Home

The Great Yorkshire Fringe was such a huge success last year that it’s coming back – and promising to deliver the very best comedians, music and family entertainment from all over the world to the centre of York.

The inaugural 2015 Festival, on a temporary village green in Parliament Street, proved a hit with both residents and visitors to the city, with more than 120,000 people flocking to a festival of entertainment, music, cabaret, magic and theatre.

Building on that success and expanding with a weird, wise and wonderful 10-day festival by an extra week – so there will be 17 days of comedy, variety and family entertainment, again centred on Parliament Street, from Friday 15th to Sunday 31st July, 2016

Festival founder Martin Witts said today: “We’ll be announcing the first acts very shortly and tickets will be going on sale – to be the first to hear, sign up to our online mailing list at www.greatyorkshirefringe.com. We have some of the biggest names in comedy signed up and others that will be new to the region. We promise to deliver a non-stop cavalcade of laughs over the summer.”
The competition judges will include professionals currently working in the comedy industry. Past judges have included comedy critics from the Guardian, Independent, Time Out and Chortle, plus industry agents and promoters.New Comedian of the Year 2016: At the heart of the Festival we’re thrilled to announce the return of The Great Yorkshire Fringe New Comedian of the Year competition. Following in the footsteps of our highly successful, sold out 2015 competition, the search is now on for our 2016 champion. We’re looking for the best up and coming comedians from Yorkshire and beyond to compete in daily heats throughout the Fringe, with a grand final on Sunday 31 July. Last year, Tom Taylor, aged 23 from Harrogate, was crowned the very first Great Yorkshire Fringe New Comedian of the Year. Tom beat 74 other aspiring comedians, who took part over eight daily heats, to win the competition.

The 2016 winner will receive The Golden Pudding Award, £750, and the opportunity to perform at Leicester Square Theatre. Second place prize will be £500 and third place £250.

The competition is open to any non-professional act who’s been performing for five years or less and entries from character acts, musical acts, and sketch groups are welcome. The only restriction is that all contestants must stick to 5 minutes of original material or risk disqualification.

Entries will open on Monday 11 January 2016 and are on a first come first serve basis. Entrants must be available for a heat between Friday 15 and Saturday 30 July 2016 (excluding Mondays 18 & 25), and the final on Sunday 31 July.

 

ALL OR NOTHING, a Mod Musical about the legendary English band The Small Faces, will play in London at The Vaults Theatre, Waterloo from 31st March to 30th April 2016.

ALL OR NOTHING tells the exciting, poignant, and bittersweet tale of Kenney Jones, Ian McLagan, Ronnie Lane and Steve Marriott; four charismatic young kids from East London with humour, attitude, passion and above all talent. The Small Faces were rocketed into the big time only to discover the path to fantastic success is heaving with exploitation, corruption, betrayal and ultimately tragedy.
Their journey in the music business is as vivid and colourful as their music. And theirs is a legacy which lives on – raw and soulful music which inspired a whole new generation of stars including Paul Weller and The Jam, Oasis, Blur, The Verve, Ocean Colour Scene, and The Arctic Monkeys. Not to mention millions of fans.Telling the rollercoaster story of The Small Faces, ALL OR NOTHING celebrates the unique sound of the iconic Mod band. The musical is packed full of all the timeless hits, including the brilliant Whatcha Gonna Do About It, Tin Soldier, Lazy Sunday, Here Comes the Nice, Itchycoo Park and of course All or Nothing.

In 1964, a new phenomenon exploded on to the dingy British streets. It was the essence of all that was cool. It was Mod. Mods stuck two fingers up at the class-ridden society and its dull redundant culture. They were working-class free spirits who rode sexy streamlined Italian Vespas or Lambrettas.

The sharpest Mod of all was known as a ‘face’. The Small Faces encapsulated all that is Mod, a unique blend of taste and testosterone, neat, clothes obsessed, and streetwise. But these cult sophisticates shared another passion, their dedication to ‘Rhythm and Blues.’

