey, with performances from musical theatre stars representing shows that were cut short in 2020, or are due to open in the coming years.
Sita McIntosh, Chief Operating Officer of WhatsOnStage, said today, “With no live performances at the moment, we like every Award show, have had to rethink how best to celebrate our industry and the amazing people who work in it. We are delighted to be able to bring together this stellar line-up of musical theatre talent, showcasing some of the amazing shows that were cut short by COVID-19 and highlighting those that audiences can look forward to. We are hugely grateful to everyone contributing their time and their talent. We can’t wait to “raise the curtain” on Sunday 14 March at 7pm.”
The line-up is as follows:
Cedric Neal will perform “Gotta Start Somewhere” from Back to the Future the Musical, which is gearing up for an eagerly anticipated West End opening at the Adelphi Theatre after its Manchester run was disrupted by the pandemic.
Lizzie Bea, set to lead the West End revival of Hairspray later this year at The London Coliseum, will perform “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from Carousel.
Ivano Turco will perform “Only You, Lonely You” from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s brand new West End musical Cinderella, opening at the Gillian Lynne Theatre.
Blake Anderson, Cleve September, Danielle Fiamanya, Frances Mayli, Grace Mouat, Jodie Steele, Jordan Luke Gage, Layton Williams, Matt Croke, Millie O’Connell and Sophie Isaacs will perform “Let The Sunshine In” from Hair. The outdoor revival of the show played on a jetty outside the Turbine Theatre last year and will be returning for performances at The London Palladium and on tour later in 2021.
Stage star Siubhan Harrison will perform “Head Over Feet” from Jagged Little Pill, which was nominated for the most Tony Awards of the season (15) last autumn.
Emma Kingston will perform “I Can Do Better Than That” from The Last Five Years after appearing in socially distanced outdoor revival of Jason Robert Brown’s musical at the Minack Theatre in Cornwall.
Danielle Fiamanya and Matt Croke will perform “Crazy Rolling” from Moulin Rouge!. Fiamanya recently appeared in Curve’s The Color Purple virtual production, while Croke performed another number from Moulin Rouge! on The Voice UK earlier this year, earning public acclaim.
Alexia Khadime and Christine Allado will perform “When You Believe” from The Prince of Egypt, which had its gargantuan West End production at the Dominion Theatre temporarily halted by the pandemic last year, but is now set to return.
Dom Hartley-Harris and Alex Thomas-Smith will perform “I’ll Cover You” from Rent, returning to the roles of Collins and Angel after a smash-hit run at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester was cut short by the pandemic.
Jamie Muscato will perform “Something’s Coming” from West Side Story, having led the show when it was mounted at Curve Leicester in winter 2019.
Oscar Conlon-Morrey and Amy Hart will make appearances to highlight some of the work being done by the theatre community on and off the stage.
Further information on performances will be released via www.whatsonstage.com ahead of the ceremony.
In lieu of nominating performers and creatives this year, the public have nominated Angels – someone in their life that has been a source of love, support, and kindness during the pandemic. From those nominations, 21 Angels will be announced during the ceremony and will receive a complimentary night at the theatre once live performances return.
LITTLE ANGEL THEATRE TURNS 60 WITH A YEAR OF CELEBRATION
SPRING – SUMMER SEASON OF THE ANNIVERSARY YEAR IS ANNOUNCED TODAY WITH HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDING:
A ‘choose your own adventure’-style live digital production of Sean Taylor’s Where the Bugaboo Lives directed by Little Angel artistic director Samantha Lane and designed by Ellie Mills. From 14 March – 2 May. Tickets on sale from 1 March (£13.50 per household).
Julia Donaldson’s The Smartest Giant in Town is brought to life in a new co-production with Fierylight. Samantha Lane directs and collaborates on the adaption with Barb Jungr. From 21 May (subject to government guidelines). Tickets on sale soon.
New digital series People Behind the Puppets celebrates 60 years of ground-breaking puppetry design as Little Angel’s very own puppet ‘Angel’ interviews makers including Toby Olié and Alison Alexander. Weekly from 1 April.
Inspired by a brand-new Joseph Coelho poem, The Wishing Tree will see ‘magical trees’ appear throughout Islington this Summer designed by artists including Sam Wilde and Ingrid Hu and populated by puppets made by local children. From June 2021.
Created with young people at Great Ormond Street, Little Angel’s co-production with GOSH ‘If Not Here…Where?’ has been adapted into a digital production that can continue to tour hospitals and hospices throughout the summer transporting some of the most isolated children to a magical fantasy world.
Since March 2020 Little Angel’s free digital series Watch, Make, Share has been viewed over 757,000 times in 90 countries with more than 140 videos created. New short digital plays and puppet-making activities will continue to be released every two weeks.
The iconic Little Angel Theatre, much loved by families for generations, celebrates its 60th anniversary with an adventurous and enchanting year of work, the first half of which is announced today.
Little Angel first opened its doors on Saturday 24th November 1961 when a troupe of enthusiastic puppeteers under the leadership of John Wright found a derelict temperance hall in Islington and transformed it into a magical little theatre, specially designed for children and for the presentation of marionette shows. Now under the leadership of artistic director Samantha Lane and executive director Peta Swindall, boundary-pushing puppetry is at the heart of this unique theatre, which ignites the imaginations of the youngest minds and equips tomorrow’s puppeteers with the skills to become world-class artists.
