Readings, Plays, Recordings, Festivals – Busy times

Spoken Worlds – Burton on Trent.

Spoken Worlds

Old Cottage Tavern – Bykerley Street – Burton on Trent.
Friday 16th August at 7:30pm

Come and read in the now famous three halves – this is the host Gary Carr’s Birthday bash so come along and celebrate with a pint and some poetry.

At the Shire Hall Gallery Stafford.

There is still a chance to add words to the Stafford Poem.

23 – Sound Sculpture of a Court Room.

I am working with Staffordshire Arts and Archives on a poetic sound sculpture to reflect on the spirit of Court Room number 1 at the Shire Hall Gallery in Stafford.

My Script is in rehearsal with Fired Up Theatre and HydanoidMusia to produce a poetic sound sculpture that will be played in the Court Room at the Shire Hall Gallery.

Hear the lives of murderers, bread thieves, drunkards, coal thieves and coin clippers along with the voices of the Clerk and his wife.

The recording takes place on Sunday 18th August between 12:30 and 16:00 in the court room and we are welcoming the public to come and observe and may be add their voices to some of the chants.

St Dominics Literature Festival – Brewood Staffordshire.

This is unique event for the writers of the future a literature festival aimed at children and young people.

31st August at St Dominic’s High School For Girls in Brewood Staffordshire.

I will be sharing my Staffordshire words, hosting an Open Mic session for yound poets and introducing the British Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy as the guest speaker.

http://www.stdominicsschool.co.uk/news/default.asp?storyID=188

Unity in the Community.

I will be reading at the Unity in the Community event in Wednesbury at 7:30 pm on Tuesday 3rd September.

THE FIZZ at Stafford Arts Festival

I am hosting THE FIZZ Poetry and Spoken Word event at Stafford Arts Festival on 7th September at the Gatehouse Theatre.

The programme includes many local voices along with readings from the candidates for the Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Young Poet Laureate.

Readings from 10:00 to 12:00 and then 13:00 to 16:00 in the main auditorium.

http://www.stafford-towncentre.co.uk/arts-festival-home.htm

Other poetic events include Bert Flitcroft as Poet In Residence at the Shire Hall Library – see the timetable on the website for full details of all the arts festival events.

Poetry Workshop at Lichfield Library

Saturday 14th Sept 2013 – 10:30 – 14:30

Lichfield is celebrating local and community History month in September and as part of the celebrations, Staffordshire Poet Laureate, Mal Dewhirst will be running a FREE poetry workshop to explore some of the local history artefacts held in the Library.

The workshop is open to everyone over the age of 16 and will look at the changing environs of Lichfield through maps and photographs, building around the theme of Lichfield : a Victorian Life.

Through exercises participants will gather ideas and then be given time to write a piece which they can read out in the library at the end of the workshop.

My Coming soon doings.

The Fell Walker

A Fired Up Theatre Production of Mal and Simon’s adaption of the novel by Michael Wood. – Script writing in August – Auditions and Rehearsals start in September – The premier is at the Penrith Playhouse in January 2014.

Crossroads – Satan, The Master and The Blues.

A new production by Mal Dewhirst and Simon Quinn with Fired Up Theatre for the Lichfield Mysteries to be staged at the Lichfield Garrick Studio Theatre in May 2014.

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Some of my soon to be Doings

A quick post of some events where I will be reading or running workshops over the next couple of weeks.

 POETRY ALIGHT at the SPARK CAFE – Lichfield

Tuesday July 9th at 7:30pm – Always a great evening of exceptional poetry.

FUSE FESTIVAL in Lichfield – Beacon Park

Saturday 13th July – 14:00 to 16:00.

In the Performance Gazebo.

The Laureates present Poetry – I am joining Ian Henery Walsall Poet Laureate to host an afternoon of Poetry

http://lichfieldarts.org.uk/festival_performer/ian-henery-walsall-poet-laureate-and-friends/

with  Al Barz – Kristina V Griffiths – Surgit Dhami – Najma Hush – Gary Longden – Tom Wyre – Roy Smith

Tim Philpott – Sammy Joe.  

SPOKEN WORLDS – Burton on Trent.

Spoken Worlds

Old Cottage Tavern – Bykerley Street – Burton on Trent.
Friday 19th July at 7:30pm

Come and read in the now famous three halves.

