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Our pick of some of the best events taking place across the region this week…
Image: Bethan Kitchen, MotherFolk
Every week we pull together some of the best events taking place across the region, from music and theatre, to comedy, art and film. Read more on these, and other events, in the latest issue of NARC. magazine in print and online.
ART & LIT
From the creative behind the immense BRASH Theatre Company, writer and doula Bethan Kitchen launches her newest creative endeavour, MotherFolk. This bold new business creates spaces for Mothering Folk to help find “nourishment, power and community” through creativity and open conversations. From writing circles to retreats, MotherFolk offers a non-judgemental outlet for people by helping them to express their experiences and unpick unrealistic expectations and feelings of shame; connect and share stories; reclaim and feel empowered by their birthing narratives. Community is such a powerful tool for knowledge and can inform folks in so many different ways enabling them to advocate for their health and well being. What makes Bethan’s work so special is the feeling of genuine care, kindness and openness to listen. In MotherFolk, I love the emphasis on the language around birthing people – it’s so rare that organisations have inclusive language and here it’s clear that it is for anyone who self identifies with mothering or motherhood, regardless of gender, whether you have been a birthing person or not, or whatever point in your journey you are. MotherFolk is a refreshing, essential space for healing, and will make a powerful impact on the community. Check out the website for more info including the weekly writing circles across Heaton, Whitley Bay and Ouseburn, as well as creative retreats throughout the year.
June – Throughout the year @ Various Venues
MUSIC
With their unique band name (taken from the French model Brigitte Bardot), lavish romanticism and distinctive noir aesthetic, Brigitte Calls Me Baby’s crafted sound takes on a time machine quality, transporting you through mid-century pop, energetic post-punk and early-millennium indie rock. Frontman Wes Leavins has cited a variety of influences and inspirations from his childhood: from listening to hip-hop on FM radio; new wave records played by his parents; the late nineties and the early-noughties indie rock; and earlier-era icons such as Roy Orbison, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, thanks to his grandparents. Strong vocals are the common factor, and this can be heard in abundance through Leavins’ contribution to the band’s sound. Having previously opened for the likes of The Strokes and The Last Dinner Party, the Chicago-heralding five-piece are currently on tour with Morrissey, which is apt given Leavins’ vocals contribute to a very Smiths feeling sound, whilst his croon adds a wonderfully wistful and nostalgic feel, akin to the trio of Orbison, Sinatra and Presley. No doubt it’s a sound that’ll resonate well in the hallowed surrounds of Newcastle’s Common Room on Monday 2nd June.
Monday 2nd June @ The Common Room
MUSIC
With Loudon Wainwright III as a father and Rufus Wainwright as a brother, Martha Wainwright has been very open about the struggles she faced leading up to her debut in 2005. Many questioned whether she’d be able to escape their looming shadows or if after the success of Bloody Mother Fucking Arsehole – the blistering hit about her infamous father – she would just be riding the coattails of the track’s success. It’s clear talent runs deep in this family though; as soon as her debut album dropped 20 years ago, Martha Wainwright became undeniably a magnificent artist in her own right. The songs were honest, acerbic, angry and human. One minute lashing out, the next flinching in fear. Opening a capella, you are sucked into Wainwright’s world instantly, drifting from the stroppy to the idyllic, lilting from rage to regret. Celebrating the album that launched a career, defined a lifetime and shook the 00s, 20 years later Martha Wainwright is back on the road paying tribute to the milestone album. With a voice cracking with the same emotional intensity as it did on record, Wainwright’s show at The Fire Station in Sunderland on Tuesday 3rd June isn’t one to miss.
Tuesday 3rd June @ The Fire Station, Sunderland
Image: Darren Irwin
STAGE
Backlit by an intimate world of candlelight, Human | Candlelight sees a close-up performance of Eliot Smith’s award-winning dance choreography, performed by Yamit Salazar and paired with a breathtaking original score by Adam Johnson. Raising vital funds to support the growth of the Eliot Smith Dance Company, it’s not one to miss.