Tucked away down a quiet Islington street, this 90-seat puppetry powerhouse has recently built a new global audience, reaching more families and young people than ever before throughout lockdown. With children starved of culture and interaction, Little Angel adapted fast to the closure of theatres last year and made their work quickly accessible through digital formats which have been watched all over the world, with productions and accompanying puppet making activities inspiring and engaging young audiences in more than 90 countries, receiving over 757,000 views. This success has enabled Little Angel to go further in supporting their large freelance theatre family, staff and community throughout the last year.
As well as being an internationally recognised theatre with productions touring throughout the UK and across the globe, Little Angel has its roots in Islington and works closely with its local, diverse community on participation events and activities throughout the year, giving away thousands of tickets so all can benefit and enjoy this remarkable art form.
Looking forward to the year ahead, artistic director Samantha Lane and executive director Peta Swindall introduce the first half the 60th Anniversary season:
“The new season kicks off with an adventure-style play for an adventurous year as we continue to find advanced and innovative ways to engage our audiences digitally with a new production of Sean Taylor and Neal Layton’s interactive story ‘Where the Bugaboo Lives’. Each performance will be different as young audiences ‘choose their own adventure’ while they watch, deciding which way the story goes. Following this, we cannot wait to welcome audiences back to our theatre, as soon as it’s safe, to see our new production of Julia Donaldson’s much-loved story about helping others in need ‘The Smartest Giant in Town’ and look forward to collaborating with Fierylight for the first time. We are also kicking off a new digital interview series ‘’People Behind the Puppets’ to celebrate 60 years of the world-class artistry at the heart of Little Angel. We hope it will inspire the next generation of puppet makers.
Created from ideas and stories from young people at Great Ormond Street, our production of ‘If Not Here…Where?’, toured hospitals and hospices throughout the UK last February. Now at a time when young people in hospital feel more isolated than ever, we are so proud to have created a digital version of the show enabling it to tour again in a Covid-safe way this summer. We also hope to brighten up the streets of Islington with a special project this June ‘The Wishing Tree’ inspired by a new poem by Joseph Coelho. Our community is at the heart of everything we do and this is a wonderful chance to celebrate our birthday with them.
We have been overwhelmed by the response from children, local and far afield, to our Watch, Make and Share free digital series created in response to lockdown. We hope it has made a difficult time a bit brighter for our young audiences and are thrilled to be able to continue to create new digital shorts and activities for families to enjoy throughout the year to come.”
THE NEW SEASON
Where the Bugaboo Lives Digital production 14 March – 2 May Transferring to Nottingham Lakeside Arts 27 & 28 March, CAST Doncaster 30 & 31 March and The Albany 6 & 7 April A Little Angel Theatre production Based on the book by Sean Taylor and Neal Layton For ages 5-11 Tickets on sale from 1 March (£13.50 per household) littleangeltheatre.com
The popular story by Sean Taylor (writer behind Little Angel Theatre’s Finding Santa) is brought to life in Little Angel’s first made-for-zoom, choose-your-own adventure style show for 5-11 year olds.
Floyd and his sister Ruby creep into the dark, shadowy valley behind their house… a valley full of all kinds of spooky, creepy creatures and the scariest of them all, the Bugaboo!
Join Floyd and Ruby at every step of their journey, as you decide which path they take and what monsters they meet.
Directed by Samantha Lane Music composed by Dominic Sales Designed by Ellie Mills Associate Designers Jessica Shead and Ruby Saide Lighting designed by Sherry Coenen Performed by Roberta Livingston and Jessica Manu
The Smartest Giant in Town From 21 May (subject to government guidelines). Based on the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler Adapted by Barb Jungr and Samantha Lane A Little Angel Theatre and Fierylight co-production For ages 3-8 Tickets on sale soon at littleangeltheatre.com
This heart-warming tale about friendship and helping those in need is brought to life in a musical, puppet-filled adventure, following on from Little Angel Theatre’s bestselling adaptations of Julia Donaldson’s picture books including The Singing Mermaid, Paper Dolls, The Flying Bath, The Further Adventures of the Owl and the Pussycat and The Everywhere Bear.
George wishes he wasn’t the scruffiest giant in town. So when he sees a new shop selling giant-sized clothes, he decides it’s time for a new look: smart trousers, smart shirt, stripy tie, shiny shoes. Now he’s the smartest giant in town . . . until he bumps into some animals who desperately need his help – and his clothes!
Adapted by Barb Jungr and Samantha Lane Directed by Samantha Lane Music composed by Barb Jungr Set and costumes designed by Kate Bunce Puppets designed by Judith Hope Lighting designed by Sherry Coenen
Over the past 60 years, a huge range of designers have brought their unique puppet designs to life on the Little Angel Theatre stage – from marionettes in Angelo to light-up foxes in Wow! It’s Night-Time and cardboard creations in the online adaptation of I Want My Hat Back. In this new online series, Little Angel’s very own puppet ‘Angel’ will meet and interview these designers, finding out more about their experiences of puppetry design and why they love working in the field. Each designer will also bring along an easy puppet make that children can follow along at home. One interview will be released every week from 1 April at youtube.com/thelittleatheatre.