ALL OR NOTHING was tried out in 2013 in Brighton to critical acclaim featuring PP Arnold, Mollie Marriott, Chris Farlowe and Danny Dyer, who said, “All Or Nothing’ has got it all; Drama, pathos, humour and style. Not to mention brilliant music!”

The show is written by Carol Harrison, who also stars, an award-winning actress and writer, well known for her theatre and TV work. Carol is probably best known as the exciting, fiery and passionate Louise Raymond in Eastenders. The storyline between her and son-in-law Grant Mitchell gripped the nation and it was for this storyline that Eastenders won the BAFTA for ”Best Soap” for the first time. For seven years she played the incorrigible Gloria in the popular series Brushstrokes, and also starred opposite Ray Winstone as sassy Loretta in the comedy series Get Back. She also starred as Dorothy in two series of London’s Burning. Her latest TV movie Martha, Jac a Sianco for S4C won six BAFTA awards.

All or nothing the Mod musical

ALL OR NOTHING is directed by BAFTA winner Tony McHale, a renowned writer and director for television, with hundreds of hours of screen credits to his name. These include Murphy’s Law, Waking the Dead, Silent Witness, Dangerfield, Eastenders, Boon as well as his own international award-winning five hour television thriller made by London Films for the BBC, Resort to Murder, winner of the Cologne Film and Television Festival. He co-created the BBC hospital drama Holby City for which he won a BAFTA for Best Continuing Drama and was until recently the programme’s Executive Producer and Series Consultant.

The show is sponsored by Ben Sherman, and is endorsed and supported by many of those who feature in its story. There will be Snap Gallery exhibition starting in March at The Vaults.

The 176 seat Vaults Theatre is part of The Vaults – a multi-disciplinary arts space buried deep in the tunnels underneath Waterloo station. The Vaults looks for new work and theatre companies which push the boundaries, are brave, exciting and challenging.

LISTINGS INFORMATION
31 March to 30 April 2016
Press Night 7.30pm on Thursday 7 April
Performances: Tuesday – Saturday 7.30pm
Saturday and Sunday Matinees at 3.00pm
Tickets from £20
the-vaults.org

THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL PANTO IS BACK IN TOWN!

Nanny Nellie Nightnurse, Robin Hood and the dastardly Sheriff of Nottingham took time out of rehearsals at the City Varieties in Leeds to pose for a quick pic ahead of the opening of Robin Hood the Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto at the end of the month.

“The City Varieties Rock ‘n’ Roll pantomime has become a necessary-date-in-the-diary throughout the festive period,” says Ian Sime, General Manager at City Varieties. “It’s fair to say it’s a bit of a Leeds tradition – the fact that we welcome people back year on year is wonderful.”

The soundtrack is played live on stage by the cast and is crammed with covers of big hit songs; this year’s treats include Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, The Clash, Meatloaf and Bob Marley.

“The cast are extraordinarily talented,” Ian continues. “The atmosphere is electric and has audiences, young and old, dancing in the aisles; the feedback we receive from audiences is fabulous.”

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto has everything audiences expect from a traditional family pantomime – slapstick comedy, audience interaction and outlandish costumes – with the bonus of a rocking soundtrack and the now-legendary ‘boulder fight’- if you’ve been before you’ll know exactly what the ‘boulder fight’ is; if you haven’t then there’s only one way to find out. In the words of Ian Sime:

“You won’t see anything like this anywhere else in Yorkshire. It’s a real treat.”

 

Robin Hood the Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto is at City Varieties Music Hall from Friday November 27^th to Sunday January 10^th.

Tickets are on sale now priced from £15 to £22 with concessions, group discounts and school group prices available.

