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may 2015 M
Image: Jaleo Flamenco
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A SIZZLING summer
We’re dishing up a taste of Spain this month with the return of the fantastic Jaleo Flamenco. Also in this month’s Magalogue, enjoy interviews with Monkey Poet and DNA Puppetry and Visual Theatre as well as video trailers, features and more. WARNING: Look out for a cycling guitarist on Wiltshire roads in May as Richard Durrant arrives by bike to perform Cycling Music. Happy reading!
BIG
News
The impact of Wiltshire Council arts cuts for 2015/2016 As you will probably have seen in local news, Wiltshire Council will not be funding Salisbury Arts Centre this year. There has been much concern from the community about whether we will continue. As you will see from all the fantastic events coming up over the summer, we absolutely will be! We’d like to say a massive thank you to everyone who has donated or written letters and emails of support. Your generosity is overwhelming and we are incredibly grateful. One of the immediate changes you will notice is that we will no longer be opening on Sundays from May onwards. This will help us balance a reduction in staffing while we work to secure new funding. There will inevitably be further changes ahead but we are 100% committed to keeping the arts affordable and accessible to all.
We’ve set up a special donations page to help support free community events and activities>>>
Sam Lee & Friends FRoots Magazine Album of the Year Award Winner Friday 1 May 8pm â—? Book tickets now>>> Fresh from the release of their new album The Fade in Time, Sam Lee & Friends present an ambitious and exciting Folk blend. Featuring Japanese koto and Klezmeresque cello, the new album extends the borders of their music beyond its national boundaries. Expect a radical reinterpretation of the British Folk tradition.
Image: Sam Lee
Monkey Poet: 300 to 1 Saturday 2 May 8pm ● Book now>>>
I
t has been a year since Monkey Poet entertained us with Love Hurts Actually. Now he’s back and this time it’s the macho epic 300 that is getting the Monkey Poet treatment! We chatted to Matt to find out more: Why did you choose to do a show around the macho film 300? I was at the Edinburgh Fringe last year in a bar and got mistaken for Gerard Butler (star of the film). No, I couldn’t believe it either, but that planted the seed. I also wanted to do something marking the centenary of the First World War. That horrific moment when the Industrial revolution met warfare. Are people who haven’t seen the film likely to get lost? No, they’ll get it all! I was lucky that the director, Gareth Armstrong (Rape of Lucrece and Shylock) hadn’t seen the film. So when we developed the piece I had the chance to make sure Gareth understood everything!
What can audience members expect from the show? It’s really a lot funnier than I’m making out! I play I don’t know how many characters (I lost count at 23). Critics and audiences have loved it, I’ve had my first Edinburgh award through it, and national press with the Sunday Times saying it was “Sharply satirical”. I honestly think it’s the best piece I’ve done. What would you like the audience to take away from the performance? There is a final thought I leave the audience with like Jerry Springer, but you’ll have to watch it to find out!!!
Image: Monkey Poet
Regular Events Enjoy your monthly fix of music & sketching
T
he regular fun continues this month with Big Band Brunch, Altar Club, Magic Lantern, Dr Sketchy’s and Hijack Open Mic.
Big Band Brunch Sunday 3 May 12noon Enjoy music from the Girls Only Jazz Orchestra. Performing Swing classics and fresh new hits, this group will blow you away with its Big Band sound. Book your Big Band Brunch tickets>>> Altar Club Saturday 16 May 8pm May Altar Club features eclectic Hip Hop collective Sounds of Harlowe. Consisting of powerful beats, funky grooves and smooth vocals, the band’s signature brand of music has wowed fans across the UK. Lyrical Monsoon joins Sounds of Harlowe on the line-up, with more acts to be announced. Book your Altar Club tickets now>>>
Magic Lantern Tuesday 19 May 7.30pm A bi-monthly series of events for local filmmakers of all levels of experience, featuring masterclass sessions plus networking and discussion slots to showcase and critique your own recent or in-progress work. Dr Sketchy’s Wednesday 20 May 7.30pm With Dr Sketchy’s growing in popularity, don’t miss the May event with exciting drawing rounds, fabulous burlesque and cabaret models, risque performance, great music and prizes. Enjoy a night of quality artistic entertainment with an edge. Grab your pencils and sketchbooks and head down for a wild, arty night out. Book your Dr Sketchy’s tickets>>> Hijack Open Mic Thursday 21 May 5 - 7pm Hijack Open Mic returns with another line-up of talented young performers. There is no need to book a ticket for this free event; just turn up and enjoy live music and more from some of our community’s bright young artists.