The Wishing Tree June 2021 Community project and puppetry festival
Inspired by a brand-new poem written by Joseph Coelho (Werewolf Club Rules, The Girl Who Became a Tree, Overheard in a Tower Block), six magical trees will pop-up in community locations across Islington designed by artists Alison Alexander, Maia Kirkman-Richards, Ingrid Hu, Seb Mayer, Emma Tompkins and Sam Wilde. Exploring themes such as friendship, freedom and kindness, each tree will be populated by puppets made by local children. Residents and passers-by will be able to watch as each tree grows and becomes more colourful over time, and the project will culminate in a two-week festival of outdoor public performances in June.
If Not Here… Where? Digital production June 2021 Tour of UK hospices and hospitals
Sometimes extraordinary worlds can appear in the most ordinary of places…
Produced in partnership with GOSH Arts and inspired by stories and ideas from young people at Great Ormond Street Hospital, this puppetry and digital hybrid production toured the UK in February 2020, visiting 19 hospitals and hospices from Bath to Edinburgh and beyond.
In a year when so many people have felt isolated, but no more so than young people in long-term hospital care, Little Angel have now adapted the production to make it purely digital, enabling it to tour in a COVID-safe way this summer.
If a portal opened up at the end of your bed, would you be brave enough to step through? Join an adventure into a fantasy landscape where you will be transported through mysterious tunnels and emerge into a cacophony of colour. Will you climb an enormous tree, sail away in a boat or lie back and look at the stars?
If Not Here… Where? Is free for hospitals and hospices for more information contact [email protected].
Directed by Laura Hunt Designed by Ellie Mills Music composed by Dominic Sales Performed by Joni-Rae Carrack and Aaron Spendelow Creative technologists: Clarice Hilton and Michael Golembewski
Watch, Make, Share Free digital shorts and puppet making activities Throughout the year youtube.com/thelittleatheatre.
Little Angel Theatre’s popular Watch, Make, Share series of digital shorts and puppetry-making activities will continue into 2021, with a new short and craft activity released every two weeks. The upcoming programme:
From 28 February – The World of Sound Scribbles by Little Bean Theatre (as part of Chinese Arts Now Festival) Babies are always curious about sound, they make a lot of sound in their daily lives too! Have you ever thought that these sounds they make are actually music? Let Little Bean bring you to the sensory world of Sound Scribbles – babies’ explorations of sound, accompanied with original music. Part of the Chinese Arts Now Festival 2021 chineseartsnow.org.uk
From 21 March – Envis and Outo by Sam Sutherland Productions Envis and Outo are snowflakes. Every year their community undertakes an incredible journey from ice to water to air to water to ice again. But the extraordinary thing is, they can never return looking the same. Envis refuses to join in The Journey because she doesn’t like change. Can Outo persuade her that there is so much more to see?
Written by Samantha Sutherland Puppetry by Jess Mabel Jones Music by David Hewson
From 28 March – Suitcase Circus by Folded Feather Suitcase Circus is a live globetrotting theatre performance which has graced the stage in pretty much every place you can imagine a show going on. This extraordinary menagerie is a who’s who of the world’s most talented objects.
For your viewing pleasure this special online edition of our fantastic circus of discarded things will showcase; a virtuosic dancing milkshake straw, the world’s only acrobatic potato sack, the magical hat-frog Timrek the Fantastico and much much more! All of this is cleverly tangled together by the anarchic, ringmaster-sock, Wobulous Discombobulous.
Puppetry, Music and Sounds – Oliver Smart (Folded Feather) Film Production – Alexander Michaelis & Kimberley Mirren (Studio Kix, London)
Folded Feather is an innovative puppet company with an established reputation for the creation of outstanding theatre productions, socially-focused communications design, and high-quality on-screen content.
From 11 April – The Stone Soup, by Bronia Evers and One Moment in Time Storytelling A new retelling of the classic European folktale. Three travellers arrive in a village and claim they will make soup from a stone, which sparks the curiosity of the locals…
This short film features puppetry, storytelling, original music, and a specially designed ‘crankie theatre’ with scrolling paper scenery.
The first recorded publication of Stone Soup appeared 300 years ago, yet this enduring folktale has never felt more relevant, with its themes of community, resilience, generosity and cooperative spirit.
Storytelling and puppetry by Bronia Evers Music and lyrics composed and performed by Martina Schwarz Co-devised by Bronia Evers and Martina Schwarz Crankie theatre and shadow puppets designed by Bronia Evers 3D puppet designed by Tinka Slavicek Filmed and edited by Inti Rowland www.broniaevers.com
LEEDS GRAND THEATRE OFFERS FREE MASTERCLASSES TO ASPIRING ACTORS
Leeds Actors in Training (LAIT), a practical skills-building course for young adults (18-25) serious about an acting career, run in collaboration with Leeds Grand Theatre, is offering free online masterclasses throughout March 2021.
In anticipation of theatres reopening, LAIT Intensive is a series of five evening sessions run over three weeks by professional artists and overseen by LAIT and Leeds Grand Youth Theatre Director, Lizi Patch.
Running from 6-8pm on Tue 16, Wed 17, Tue 23, Wed 24 and Tue 30 March, the sessions will cover everything from physical and vocal health and flexibility, to clowning and presenting yourself at an audition. Guest artists include Dawn Holgate (Course Leader Foundation Dance Degree, Leeds City College), Sam Kenyon (writer, composer, teacher), James Lewis-Knight (Clown Space) and Dermot Daly (actor, writer, filmmaker).
