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OUR PICK OF SOME OF THE BEST EVENTS TAKING PLACE ACROSS THE REGION THIS WEEK…
Image: Suitcases by Anna Miller
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.
COMEDY
Combining music and comedy for the first time, folk’s funniest lesbian Grace Petrie presents This Is No Time To Panic! A brand new show bringing the much needed laughs via Petrie’s beloved protest song style, alongside her critically acclaimed stand-up, fighting fascism, misogyny and eco-destruction.
Tuesday 23rd September @ The Stand, Newcastle
MUSIC
Indie outfit The K’s are embarking on a run of dates across the UK in celebration of the release of their new album Pretty On The Internet, which was released in July. They teased the album by releasing single Gravestone, which builds on uplifting keys and their signature guitar tones, as well as sing-along melodies and relatable lyrics which touch on frontman Jamie Boyle’s mental health struggles, as he explains: “It’s an exploration of everything that whizzes around my head from ambition to self-worth and the search for validation.”
The album promises to showcase more of what we’ve come to know The K’s for, and will be performed in its entirety at Sunderland’s Fire Station on Tuesday 23rdSeptember.The album is produced by Grammy award-winner Jim Lowe, who previously worked with stadium pop band Stereophonics and The Dandy Warhols. The K’s allow hints of rock to seep onto their signature indie pop sound, bringing a genre boundary-pushing and eclectic sound. Single Gravestone plays with similar chord progressions to the band’s indie anthem Sarajevo, demonstrating that they still know how to write summer anthems that will undoubtedly be sung back with much enthusiasm from their loyal fanbase.
Tuesday 23rd September @ The Fire Station, Sunderland
Image: The K’s
COMEDY
There isn’t any praise to shower overStewart Lee that hasn’t already been plastered across a thousand newspapers or said by critics, fans or Stewart Lee himself.The man is one of Britain’s greatest stand-ups; the swaggering and snarling style that Lee pioneered, the elaborate set ups and the crushing dissections of comedy, politics or media, are phenomenal.
A stand-up show from Stewart Lee is a wholly unique experience, and it is unmistakable to see the mammoth influence this titan has had over comedy across his decades in the industry.His new show, entitled Stewart Lee vs The Man Wulf, plunges into the dark underbelly of the supernatural and is a typically off-the-wall affair. Sharing the stage with a tough-talking werewolf comedian from the dark forests of the subconscious who hates humanity, Lee is locked in a battle of wits in what is sure to be another comedy milestone.
Digging into the very nature of comedy, stand-up and the consequences of humour, Stewart Lee vs The Man Wulf is set to be another sure fire hit from the tenaciously excellent comic. He brings the show to several venues in the North East over the coming months, including Darlington Hippodrome on Wednesday 24th September, Durham’s Gala Theatre on Thursday 25th September, Tyne Theatre & Opera House in Newcastle on Monday 3rd and Tuesday 4th November and Stockton’s Globe on Saturday 16th May 2026.
Wednesday 24th September @ Various Venues
STAGE
Edgecity: Monologues From The Street
Jason Williamson – the wonky-fringed frontman of post-punk outfit Sleaford Mods, for the uninitiated – seems to expertly straddle the line between musician, actor and activist all whilst remaining (for me anyway) incredibly likeable. His latest foray into the world of performance art comes in the form of a brilliantly affecting series of monologues from playwright gobscure, a self-styled owner of a ‘broken mind’. In this performance, they draw upon their lived experience of homelessness in different parts of Britain. The playwright’s own distinctive voice is woven into six separate monologues performed by a cast of three, including Williamson, and accompanied by live music from Mariam Rezaei.
Edgecity has been described by director Jack McNamara (who also happens to be the Artistic Director of Live Theatre, so I should think he knows his onions) as “two radical voices coming together in a very special way… These are artists who, in their different ways, have glimpsed hell and know how to talk about it.
Wednesday 24th September @ Live Theatre, Newcastle
STAGE
Get ready for a poignant and evocative evening as Hit The Ground Running Dance Theatre Company brings their production of Suitcases to North Shields’ The Exchange 1856 on Thursday 25th September.