Image: Dr Sketchy’s January
Exposure
“An extraordinary ten minutes” Lyn Gardner, The Guardian
Tuesday 5 & Wednesday 6 May ● Book now>>>
N
ow that spring has officially sprung it’s time to try something different. What could be more unusual than a ten-minute one-toone performance in the dressing room of a theatre, exploring the act of looking and how we see ourselves and others? Exposure is a new piece of performance art from Bristol based artist Jo Bannon. It promises a tender and tentative look into autobiography, taking inspiration from Bannon’s own experiences growing up with albinism. The performer leads each single audience member on a journey through our relationship with looking. It asks how we see, how we believe others see us and if we can ever really be seen. But if the idea of spending even ten minutes alone with a performer fills you with dread, take a look at this review from theatre critic Matt Trueman, in which he describes how little Bannon needs from her audience to create something special: “She’s sat in the dark and we’re sat opposite. Through headphones, we hear her recorded voice […] Exposure builds to a moment of illumination. Bannon’s voice lays the ground for it. In a moment,
she says, the lights will come on and you’ll get the chance to look. But – and it’s a big but – know this: while you look, I’ll be looking back; seeing means being seen. It’s a trade, an exchange, a meeting. It’s a dialogue between dilating pupils. The lights flash on. You share a look. The lights go off. The image remains, burned on a retina, burned into memory, over-exposed.” Total Theatre’s Thomas Bacon also praises Exposure’s gentle yet powerful interaction: “Jo’s work is expertly edited; it is both a joy and a treasure to be given a moment which you may feel is unique to you […] It is not a social stand-off, but a sense of knowing that we now openly observe one another; it is awkward, charming, comforting and true […] a rare occasion where you may leave the space wanting to thank the artist rather than simply congratulate them.” If you want to experience a small show that delivers big revelations, Exposure could be an eye-opening adventure.
Read Matt Trueman’s review>>>
Image: Jo Bannon
Film May is a month of award-winning films as we welcome the Golden Globe Best Foreign Language Film, Leviathan, and Whiplash, which scooped the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor.
Leviathan (15): Friday 8 May 7.30pm Directed by Andrey Svyagintsev, Leviathan is an absorbing drama about a battle against corruption in a Russian coastal town.
Inspired by the Old Testament’s Book of Job, Leviathan tells a David and Goliath story of one man fighting an unscrupulous mayor to save his home.
Book your tickets now>>>
Images: Leviathan, Whiplash, Who is Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Whiplash (15):
Who is Mohsen Makhmalbaf?
Thursday 14 May 7.30pm
Saturday 23 May 7.30pm
An intense and exhilarating American drama about a young drummer’s drive to be the best.
An evening with the acclaimed Iranian film-maker Mohsen Makhmalbaf. Hear him discuss one of his most personal films along with the UK premiere of a documentary about his extraordinary filmmaking family.
When Andrew enrols at a cut-throat music conservatory his passion for perfection spirals into obsession, as his ruthless teacher pushes him to the brink of his ability.
Book your tickets now>>>
Book your tickets now>>>
Click the images above to watch trailers of upcoming films. View all Summer 2015 films and book your tickets now >>> View all the Ageas Salisbury International Arts Festival films >>>
Chicken Licken Saturday 9 May 11am & 2.15pm ● Book now>>>
W
hen we heard we were getting a stage show of Chicken Licken it brought back some wonderful memories of our favourite children’s stories. We chatted to expert puppeteer Adam Bennett to find out more:
What new things do you bring to this classic tale? It’s a mix of THREE classic tales! We loved the quality of the language and illustrations of the classic stories from the Ladybird collection. The three stories are ‘Chicken Licken’, ‘The Little Red Hen’ and ‘The Sly Fox and the Little Red Hen’. The stories are all set in the domestic setting of baking and cooking which bind the stories together as the chick is born from an egg, the hen wants to bake bread and the fox wants a roast chicken dinner. The music is an original composition by Jon Owen - a very jazzy banjo and bass feel - which I said should have the flavour of bread. I think it does but the audience can decide for themselves. For myself I bring a variety of puppetry skills - shadow, rod and rod marionette as well as a smattering of circus juggling and clowning to the mix.
For those unfamiliar with the tale, what are the main themes our audience can expect? The main themes are the difference between being young/silly and old/wise, being brave in the face of danger, getting the fate you deserve and never giving up even when things seem to be going very badly. Also, that sometimes you have to be patient and wait, because some things in life are worth waiting for. What is that special ingredient that makes Chicken Licken the perfect family treat this summer? That delicious combination of ingredients that shouldn’t go together but somehow perfectly combine - in the case of Chicken Licken it is laughing at something completely silly while at the same time being riveted to your seat with concern and anticipation of a terrible fate that seems to await. What would you like the audience to take away from the performance? To know that bread doesn’t rise if you don’t add the yeast, that you should never juggle eggs unless you’re a proper juggler and that it’s OK to play with your food!