Lizi says: “It has been widely publicised that our sector has suffered exponentially because of the pandemic; it is no exaggeration to suggest that 1000s of artists across the country have been affected professionally, and personally. What was an already competitive industry, will be increasingly more so as the arts tentatively make small steps to getting back on their feet. By delivering LAIT Intensive and creating a vibrant online space in which to learn, we aim to give participants the tools to unlock their potential, develop skills and engage with likeminded people, as well as highly regarded industry professionals. Passion and a good publicity photo will only get you so far in this industry; in my experience, to truly succeed, an actor must be skilled and committed, with a strong grip on reality!
“Previous experience is absolutely not essential, what matters is that participants are hungry to learn. We will provide a supportive and professional environment”
Founded in 2018, LAIT was developed in response to a call from young people interested in an acting career looking for alternative high-quality training and skills development opportunities to the traditional (and prohibitively expensive) drama school route. The year-long course, run by professional, working artists, was designed to develop participants vocally, physically, and imaginatively, encouraging an independent and in-depth approach to a career within the theatre industry.
WOW UK’S 21 DAY DIGITAL FESTIVAL MARKING INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY 2021 STARTS TODAY
11TH EDITION OF WOW’S FLAGSHIP FESTIVAL WILL TAKE PLACE ONLINE THIS MONTH WITH OVER 30 TALKS, WORKSHOPS AND DISCUSSIONS
ACCOMPANYING WOW SOUNDS MUSIC PROGRAMME PRESENTS SOME OF THE MOST EXCITING WOMEN, GIRLS AND NON-BINARY ARTISTS FROM ACROSS THE GLOBE: ANOUSHKA SHANKAR, FATOUMATA DIAWARA, NUBYA GARCIA, MISS BABY SOL, ANAIIS AND MORE
PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS: JUDE KELLY ON WOMEN AND MONEY, LUCY ANNE-HOLMES AND GLOBAL SEXPERTS ON SEX AND SOCIAL DISTANCING, KIMBERLÉ CRENSHAW ON INTERSECTIONALITY AND #SAYHERNAME, AN HOUR OF OPTIMISM WITH RUBY WAX AND FEARNE COTTON, AVNI DOSHI AND SHEILA HETI ON MOTHERHOOD AND AMBIVALENCE, ARUNDHATI ROY, WITH V (FORMERLY EVE ENSLER), MOTHER AND DAUGHTER CATHERINE AND ANNE MAYER ON GRIEF IN COVID, GREEK MYTHS WITH NATALIE HAYNES AND BETTANY HUGHES, CREATIVITY WITH BRYONY KIMMINGS
WORKSHOPS ON REIMAGINING CHILDCARE, PERSONAL FINANCE, AFROFUNK DANCE, PLUMBING, UNDER 10’S FEMINISTS CORNER AND NETWORKING FOR GRANDMOTHERS
FESTIVAL WILL TACKLE THEMES AS DIVERSE AS GENDER BIAS IN TECH, THE IMPORTANCE OF OPTIMISM, WORKING CLASS WOMEN WRITER’S REPRESENTATION AND DECOLONISING SONGWRITING
BRITISH VOGUE’S FORCES FOR CHANGE EVENT SEES EDITOR-IN-CHIEF EDWARD ENNINFUL OBE AND CHRISTY TURLINGTON IN CONVERSATION FOLLOWED BY A PANEL WITH HEAD OF YOUTUBE CECILE FROT-COUTAZ, 27TH PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIAJULIA GILLARD; JOURNALIST EMILY MAITLIS, AND ACTIVIST AMIKA GEORGE
FURTHER NEW ADDITIONS TO THE LINE-UP INCLUDE A SPECIAL INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY EVENT WITH JULIA GILLARD AND MANDU REID; A BLACK FEMINISM WORKSHOP LED BY JADE BENTIL; A CONVERSATION ABOUT FEMALE FRIENDSHIP WITH SEYI AKIWOWO, BECCA BUNCE AND GABBY EDLIN AND A CELEBRATION OF BLACK GIRLHOOD WITH MILK HONEY BEES
WOW’S INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY MAP SHOWS EVENTS AROUND UK
WOW – Women of the World’s UK March flagship Festival will, for the first time, take place online. Starting today, the festival celebrating women and girls, which is usually held at the Southbank Centre, will run for three weeks (1st – 21st March) with a line-up of over 30 ticketed talks, discussions and workshops featuring some of the world’s most exciting performers, activists and voices.
With the support of WOW’s global founding partner Bloomberg, alongside the UK, WOW Festivals and events will take place across the world in partnership with The WOW Foundation in regions including Australia, Bangladesh, Istanbul, Nepal, New York, Pakistan and Taiwan.
Recognising recent global events, this year’s WOW UK Festival programme will take a frank look at new obstacles women, girls and non-binary people now face; discussing creative solutions for change whilst celebrating amazing stories of resistance and progress. Available worldwide, the festival will bring together global audiences for challenging conversations, interactive workshops but also moments of joy, spontaneity, laughter and optimism.
