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Godspell in Concert – Sage Gateshead
Writer: John-Michael Tebelak Producer (concert): Russell Scott & Mark Petitt Director: Kenneth Avery-Clark MD: Russell Scott Reviewer: Gemma Hirst Originally opening Off-Broadway in 1971,...
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Clare Teal and her Hollywood Orchestra Celebrate Doris Day – CAST, Doncaster
Singers: Clare Teal, Matthew Ford Conductor: Colin Billing Reviewer: Ron Simpson Though Clare Teal undoubtedly has a considerable following of her own, the packed auditorium at CAST...
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Judy – The Songbook of Judy Garland – Alhambra, Bradford
Director: Christopher Manoe Creative Director: Arlene Phillips Choreographer: Richard Roe Musical Director: Colin Freeman Reviewer: Laura Stimpson You know that rare occasion when you see a show that...
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The Man Who Sold the World – 02 Academy, Leeds
Reviewer: Rich Jevons Firstly, full marks to the 02 Academy for their consideration towards audience members with disabilities, not to mention the immaculate nature of the acoustics and staging. The...
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MANC MINI: Climbing Uphill
How would you describe your show in one sentence? A concert in which three music-college graduates attempt to explain their “challenging” professional lives using songs from Broadway musicals. Is this...
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Military WAGS Choir: Strawberries and Song – Town Hall, Richmond
Musical Director: Carol Gedye Reviewer: Lindsay Sykes It is five years since the Military WAGS Choir was formed in Catterick Garrison, just as 19 Brigade was about to embark on a six month tour to...
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Orchestra of Opera North: Wagner & Strauss – Town Hall, Huddersfield
Conductor: Aleksandar Markovic Soloist: Emma Bell (soprano) Reviewer: Ron Simpson In recent years, through the Leeds Town Hall semi-stagings under Music Director Richard Farnes, the Orchestra of Opera...
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Aaron Parks Trio – Howard Assembly Room, Leeds
Piano: Aaron Parks Double bass: Ben Street Drums: Billy Hart Reviewer: Ron Simpson Opera North’s programme for the Howard Assembly Room ranges far and wide and this marks the first Autumn concert with...
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NEWS: Jonathan Larson celebrated in new West End gala concert
RENT composer Jonathan Larson will be celebrated in a new gala concert in London’s West End on the 20th anniversary of his untimely passing. Seasons of Larson will be produced by Katy Lipson for Aria...
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CD REVIEW: Annaleigh Ashford: Lost In The Stars – Live at 54 Below
Reviewer: Charley Robson Annaleigh Ashford – actress, singer and Tony award nominee – makes her arrival at Studio 54 amid a roaring guitar solo and a piano in full dramatic sing, promising an evening...
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Piaf! The Show – Theatre Royal, Glasgow
Reviewer: Lauren Humphreys Celebrating the centenary of Edith Piaf’s birth, and partly inspired by the 2007 Oscar-winning La Vie En Rose, Anne Carrere’s Piaf! The Show is the shining star of the 2016...
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Moishe’s Bagel: Salt for Svanetia – Howard Assembly Room, Leeds
Film Director: Mikhail Kalatozov Music: Moishe’s Bagel Reviewer: Ron Simpson It’s all in the programming. The programmers at Opera North deserve credit for providing Leeds with an unusual,...
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Thriller Live – Festival Theatre, Edinburgh
Director & Choreographer: Gary Lloyd Reviewer: Dominic Corr Michael Jackson was a tremendous talent, regardless of the controversy which would follow him in later life. Even those who would not...
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Musicals Unsung – St James’ Studio, London
Musical Director: Kris Rawlinson Reviewer: Tom Finch This musical offering from Parallel Productions is an interesting idea, songs which were cut from hit musicals prior to their official Broadway and...
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The Nash Ensemble – Howard Assembly Room, Leeds
Reviewer: Ron Simpson The Out of the Shadows festival continued with the Nash Ensemble, in typically assured and sensitive vein, playing Music in the Terezin Ghetto at the Howard Assembly Room. All the...
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Richmond Jazz Festival – Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond
Performers: Alexander Bone Trio Reviewer: Ron Simpson The Richmond Jazz Festival fills the Georgian Theatre Royal for three nights. A Grade 1 listed building that first opened to the public in 1788...
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Fantastic Dreams and Visions – Huddersfield Town Hall
Orchestra: The Orchestra of Opera North Conductor: Aleksandar Markovic Soloist: Pavel Kolesnikov (piano) Reviewer: Ron Simpson Kirklees Council’s bold and far-sighted decision to continue its concert...
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DUBLIN THEATRE FESTIVAL: Ancient Rain – Olympia Theatre, Dublin
Director: Chris Drummond Composers: Paul Kelly, Feargal Murray, Camille O’Sullivan Reviewer: David Keane Inspired by last 100 years of Irish poetry and centring around the theme of the four elements,...
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The Orchestra of Opera North: How It Works – Town Hall, Huddersfield
Presenter: Pui Fan Lee Conductor: Martin Pickard Soloist: Nicholas Watts (tenor) Reviewer: Ron Simpson The Orchestra of Opera North’s How it Works concert attracted a youthful audience, stretching to...
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Opera North Christmas Concert – Town Hall, Dewsbury
Conductor: David Cowan Performers: Orchestra of Opera North Chorus of Opera North Opera North Youth Chorus Opera North Children’s Chorus Reviewer: Ron Simpson In recent years Opera North has received...
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