Image: Chicken Licken
Jaleo Flamenco
Friday 15 May 8pm ● Book tickets now>>>
W
e’re dishing up a taste of Spain this month as Jaleo Flamenco returns to perform A Compás:
To add to the Spanish theme, our café team is offering paella suppers to book in advance as part of a special ‘Dinner & a Show’ ticket.
Formed in 1988 by award winning artists from Seville, Jaleo Flamenco first toured outside Spain during the autumn of that year. During August 1991 Britain’s Granada Television spent a week in Seville filming a full length documentary about Jaleo.
The evening is kindly sponsored by Sorvio Insurance, who has helped us to bring this fantastic group to Salisbury.
Over the past years their many stage performances, television appearances, radio broadcasts, workshops and recordings have made a considerable contribution to the general understanding of Flamenco. Featuring some of Spain’s finest artists, A Compás charts an evocative musical journey through the diverse Flamenco regions of Andalusia. The performance features intoxicating rhythms, heart wrenching vocals, explosive footwork and virtuoso guitar playing.
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Image: Joli Vyann ‘Stateless’
Ageas Salisbury International Arts Festival Friday 22 May - Saturday 6 June View the full line-up on the Festival website>>>
I
t’s that time again and we’ll be welcoming lots of exciting festival events into our venue in May and June. For full details head on over to the Festival website. In the meantime, discover the events that we will be co-promoting with the festival over the next few pages:
Joli Vyann: Stateless
Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat
Dance meets theatre and circus as Joli Vyann explores the topical subjects of refugees, immigration and journeys.
An evening of sensual and exotic melodies inspired by the traditional Folk music of Iran.
Powerful stories of emotional upheaval and the fates of people crossing borders unfold with intense physicality, hand-tohand acrobatics and bodies flying and falling.
Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat are prohibited from performing publicly at home yet their fusion-based music has been hailed the world over. The sisters’ music is rooted in historic Persian poetry and given a contemporary twist that resonates with 21st Century audiences.
Thursday 28 May 7.30pm
Book now>>>
Wednesday 3 June 8pm
Book now>>>
Beatboxing bonanza! Shlomo’s Beatboxing for Kids Saturday 6 June 4pm
Enjoy a dynamic world of funny sound effects, brilliant noises and cool music from a world record-breaking human beatboxer. Shlomo can make all kinds of music using just his mouth and a microphone. Join the sonic superhero on an exciting journey for all ages.
Book now>>>
Shlomo’s #NewRules Saturday 6 June 8pm
A whirlwind of beats, basslines and bleeding edge technology from one of the world’s finest beatboxers. #NewRules explores Shlomo’s unique relationship with technology and pushes the concept of voice vs machine to new limits.
Book now>>>
Image: Shlomo
Independent Events Every year we hire out the building to lots of exciting groups and companies. Here’s just a taste of the artistic events other people are running at Salisbury Arts Centre.
M
ay brings three exciting independent arts events, which we’re delighted to be hosting:
The Alphabet Business Convention Saturday 2 May 5.30pm £20 | £15 students and benefit claimants The Alphabet Business Convention is a musical extravaganza celebrating the legendary cult musician, composer and producer Tim Smith. Formed in the late seventies, his iconic band Cardiacs were a thrilling combination of postpunk rock and psychedelic pop. Richard Durrant: Cycling Music Lap 2 Wednesday 13 May 7.30pm £14 | £12 concessions | £5 under 16 years After a successful, 1,500 mile, seven week Cycling Music tour last year the UK’s busiest virtuoso guitarist is back in the saddle.
Ever the maverick Richard Durrant will arrive for his gig by bike carrying everything he needs! The show will feature Durrant’s own Cycling Music, which was used during the BBC’s coverage of last year’s Le Tour. The cycling minstrel will also find room in his cycle trailer for his favourite ukulele on which he’ll perform works by JS Bach. SOUTH Poetry Magazine Thursday 14 May 7.30pm £4 SOUTH Poetry Magazine is one of the longest running poetry magazines in England. SOUTH has earned a special place on the poetry scene, having pioneered a unique system of selection aimed at giving all poets the best possible chance of getting published. SOUTH has just reached its half-century and invites you to attend the launch of SOUTH 51. Come and hear readings from contributors to the magazine and featured poet, Anne Peterson from Bournemouth.
View all independent events taking place at Salisbury Arts Centre>>>
Image: Richard Durrant
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