WOW UK Festival 2021 events will be accompanied by a series of specially filmed musical performances curated by WOW Sounds, which will showcase women, girls and non-binary artists from around the world that use their music as a form of activism.
Jude Kelly, Founder of WOW, will launch the UK festival this evening with US based entrepreneur and long-term WOW collaborator India Gary-Martin, exploring what the pandemic has meant for women and girls around the world. WOW Sounds performances from soul singer and all round force of nature Miss Baby Sol and teenage Indonesian metal band Voice of Baceprot will follow the event.
To mark International Women’s Day 2021, former Australian Prime Minister the Hon Julia Gillard AC and Mandu Reid, the first Black leader of the Women’s Equality Party will join Jude Kelly to discuss political leadership at this pivotal time in our history atWomen, Power and Change: International Women’s Day at WOW, a ticketed evening event also featuring performances from sitarist shredder, composer, producer and seven-time Grammy nominee Anoushka Shankar and international superstar Fatoumata Diawara.
Alongside Women, Power and Change, a free programme of events will run throughout International Women’s Day on WOW’s YouTube and Facebook page to celebrate and explore female leadership across the world. Inspired by this year’s International Women’s Day theme “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world.”, each event will be released hourly on WOW’s social media channels to paint a global picture, including collaborations with With and For Girls, Women’s March Global & Women in Dev, Women in Journalism, and Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council. Plus there will be interviews with WOW collaborators from Brazil to Bangladesh and journalist, author, producer and lifelong advocate for women and girls Pat Mitchell. 8th March will also mark the launch of The Hope Brigade, a major online exhibition created by WOW and Google Arts and Culture featuring 100 women from 10 cities and countries around the world which tells a story of global feminisms and women’s movements. Throughout International Women’s Day, WOW will be encouraging global audiences to get counted in ‘Global Count’, the worldwide gender equality survey polling women and gender-diverse people right now on the barriers to progress.
Also announced today, British Vogue Forces for Change will return to WOW this year on 9th March to uncover raw and inspiring stories of women across the globe. Introduced by Jude Kelly, British Vogue’s Editor-In-Chief Edward Enninful OBE and Christy Turlington will be in conversation. A panel discussion will follow with guests including Cecile Frot-Coutaz, Head of YouTube, EMEA; 27th Prime Minister of Australia Julia Gillard; Emily Maitlis; British journalist, documentary filmmaker and newsreader for the BBC and activist Amika George. The panel will be chaired byVanessa Kingori, Publishing Director, British Vogue.The event will be followed by a performance from Nubya Garcia.
Highlights from the In Conversation programme will include; Arundhati Roy and V (formerly Eve Ensler) reflecting on the meaning of freedom in an increasingly authoritarian world with writer Preti Taneja; Founder of the Women’s Equality Party, Catherine Mayer and her mother Anne Mayer Bird discussing personal and communal grief; Intersectionality pioneer Kimberlé Crenshaw in conversation with Jude Kelly about the #SayHerName campaign and changes she wants to see in a post-pandemic world; Ruby Wax and Fearne Cotton exploring mental health and how recent developments in industry are turning our world into a better place; authors Sheila Heti and Avni Doshi on locating the complexity, trauma and joy in an ambivalence towards motherhood.
Elsewhere Lucy-Anne Holmes (Women on Top of the World) is joined by other leading sexperts Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah (The Sex Lives of African Women) and performer, playwright and poet Dr Jessi Parrott for an honest and positive conversation on how lockdown has impacted our sex lives; tech entrepreneurs Tabitha Goldstaub (CogX), Sharmadean Reid (Beautystack) and Maxine Mackintosh (One HealthTech) will discuss how to achieve gender equality in the tech industries; a special event with Working Class Writers Festival will see Artistic Director Natasha Carthew joined by acclaimed authors Sharon Duggal, Sadie Hasler and Mahsuda Snaith; and author and comedian Natalie Haynes and historian Bettany Hughes tell us what we can learn from women in Ancient Greek myths and the injustices in how their stories have been passed down through history.
Yemeni Human Rights Defender Radhya Al-Mutawakel, Sky News Special Correspondent Alex Crawford and Gulalai Ismail, a threatened women’s rights and peace activist from Pakistan, will join RAW in WAR founder Mariana Katzarova, to shine a spotlight on abuses – exacerbated by the pandemic – committed against women and girls in conflict areas, and the price of speaking truth to power.
Each In Conversation event will be paired with a WOW Sounds performance filmed at venues including the Royal Albert Hall, the Akshara Theatre – a concert hall in New Delhi – and artists’ living rooms all across the globe. The line-up includes singer-songwriter and cellist Ayanna Witter-Johnson; genre defying artist Anaiis; non-binary filipinx multi-disciplinary Kimmortal; Indian independent artist and urban ecologist Ditty; American Tik Tok star and singer Aliah Sheffield; foremost female ambassador of Gnawa music Asmaa Hamzoui and her band Bnat Timbouktou; Tunisian singer-songwriter Emel Mathlouthi; the Zimbabwean ‘Princess of Mbira’ Hope Masike; Kenyan musical and cultural firebrand Muthoni Drummer Queen and platinum-selling front woman and bassist from Noisettes Shingai.
