Community Post Type: News

As Tate Liverpool prepares to close its doors temporarily to undergo a major reimagining, the gallery will hold a celebratory weekend on 14 and 15 October. Tate Liverpool: Past, Present and Future will be filled with making activities for all ages, talks, music and a chance to leave your own mark on the walls through a graffiti workshop.

Most importantly, the weekend will give visitors a last chance to see work from the Tate collection, and the building in its current form, ahead of its transformation.

Throughout both days there will be three different making activities for visitors to enjoy and have something to take away from the event. There will be a free mini placard making workshop inspired by artist Bob and Roberta Smith, who is renowned for his “slogan” art and the formation of the Art Party in 2013, and his works such as Make Art Not War (1997) and All Schools Should be Art Schools 2016 which is currently on display on the 1^st Floor at Tate Liverpool. Tate Collective Producers, the gallery’s programme for young people aged 16-25, will be hosting t-shirt customising workshops. While local artist Louise Waller is encouraging visitors to create teapot lids for topless Tate café teapots in an air-dry clay workshop that helps visitors repurpose and reuse.

As the gallery will be redeveloped, the final weekend before the transformation brings a unique opportunity for visitors to leave their own mark on the building’s walls. People will be invited to join local graffiti artists to tag, paint and write the personal comments on the 4^th floor of the gallery in a collaborative, communal mural that evokes the memory of past pop and street art exhibitions at Tate Liverpool such as 2019’s Keith Haring and Transmitting Andy Warhol in 2015.

By joining festivities visitors will be able to take away a specially commissioned, limited edition Tate Liverpool party bag with artist made prints and postcards. Among the artists contributing designs will be 2006 Turner Prize nominee Mark Titchner who is celebrated for his exploration of words and language. The commemorative gifts continue with a seed giveaway as artist Andrea Ku, who the gallery worked with on the recent Radical Landscapes exhibition, gives visitors seeds to grow along with Tate Liverpool during its closure period. The party atmosphere will be provided by a series of artist DJ’s and live performances by local musicians and choirs.

Tate Liverpool’s long-established Visitor Experience Assistants are renowned for their amazing rapport with visitors and their unparalleled knowledge and throughout the weekend there will be special, personal reflections and tours of the collection by the team members and special guest artists. The talks continue on 14 October as Tate Liverpool Director Helen Legg is joined by author Lauren Elkin for an In Conversation event on the first floor to discuss Elkin’s new book Art Monsters reflecting feminist practice.

During the weekend visitors will be able to enjoy four free displays as they get a final chance to take in the art. On the Ground Floor, Torkwase Dyson’s monumental work Liquid a Place 2021 directly converses with the brutal histories of the water and docks which surround the gallery. On level 1, Democracies features artists from around the world who have responded in various ways to the theme of democracy, including Jenny Holzer’s Inflammatory Essays 1979–82 and Chila Kumari Singh Burman’s, If There is No Struggle, There is No Progress – Uprisings 1981. On level 2 of the gallery, The Port and Migrations and Global Encounters feature more than 80 works exploring themes of movement, migration and international exchange, including Hew Locke’s spectacular sculptural installation Armada 2019.

Although the building at the Royal Albert Dock will be closed for the transformation work from 16 October, Tate Liverpool will move into the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) North, Mann Island from 27 October 2023. This is approximately 425m or a 5-minute walk from the gallery.

 

Have you heard about Irish Ceili dancing? Sounds like fun, doesn’t it!

All too often confused with display dancing, such as from Michael Flatley, or as young girls in costumes
dancing, it is nothing like this; it is social dancing for the general public, and does not need years of training.

Just turn up at a Ceili and ask someone to dance with you, and admit you are a beginner; you will very soon get the hang of it. The crowd at these dances are always a mix of experienced people and raw beginners,

Where and when?

Liverpool has its own Irish Centre, in Boundary Lane, L6. THE LAST WEDNESDAY OF EACH MONTH there is a genuine Irish Ceili, with live music, and someone to take you through the actions before you do the dance

Large plate supper is included in the price; Wait for it! All this costs only THREE POUNDS !!

The first dance starts approximately 8.30pm and continues until 11pm.

What have you got to lose?

The life story of acclaimed writer Helen Forrester hits the stage for the very last time next week when By The Waters Of Liverpool opens at The Auditorium at M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool. The eight-week tour visiting 13 venues across the country is the final chance to see her life story portrayed on stage. 

During the final days of rehearsals, the cast and creative team welcomed a special guest behind the scenes ahead of the tour opening next week – performer and broadcaster Leanne Campbell, who played the very first Helen on stage back in 1994 in the premiere of Twopence To Cross The Mersey.

