magalogue

January 2014

Image: Bristol Reggae Orchestra

HappyNEWYear16

2014 has begun, albeit in a rather wet fashion, so firstly we wish you a very Happy New Year!

To counter this rather nasty weather, we’re giving you lots of great reasons to join us inside this January from the sunshine sounds of the Bristol Reggae Orchestra to a double dose of comedy with an Edinburgh Comedy Preview and our regular Barnstormers night.

We’ve also got lots of workshops to choose from and you’ve got a few more days to book in time for the start of the new courses.

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FESTIVE REVIEW

A last look at the festive season

It was a very busy December here with a sharing of new writing by our Scriptwriters Doo Dah, a self-assembly Swedish crime thriller, a Winter Wonderland and a big New Year’s eve party.

We couldn’t let December disappear into far distant memory without one last flourish of sparkle so we thought we’d share this lovely picture of Aurora, Queen of Light from Hoodwink’s Winter Wonderland.

Sneaking silently onto the stage in the darkness, Aurora achieved perhaps the best audience reaction of the year when she switched the lights on in her costume and one little girl cried out in glee...

“I knew there would be a princess!”

So with a final wave to December, here is our Queen (or Princess) of Light.

Thank you to all of you who made our festive season so sparkly.

Image: Aurora stars in Winter Wonderland

FESTIVE REVIEW

Image: Aurora stars in Winter Wonderland

BIG NEWSOutreach team on the road again

Our Outreach and Engagement team are heading out and about again this month with their next big project.

In Our Place, in partnership with Creative Ecology Wiltshire (CEW), will see them working with residents of Tidworth from both military and civilian backgrounds to explore ideas of community and belonging.

The Project was developed with the Army Welfare Service, working with youth and community groups.

Our team will be busy running video and music workshops alongside dance and theatre sessions run by CEW over the next few months.

The creative workshops will lead to a performance piece inspired by interviews with local residents. Created by professional playwright Richard Conlon and director Mark Bishop, this final piece will feature filmed segments produced by young people during the workshop sessions as well as dramatic interpretations of the resident interviews and local research.

Check out all the latest news>>>

Image: Project Florence

BIG NEWS

Image: Project Florence

Image: Lya Garcia

Wearing & BearingWearing and Bearing is this year’s Open Curatorial exhibition on the theme of Artificial Things. It’s curated by Bettina Bauerfeind and features work by artist Lya Garcia. We chatted to Visual Arts Manager Fiona Cassidy about the exhibition and the importance of a curatorial open:

Why the theme Artificial Things?Artificial Things is the broad theme for the whole programme for 2014. It came from the title of a new piece of work being developed by Stopgap Dance Company. The creative planning team thought it was a title which would spark some interesting themes so decided to borrow it.

Why have a curatorial open?The Open Curatorial call-out is important because it provides an opportunity for a curator in the early stages of their career to produce an exhibition with our support. This support is partly financial but I have also worked closely with Bettina on the practical aspects of bringing an exhibition from the initial idea, through broad planning to the fine detail needed to bring together the final elements of the show.

What attracted you to Bettina’s application?When choosing the successful curator we were looking for ideas that fitted our exhibition priorities. This exhibition was a good choice because it brings to Salisbury work that would not otherwise be seen here. It also has an interactive element - visitors will be able to try on one of Lya Garcia’s special hats and send a photograph back to her. We were also interested in the international aspects of the show - both artist and curator live in Paris. Additionally we felt Bettina’s proposal was very clearly explained which fits with our mission to talk about art in plain language.

What will the exhibition look like?The exhibition will include archive photographs, video, and crocheted sculptures. Lya is making a new piece of work, Horlage Anglais, specially for this exhibition. This expanded crochet installation will take up half of the the main gallery wall. There will be a large map installation which has been created in remembrance to the British steamship captain Archibald Dickson who saved 2,638 people from the Spanish Civil War in 1939 including the artist’s mother.

Image: Lya Garcia

Wearing & Bearing

Film

What the press say:

“Acted with knife-sharp precision.” Time Out

Tickets: £7 (Members £6)

Based on Henry James’ novella, What Maisie Knew is a tale of adult childishness and the unstoppable force of a child’s love.

