Beautiful Classic, Cutting Edge Comedy & Brilliant Theatre
Brighton has over the years, amongst so many other reputations, become known as a city of festivals, festivals of all kinds. And amongst them is one of my favourites, BREMF or in its full form Brighton Early Music Festival. Populating its annual and apparently year round programme, it calls upon the talents of some of the best local choral and instrumental players and ensembles, but in addition, it also attracts some of the very best acts from a far wider platform. On Good Friday, you can enjoy a concert of contemplative music for Holy Week from around Europe including the beautiful Couperin Leçons de Ténèbres. The Songs of Divine Passion concert takes place at St Martin’s Church in Lewes Road at 7.30pm. I already have my tickets so see you there.
Next, a film being streamed on the excellent BFI platform. It’s Tyneside, 1988. Jean is a woman living a double life: by day, she’s a PE teacher, putting secondary school students through their paces. At night, she frequents a local lesbian bar with her friends and long-term partner. The looming Section 28 ruling encourages her to keep her life compartmentalised, until the arrival of a new student threatens to shake her world apart. For some of us Clause 28 was a terrifyingly retrogressive move being pushed forward by Thatcher and her homophobic government. A film like this not only shows how dreadful that moment in time was but also serves as a reminder that with extreme right wing politicians at the helm we need to stand strong against this kind of oppression.
Now, very soon the city will be in the full throes of Festival and thronged with performers of all kinds, and especially with comedians. I would love to share some footage of the best of them at work but given the fact that we are pre-watershed and for the most part they all have potty mouths, AK leaps forward in time to a show that will, if you’re not hot off the mark, sell out. It’s Fascinating Aida and yes we know, their work can be pretty… well shall we say edgy, But after a quick look around here they are making a poignant comment on British education…
The truly wonderful talent of Dilly Keene and her gang of reprobate songsters will be at Brighton Dome on the 20th of September so book now or miss out.
Well, that’s two tips with an educational theme so let’s move on. Fans of the west end will no doubt be thinking twice about heading up to the smoke to see top shows, with ticket prices hitting new peaks, some well over £100 plus your travel costs. It’s good to see that some of those big productions are hitting the road. We’ve already had Fisherman’s Friends and Heathers here in Brighton but over the next two years some major productions will be hitting theatres around the country. Hamilton heads out, Annie with Paul O’Grady reviving his brilliant portrayal of Miss Hannigan, Blood Brothers is back once again and yes, I will be seeing it this time for the 13th time, Lion King, Wicked, Jesus Christ Superstar, Titanic and so many more.
Recently director David Hare has criticised our vibrant musical theatre scene saying that it is strangling the west end at the cost of straight theatre.
Well Mr Hare, it’s your job to reverse that situation by finding and producing what you call straight theatre that will put those vital bums on seats and those pounds in the box office that keep British theatres alive in the way that musical theatre currently does. AK puts his thumbs to his nose at Mr Hare with a slice of great commercial British Musical theatre.
Okay okay, totally self indulgent but he is relentlessly northern so grin and bare it. Blood Brothers is back in Brighton at the theatre Royal this October.
After the break I will be talking to local actor and director Sarah Mann about her next and possibly most ambitious project to date.
AK caught up with Sarah Mann, a theatre powerhouse who over the years has brought some brilliant stage events to the city, but this year in the Brighton Open Air Theatre season she is tackling perhaps her biggest production to date. Here she is talking about The Madness Of George III.