 

Book online at cityvarieties.co.uk  or call 0113 243 08 08

 

IAN MCKELLEN HOSTS

PARK THEATRE’S CHARITY GALA DINNER AT STOKE NEWINGTON TOWN HALL

STAR STUDDED EVENT RAISES £215,000

FUNDS GO TO SUPPORT THEATRE’S VITAL COMMUNITY WORK AND INNOVATIVE THEATRE

 

On Thursday 12 November, over 300 guests joined Park Theatre Artistic Director Jez Bond, theatre staff and volunteers at a gala fundraising dinner at Stoke Newington Town Hall, hosted in inimitable style by Ian McKellen. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North and a longtime supporter of Park Theatre’s work, attended with wife Laura Alvarez.

 

Broadcaster Clive Anderson led a lively auction for a luxurious selection of donated prizes, including money-can’t-buy experiences such as dinner with Benedict Cumberbatch and ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul’ evening of home cooking with Maureen Lipman. The auction alone raised £133,500, and the overall total raised from the evening was £215,000.

 

Guests and friends of the theatre present included Alex Hanson, Alison Steadman, Anita Dobson, Derek Jacobi Frances Barber, Gillian Anderson, Greg Wise, Hattie Morahan, Honeysuckle Weeks, Jane Asher, Janet Street Porter, Jemma Redgrave, Matthew Horne, Matthew Kelly, Orlando Bloom, Owen Jones, Samantha Bond, Tamzin Outhwaite, Tanya Franks, Tanya Moodie, Tim McInnerny and Tracy Ullman.

Jez Bond said, “Our gala was an immense team effort, and a culmination of months of work. As a charity, Park Theatre relies heavily on volunteers from its local neighbourhood and their support on the night was extraordinary. A big thank you also to all our sponsors, and of course the many stars of stage and screen who gave their time and support on the night, helping us to grow our reputation as a force to be reckoned with. A very special thank you to Clive Anderson for running the auction, and to our generous host Ian McKellen who presided over the night with impeccable style, wit and wizardly magic. I also would like to thank all our guests who bought tickets and contributed to the extraordinary fundraising on the night. Park Theatre doesn’t receive any public funding and all monies raised will enable us to get closer to our vision of remaining an accessible theatre for Finsbury Park – delivering more productions, engaging in more outreach locally, and gaining in operational stability to support this increased output.”

Guests at the Gala enjoyed a delicious three course dinner created by Boulevard Catering including seabass, lamb with a Meaux mustard sauce and frangipane apple tart, accompanied by Prosecco and wines provided by award-winning producers Casanova, Tenuta Cavalier Pepe and CARM.

 

Magician Neil Henry wowed guests at their tables with breathtaking close-up tricks, and musical entertainment was provided by City Academy Hackney Community Gospel Choir, Get Funked andDJ Annie O.

 

A photo of this year’s cast of Dick Whittington (and his meerkat) which is taking place at the Signal Box Theatre at the National Railway Museum.

The cast met yesterday at the museum for their first site visit at their new home whilst York Theatre Royal is closed for a £4.1million redevelopment project.

The UK’s longest serving pantomime dame Berwick Kaler said of this once-in-a-lifetime pantomime:

Artistic Director Damian Cruden has gone to great lengths to try and get rid of me but his latest effort is quite ingenious. However the laugh is on him because I have found a substitute theatre just a couple of hundred yards away from my beloved Theatre Royal – the one thousand seat Signal Box Theatre at the National Railway Museum. So while Cruden is looking for his ancestors below ground, me and ‘me babbies and bairns’ will be enjoying Dick Whittington (and his meerkat) which promises to be a hilarious and unique experience.

This will be Berwick’s 37^th year as York Theatre Royal’s pantomime dame.

Photo credit: Anthony Robling

The cast are (left to right):

Front: Danielle Mullan, Berwick Kaler, Suzy Cooper, David Leonard, Lauren Newton, Charleigh Webb, Martin Barrass

Back: Vincent Gray, AJ Powell, Jack Lansbury, Jake Lindsay, Harry Hughes

PASHA – IT’S ALL ABOUT YOU

Star of Strictly Come Dancing PASHA KOVALEV & His Fantastic Dancers in his brand new show.