Interactive digital workshops will take place over Zoom for those who want to actively take part. A workshop on healing, empowering and resilience from Milk & Honey will join previously announced events including; A discussion on intersectunality and Black feminism led by Jade Bentil for women and non-binary people from Black African, Caribbean, Afro-Latinx and African-American backgrounds; Performance Artist, Musician and Screenwriter Bryony Kimmings on finding daily joy in creativity. There will be discussion groups on reimagining domestic care with sessions on radical childcare and the often overlooked needs of grandmothers. Selina Flavius, founder and author of Black Girl Finance, will lay out practical steps for resetting your ‘Money Mindset’ and building financial confidence; WOW Australia will lead two sessions: Decolonising Songwriting with Emily Wurramara, an Anindilyakwa singer-songwriter, and Irish singer-songwriter Áine Tyrrell, and The Bystander Approach to Addressing Inequality, exploring ways of calling out problematic behaviour in a safe way. Other workshops will include All Cisterns Go, a WOW plumbing workshop, an Afrofunk dance workshop straight from Brazil, and a lesson in finding your personal power in a virtual environment with Sarah Blumenau.
All In Conversation events will be BSL interpreted and captioned, with tickets starting from £1 or audiences can buy a pass to watch the whole season of talks from £25.
Launched last month, WOW’s International Women’s Day Map will look beyond WOW to provide a directory of other IWD celebrations taking place across the UK in March, including inspiring events, talks, workshops, performances and more.
The previously announced WOW Live at the Royal Albert Hall, which was due to take place on 8th March, has been postponed due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions with a new date set for later this year.
The WOW Foundation is proudly supported by its Global Founding Partner Bloomberg, and Global Partner Mastercard.
WOW UK Festival 2021 is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
In Conversation pay what you can tickets: £5 standard, £1 concession, £10 (includes a £5 donation to The WOW Foundation), £20 (includes a, £15 donation), £50 (includes £45 donation)
Pass to watch all In Conversations: £25 standard; £100 including donation to The WOW Foundation. In Conversations will be streamed via Ticketco and available to watch for seven days.
Ticket prices for workshops and discussions (which take place on Zoom) vary, starting from £3
1 March 8pm WOW UK 2021 Launch – With performances by Miss Baby Sol and Voice of Baceprot
Matchstick Group – the UK’s newest talent management agency – launches today with a roster of 26 clients spanning all forms of entertainment, making it the UK’s fastest growing talent agency in 2021 and the UK’s leading agency for digital and social media influencers with a reach of over 10million followers cross YouTube, TikTok and Instagram
Matchstick Group is reimagining the way that talent management typically operates. In addition to a deep commitment to improving diversity, accessibility and representation in the entertainment industry, Matchstick Group boldly breaks with tradition by prioritising the mental wellbeing of its staff and clients above all else, as well as offering client and staff incentives to refer new business. A new agency for talent and by talent, MatchstickGroup offers a 360-management service that can secure clients major brand deals, book and recording contracts, TV and theatre roles, as well as brokering equity deals and magazine front covers.
Masterminded by entrepreneur Max Parker – an entertainment industry rising star at only 29 years of age – the digital-first agency represents talent from musicians to models, actors to authors, and social media influencers to celebrities. Uniquely for a management agency, Matchstick Group is an agency founded by the talent themselves, with both Binky Felstead from Made In Chelsea (1.4million social media followers) and Danny Jones from McFly (629,000 social media followers)teaming up to invest in Matchstick Group.
Max has chosen to launch Matchstick Group on 1st March 2021 – International Self-Injury Awareness Day – as the inspiration to start his own agency came after he lost a close friend to suicide in August 2020. Being devastated by the loss of his friend as well as the ongoing COVID pandemic and stress at work, led to Max having a complete breakdown in summer 2020. Being diagnosed with depression and suicidal thoughts paved the way to Max leaving his job of seven years to create his own company with the support of close friends, clients, and investors Danny Jones and Binky Felstead.
Matchstick Group will be giving 2% of all its profits in support of the mental health charity Joe’s Buddy Line. The charity aims to provide a lifeline to young people who might be experiencing suicidal or other debilitating thoughts and need someone to talk to or require other help, information and assistance.
AlongsideDanny and Binky, top-tier talent launching Matchstick on the 1st March 2021 includesactress Martine McCutcheon, twin deaf modelsHermon and Heroda Berhane – the first models with a disability to front a MAC Cosmetics campaign,singer-songwriter, model Max George formerly of The Wanted, Ollie Locke from Made In Chelsea and husband Gareth Locke, wellbeing gurus Lilly Sabri and Danae Mercer,and Patrick Hutchinson, debut author of Everybody Versus Racism,who rose to fame after rescuing an injured far-right protester during the London BLM demonstrations of 2020.
A digital first agency, all of Matchstick Group’s talent are social media influencers with a combined social media reach of 10,000,000 across TikTok, YouTube and Instagram. High profile social media influencers represented by Matchstick Group include: Danae Mercer: 2.1 million followers, Jessica Olie: 882,000 Followers, Dan Tai: 718,000 Followers, Lilly Sabri: 521,000 Followers, Georgie Clarke: 331,000 Followers, Grace Mongey: 174,000 Followers, Imani Evans: 142,000 Followers, and Danielle Vanier: 119,000 Followers.