By The Waters Of Liverpool is the long-awaited sequel to the much-loved Twopence To Cross The Mersey which tells the heart-wrenching story of Helen’s early life in 1930s Liverpool.

By The Waters Of Liverpool Autumn 2023 UK Tour opens on Monday 4 September 2023 at The Auditorium at M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool with four performances only.

The tour includes five theatres across Liverpool City Region visiting Liverpool, Port Sunlight, St Helens, Southport, and New Brighton. 

Liverpool-born performer and broadcaster Leanne Campbell played the very first Helen Forrester when the acclaimed author’s book Twopence To Cross The Mersey was first adapted for stage. It was premiered at the Liverpool Empire Theatre in 1994.

LIVERPOOL – THE AUDITORIUM AT M&S BANK ARENA 

Monday 4 September – Wednesday 6 September 2023 

www.mandsbankarena.com 

PORT SUNLIGHT – GLADSTONE THEATRE 

Tuesday 12 September – Thursday 14 September 2023 

www.gladstonetheatre.org.uk 

ST HELENS – THEATRE ROYAL 

Monday 9 October – Wednesday 11 October 2023 

www.sthelenstheatreroyal.com 

SOUTHPORT– THE ATKINSON 

Thursday 12 October – Saturday 14 October 2023 

www.theatkinson.co.uk 

NEW BRIGHTON – FLORAL PAVILION 

Tuesday 24 October – Sunday 29 October 2023 

www.floralpavilion.com 

Make it Write offers three shows for the Liverpool Fringe Festival. Kicking off with a double-bill on Thursday October 5 at The Studio Below, 39 Rodney Street, Liverpool, L1 9EN.

In “Dancing at 3am” writer Fiona Leonard shows two very different women unfolding the poignant tales of their pasts when they are brought together in the rather surreal setting of dancing and cake making in the wee small hours. A moving and sensitive offering culled from the Fringe’s 24-hour play event. Directed by Julie Broadbent it stars Rachel Pennington and Kirsten E Hawkins.

It is partnered with “Down the Alley” by Brian Hutchinson and also directed by Julie Broadbent. Two homeless people, Ester and Charles, bed down at the back of The Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool. Charles is tipsy, battling his demons. Ester is displeased at him invading her private space. It stars Clare McGrath and Paul St German.

There are two performances on Thursday the 5th October one at 6.30pm and the second at 8.00pm.

Moving on to Thursday 12th October at The Studio below Make it Write has award-winning director and actor Abbey Fitzhenry who says she “loved casting and honoured to be directing “The Cat Box” – a very funny and clever piece by Karl Owens”.

It is a comic drama, set in South Manchester, focusing on members of the Northern Voices, Writers Group. These four socially disastrous, slightly damaged people, who without realising it, have only the writers’ group and each other to escape the horrors of the real world. It stars: Julie Frost, Alan McDonald, Tara J Mallinson and Rob Tovey.  

The show is being shown twice:  At 6.30pm and 8.30pm.

Make it Write’s third show on Friday October 13 at The Studio below is also a double bill.

Jamie Cunliffe’s “Uncle Toad” is a sinister, powerful drama. When the legendary evil uncle Nick (otherwise Uncle Toad) arrives unannounced, Chris learns some startling stuff about his past. But Nick’s nasty history is also entwined with Chris’s wife Maggie. What secrets will he disclose about her? It stars Dan Fieldsend, Clare McGrath and Andy Edwards. It is directed Sinead Renaye. 

Equally disturbing is the other half of the double bill. It is Ian Cragg’s “I Hate Charlie Pickles” directed by Kevin Foott. 

An ageing old style comic struggling to make a living yearns to shed his stage character and do something new. When opportunity knocks his agent is anxious about his abilities and hides the great chance. Fate takes a hand, but who has the last laugh? It stars Graham Padden, Sarah Howes-Dixon and Darren Jones.

It is also being shown twice on the same night at 6.30pm and 8.30pm.

The Studio Below is a bijou 30-seater venue available for hire through Make it Write.

Tickets for all the above shows are available through: Store.makeitwrite.org 

 

September the 4th sees the start of the excellent Fazakerley dance club, held in the Fazakerley Community Federation and Library.

The club is held 10.15am to 12.15pm, all welcome, and entry is just £3.

See their Facebook page here

Fazakerley Community Federation, Formosa Drive, Fazakerley L10 7LQ

Liverpool Independent Art School have their regular drawing classes starting again in the first and second weeks of September including their regular general sessions at Mossley Hill Church Hall and their life drawing sessions at 92 Degrees and Gallery 455.