GRAND OPERA HOUSE YORK

Saturday 14 May 2016

A BIT ABOUT PASHA

Siberian-born Pasha is 34 years old and specialises in Ballroom and Latin dance.

‘It’s so hard to pick a favourite dance because after so many years of studying and practising dancing, you can’t help but fall in love with them all for different reasons’.

Pasha arrived in the UK in 2011 as one of the professionals on STRICTLY COME DANCING, saying ‘Strictly is an amazing show to be part of and I’ve wanted to be on it for quite some time’.

His first celebrity partner was Chelsea Healey and they became the nation’s favourites when they were runners up to the coveted title. In 2012 he danced with Girls Aloud star Kimberley Walsh and was once again a Runner Up. In 2013 Pasha danced with Countdown presenter Rachel Riley and in 2014 danced with television presenter Caroline Flack and won.

Pasha has toured the UK with the BBC Strictly Come Dancing Arena Tour and in 2012 and 2013 toured the country with his professional dance partner Katya Virshilas in their own sell-out show.

Pasha was a finalist on the American SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE in 2003, as well as appearing on BURN THE FLOOR on Broadway and in the West end.

After the huge success of his ‘Life Through Dance Tour’ he will be joined again by his spectacular dancers in an evening of Dance, chat, fun and stunning costumes.

This brand new production features breath-taking choreography, sensational music and amazing costumes leaving the audience supercharged with positive energy and emotion

 

GRAND OPERA HOUSE YORK

Saturday 14 May 2016

Performances: Eves at 7:30pm, Wed & Sat mats 2:30pm

Tickets from £20, (£23.90 online/phone)

Online Booking: www.atgtickets.com/york

 

SHEFFIELD THEATRES CELEBRATES #LOVETHEATREDAY WITH NEW FILM

Sheffield Theatres, the largest theatre complex outside of London, celebrates #lovetheatreday by releasing a new short film reflecting on the company’s work – not just on stage, but within the local community, and across the UK.

 

In the past 12 months alone, the company has welcomed over 400,000 people through its doors, as well as reaching a further 280,000 people nationwide with its touring productions including This Is My Family, The Absence of War, Twelfth Night, The Full Monty and Anything Goes.

Sheffield Theatres created 13 home-grown productions in 2014/15, including two world premières. Highlights include the Sarah Kane Season – which brought the writer’s complete works to the stage for the first time since her death; a revival of Arthur Miller’s rarely seen Playing for Time with Siân Phillips in the lead role; andCamelot, a Sheffield People’s co-production with Slung Low which brought over 150 local people to the Crucible stage and onto the streets of the city in an explosive new production.

Sheffield Theatres’ turnover in 2014/15 was £10.6 million, with public subsidy representing just 14% of that figure. For every £1 of subsidy, Sheffield Theatres generates £6.

Dan Bates, Chief Executive of Sheffield Theatres commented:

We’re thrilled to release this new film on #lovetheatreday. We’ve had another remarkable year, which included a £1.9 million refurbishment of the Lyceum Theatre. This film is a wonderful way for us to celebrate our buildings and the work on our stages as well as capturing the excitement and joy of our audiences and participants.

In 2016, Sheffield Theatres will embark on its most ambitious season yet, starting the year with two classics,Waiting For Godot and A Raisin In The Sun, before mounting three world premières and a regional première: a new play by award-winning Richard Bean and a heart-warming new musical called Flowers for Mrs Harris, as well as Mike Bartlett’s Contractions.

 

To view Sheffield Theatres’ short film and find out more about their forthcoming season, visithttp://bit.ly/SheffieldTheatresFilm2015 or sheffieldtheatres.co.uk.