AT THE SHIRE HALL GALLERY IN STAFFORD.

Join Eleanor Babb and me for a Summer Event Day

Saturday 20 JULY 10.00am – 4.00pm

Digital photography with Eleanor Babb.
An exciting opportunity to explore the idea of modern townscapes and street photography. Come and create your own images to add to a giant photo-montage of Stafford. Suitable for beginners and families.

https://photocns.wordpress.com/members/e/ 

Poetry Activity
Also learn more about poetry and words with Staffordshire’s very own poet laureate Mal Dewhirst. An accompanying exhibition of maps and verse will provoke and stimulate your imagination! Reflect on your thoughts and feelings of Stafford and help Mal to create a new poem to be performed at Stafford Arts Festival on 7th September.
Family drop in FREE

http://www.staffordshire.gov.uk/leisure/museumandgalleries/shirehallgalleries/home.aspx 

 

 

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MOD GALLERY CELEBRATIONS

WHAT ANNOYS – DELIGHTS – AND IS OFTEN UNEXPLAINED.

What is ANNOYING me this week?

Slow Computers.

What is DELIGHTING me this week?

Quadrophenia

LISTENING TO:

Quadrophenia – The Pinch.

SOME OF MY DOINGS:

LAUREATE TIMES

Open Arts 2013 – Shire Hall Gallery.

Last Friday saw me attend the preview of the Open Arts Exhibition 2013 at the Shire Hall Gallery in Stafford. It was part of my role as the Staffordshire Poet Laureate and I had the pleasure of reading my poem All around the Shire, to the gathered audience of Civic dignitaries, artists and their families and friends.

The exhibition is a real showcase of talent that if you were ever in any doubt that Staffordshire lives up to its tag as the Creative County, then this exhibition will remove any of these doubts.

Imagery and ideas are abounding in this eclectic mix of styles, media and subjects. As a writer I look for the secrets in a picture, the hidden corner, the darkened room, to lit room at 2:00am these are where the stories are, this is my entry into the picture that fires my imagination. The image can be abstract and still allow me to see the thoughts behind the face, the beauty in the moment.

Of the winning images there were three that held such secrets, Blue David by Sam Mace – Mud Revellers by Ron Satterthwaite and LAT 52816393 LONG 2118802 by Yvonne Jordan.

The Staffordshire Open Art Exhibition is on until 14th July at the Shire Hall Gallery, Stafford.

Quadrophenia – Love Reign O’er Us.

A Scooter of Jimmy’s

And so the weekend is here and the show will go on.

There is a real buzz around the Assembly Rooms in Tamworth as the reality of what we are performing kicks in with the cast, as they perform for the first time with the live band on the thrust stage that had only previously been marked out with chairs.

Wednesday saw a technical set-up, with the band sound check, the projections and members of the cast hitting their marks so that the lights can be set to hit the mark at the same time.

This has been a lot of hard work from a dedicated group whose reward is two sell out nights in which to deliver our baby into the world.

For those that have tickets then you are in for a real treat, believe me, I’ve seen it.

Tamworth Library – 40th Anniversary – Poetry Workshop. Sat 8th June 2013 10:00 – 14:00

In collaboration with Tamworth Library, I am running a Poetry workshop to celebrate to 40th Anniversary of the Library moving to its present building.

The workshop is FREE to anyone over 16 and will run from 10am to 2pm.

We will look at some unusual aspects of the library as selected by the Library staff to seek out what makes this library unique amongst the other libraries in the county.

Participants will be given opportunities to explore the items and write about them, there will be a reading in the library of some of the poems as the end of the workshop.

If you want to book a place then please contact the library Email: tamworth.library@staffordshire.gov.uk
Telephone: 01827 475646

SOME OF MY COMING SOON DOINGS

Up and Coming Readings.

24/25th May Quadrophenia – Assembly Rooms, Tamworth.
1st June – Ashby Arts Festival – Library – Ashby-de-la-Zouch
4th June – Night Blue Fruit – Coventry.
8th June – Laureate Saturday Workshop – Tamworth Library.
11th June – Kings Head Lichfield – with the Lichfield Poets.
21st June – Spoken Worlds – Burton on Trent.

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