Max Parker is undoubtedly one of the UK’s most successful young talent agents of 2021. A true talent-spotter, prior to founding Matchstick Group, Parker was responsible for signing 24 clients for his previous employer, 15 of which had not previously had management, making Max’s signing rate one of the most successful in the entertainment industry over the past ten years.
Due to his commitment to promoting diversity and accessibility in the entertainment industry and his genius for launching new talent, in 2017 Parker was recognised by YouTube for Best Independent Music Release 2017, with YouTube showcasing his campaign strategy globally to Artist Managers. Parker’s achievements range from two TOP 20 independent single releases from his own record label (which both got uplifted into very favorable record deals, with Sony and Universal Music respectively), five UK music tours, two theatre productions, five UK book publishing deals, and over 3,250 brand campaigns.
Parker launches Matchstick Group with the following deals for his talent already on the table:
MAC COSMETIC Ambassadors – deaf twins Hermon and Heroda Berhane
UNIVERSAL MUSIC – First of its kind ambassadorship for Lilly Sabri
NEEDLE & THREAD – deaf twins Hermon and Heroda Berhane
TED BAKER – Ambassadors – Hermon and Heroda Berhan
Durex – Valentines Day Campaign – Ollie Locke
MAX PARKER, FOUNDER OF MATCHSTICK GROUP said: “It means a lot to me to launch Matchstick Group on Self Injury Awareness Day as announcing this company to the world is a declaration of my intent that the future will be brighter and better. At its core Matchstick is all about diversity, individuality and supporting our incredibly talented roster of clients to not only achieve great things but thrive while doing so. I owe a massive debt of thanks to both Binky and Danny for not just believing in me when I was at my lowest but for encouraging me and backing me to take this leap of faith to share my vision of the future of talent management.”
BINKY FELSTEAD said: In recent years I’ve wanted to create an investment portfolio, investing into start up businesses that I’m passionate about and truly believe in. I was given an incredible opportunity by Made In Chelsea all those years ago, which was the start of my career in Entertainment but I’m fully aware that every celebrity has a limited timeframe before the next batch of young hopefuls come through, so I’ve made it a real ambition to create longevity for me and my family by investing in some brilliant companies such as NoLo (a new coffee company launching this year) and setting a few up on my own, such the Mama Being Fit app.
I regard Max as one of the best agents in the UK. I have no doubt that it is his character, values and determination that has enabled him to become an established industry leader, in recent years.
He seems to know everyone and make anything possible. Max is a dear friend of mine and when the opportunity arose to invest into him & Matchstick Group, there wasn’t a second thought in my mind that he had to manage me and that I absolutely wanted to be an investor in his business. I knew with Max behind it, Matchstick Group would be a success but I wouldn’t of believed the growth the agency has had prior to the launch. I’m so proud to be a part of this journey and with the agency launching today with 26 clients sets the tone of our ambition to be the biggest and best agency in the UK
DANNY JONES said: I loved the idea of having ownership in a management company and investing into Max was a no-brainer. I’ve made a number of investments over the years and when Max told me what he wanted to achieve with Matchstick Group, it felt really special and totally goes against the grain of typical Management. I’m a huge believer in individuality and when we created the company ethos it was really important to myself and Max that we put a real emphasis on diversity, individuality but most importantly champion all people associated with Matchstick Group, we want to pride ourselves on elevating talent and staff. No two people are the same and we really want to showcase this at the agency.
Although I’m not involved in the business operations, I’m super proud of what Matchstick Group has achieved in such a short timeframe, it’s usually a struggle for any company launching, let alone in a pandemic and with the belief of talent we have managed to create something really exciting that will absolutely get people talking!
The Barn Theatre have today released the debut recording of the song “Only A Moment” by composer, lyricist and performer Matthew Harvey, featuring West End stars including Courtney Stapleton, Tyrone Huntley, Alexia Khadime & Emma Kingston.
Matthew Harvey, who has previously been seen on stage in Jesus Christ Superstar and Violet, has also today been announced as an associate artist. The ongoing collaboration will see him work with the Cirencester-based theatre on projects for both physical and digital theatre. The first project being a song cycle entitled Now or Never.
Soloists featured in the video are Alexia Khadime(Prince of Egypt, Wicked), Courtney Stapleton(Dear Evan Hansen, SIX), Emma Kingston (Les Miserables, Evita, In The Heights), Eloise Davies(Be More Chill, Grease), Nicholas McLean(Wicked, Avenue Q), Tyrone Huntley(Jesus Christ Superstar, Wicked) and Matthew Harvey(Jesus Christ Superstar, Les Miserables).
The video also features vocalists Emanuel Alba, Katie Shearman, Charlie Johnson and Darren Tough with Jessie Linden (drums), Laurent Judson (guitar), David Kadumukasa (cello) and mixing and additional orchestrations by Sean Green.
The video was filmed following strict COVID guidelines at Fiction Studios.
Further details on Now or Never will be revealed at a later date.
The isolation of lockdown is channelled to wild and weird effect in Grimm Tales for Fragile Times and Broken People. Creation Theatre’s online Repertory Company have devised a show that twists and turns like a path through the deep dark woods and is just as unsettling.
As you join the show, you are advised to switch off your lights and light a candle – which will definitely give you the chills as one story progresses if you are watching in a draughty room!