Locked in an epic war of personalities, ageing rockstar Susanna and art dealer Beale go to great lengths to gain custody of their 7-year-old daughter Maisie. Both racing to remarry, they draw new spouses nanny Margo and bartender Lincoln into the crossfire with very unexpected results.

What Maisie Knew (15): Wednesday 15 January 7.30pm

Family FilmFrom Up On Poppy Hill (U): Sunday 26 January 11am

What the press say:

“You don’t watch a Studio Ghibli film so much as sink into it like a hot spring with groans of delight.” Daily Telegraph

Tickets: £4 (Members £3)

A beautiful love story from the makers of Spirited Away and Ponyo.

With Studio Ghibli’s vivid animation and storytelling, From Up On Poppy Hill follows the adventures of high school kids Umi and Shun as they try to save their beloved clubhouse from demolition.

Family FilmFrom Up On Poppy Hill (U): Sunday 26 January 11am

With the end of another festive season, that back to work feeling and the less than desirable weather a good giggle is just what the doctor ordered so this month we’re dosing you up with six comedians:

Edinburgh Comedy PreviewFriday 17 January 8pmTickets: £9 / £7 concessions (Members £8 / £6)

We’re beginning our Edinburgh Comedy Previews a little earlier than normal this year.

Enjoy an early taster of comedy being developed for this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival by Lucy Beaumont and Jarlath Regan.

Lucy is a comedy actress, stand up and writer. She won last year’s BBC New Comedy Award and has recently won the Chortle Award for Best Newcomer.

Jarlath Regan has gained a reputation for uplifting, inventive and relentlessly funny stand-up. He regularly gigs around the UK and currently performs the warm-up for Mrs Brown’s Boys on BBC1.

Double Doseof comedy

Barnstormers ComedyFriday 31 January 8.30pmTickets: £12 / £11 concessions / £13 on the door (Members: £11 / £10 / £12 on the door)

The ever-popular Barnstormers Comedy Club returns on the last Friday of January with three great comedians from the London Comedy circuit and a hilarious guest compere.

As always, we probably should remind you that Barnstormers Comedy is for over 18s only please and not for the easily offended!

Book for Edinburgh Comedy Preview>>>

Book for Barnstormers Comedy>>>

Image: Jarlath Regan

Double Doseof comedy

Image: Jarlath Regan

Image: Bristol Reggae Orchestra

Described by Venue Magazine as having “the precision of a swing orchestra on holiday in Jamaica”, Bristol Reggae Orchestra is just the thing to make you feel like you’re somewhere wonderfully sunny. We chatted to the group:

What can we expect from a Reggae Orchestra?The Reggae Orchestra is a 30 strong ensemble that includes traditional band instruments (drums, bass, guitars, keyboards) along with instrumental sections including strings, brass, reeds and percussion. We also have several vocalists. We perform original compositions as well as reggae favourites specially arranged by our music director Norma Daykin.

Tell us about the history of the Orchestra.The orchestra was set up in 2010 as a collaboration between St George’s Bristol and the St Paul’s Learning & Family Centre, following requests from members of the St Paul’s community for an inclusive music project specialising in reggae music.

The sound of sunshine

Where do your members come from? Are they professional musicians?Members are a mixture of amateurs and professionals from a wide range of backgrounds. Wherever possible we feature the work of local composers such as Bunny Marrett and the AMJ Collective. Orchestra members have also composed music themselves.

What’s been your favourite moment in the Orchestra’s history?We have had a lot of fun playing together, perhaps the most exciting occasion was opening the Bristol Harbour Festival a couple of years ago to over 5000 people!

What else have you been up to?We also collaborate with other community groups, and have recently worked with refugee artists in the South West. This is creating some interesting musical fusions, exploring African, Iranian and other world influences.

Bristol Reggae OrchestraSaturday 18 January 8pmTickets: £12 / £10 concessions (Members: £11 / £9)

If you’ve ever watched a feather dance in the wind or chased one round and round then Filskit Theatre’s The Feather Catcher will no doubt fill you with glee! We haven’t caught any feathers yet but we did catch up with the company to find out more about their wordless show for children aged 3+:

We love the idea of a show about feathers. What was your inspiration?Years ago when we first started working together using our micro projectors we found a lovely image of a feather. We worked out that if we moved the projector in a certain way, the feather looked as though it was really moving around the space. We played around with this for a while and the performers found it great to interact with so we were really keen to use it in a performance. The whole show just came out of us playing games with the image on our little projectors!