They also have new classes starting in October at Indigo Cafe in Rockferry and some one off day courses, such as their return to Hilbre Island landscape drawing, a similar shorter event at Rockferry and their radical reworking of life drawing from the stand point of Yves Klein International Blue at the Bridewell.

See their social media here for the full and latest details.

The wait is finally over! dot-art is back with a variety of Creative Courses ranging from Portrait Painting, Encounters with Artists’ Books, Analogue Photography and plenty more.

Creativity can promote positive mental health, bring people together and help develop new skills. Pick from their selection of courses with the expert help of our Artist Tutors. They offer courses across Liverpool including spaces like The Bluecoat, FACT, Baltic Creative, Liverpool Arts Bar, BOLD Place and the dot-art Darkroom.

All their courses are suitable for beginners, as well as those looking to develop or brush up on creative skills! Plus they all take place at evenings and weekend, to work around your schedule.

As well as their regular venues the Bluecoat, FACT, Baltic Creative and Liverpool Arts Bar, they are delighted to be teaming up with Bold Place to run a series of classes in their beautiful space, including Portrait Painting and Introduction to Chinese Painting.

Don’t forget the dot-art Darkroom, where you can learn from scratch how to take, develop and print analogue photographs! For experienced photographers and those who have completed one of these courses, they have also offer Darkroom Membership. Members have unlimited access to the space via our online booking system for just £195 per year or £25 per month.

New courses for this term include Encounters with Artists Books, where you can earn how to design and make your first artists’ books with professional artist Brigitte Watkinson, and Introduction to Monoprint, which will introduce you to the print methods and materials used, to create a series of monoprints that you can takes home.

Of course, they also have all your favourite classes including Life Drawing, Landscape Painting and Abstract Painting.

And if you really can’t decide or would like to give a loved one a choice of courses, they also have art class gift vouchers available, online and through the dot-art Gallery.

Full details, prices and booking information can be found here: dot-art.co.uk/art-classes.

These courses often sell out, so don’t delay!

The Gods Are All Here, The Mighty Goddess and Mara are set to grace the international arts venue over the coming months with each promising to deliver a powerful and captivating evening of spoken word.

Sparked by the discovery of a series of letters from his father in Nigeria to his mother in Wales, The Gods Are All Here is a moving, funny and warm-hearted, one-man performance from acclaimed storyteller, Phil Okwedy.

This captivating show beautifully weaves myth, song, folktales and legends of the African diaspora with an astonishing personal story that uncovers Phil’s experiences of growing up as a child of dual heritage in 1960s & 70s Wales. Exploring equality, freedom, racism and family, the show – presented by Adverse Camber – will take place on Wednesday 25th October.

An evening of stories drawn from Sally Pomme Clayton’s latest book The Mighty Goddess (The History Press 2023) – a collection of 52 incredible goddess myths – will also head to the venue on Wednesday 8th November, following high praise from the likes of The Guardian and The Londonist.

Characters the audience will meet during the performance include Vesta, the fiery virgin warrior; Cybele, the mother goddess who fathered a child; and Ishtar, Goddess of love and war, who journeys to the Land of the Dead.

In the third of this trio of storytelling showcases, Mara is a whodunnit deep dive into the dreamscape of Swedish folklore, a delve into our oldest forests, a journey through our tortuous relationship with sleep and an exploration of what it might mean to be really awake.

The show from Dominic Kelly on Thursday 23rd November has been described as ‘a magical and mystical storytelling experience’ with praise from the likes of The Times already garnered during its tour.

The performances are all part of a diverse and fascinating programme of entertainment for the Autumn/Winter season at The Capstone Theatre. With an exciting schedule featuring dance, electronic music, flamenco, classical music, jazz and more, there’s something for everyone at the Liverpool Hope University venue.

Tickets for all three shows are available now via The Capstone Theatre website.

Fifteen years after TRAINSPOTTING, what has become of Renton, Sickboy, Begbie & Spud? Disturbing, shocking & extremely funny. Contains swearing, sexual language, debauchery, drug use and even more swearing. As if you’d expect anything else…

Irvine Welsh’s PORNO is a full-length stage adaptation of the novel by the same name, which sold out one of the largest Pleasance venues for a month long run at Edinburgh Fringe in 2022, earning rave reviews from audiences and critics alike.

