This year there is lots going on under the Opera North banner. The big operas staged in the Grand Theatre have mostly moved on to other venues but there is still one to come. Howard Assembly Room, however, is packed with great stuff. The final opera of the current season will be staged at Leeds…
Read MoreSpring/Summer in Leeds 4 – City Varieties Music Hall
In keeping with its original roots, the City Varieties has a host of one-night stands lined up over the coming months. There are so many of them that I would be sitting here typing until it was time to do my Autumn/Winter Previews. I have decided to take the easy way out and highlight a…
Read MoreSpring/Summer in Leeds 3 – Leeds Playhouse
Spring and summer see another eclectic mix at Leeds Playhouse. There are new shows, ones returning and those which should have been staged before the pandemic but had to be postponed. One thing which is making a welcome return is the restaurant which has now reopened. Insofar as the drama is concerned Macbeth is in…
Read MoreSpring/Summer in Leeds 2 – Grand Theatre
After hosting a programme of opera and ballet in the months since Christmas, the wonderful Grand Theatre now moves on to the mixed bag of entertainment which we all know and love so much. There is plenty of variety, pardon the pun – which was intentional of course, with not only plays and musicals but…
Read MoreSpring/Summer in Leeds 1 – Chow Down
Everybody’s favourite street food venue is back and, not only bigger than ever, but reconfigured so as to make the most of the legendary sunny weather which lasts from April to September each year south of the river. On the off chance that there may be a rogue cloudy day, then that has been catered…
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Winter Journey: Roderick Williams and Joseph Middleton at Howard Assembly Room
I seem to be spending a lot of time at Howard Assembly Room lately, for which I am truly grateful, especially when I get to see some of the country’s, nay world’s, best musicians and singers up close and personal. Such was the case last night when I witnessed a supreme performance by baritone Roderick…
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Enchanted: Relaxed Concert at Howard Assembly Room
Whiling away a relaxed hour on a Saturday afternoon at Howard Assembly Room listening to professional opera singers accompanied by only a piano, sounded too good to be true. Sadly it was, but that was a consequence of their doing all they could to make everyone welcome. There was a section on the pertinent website…
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Macbeth at Leeds Playhouse
I often wonder why directors feel the need to reimagine the works of arguably this country’s greatest playwright. Is it an arrogance in believing that the bard had the right idea but didn’t do as good a job as they could, is it patronising towards the audience thinking that they need a hand in understanding…
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Dudok Quartet Amsterdam at Howard Assembly Room.
The people at Howard Assembly Room have done it again. They have presented a concert which could not be more appropriate but this time more by accident than design. Previous events have been staged so as to be relevant to the time; the American Composers was on Thanksgiving eve, whilst the programme of Jewish composers…
Read MoreJasdeep Singh Degun at Dewsbury Town Hall
On 23rd February, 2020 I was privileged to be invited to the World Premier of Arya, a work by Leeds Sitar player Jasdeep Singh Degun and I was amazed. Not only by the composition, the occasion, and the playing by both Mr Degun and The Orchestra of Opera North, but by the demeanour and humility…
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Tyke It To The Limit 