This powerful new production promises to stir hearts and provoke thought as it draws inspiration from a remarkable collaboration with American photographer Jon Crispin and his deeply moving project, The Willard Suitcases.
Crispin’s decade-long work documenting the belongings of 427 patients from the now-closed Willard Asylum in New York opens a window into forgotten lives and serves as a starting point, “preserved epitaphs to a few of those who lived and died at the Willard asylum”. Each suitcase tells its own story, detailing the life of an individual and the company’s performers bring many of these stories to life through their signature blend of dance and physical theatre.Handled with sensitivity and imagination, the stunning choreography and poignant storytelling of this production showcases exactly why Newcastle-based Hit The Ground Running is a dance theatre company renowned for creating innovative, emotionally rich performances based around inspiring, true stories. Suitcases is a production exploring aspects of mental health and wellbeing in bold new ways. The company creates vivid theatre around the subject of human connection, told with compelling choreography.
Thursday 25th September @ The Exchange 1856, North Shields
STAGE
In The Beginning Woman Was The Sun
How can a British-Japanese girl flourish in a world where her heroes look absolutely nothing like her? This is the question Houmi Miura’s debut one-woman show seeks to address. In this ultimate love letter to heroines, history and heritage, a teenage Houmi decides to embark on a quest to find new women to idolise when she realises that the pop stars, actresses and princesses that adorn her bedroom walls have little in common with her own Japanese heritage.
Follow this autobiographical(-ish) adventure as our host whisks you away on a journey complete with “11th Century samurai, two powerhouse suffragettes and a legendary queen”. The show promises to smash each and every one of the cringe-worthy Japanese stereotypes so regularly parroted by Western media, replacing them with something altogether more fearless and empowering. In The Beginning Woman Was The Sun arrives at Alphabetti Theatre on Thursday 25th – Friday 26th September
Thursday 25th September @ Alphabetti Theatre, Newcastle
MUSIC
Some of the most exciting music coming out of Africa at the moment marries traditional instruments and voices with subtle electronics, providing a rich and fascinating juxtaposition built on harmonies and rhythms. Acts like Les Mamans du Congo, Susso and now The Zawose Queens. The two Zawoses – Pendo and Leah (mother and daughter) – play the music of their gogo heritage (in Tanzania’s Dodoma region), using instruments like chizeze fiddles, thumb pianos and ngoma drums that in combination with some gorgeous polyphonic vocals create music that’s good for your heart and your feet. If you know your African music, you might have heard of Dr Hukwe Zawose, Pendo’s father, a legend in the gogo/Wagogo tradition.
Their debut album Maishe appeared last year on the venerable Real World label with production from Oli Barton-Wood and Tom Excell (who between them have worked with artists like Nubiyan Twist and Nilufer Yamya) and their first run of UK live shows won them a lot of new fans, captivated by the shuffling rhythms and joyful, powerful voices. And now they’re coming to Newcastle thanks to the good people of Cobalt Studios, appearing on Friday 26th September with support from Kedu.
Friday 26th September @ Cobalt Studios, Newcastle
Image: The Zawose Queens by Michael Mbwambo
MUSIC
The Unthanks Present The Friday Night Club
As part of their ongoing creative partnership with The Glasshouse (and to coincide with their 20th anniversary, depending how you measure it), The Unthanks have announced the first of what is planned to be a quarterly series of events, The Friday Night Club. The guiding idea is to showcase a variety of artists of various types – from folk musicians (of course) to jazz artists, comedians and poets alongside classical performances and even short films. There’llalso be a social element to the events – something that’s always played a big part in the Unthanks’ activities from their singing weekenders to various community gatherings – so expect singalongs, talks, a chance to chat and mingle and there’s even rumours of pie’n’mash before the events.