Olivier-nominated West End actor David Burt returns to star again as Scrooge and West End star David Hunter is to play Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol.

Award-winning theatre company Antic Disposition celebrate their 10th anniversary year with the return of A Christmas Carol in spectacular and historical Middle Temple Hall.

David Hunter – last seen in the West End starring as Guy in the Olivier, Tony and Academy Award-winning musical Once – is to play Ebenezer Scrooge’s downtrodden employee, Bob Cratchit, in award-winning Antic Disposition’s magical, musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ festive classic, A Christmas Carol.

And returning to the lead role of Scrooge for a second year is Olivier Award-nominated West End star David Burt.

Following sell-out seasons in 2012 and 2014, A Christmas Carol will play between Tuesday 22 December and Wednesday 30 December, 2015

Seen by over 5,000 people and now established as one of London’s most magical festive treats, A Christmas Carol will be performed in the highly atmospheric 16th-century Middle Temple Hall, a location well known to Dickens himself, who studied law at the ancient institution.

David Hunter first rose to fame as a finalist on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ITV casting programme, Superstar, as he competed to play the role of Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar. He performed in front of millions, reaching the semi finals and receiving high praise throughout for his honest, dramatic performances. His West End credits include One Man, Two Guvnors (Adelphi & National Theatre), Tommy (Prince Edward) and Seussical (Arts). He also had the lead role in The Hired Man (Leicester Curve and Colchester Mercury).

David Burt is one of the West End’s most respected and in-demand leading men. He has appeared in dozens of notable West End productions, including playing Enjolras in the original cast of Les Misérables, Magaldi in the original cast of Evita, Pontius Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar and Count Fosco in The Woman in White. David’s other credits include Cats, Chess, The Far Pavilions, Closer to Heaven, Taboo and Kiss Me, Kate, as well as seasons at the National Theatre and RSC. He was nominated for a Best Actor Olivier Award for his performance as Macheath in the RSC’s The Beggar’s Opera.

The rest of the cast are: David Anthony, Chris Courtenay, Alex Hooper, Victoria Hope, Kerry Loosemore, Katie Lovell, Dean Riley, Andrea Sadler, and child actors Harley Gallacher, Leo Mann, Miles Roughley and Archie Stevens.

Creative Team: Directors: Ben Horslen, John Risebero.
Designer: John Risebero. Musical Director: Christopher Peake.
Choreographer: Edward Lewis French. Lighting Designer:
Tom Boucher. Associate Costume Designer: Sophie Howard.

Award-winning Antic Disposition has won critical acclaim for staging visually striking, site-specific productions in spectacular historic buildings, including recent sold-out runs of The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and A Christmas Carol in Elizabethan Middle Temple Hall, and Henry V and Romeo and Juliet in the ancient Temple Church.

The company triumphed last year at the Peter Brook / Empty Space Awards, winning the coveted Peter Brook / Equity Ensemble Award.

Listings Info
Antic Disposition presents
A Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens
Book and Lyrics by Ben Horslen and John Risebero
Music by Christopher Peake

22 to 30 December, 2015
Daily at 3.00pm and 7.30pm
11.00am and 3.00pm on 24 December
No performances on 25 / 26 December

Billy Elliot the Musical today (16th November 2015) welcomes Euan Garrett, 12 years old from East Lothian, Scotland, who will make his West End stage debut at the Victoria Palace Theatre as the forty-second boy to play the title role in the iconic British musical in London. Also joining the cast today is Matthew Seadon-Young who will play Billy’s older brother Tony.

Now in its eleventh year in the West End, Billy Elliot the Musical is currently booking at the Victoria Palace Theatre until 17th December 2016. In addition, the first UK and Ireland tour of Billy Elliot the Musical will begin in February 2016 at the Theatre Royal Plymouth.