The storytellers have surrounded themselves with a vast wild wood to protect themselves, and inhabit claustrophobic spaces reflecting the tale they will share. Grimms’ Fairy Tales are pretty dark anyway, and Creation’s treatment of The Juniper Tree (Graeme Rose), Hansel And Gretel (Annabelle Terry), Rumpelstiltskin (Natasha Rickman), The Moon (Kofi Dennis) and Godfather Death (Dharmesh Patel) plays with our fascination with that darkness with a sinister glee.
Ryan Dawson Laight’s set and costume design enhance the feeling that these are runaways from a circus or fairground who have constructed makeshift shelters with items that comfort them amongst the spooky trees, and at first it seems as if we will witness a traditional series of stories, told one after the other. But director Gari Jones soon skewers this familiar concept of storytelling, as the tales interrupt and overlap each other with no settled rhythm, always keeping the audience on edge. The cast relish every word of their stories, and all delve deep with their performances becoming more and more grim and unhinged. All the cast give wonderfully weird performances, but Natasha Rickman’s very modern version of Rumpelstiltskin (aided by her sinister little baby) steals the show.
Grimm Tales for Fragile Times and Broken People is an atmospheric and wildly entertaining storytelling treat. Well worth a look.
After a sell-out run at Soho Theatre in 2019, Typical was filmed at the theatre during the pandemic and has lost none of its potency onscreen.
What starts as an upbeat and hopeful day in the life of a divorced father soon spirals into tragedy, and the knowledge that Ryan Calais Cameron’s play is a dramatization of the last day in the life of Christopher Ibikunle Alder doesn’t prepare you for the sudden violence.
Richard Blackwood is full of energy and easy charm as he gets ready for a night out, determined to have a good time even when all his friends cry off. Set in 1998, the music and cultural references develop a warm glow of nostalgia. The writing is lyrical and full of clever wordplay and puns – used as armour and as a coping mechanism to deal with the racism faced every day. Blackwood makes the language seem natural and spontaneous, and effortlessly builds a rapport with the audience. This is a very likeable man – an ex-paratrooper, proud of his country and his service, looking forward to his weekend with his children. Blackwood’s character is well aware of society’s views and expectations of him – the joking “typical” events of his preparation for the evening, soon become a commentary on the “typical” tropes of British society and Black masculinity.
Director Anastasia Osei-Kuffour slowly cranks up the discomforting sense of foreboding as Blackwood becomes more and more aware that he is the only black person in the club and is confronted by a group of thugs, but even then, the throw away lines keep coming, but with more of a gallows humour. As he sits in the hospital waiting room, your anger and frustration will rise with him as institutionalised racism supersedes any duty of care. Portraying the brutality shown by the police in a one-man show should be impossible, but Blackwood’s physicality and commitment to the role makes these scenes utterly convincing. Even as he lies on the floor dying, Ryan Calais Cameron script reminds us of Adler’s humanity and dignity, and Blackwood is devastating in the final scenes. Typical is funny, clever and horrifying – unforgettable. A must-see production.
Funny Women Around the World Saturday 6th March 2021, 10am – 10pm Pack your bags to celebrate International Women’s Day with Funny Women
To celebrate International Women’s Day, leading female comedy community Funny Women is running the inaugural Funny Women Around The World. This exciting and hilarious virtual free event will showcase comedy and entertainment from every corner of the globe to launch the Funny Women Awards. Taking place over a continuous 12-hour stream on Twitch, this curated programme of brand new regional talent and familiar Funny Women faces, including Sarah Keyworth and Sooz Kempner, will keep audiences laughing no matter when they tune in.
The Awards were launched in 2003 and continued to run in 2020 during lockdown to fulfil a continuing need to raise the profile of women’s comedy across the world. Over the past year, Funny Women has strengthened its virtual communications and widened its community reach to stretch from London to Manchester, Glasgow to Dublin, from Amsterdam to Boston, Singapore to Melbourne – creating a fabulously international network of comedy-makers!
Kathleen Price, Community Engagement Producer, comments, I don’t think I could ever really summarise the uplifting triumph that I have felt from our community outreach in the face of these tough times, but Funny Women Around the World comes incredibly close. The passion from creatives and performers spanning across several continents and twelve hours with the shared goal of embracing laughter and empowering women will not only be amazing fun, but a sign that there are no limits to where Funny Women’s ethos and ambition can take us.
Funny Women is a not for profit; Community Interest Company founded in 2002 by Lynne Parker to give women a powerful voice through comedy. It provides a centre of excellence for comedy skills and training to enable a stronger female presence in mainstream comedy through performance, new writing and creative development. It runs workshops, comedy courses, outreach events, and provides strong community engagement. The annual Awards have launched many female comedy careers including Zoe Lyons, Sarah Millican, Susan Calman, Bridget Christie, Andi Osho, Katherine Ryan, Sara Pascoe, London Hughes, Jayde Adams and Desiree Burch.
Funny Women Around the World is proud to act as a promotion partner for Plan International UK’s ‘Because I’m a Girl’ campaign. Plan International UK works with young people and youth activists to understand the solutions they need to see in their communities and to lobby those in power, creating last impact and enabling girls to live the lives they choose. Previous successes have included raising the age of marriage to 18 in Guatemala and Malawi, as well as getting the UK Government to recognise street harassment as a form of gender-based violence.