The first event is on Friday 26th September, and features a pretty impressive and diverse line-up: singer songwriter Clara Mann, who mixes folk styles with the chanson of France; local folk bastion Tim Dalling; medievalist author Fiona Mozley and a rare performance of a piece by Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara courtesy of Northern Sinfonia. The Unthanks will also perform the opening and closing songs of the evening. This looks like being a fascinating and fruitful collaboration between the region’s finest folk artists and The Glasshouse and it’ll be interesting to see what surprises the line-ups offer in the future.
Friday 26th September @ The Glasshouse, Gateshead
Image: The Unthanks by Ben Hughes
MUSIC
Over the last few years, Off the Beaten Track have quietly built themselves a substantial reputation, presenting gigs by a plethora of highly esteemed artists in out of the way places that you probably wouldn’t expect to find them.
Editors’ Tom Smith temporarily hits pause on his high-profile day job as frontman of one of the UK’s biggest bands to head down a road less travelled with a run of shows in intimate and somewhat surprising spaces.
Tom’s gorgeously delicate debut solo single, Lights Of New York City, dropped in July to critical acclaim, and these shows will be among the first live performances of material from his highly anticipated solo album alongside reimagined versions of favourites from Editors’ extensive catalogue. As expected, shows at Great Ayton (Saturday 27th) and Ryton (Sunday 28th) sold out in minutes. If you’re quick you can still grab tickets for Hindmarch Hall, Alnmouth on Friday 26th September.
Following Tom to Alnmouth (Thursday 16th October), Great Ayton (Saturday 18th October) and Ryton (Sunday 19th October) is Mercury Prize nominated folk musician Fionn Regan. Blending cinematic musicality with a genteel wordsmithery, he has been celebrated by Trinity College Dublin for eroding the boundaries between music and literature and drawn favourable musical comparisons to Nick Drake and Bert Jansch.
Friday 26th September @ Various Venues
MUSIC
Newcastle Festival of Jazz and Improvised Music
Going strong into its ninth year, Newcastle Festival of Jazz & Improvised Music will showcase the best in international talent across seven days between Friday 26th September – Friday 10th October, in some of Newcastle’s most beautiful, ornate and individualised venues, from the expected and much-loved (The Cumberland Arms, The Globe) to the more unorthodox (Jesmond Swimming Pool, The Ouseburn Victoria Tunnel, The Civic Centre).
As well as a rich local and national cohort, the festival will welcome some of the jazz world’s most exciting international talent, with artists from Australia (Alistair Spence and Tony Buck), Bulgaria (Biliana Voutchkova) and Italy (Luigi Marino) to name a few. In doing so, the festival allows Newcastle’s detailed cultural history to be framed in an internationalist context, and conversely artists Thomas Dixon, Paul Taylor, John Bradley and lauded trio Archipelago demonstrate the region’s talents in the world of jazz and improvisation in this internationalised context.
Excitingly, imaginative reworking of vital African American artists such as Thelonius Monk, Duke Ellington and James Baldwin will take centre stage. Other concerts of note include Richard Scott’s Ayler In Sweden and Triangles by Olivia Moore and Adam Fairhill. The festival has carved itself out as a must-experience event for discerning music fans locally and further afield, and so is absolutely worth embracing on our doorstep.
Friday 26th September @ Various Venues
EVENTS
Flower Shop vs The Newcastle Project
The excellent creative brains behind Tyne & Queer and photographer Nostalgia Kid are teaming up to pioneer a DIY, supportive network for artists, co-operatives and collectives in the North East with a very exciting launch show happening at Star & Shadow Cinema on Friday 26th September.
Cultivated between The Newcastle Project and artist/facilitator Flower Shop, this community-based event welcomes artists, collectives and subcultures in the North East to come together with the aim of mutual support, pooling resources and creating a platform to showcase creativity; a much-needed outlet to share ideas and to help spearhead creative happenings within a supportive and nurturing atmosphere. Kicking off this fantastic project is a line-up of brand new musical talent including Nadine Hurley, an electrifying electronic duo; Off Screen Dog, a four-piece with dynamic, off-kilter melodies and mystical beats; and Prospect of Power, three women making garage trash noise; along with performance art intertwined throughout the night.
