Category: BPreviews

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ED’S PICK: February 2018

Words by Ed King

The shortest month of the year is here. Luckily it’s also the turning point, as life starts to push up through the thaw and Percy Thrower can start planning his planters. OK, bad example, but there’s a joke about daisies in the somewhere.

But luckily for us mortal coilers, the venues and promoters of this city are still packing a pretty heavy punch with February’s event calendar. If there truly is no rest for the wicked, then it seem incongruous that anyone got Christmas presents this year.

Comedy starts strong with the ‘queen of the acerbic broad smile’, or Katherine Ryan as she’s known in  other publications, bringing her Glitter Room tour to the Symphony Hall (2nd Feb) – a week before the Machynlleth Comedy Festival Showcase (9th Feb) comes to mac with Joe Lycett, Tom Parry, Mike Bubbins, Rachel Parris and Danny Clives. Then it’s back to the Glee Club for a little end of the month self help, as Lloyd Griffiths (23rd Feb) walks us through what it’s like to feel in:Undated in ‘a show about overcoming the overwhelming.’ I call them mornings, but we’ll see what he brings to the table.

Hurst Street is the home of dance this month, with Matthew Bourne’s Cinderella coming to the Hippodrome (6th – 10th Feb) whilst round the corner DanceXchange and Mark Bruce Company present a reworking of Macbeth (8th-9th Feb). And no doubt making St Valentine’s Day less of a massacre for many in this city, see what I did there, Birmingham Royal Ballet present The Sleeping Beauty back at the Hippodrome (13th – 24th Feb).

Music has everyone from the soon to be great to the already good coming through the city, kicking off with a cross city battle between Peach Club at The Sunflower Lounge (6th Feb) and While She Sleeps at the O2 Institute (6th Feb). A week later we have Iron & Wine at Symphony Hall (13th Feb), followed by Bedford’s alt rockers Don Bronco at the O2 Academy (15th Feb) as Dermot Kennedy plays the O2 Institute (15th Feb). A day later there’s Mondo Royale spicing it up at the Actress & Bishop (16th Feb) bringing a few different strands of your music rainbow across our city. In the days after that, we see Cabbage at the Castle & Falcon (17th Feb), one not to be missed, The Ataris at The Asylum (17th Feb), Irit at the Glee Club (19th Feb), Laura Misch at the Hare & Hounds (20th Feb), Big Cat at the Indie Lounge in Selly Oak (23rd Feb) and Puma Blue at The Sunflower Lounge (24th Feb).

All the ‘big gigs’ this month are at the Genting Arena, in the shape of Imagine Dragons (24th Feb) and the man himself, or one of them at least, Morrissey (27th Feb). But there’s a few home grown releases this month worth saving your sheckles for too, as Amit Datani releases his debut solo album – Santiago (17th Feb) and Table Scraps send another fuzz monster into the world with their latest long player – Autonomy (23rd). Watch out for March’s listings for showcase gigs from both.

Exhibitions come from a multitude of angles this month, with the two blips on our radar being Factory Warhol at The Sunflower Lounge (10th Feb) and The Dekkan Trap from Sahej Rahal in mac’s First Floor Gallery (17th Feb) – with a few ancillary events to introduce both the artist and exhibition.

Some suitable love story based theatre starts treading the boards in this most Hallmark of months, with Penguins (1st –10th Feb) and Brief Encounter (2nd – 17th Feb) coming to the Birmingham REP, as The Last Five Years get played out at The Old Joint Stock (14th – 18th Feb). Then it’s the arguably less seductive A History of Heavy Metal with Andrew O’Neill & Band in mac’s Theatre (18th Feb), before the award winning Mental has a three day at The Old Joint Stock (21st – 23rd Feb) and Terence Rattigan’s The Windslow Boy begins it’s run at REP (21st Feb – 3rd Mar). And for one night only each, LEFTY SCUM: Josie Long, Jonny & The Baptists and Grace Petrie present a mix bag of ‘Music! Comedy! Revolutionary socialism’ again in mac’s Theatre (27th Feb) whilst back at The Old Joint Stock there is single An Act of Kindness (28th Feb) to round off the month. But don’t worry, it’ll be back in March.

So, enough to keep you lovebirds busy this month – or to distract the kings and queens of singledom on that depressing light letter box day. But whether you face this world alone or together there’s always Fight Club for £1 at The Mockingbird Kitchen & Cinema (12th Feb). Cheaper than a card, at least. 

For more on any of the events listed here, click on the highlighted hyperlink. Ed King is Editor-in-Chief of Review Publishing, which issues both the Birmingham Review and Birmingham Preview.