Euan Garrett makes his West End debut in the role of Billy Elliot. His previous performance credits include Matthew Bourne’s Lord of the Flies at the Theatre Royal Glasgow, Lorent’s Rapunzel at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre and the Scottish Ballet’s The Nutcracker. Euan trained at the Dunbar School of Dancing and is a Scottish Ballet Junior Associate. He is a keen runner and has competed for his country in national events. He is also a student of Shotokan karate and has attained his brown and white belts (3rd kyu).

Billy Elliot the Musical has now been seen by over 10.5 million people worldwide and has played on five continents. Productions have previously been staged on Broadway, in Sydney, Melbourne, Chicago, Toronto, Seoul, South Korea, the Netherlands and São Paulo, Brazil where the North American touring production finished its spectacular run. Further international productions are planned including the first Japanese language production which will open in Tokyo in 2017. Billy Elliot the Musical is the winner of over 80 awards internationally, including ten Tony Awards on Broadway and five Oliviers. In total, ninety boys have now played the iconic role on stage across the globe.Matthew Seadon-Young’s (Tony) most recent theatre credits include the ENO’s production of Sweeney Todd and Urinetown at the Apollo Theatre. His other theatre credits include The Architects, a Shunt event at the Biscuit Factory in Bermondsey, School For Scandal for the Theatre Royal Bath, She Stoops To Conquer for the National Theatre and Les Misérables at the Queen’s Theatre. Seadon-Young’s film credits include Pride and Les Misérables. He has also performed at the 2015 BBC Proms and in the Les Misérables ensemble at the 2013 Oscars Ceremony.
Set in a northern mining town, against the background of the 1984/’85 miners’ strike, Billy’s journey takes him out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that inspires his family and whole community and changes his life forever.

Ruthie Henshall and Deka Walmsley lead the adult cast in the West End as Mrs Wilkinson and Dad respectively in Billy Elliot the Musical. They are joined by Matthew Seadon-Young as Tony, Gillian Elisa as Grandma, Howard Crossley as George, Claudia Bradley as Dead Mum, Phil Snowden as Mr Braithwaite and James Butcher as Older Billy. Ensemble members are Craig Armstrong, Richard Ashton, James Ballanger, David Bardsley, Paul Basleigh, Rachel Bingham, Lucinda Collins, Peter Cork, Scott Cripps, Robbie Durham, Ross Finnie, Lee Hoy, Ruri James, Ben Redfern, Charlotte Riby, Mike Scott, Sharon Sexton, Wendy Somerville, Spencer Stafford, David Stoller and Kerry Washington.

Euan Garrett (12 years old from East Lothian, Scotland) joins Brodie Donougher (12 years old from Blackpool), Thomas Hazelby (11 years old from Doncaster) and Nat Sweeney (13 years old from Birmingham) to alternate the title role of Billy Elliot. Tomi Fry (13 years old from Swindon), Nathan Jones (12 years old from Northumberland) and Bradley Mayfield (11 years old from South Yorkshire) play the role of Billy’s best friend Michael. Beatrice Bartley (11 years old from Durham), Hollie Jayne Creighton (10 years old from Sunderland) and Connie Fisher (11 years old from North Yorkshire) alternate the role of Debbie.

Billy Elliot the Musical is brought to life by the multiple award-winning creative team behind the film including writer Lee Hall (book and lyrics), director Stephen Daldry, and choreographer, Peter Darling, joined by Elton John who composed the show’s score. The production features scenic design by Ian MacNeil, the associate director is Julian Webber, costume design is by Nicky Gillibrand, lighting design by Rick Fisher and sound design by Paul Arditti. Musical supervision and orchestrations are by Martin Koch.

Billy Elliot the Musical is presented in London by Universal Stage Productions, Working Title Films and Old Vic Productions in association with Tiger Aspect and is based on the Universal Pictures/Studio Canal film. The show is produced by Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Jon Finn and Sally Greene. Angela Morrison and David Furnish are executive producers.