Wednesday 4th June @ Alphabetti
STAGE
Homebake is a new community night for cooking up theatrical delights, where the audience is the special ingredient! Giving theatre makers and performers a space to try out works in progress in a professional environment, this night will be an opportunity to get involved and help shape exciting new writing.
Thursday 5th June @ Gosforth Civic Theatre
ART & LIT
Dust of The Unwritten – Collaboration exhibition @ The Zoo
Commencing Thursday 5th June and, lucky for us, sticking around until Thursday 26th June, is The Zoo’s much awaited June exhibition, Dust of the Unwritten, with work by Hassnain Awais and curated by Faiza Faiq Gelani. The brand new Middlesbrough art gallery aims to be a friendly space for contemporary art to shine, and having just opened in April this year it’s a must visit space, with this exhibition perhaps offering us the perfect taster of The Zoo’s unique ethos. Dust of the Unwritten is a pensive, contemplative offering from Lahore-based Awais and was created with the intention of building sanctuary and quiet in viewers’ minds. In this digital, disposable age, Awais is eager to bring our focus back to the dust of what once was, and the architecture of memory, all through tactile, textural prints. Ever curious about the life of material, Dust of the Unwritten sees Awais use a range of often unconventional mediums – old letters, stamps, envelopes – and repurposes these things into deeply personal yet widely resonant artworks. If this sounds like your cup of tea, do get yourself down to see this thought provoking, carefully curated exhibition.
Thursday 5th June @ The Zoo, Middlesbrough
MUSIC
Now a fixture of the North East festival scene, and especially essential since the sad demise of SummerTyne Americana, the Jumpin’ Hot Country Cantina is a wonderful thing. Taking place on a small but lovely site in Country Durham on Friday 6th and Saturday 7th June, the two-day festival is a distillation of the Jumpin’ Hot aesthetic: essentially, assorted flavours of roots and Americana. Weekend tickets are an absurdly cheap £55 – that’ll barely get you into a Stone Roses covers band gig in the city – and this year’s line-up is one of the best yet. Heading up the bill are the Tyneside viper jazz phenomenon House Of The Black Gardenia, a nine-piece outfit drenched in sazerac, swing and perhaps something a little illicit too. Wayward Jane are a transatlantic string band mixing up trad arrangements and their own originals, while John Miller, appearing solo this time out, is a country stalwart, and Nottingham’s Most Ugly Child are proper heartbreak/barroom country, fronted by the marvellous Daniel and Stevie. There’s also The Niche Family, Annie Dresser, Errant Moose, Taylor & Littlefield, Mr Saturday Night, Lost Lot, Tom Blackwell and the annual appearance from Side Café Orkestar.
Friday 6th June @ The Barn, Easington
MUSIC
Penguins Per Second + The Upside EP Launch
Is there a synth pop meets ska funk fusion hole in your life? Then it’s a good job that Penguins Per Second & The Upside have collaborated on a one-of-a-kind new EP, taking you across the exotic shores of Gateshead to the farthest reaches of outer space. Support from Character Actors.
Saturday 7th @ The Globe, Newcastle
MUSIC
MUNRO festival returns to Teesside on Saturday 7th June, once again impressively boasting a jam-packed line-up without a single clash between artists, so festival goers can do away with wasting precious energy on planning who to see and when. Headliners this year are Hartlepool-born Michael Gallagher, Merseyside indie rockers The Kairos, Yorkshire singer songwriter Ellur and Welsh indie singer, Megan Wyn, who last appeared at the festival in 2022. The all day festival is jam-packed, with 10 more artists playing throughout the Saturday spectacle, including M60, Cavello, Diago and Hannah Robinson. With such a diverse line-up of regional, national and international artists, MUNRO is sure to keep Stockton on its toes as each musician brings their own flare to the stage. Making the day extra special is the festival’s location, Stockton’s much-loved Georgian Theatre and Green Room, and if previous events are anything to go by the festival organisers clearly have a flair for picking feisty up and coming artists; this year’s incredible line-up shows they’re ready to do it again.