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BPREVIEW: Katherine Ryan – Glitter Room @ Symphony Hall 02.02.18

Katherine Ryan – Glitter Room @ Symphony Hall 02.02.18

Words by Ed King

On Friday 2nd February, Katherine Ryan brings her Glitter Room Tour to Birmingham’s Symphony Hall – with Joe Lycett as the stand up support act. 

Katherine Ryan’s Glitter Room is scheduled for 8pm at the Symphony Hall, with tickets priced at £24.50 (+bf) as presented by Live Nation UK. For direct show information, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

Queen of the acerbic broad smile, Katherine Ryan has been poking the ribs of our populous since settling in Britain about a decade ago – winning the Nivea sponsored Funny Women Award in 2008.

Katherine Ryan – Glitter Room @ Symphony Hall 02.02.18Born, raised and educated in Ontario, Ryan initially moved to the UK to help the restaurant chain Hooters set up in Nottingham – sticking around in Albion longer than expected, picking up some solid bookings as a comedian and setting into the tight lipped day to day of England. Now a self described “typical British mum – a young, uneducated immigrant”, Ryan has become a familiar face in Britain as a TV presenter, regular guest on TV panel shows, and part of the festival stand up circuit.

With a self deprecating, child (adulation) bashing, velvet glove punch approach to her material, Katherine Ryan is not likely to appear at a Pontins family cabaret anytime soon (I once saw both mother and daughter on stage for a skit… not your standard red coat fodder). Likewise, I can’t imagine there’s too much sleep being lost in the Ryan household when Waitrose run out of Chai Latte mix.

But for those anti-millennials who enjoy a sticking a good two fingers up at the tacit/absurd sides of society, you might find yourself in the right room with Katherine Ryan.

Although her latest tour, Glitter Room (named after her daughter’s bedroom) sees Ryan shift from the ‘waspish put-down to a more positive celebration of her life’ – with a little room left for Trump bashing and jabs at Baby Machine Julie. Personally, I’m fingers crossed for another attack of the Beyoncés. But a boy can dream.

Katherine Ryan – on Conan, February 2017

Katherine Ryan brings her Glitter Room Tour to Birmingham’s Symphony Hall on Friday 2nd February, with Joe Lycett as the support stand up act. For direct show information, including venue details and online ticket sales, visit www.thsh.co.uk/event/katherine-ryan 

For more on Katherine Ryan, visit www.katherineryan.co.uk

For more on Joe Lycett, visit www.joelycettcomedy.co.uk

For more from Live Nation UK, including further event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.livenation.co.uk

For more from both the Symphony and Town Halls, including further event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.thsh.co.uk

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BPREVIEW: Dead! @ The Flapper 31.01.18

Dead! @ The Flapper 31.01.18

Words by Aatish Ramchurn

As part of their The Golden Age Live tour, Dead! will be playing at The Flapper on Wednesday 31st January. Main support for the night (and most of the tour) comes from London punk trio, Kenneths – with Birmingham based bands, A Promise to Forget and Blank Parody also playing at The Flapper.

Tickets are priced at £8 (adv) plus booking fee, as presented by Surprise You’re Dead! Music. Doors open at The Flapper from 7pm. For direct gig info, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

London rock band, Dead!, are no strangers to Birmingham’s music scene, having previously played at Alfie Birds, Scruffy Murphy’s, Subside, and the O2 Institute where they recently supported Deaf Havana. Wednesday 31st January will see them tick off The Flapper from the list of stages they have played in Birmingham, bringing the threatened music venue their own flavour of the punk and indie sound.

Touring the UK relentlessly since 2012, band members Alex Mountford, Sam Matlock, Louis Matlock, and Sam Chappell all met in Southampton, initially booking local shows themselves. But as Dead! began reaching a wider audience, playing shows up and down the UK, their excessive touring schedule eventually paid off and their popularity rose.

Having signed to Infectious Music/BMG and Rise Records in the USA, not bad for a band who have been described as ‘everything that’s wrong with art’, Dead! are kicking off the New Year with another mammoth tour of the UK – on the road promoting their recently released debut album, The Golden Age of Not Even Trying.

Indeed, 2018 could be a great year for Dead! as they reach out to new audiences whilst reacquainting themselves with older ones. Especially as they’ve been tipped by Kerrang! Magazine as one of their Hottest Bands of 2018.

‘The Golden Age of Not Even Trying’ – Dead!

For more on Dead! visit www.theinternetisdead.co.uk

For more on Kenneths, visit www.musicglue.com/kenneths

For more on A Promise to Forget, visit www.facebook.com/apromisetoforget

For more on Blank Parody, visit www.blankparody.com

For more on The Flapper, visit www.theflapper.co.uk

For more on Surprise You’re Dead! Music, visit www.surpriseyouredeadmusic.co.uk

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BPREVIEW: The Late Marilyn Monroe @ The Blue Orange Theatre 30.01-02.02.18

The Late Marilyn Monroe @ The Blue Orange Theatre 30.01-02.02.18Words by Charlotte Heap

The Late Marilyn Monroe tells the tale of the last hours of Hollywood’s most famous bombshell, running at The Blue Orange Theatre from Tuesday 30th January to Saturday 3rd February.