What are the themes of the show?The story is about friendship and working together. Freda is a really great feather catcher, but she doesn’t have much time for friends. Greta on the other hand is very kind and friendly, but isn’t so good at feather catching. The show is about these two characters learning to work together to catch a very tricky feather.

Why did you choose to create a show without words?Anyone who knows us will know how much we all love to talk, so the decision to make a show without words was new for us! When we started working on the piece we used some text and songs but it just didn’t seem quite right. One day we decided to try it without speaking and all of a sudden it just made so much more sense. We tested a piece in front of a group of school children who really enjoyed it, so we made the decision to make the piece non-verbal.

What does the music sound like?Mel, our Musician, has composed some lovely recorded music using piano and other instruments. She also plays flute and soprano saxophone live on stage whenever the feathers appear.

How do the projections you use work with live performance?We use small micro projectors that are puppeteered by one of the performers.This gives each of the feathers a different personality and really brings them to life. After the show children are invited to stay and see how the projectors work and have a go at catching some of our mischievous feathers!

The Feather CatcherSaturday 25 January 11am & 2pm

Catch the feather!

Catch the feather!

After a cracking New Year’s Eve event, Altar Club returns with the first event of the spring, featuring the welcome return of Captain Accident and the Disasters:

Captain Accident is a solo-project with a twist. Although all material is written, recorded and produced alone in the Captain’s bedroom, a collective of unbelievably good mates (and of course highly talented musicians) known as “The Disasters” make it possible for the project to be taken out live.

Joining Captain Accident and friends in the line-up will be the One Man Ska Explosion that is Robb Blake and Jimmy the Squirrel frontman Liam O’Kane.

Altar ClubTickets: £5 in advance / £6 on the door (Members £4 / £5 on the door)

Altar ClubSaturday 25 January 8pm

Image: Captain Accident

If you’re looking for a new hobby or fancy meeting some different people in 2014, then a ten week creative course could be just the ticket. Our regular workshop courses begin in the week commencing Monday 13 January so here’s a quick look at a few of the courses available:

Writing for Stage with Angie StreetWednesdays 7 - 9pm15 January - 26 MarchLearn or develop the techniques of playwriting, examining extracts from contemporary plays and using writing exercises to free your creativity.

Youth Pottery with Mirka Golden-HannThursdays 4 - 6pm16 January - 27 MarchEnjoy working with clay and developing new creative skills in this fun course with resident ceramicist Mirka Golden-Hann.

New Year... New Skill

Pre-school Pottery with Mirka Golden-HannFridays 10 - 10.45am17 January - 14 FebruaryA fun five week course giving young children aged 3 - 5 years the chance to play and make things with clay.

Smarties with Sharon KearleySaturdays 10.15 - 11am18 January - 15 FebruaryA five week arts and crafts course for children aged 1 - 3 years accompanied by an adult. Create colourful creatures and explore paint and other crafty materials.

Adult Contemporary Dance with Carrie MadgwickMondays 7.10 - 8.10pm13 January - 24 MarchEnjoy learning the skills of contemporary dance and have a go at choreography in this friendly class for all experience levels.

Plus children’s dance classes, sculpture, filmmaking and more>>>

New Year... New Skill

Image: Adult Contemporary Dance

Coming soon

Images: Woyzeck, Tom Wrigglesworth

Coming soon

Images: Tavaziva Ten, Night of Love Songs, Dvorak’s Russalka

January DiarySunday 12 Big Band Brunch with GOJO music

Tuesday 14 RSPB talks

Wednesday 15 What Maisie Knew film

Friday 17 Edinburgh Comedy Preview comedy

Saturday 18 Live Lunch: James Aldridge music/café

Saturday 18 Bristol Reggae Orchestra music

Tuesday 21 Magic Lantern film/café

Thursday 23 Hijack Open Mic music

Saturday 25 The Feather Catcher family

Saturday 25 Altar Club music

Sunday 26 From Up On Poppy Hill family film

Sunday 26 Salisbury Area Young Musicians music

Friday 31 Barnstormers Comedy comedy

PLUS One-off Workshops and Workshop CoursesFull programme details available at www.salisburyartscentre.co.uk or you can contact the Box Office on 01722 321744.