This event is open to artists and creatives of all backgrounds interested in DIY subculture in the North East, and is shaping up to be a fresh, interesting and fun night.
Friday 26th September @ Star & Shadow Cinema, Newcastle
STAGE
65 million years ago, dinosaurs ruled the Earth. 32 years ago, Jurassic Park ruled the box office. This year, your funny bone is in for a prehistoric pummelling as Hold Onto Your Butts careens into Northern Stage for one night of high-stakes, low-budget dino-spoofery on Friday 26th September.
Far from a fawning tribute, this two-man Foley frenzy whips up an anarchic hodgepodge of velociraptors stalking with mime, T-Rexes roaring via mouth sounds, and every door creak and footstep being conjured live onstage with the frantic precision of an overly caffeinated sound designer trapped in a jungle-themed escape room.
Nimbly straddling the line between razor-sharp pastiche, unbridled nerdery and winningly zany postmodern homage, Hold Onto Your Butts is what happens when you mix Whose LineIs It Anyway? with THAT John Williams soundtrack and a gallon of dino-DNA. It’s slick. It’s silly. And yes, it’s got Goldblum-esque gyrations.
Whether you’re a nostalgic Spielberg stan, or just someone who’s always wondered what Jurassic Park would be like with a smaller effects budget and more rubber chickens than logic, this is your summer must-see.Prepare for puns. Prepare for prehistoric pandemonium. And, most of all – say it with me now – HOLD ONTO YOUR BUTTS!
Friday 26th September @ Northern Stage, Newcastle
MUSIC
Get down to the exciting launch party of the Nought Percent Club, a fusion of good vibes, banging beats and great cake – where the focus is not on alcohol. From disco, soul, house to funk, this is an inclusive, community space for music lovers and connecting with others.
Saturday 27th September @ Alphabetti Theatre, Newcastle
MUSIC
Unfiltered, traditional, old-school country –this is what The Honkytonk Revival Tour promises on Saturday 27th September at Central Bar.
Savannah Gardner and her band of Recovering Good Girls explore classic country themes of identity, love and belonging in music that is coarse with emotion. Each track is shaped by soft drumbeats and twanging guitar strings, professing a sense of simultaneous comfort and defiance as they break through the musical barrier. Gardner’s raspy voice -both rough and compelling -is a whisper of authenticity, cutting through the storm of modern music and anchoring the outstanding instrumentals.
Dom Glynn & His Sunday Best present an upbeat and joyful side of country, with fast-paced instrumentals that make you unintentionally sway or dance along. However, the music is undoubtedly coated with emotional vulnerability and earnestness. Their sound is a modern twist on the brilliance of Bob Dylan, steeped in vintage Americana.
From the mixing pot of musical creativity provided by both artists, the tour promises innovation –a blend of soul, blues, jazz and bluegrass, but all rooted in honkytonk tradition. For a night of songs defined by stories that travel across human history and music full of soul, honesty and cultural texture, head to the showcase performance at Central Bar, Gateshead on Saturday 27th September.
Saturday 27th September @ Central Bar, Gateshead
COMEDY
On Sunday 28th September, comedian Jack Fox is making his solo comedy debut at The Stand Comedy Club with his show titled Rolls Royce.
Comedy is in his genes: his late Grandad, Alan Fox, was also a comic, and as a result there is a real nod to the region in his work. Alan’s legacy is acknowledged in Rolls Royce, which explores the differences between their careers, Jack quips: “My Grandad was once described in a review as the ‘Rolls Royce of comedy – quick, smooth and classy’. If that’s the case then I’m probably the bus replacement of comedy – slow, unreliable and I stink like piss.” Jack is also a musician and rapper, so he’s sure to have a few tricks up his sleeve, including the debut of a theme song.
The show is directed by Lee Kyle and is part of the revered comedian’s New Directions programme, which aims to build-up comedy talent in the North East.
Sunday 28th September @ The Stand, Newcastle
Image: Jack Fox by Adam Kennedy