After a three-show run at the King’s Theatre in Glasgow, the production visits three Northwest venues this autumn, Liverpool Olympia on 5th October, Crewe Lyceum on 6th October and Sale Waterside (Manchester) on 7th October, forming part of a UK tour. The producer has also just announced a transfer to London’s West End, playing for a season at the Arts Theatre from 29th October 2023.

Mark Renton hasn’t been back to Leith since… well, since he robbed his pals and f*cked off to Amsterdam. Life has been… good? But there’s always been something missing. How will SICKBOY, BEGBIE & SPUD react to the return of RENTON? Have they all settled down and become respectable members of society? Did they CHOOSE LIFE? Of course, they f*cking didn’t!

With an acclaimed cast of Scott Kyle (Outlander, Kilo Two Bravo, The Angel’s Share) as Renton, James McAnerney (Outlander, NEDs, Taggart, Rebus, Nightsleeper) as Sickboy, Jasmine Main (The Nest, Scot Squad, BAFTA Scotland Award Nominee) as Lizzie, Chris Gavin (Days That Shook The World, Starcaster) as Begbie, Kevin Murphy as Spud and Jim Brown as Knox.

PORNO is written and produced by the award-winning Davie Carswell and directed by Jonty Cameron.

A young performer from Southport is one step closer to achieving his dream of becoming a professional musical theatre star after being awarded the Sir Ken Dodd scholarship at Liverpool Theatre School.

Nathan Power (16) impressed an audition panel with his singing, dancing and acting talent, which earned him the prestigious musical theatre bursary for a three-year diploma course at the elite performing arts school.

The former Meols Cop High School pupil, who trained with Julie Ann Carr, Southport Dance Academy and King’s School of Dance, was up against hundreds of talented young people auditioning for the coveted scholarship, funded by The Ken Dodd Charitable Foundation.

A gifted performer with a promising future ahead, Nathan has appeared in a number of shows at local theatres and is also a member of BOS Musical Theatre Company. He now has his sights set on a career in the West End, joining the ranks of Liverpool Theatre School alumni who can be seen in smash-hit shows such as SIX, Blood Brothers, Wicked and the West End adaptation of Frozen.

Liverpool Theatre School’s Norah Button said: “Nathan has real natural talent and an obvious passion for musical theatre. His audition performance was exceptional and he is very well deserving of this special scholarship, which honours the legacy of one of the greatest entertainers of our time.

“Sir Ken Dodd was a dear friend and as a patron of Liverpool Theatre School he was always eager to support emerging local talent. We’re incredibly grateful to the Ken Dodd Foundation for this scholarship and we’re looking forward to welcoming Nathan to Liverpool Theatre School.”

Lady Anne Dodd, wife of Sir Ken Dodd, added: “It’s been wonderful to meet Nathan, who is clearly a very talented young man and a worthy recipient of this scholarship. We’re very pleased to be able to support him on his musical theatre journey as he begins training at the fabulous Liverpool Theatre School. Congratulations Nathan!”

Speaking on his achievement, Nathan said: “I was so excited to find out I’d been given the Sir Ken Dodd scholarship. I saw my first show, Carousel, at Southport Little Theatre at the age of four and then landed my first role in Whistle Down the Wind with BOS musical theatre company a year later. I’ve been performing ever since. Having the chance to train professionally is like a dream come true. I’d love to perform in the West End one day. I can’t wait to start training at Liverpool Theatre School, I’m really lucky to have such an amazing opportunity.”

Accepting only the most gifted students, the Ofsted ‘outstanding’ rated Liverpool Theatre School provides industry recognised Trinity and BTEC qualifications in dance, musical theatre and acting, all designed to prepare young people for life as professional performers.

Liverpool Theatre School regularly stages shows at local theatres with final year students having the opportunity to perform in front of an audience of industry influencers in the heart of London’s West End. The performing arts school provides a number of fully funded places and bursaries to help make professional training more accessible.

Liverpool Theatre School also welcomes budding young performers, between the ages of 6-16, to evening and weekend classes at its Junior Academy.

Sir Ken Dodd, who was a patron of Liverpool Theatre School, inspired generations of entertainers and a new scholarship in his name was announced earlier this year. Throughout his career, the late comedian regularly worked with Liverpool Theatre School, whose Junior Academy students appeared as the famous Diddymen during his live shows. Performers from Liverpool Theatre School’s Junior Academy will make their next appearance as the Diddymen in September at the launch a new exhibition called Happiness, which celebrates Sir Ken Dodd at the Museum of Liverpool.

Liverpool Theatre School is located at Liverpool Central Studios, 35 Sefton Street, Liverpool, L8 5SL. To find out more about Liverpool Theatre School, please visit liverpoolcentralstudios.com.