Saturday 7th June @ Georgian Theatre/Green Room
EVENTS
Ewan Brown Anarchist Book Fair
The Ewan Brown Anarchist Book Fair is back for more DIY thrills, punky stalls, live music, art, workshops, radical thinkers and more; thriving with community and resistance, this event is always a lovely way to come together for a day of learning, sharing, solidarity and hope for a better future.
Saturday 7th @ Star & Shadow Cinema
MUSIC
Liverpool based singer songwriter and cellist Grace Elizabeth Harvey returns to the place she studied on Monday 9th June – as part of her Other Faith tour, she’ll be performing at Durham’s Claypath Deli, celebrating the release of her debut EP. After a successful sold out collaborative effort between herself, local musician Hels Pattison and Ezra Briggs, Grace recently performed at Newcastle’s The Lost Wanderer and is now returning to the place she spent many years within for a special intimate show. Other Faith is the debut EP in which you’ll be able to find a collection of soaring and haunting folk pop songs driven by her stunning and angelic voice. As she wanders through musical soundscapes, she shares stories and odes to things that have inspired her along the way. With her music she intends to captivate through questioning what lies just beneath our experience. Live, she’ll be accompanied by double bass and violin, supported by Matthew Dodd to make for a wonderful musical evening at Durham’s Claypath Deli. Having established herself in the Liverpool and Manchester music scenes, Grace will be embarking on her first UK tour this spring to accompany this first major release.
Saturday 7th June @ Claypath Deli
MUSIC
Kahil El’Zabar Ethnic Heritage Ensemble
Kahil El’Zabar is a visionary jazz percussionist who has been exploring the ties between African and American music for 50 years, having worked with jazz legends including Dizzy Gillespie, Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Pharoah Sanders and Cannonball Adderley. He joined the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) in the 1970s, and by 1975 was its chairman; the AACM strives to progress jazz music, and enable it to reach all corners of our modern musical world. Kahil El’Zabar plays Newcastle’s Cobalt Studios on Saturday 7th June with his band The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble (EHE): trumpeter Corey Wilkes, tenor saxophonist Kevin Nabors, cellist Ishmael Ali and El’Zabar himself on drums, hand percussion, Kalimba, and vocalisations. El’Zabar has always favoured the unconventional, and since his arrival on the jazz scene has consistently traded the ‘traditional’ ensemble format, for groups comprising mainly percussion, horns and reeds. Particularly in its early days, the EHE was considered an unusual format – even by the open and progressive standards of the AACM. However, the distinctive sound created lends itself to an Afro-centric style. Support comes from Leeds-based cosmic jazz ensemble Amon Ra Collective whose propulsive and energetic sound fuses jazz, rock, Afrobeat, drum and bass and funk.
Saturday 7th June @ Cobalt
COMEDY
In what has been described as the first ever comedy show performed entirely by a horse, Elf Lyons brings her new comedy show to The Stand in Newcastle on Sunday 8th June. Yes, you read that correctly. This is the story of Treacle, a comedy horse with surprisingly sharp with. Lyons has always been in a different category when it comes to comedy, and this show proves exactly why. Known for her surreal and daring work, Lyons has pushed the comedy boundaries once again to bring you a show that is as funny as it is bizarre. Combining physical theatre, clownery and pure wit, Treacle (the horse) takes centre stage in a performance that must be seen to be believed. The show, whilst a comedy piece, is as thought provoking as it is funny. It asks all the big questions about where the line between childhood and adulthood is, and whether adults will ever be able to retain that whimsy they once had. Whether you’re an animal lover, or a comedy fanatic, this show promises to twist the brain and leave you laughing the entire time.
Sunday 8th June @ The Stand, Newcastle
