Stan Graham's Leisure Guide for North and West Yorkshire
Someone, far wittier than I, said that nostalgia isn’t what it used to be. Brilliant as this quip is, I must disagree as, once you reach a certain age, in some aspects of life nostalgia is all you have. This was illustrated brilliantly by Nathan Queeley-Dennis in this one-man show in Bramall Rock Void. The…
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In May, 2010 I went to a Minor League Baseball game in Lexington, Kentucky. The first pitch was at 3.00pm which got me wondering who would be there at that time on a Wednesday. The answer was provided before we had even got to the gate by the number of yellow school buses in the…
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When anyone mentions the violin, most people don’t immediately think of Indian music, but the instrument has become a staple in the South Asian classical world and this evening proved why. After an introduction from Keranjeet Kaur Virdee MBE, CEO and Artistic Director of South Asian Arts, the event began. Ms Virdee said that there…
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I was feeling a little apprehensive about this show before I saw it as the performance images which were supplied made it look a bit on the ‘eccentric’ side. I have seen productions which break the normal rules of drama and, whilst I am not adverse to a bit of rule stretching from time to…
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Now here is something different, an event to celebrate the birthday of a lighthouse. Not just any lighthouse, but the Eddystone in Plymouth, which celebrated its 265th Anniversary on 16th October, 2024 when this concert was staged. The structure was built by Leeds lad John Smeaton, who was born, and died, in Austhorpe. He was…
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I’m sure that we all have pieces of music which, if not our favourites, have meant something important, so much so, that we are transported, albeit only in our minds, to a place or time. The piece might have the power to console, I have friend who would fall back on Michael MacDonald’s ‘I Can…
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Not a very appropriate title for a production staged on a wet and chilly day in mid-October, but, as they would have been struggling to coincide with any of the three summer days we have had this year, I will overlook that. I have never seen the play by Shakespeare, on which this opera by…
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The last time I spoke to Jasdeep Singh Degun at Howard Assembly Room he told me that he had been invited to perform at the 2024 Darbar Festival at The Barbican in London and was hugely honoured and excited to be doing so. It is the most prestigious event in the South Asian Music calendar,…
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This was my first visit to the amazing Howard Assembly Room since June, and I couldn’t wait. Not only to see the concert but to meet up with the people who work there with whom I have become friendly over the years. Because quite a few of the front of house staff are students, there…
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Christmas shows at Leeds Playhouse have garnered an impressive reputation, and quite rightly so. They are always spectacular, innovative and brilliantly presented with no corners cut. This year’s offering promises to live up to the high standards already set, and maybe even surpass them. The 2024 show is The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe…
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Tyke It To The Limit 