Out & About July 2017

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Arts editor Trish Lee picks four of the best events on the arts scene in April. Reviews of all
of these – and for more arts news – see N2 in the Newbury Weekly News each week
Hot off
the arts
press
Modern Artists Gallery,
Whitchurch on Thames
Inspiring
children’s
theatre
The Boy and The Mermaid
at Arlington Arts
If music be the
food of love...
I’m a huge fan of the Modern Artists
Gallery– you’ll always find inspiring
and innovative work on show –
director Peggy Gibson Brodie has an
eye for the extraordinary. April sees
the arrival of some exciting new 3D
work by East Hendred artist Kate
Kessling. So new they are ‘hot off the
press’ and she is still experimenting
with discarded paper offcuts from
the book industry. “I like the idea of
working with recycled materials – so
the pieces are made from just over
a thousand pieces of paper held
under tension and then painted
with watercolour. I’ve been looking
at edge-gilding and the qualities of
different painting surfaces – these
pieces are like reconstructed books.
There are also new paintings from
Alice Cescatti, who works in silver
leaf. Catch a day when Alice is in the
gallery and she will explain her water-
gilding process – building up layers
of sanded gesso and clay on wooden
panels, followed by floating individual
silver or gold leaves onto the surface
using a specialist method dating
back to Egyptian tomb paintings and
reliefs from the 23rd century BC.
This gives her coastal landscapes
a magical shimmer as the changing
light of the gallery hits them.
Paper Balloon believe in the power
of story to inspire and that great
theatre starts with great stories.
On Monday, April 10, at 2pm, they
bring their beautiful new show, The
Boy and The Mermaid, to Arlington
Arts, Snelsmore. Perfect for families
with children aged six-plus, it is a
mix of innovative puppetry, exciting
storytelling, live music and song.
Based on an original story by Alex
Kanefsky and featuring original songs
and music from Darren Clark, the play
explores one island’s relationship with
the outside world. It chronicles the
fate of one little fishing town exposed
to the mercy of sea monsters,
mer-creatures and spectacularly bad
town planning.
It was presented as a scratch
performance last year following a
period of research and development
with young people in coastal
communities, exploring our
relationship with the ocean; its
traditions, its music and its myths. In
the wake of the humanitarian crisis
on Europe’s shores, this enchanting
play uses traditional sea shanties
and original new music fused with
puppetry, storytelling and movement
to explore how the mythical
town responds when faced with
newcomers from the ocean.
The intimacy of The Watermill
auditorium is made for the words of
Shakespeare and the theatre has
become known around the world
for its bold, ensemble work. It is
celebrating its 50th anniversary year
with a new production of Twelfth
Night, a play that embraces comedy,
romance and tragedy.
Bohemian, outlandish, isolated:
Illyria is a land where everyone has
lost something and they will use any
means to survive. This production
is reimagined in the 1920s, where
prohibition is rife and Europe is still
reeling in the wake of war.
Viola is washed ashore. Compelled
to survive in a mysterious ethereal
land, she disguises herself as
Cesario to serve the solitary Duke
Orsino. What follows is a tale of
mistaken identities, seduction and
transformation, leading to a complex
love triangle and the potential
destruction of all propriety.
As always with Watermill
productions, expect the unexpected:
a scintillating selection of energetic
jazz music, where the radical spirit
of Duke Ellington, Django Reinhardt
and Ella Fitzgerald is fused with an
innovative approach to staging and
actor musicianship. And the front
seating will be set out cabaret-style.
Twelfth Night runs from Thursday,
April 6 to Saturday, May 6.
Two big hippos. One enormous dream.
Who can make it to the moon first?
David Walliams has taken the literary
world by storm – he’s currently the
number one best-selling children’s
author and his brilliantly funny stories
are adored by children the world over.
Now award-winning theatre company
Les Petits have adapted his space
adventure The First Hippo on the Moon
for the stage. Sheila is a hippo with BIG
ideas. Specifically, she is determined to
be the first hippo on the moon.
But Hercules Waldorf-Franklin III
is also determined to be the first hippo
on the moon. And he is very rich
indeed. Who will win the great
space-race?
Follow their fantastical antics in two
morning shows and two matinees,
on Sunday, April 23 and Monday,
April 24, featuring puppetry, music
and mayhem. Age guide 3+.
3... 2...1... BLAST OFF!
The First Hippo on the Moon at the Corn Exchange
April dates for your diary