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Sizzling summer of sound
A SIZZLING summer of music, comedy, dance, literature and the visual arts is promised by organisers of the 16th Hebden Bridge Arts Festival.
The event kicks off tonight with music, dance and theatre from The Dohl Foundation – led by charismatic dhol drummer Johnny Kalsi – featuring Diversity Dance and students from Calder High School, Mytholmroyd at Hebden Bridge Picture House.
A host of entertainers will be visiting the Picture House over the next two weeks, including Bafta award-nominated comedian Mark Steel (Wednesday) and comics Jon Richardson and Shappi Khorsandi, who recently appeared on BBC TV's Have I Got News For You (Wednes-day, July 8).
A new stage version of the poems of Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and the UK premiere of a dark comedy based on Shakespeare's Macbeth are among the spoken word highlights of this year's festival.
The World's Wife, adapted from the poems of Carol Ann Duffy and performed by Linda Marlowe, stops off at the Little Theatre, Hebden Bridge, on July 10 on the way to the Edinburgh Festival. The show slices through history and myth to take a subversive look at famous men through the ages – from the perspective of their wives.
The Ted Hughes Theatre at Calder High School, Mytholmroyd, will be the setting for the UK premiere of Dreamscape Theatre's Full of Sound and Fury on July 3. The dark comedy by Roman de Fruscan explores what happens when a group of highly-talented, highly-strung actors gets together to stage Macbeth. The play is suitable for over-12s and audiences are invited to "pay what they want" to see the show.
Other events - Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and Jan Fortune-Wood on July 7 and music at Walshaw on July 11 - have already sold out.
Festival co-ordinator Rebecca Yorke said: "There have been inquiries for tickets from across the region and we believe we have put together a balanced programme with something for everyone."
This year's festival is inspired by the bi-centenary of Charles Darwin and his work and legacy. A full programme of exhibitions, street entertainment, talks and shows for children will complement the festival's main events.
Meanwhile thirsty festival-goers will be refreshed this year by a specially-brewed Festival Ale, made at the Little Valley Brewery and available exclusively at Moyles in Hebden Bridge.
The beer is described by Sue Cooper of Little Valley as "floral with a berry fruit aroma, pleasant light body and a caramel taste", and 20p from every pint will be donated to Hebden Bridge Arts Festival, a registered charity run almost exclusively by volunteers.
Music fans will find plenty to enjoy in the programme of lunchtime and daytime concerts. These get under way tomorrow with Due Voci – sopranos Mandy Doyle and Viv Burr with pianist Ailie Kerrane – in a concert at Heptonstall Church.
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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