The show is scheduled for 7:45pm each evening, with a matinee performance at 3pm on Saturday 3rd February. Tickets are priced at £12 (standard) and £10 (concessions) – for direct show information and links to online ticket sales, click here. 

Birmingham based writer/actor, Darren Haywood, promises ‘this will not be the Marilyn you’ve seen before’, premiering his new production at the Great Hampton Street theatre with the Taking Chances theatre group.

Previously penning shows including Role Play, Head Girl and The Morning After – all produced by Taking Chances – Heywood has not shied away from the more subversive issues, even playing the title role in Taking Chances‘ production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the Crescent Theatre back in 2011.

Monroe, arguably one of the world’s favourite film stars, died at just 36: her shock death combined with her high octane life (rumoured to include an affair with John F Kennedy) immortalised her celebrity, as well as creating a wealth of conspiracy theories. But despite the decades since her death in 1962 Monroe’s allure has persisted, even assisted by the mystery surrounding her premature demise.

The Late Marilyn Monroe presents the star’s final day, and an audience familiar only with Monroe’s glamorous persona may be surprised by the ‘reality’. Indeed the show’s promotion asks us ‘what really happened? And what was she like behind closed doors?’ But Haywood’s script seems certain to explore Monroe’s apparent battles with drug addiction, depression, and sexual exploitation, issues particularly pertinent in the climate of Hollywood’s #MeToo campaign.

And with such a well loved icon as the centre piece of the narrative, it will be interesting to see what fresh insight and modern meaning both Haywood and Taking Chances can bring to such a familiar tale.

The Late Marilyn Monroe runs at The Blue Orange Theatre from Tuesday 30th January to Saturday 3rd February – presented by Taking Chances. For direct show information and links to online ticket sales, visit www.blueorangetheatre.co.uk/project/the-late-marilyn-monroe-30th-january-3rd-february-2018                    

For more on The Late Marilyn Monroe, click here.

For more from Taking Chances, visit www.facebook.com/TakingChancesTheatre

For more from The Blue Orange Theatre, including full event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.blueorangetheatre.co.uk

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BPREVIEW: Ed Byrne @ Town Hall 27.01.18

Ed Byrne @ Town Hall 27.01.18

Words by Helen Knott

Comedian Ed Byrne brings his Spoiler Alert show to Birmingham’s Town Hall on 27th January, in the first week of a UK tour that stretches into June.

Spoiler Alert is scheduled for 8pm at the Town Hall, with and tickets priced at £27 (+bf). For direct show information, including venue details and online ticket sales, click here.

Ed Byrne has been a comedian for around 20 years now, pretty much his entire adult life. He’s had hit tours, DVDs and has sold out numerous runs at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Byrne has also established a successful TV career, not just through his numerous appearances on comedy shows such as Mock the Week, Have I Got News for You and Live at the Apollo, but also in factual genres. Indeed, Byrne seems to have reached the enviable position of being able to create TV series about subjects he’s personally interested in, such as Dara & Ed’s Great Big Adventure in Central America and its successor Road to Mandalay – road trips that feature friend and fellow comedian, Dara Ó Briain.

Byrne is undoubtedly in comedy’s Premier League, with publications like the Sunday Times declaring that his work ‘could stand proudly next to any Izzard, Bailey, Carr or Skinner stadium-filler’. He certainly tends to mine similar ground to these comedians, though arguably without the quirks that make their voices truly unique.

Spoiler Alert was debuted and developed at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe, as Byrne traces his shift from a working class young Dubliner to a middle class countryside-dweller. He looks at the impact this change has had on his children’s upbringing compared to his own, and asks the audience “are we right to be fed up, or are we spoiled?”

It may sound like common territory for a mainstream comedian’s set, but with Byrne‘s effortless, laid back delivery (and those 20 years of comedy experience) he’s sure to bring an easy charm to a well-considered and fun evening of genial entertainment.

Ed Byrne on weddings – Live at the Apollo

Ed Byrne brings his Spoiler Alert show to Town Hall on Saturday 27th January. For direct show information, including venue details and online ticket sales, visit www.thsh.co.uk/event/ed-byrne-spoiler-alert 

For more on Ed Byrne, visit www.edbyrne.com

For more from both the Town Hall and Symphony Hall, including full event listings and online ticket sales, visit www.thsh.co.uk