And so to Cheltenham, where the Bacon Theatre at Dean Close School offers a great programme of touring and local productions. Let’s take a week or so in March when the theatre(named after former school headmaster Christopher Bacon) flings open its doors to the Vienna Festival Ballet’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty. Part of a national tour, the dancers take the stage on March 16th. All good! But what’s this?A week later the hilarious Monkey Poet’s Murder Mystery rolls into town for a double bill strictly for you’re A-Level students.The opening act is a comic Alice in Wonderland, encompassing characters from Wilde to Shakespeare while the second act is an hour of ‘confrontational’ performance poetry entitled Potty Mouth. You can check on the interweb for details of when both tours come to a theatre near you.
If you’d like something a little more…ahem…cerebral, thenjoin up to the wonderful peripeteia, the online literary community in which writers, students, teachers and academics of different ages and backgrounds and from different institutions can collect and share resources. Look at it like a virtual literary salon, a place where we can discuss literature with fellow enthusiasts and experts. Brilliant! The site now has 500 members who swop ideas and enjoy seminars. Join the gang, I mean, the salon, at peripeteia.webs.com.
Back to the real world now: and time to head to the South Shields Museum and Art Gallery. Described as a friendly space in which to relax and unwind (aren’t all museums,though?) visitors have a feast of treats to enjoy. The interactive galleries aim to bring the area’s rich past to life – taking in the industrial heritage and Maritime splendour, as well as Catherine Cookson and her dramatic tales. Currently showing until April 20th is an exhibition called Soccer Stars of South Tyneside that explores the life and works of the area’s footballing heroes through displays of mementoes. In sharp contrast, the museum is also showing the first British portrait of a Black African Muslim and freed slave, on long-term loan to the National Portrait Gallery, London as part of its British tour. The portrait of Ayuba Suleiman Diallo was painted by William Hoare of Bath in 1733 and is important for many reasons – not least because the painting is the earliest known British oil portrait of a freed slave, and the first portrait in this country to honour an African subject as an individual and equal. For more details of permanent and visiting exhibitions as well as family events visit www.southshieldsmuseum.org.uk.
The wonderful plans to take Bristol’s Tobacco Factory Theatre to the next level got a boost thanks to a grant from Arts Council England towards its project to install a newseating system. The theatre runs four creation, performance
and development spaces, and continues to develop a vibrant educational programme. The theatre has a fundraising target of£150,000 and will be seeking support from audiences, business partners and visiting companies. Support the cause if you can.
Back in London, it’s all happening at Shakespeare’s Globe.The Shakespeare: Playing Indoors season from Globe Education explores plays and music written for halls and indoor theatres in anticipation of the new indoor Sam Wanamaker Playhouse opening January 2014. The spring season includes a focus on music with a number of talks and demonstrations including a celebration of Globe Music at the Under Globe on May 3 and the Shakespeare, music and performance conference at the Globe from 3-5 May 2013, when scholars from around the world will discuss the music written for Shakespeare’s plays from the 16th century stage to 21st century cinema. To find out more, and book tickets, visit: www.shakespearesglobe.com.
Up the road the Stephen Joseph Theatre is currently spreading joy and fun with its inaugural Reach Out Festival. The event, which runs until March 9, features an all-encompassing programme designed to reflect and share the whole experience of theatre with workshops covering backstage,creative writing, music and puppetry. Head of OutReach Denise Gilfoyle said: ‘We believe that theatre and drama belong to everyone, irrespective of age, gender or background and thi sfestival will demonstrate that.’ The OutReach department works with, in and for the local community, encouraging people to engage with the work of the SJT. For details on how to get involved, email the department at outreach@sjt.uk.com.