Culture Diary w/c 17-07-2017
Our pick of this week’s arts, design, film and music events from around the UK – and most of it’s free!
Tuesday – Mosquitoes 7.30pm @ Dorfman Theatre, National Theatre, London — SOLD OUT
The fact that playwright Lucy Kirkwood’s Mosquitoes is completely sold out (check daily for a limited release of tickets, especially worth seeking the 1pm £20 Friday Rush deal) is telling of Kirkwood’s talent and reputation (previously of award-winning political thriller Chimerica, and soon to Channel 4 for a new Brexit-set tale). Following sisters Jenny and Alice — played by theatre demigods Olivia Colman and Olivia Williams respectively – in the build-up to a catastrophe set around the Higgs Boson, expect top-notch drama.
Wednesday – Gwilym Simcock & Thomas Gould 7.30pm @ Storyhouse, Chester — £16.50 / £19.50
Join pianist Gwilym Simcock, violinist Thom Gould and percussionist Bernhardt Schimpelsberger tonight for a breezy tour through neo-classical, jazz and folk – including Bartók, Monti, and brand new compositions from Simcock and Schimpelsberger themselves.
Thursday – Exhibition Opening: Abacus 4—10pm @ The Bluecoat, Liverpool — FREE
Break the rules at the Bluecoat this week with their new exhibition uniquely aimed at young people. Expect to get your hands dirty — watching, drawing, reading and making – with artists including Polly Brannan, Rhys Coren, Frances Disley, Kevin Hunt, Emily Speed, and many more. See it until 1 October.
Talk: Norman Jay & Yousef 5.45pm @ British Music Experience, Liverpool — £7
The first in a series of live in-conversation events at this new waterfront music museum, tonight stars two well-known mod/disco/house/techno/electronica DJs: Norman Jay MBE (Kiss FM, Talkin’ Loud, Good Times Sound System) and Yousef (Circus). Expect to hear all about their careers thus far, plus how they think the genres have evolved – from the 1980s to present day.
Reading Ruefle, Ruocco And Carrington with Heather Phillipson 6.30—8pm @ Drawing Room, London — £3
A book club of short texts selected by brilliant artist-in-residence Heather Phillipson (above), expect chat about Mary Ruefle’s essay Kangaroo Beach, Leonora Carrington’s manifesto Jezzamathatics (an introduction to painting), and Joanna Ruocco’s short story Multi-Course Small Plates, Craft Lofts, Prix Fixe.
PICK OF THE WEEK: Friday – Scribe (2017) @ Cinemas Nationwide – Ticket Prices Vary
Starring a mesmirising François Cluzet (Untouchable, Tell No One, Little White Lies) as a middle-aged man offered a surveillance job by a mysterious (read shady) employer, Scribe (pictured, below) is bound to end in tears. Picking up a bevy of critical acclaim for first time feature director Thomas Kruithof, expect a tense espionage thriller in the spirit of Le Carré, The Conversation et al.
Saturday – Exhibition Open: Mat Collishaw: Thresholds 10am–5pm @ Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery — £4.50
A VR restaging of one of Britiain’s earliest photography exhibitions, expect a meticulously-researched 360° tour of British scientist William Henry Fox Talbot’s original Birmingham-set display that wowed the crowds – including now rare and fragile imagery. On until 6 August, advance booking recommended.
Sunday – Sheer Mag 7.30pm @ Deaf Institute, Manchester — £13.20
Performing genuinely danceable, Southern-fried-chicken-hued US rock-pop, and fronted by the kick-ass Tina Halladay, this is the last stop on Sheer Mag’s UK tour before they hop over to the Netherlands. Check out Nobody’s Baby, above, from their third EP.
Laura Robertson, Editor
