HowardAssemblyRoom

Spring Season 2012

MusicFilmWordsPerformance

FILMusic, Winter 2012Apollo: For All Mankind

Making connections between the classical and the contemporary

Spring is the perfect time of year for music that feeds the soul and stirs the blood.

Dynamic music from Transylvania, Poland and Honduras brings an unrestrained and energetic feel to the season, while a series of concerts, films and talks celebrate the great Broadway musical, inspired by Opera North’s new production of Carousel.

A darker note is provided by a new opera, Babur in London. This production and associated events offer a perspective on 21st century fundamentalism in the context of the 16th century Mughal warrior poet, Babur.

Challenging. Playful. Spirited. Come and listen!

Extra – enjoy a free lunch time recital on Friday 11 May at 1.05pm when University of Leedsfinalists Victoria Clarke and Daniel Gordon play Schubert and Dvorák. No tickets needed.

‘one of Leeds’ most beguiling and adaptable performance spaces’Yorkshire Post

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Music

Wednesday 4 April 7.45pm£20

Reserved seating

‘One of the best vocal ensembles you will find anywhere’In Tune BBC Radio 3

The Cardinall’s Musick William Byrd’s Sacred MusicMass for Three Voices Propers for the Purification

The English Renaissance master William Byrd is the subject of this powerful recital by Gramophone award winning Early Music ensemble, The Cardinall’s Musick.

Caught between his own beliefs and theturbulent religious landscape of the Reformation,Byrd’s music is infused with charged emotion, imagination and intelligence.

Andrew Carwood directs these superb voices in a special programme for Easter time, celebrating Byrd’s sacred music.

Performance

Friday 20 April 7.30pm £5

‘a great opportunity to sample the ... UK’s most advanced opera students.’ The Stage

National Opera Studio at Opera North The National Opera Studio (NOS) ranks among Europe’s finest opera training centres, producing singers who go on to enjoy an international career. Every two years Opera North offers NOSstudents the opportunity to become a professionalmember of the company for a week. Past studentshave gone on to perform in Opera North productions, including Nicky Spence who was Lampwick in The Adventures of Pinocchio.

Join us for this semi-staged concert, bringing together the country’s brightest young operatic talents to sing excerpts from Benjamin Britten’s operas: The Rape of Lucretia, Albert Herring and The Turn of the Screw. Directed by Olivia Fuchs.

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Spring events celebrating Rodgers and Hammerstein’s delightful musical Carousel.

Music

Saturday 21 April 7.30pm£17.50

Reserved seating

‘generally all-round fabulous’The Guardian on Dame Felicity Lott

‘Many composers would have been happy to tie Rodgers’ shoes for him if only they had been able to fill them. He could write anything, and to order and to suit.’Time Magazine

The Carousel Waltz Dame Felicity Lott sings Richard Rodgers

Piano: Jason Carr To accompany Opera North’s new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel, we are delighted to be joined by the wonderful Dame Felicity Lott, a singer as comfortable with the great Broadway musicals as she is with the operas of Richard Strauss.

This promises to be a memorable evening with some of the most splendid music written for stage, including songs from The King and I, State Fair, Pal Joey and Carousel itself.

Carousel

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Film

Friday27 April 7.45pm£5

Written on the Wind Director Douglas Sirk’s ravishing melodrama follows playboy millionaire Kyle Hadley (Robert Stack) and the disintegration of his marriage to his lovely wife (Lauren Bacall), while his upstanding best friend (Rock Hudson) loves her in silence.

A cocktail of jealousy, alcoholism and infatuation fuel the plot. Sirk uses symbolically charged cinematography, the shadows of film noir and extravagant colour to create a satirical critique of misfit lives and inherited wealth.

Two films from 1956 about troubled marriages, accompanying Opera North’s production of Carousel.

Film

Saturday 28 April 3.00pm £5

High Society Studded with glorious tunes by Cole Porter, High Society is a blissfully elegant musical remake of The Philadelphia Story, with an all star cast.

Bing Crosby is C.K. Dexter-Haven, a successful jazz musician who is trying to re-win the heartof his ex-wife (Grace Kelly) on the eve of hermarriage. Reporter Mike Connor (Frank Sinatra)arrives to cover the nuptials and a web of romantic entanglements ensues when he also falls for Tracy’s icy charms.

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Dir. Douglas Sirk, USA 1956, 99 mins. Cert PG.

‘I have seen Written on the Wind a thousand times... and I cannot wait to see it again.’Pedro Almodovar (Dir. All About my Mother)

Dir. Charles Walters, USA 1956, 111 mins. Cert PG.

‘A delightful romp through the troubled lives of America’s super rich and ridiculous’Film 4

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CarouselCarousel

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Performance

Saturday 28 April 10.30amAdults: £3 Under 18s: Free

Participate Create your own Broadway Musical Number

You don’t have to be Fred Astaire or Ginger Rogersto enjoy this entertaining dance workshop as no dance experience is necessary. To accompany Opera North’s production of Carousel, this event celebrates the vivacity of musical theatre.

You’ll have the chance to learn the moves to some classic Broadway numbers in a session that is fun-filled and family friendly. Whether adult or child, you’ll all be leaving with a spring in your step!

Grab your coat and get your hat, leave your worries on the doorstep, just direct your feet to the...Howard Assembly Room!

Suitable for 8+ and their families.

Words

Monday 30 April 7.30pm £5

‘A key to the way Kim Brandstup shapes choreography...lies in his initial interest in cinema, and his formal studies in film’Financial Times

Dancing on Broadway with Kim Brandstrup Kim Brandstrup is one of Europe’s most influentialand in-demand contemporary choreographers. He has worked with leading international ballet companies, as well as in film and theatre. Perhapssurprisingly, Brandstrup is also a passionate devotee of the Broadway musical and is currentlychoreographing Opera North’s production of Carousel.

In this unique event, he discusses the great post-war Broadway musicals, illustrated withfilm clips, exploring the influence of ballet, contemporary dance and Hollywood on Broadway.Chaired by Opera North’s Projects Director, Dominic Gray.

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CarouselCarousel

Music

Thursday 10 May 7.45pm£15

‘It’s low-key, but glowing with life’The Guardian on Trio Libero

Andy Sheppard, Michel Benita, Sebastian Rochford Trio Libero

Trio Libero is Andy Sheppard, French bassist Michel Benita and British drummer Sebastian Rochford (Polar Bear). Here they perform music from their self titled album, combining Sheppards’s melodically and rhythmically inventive lines with Benita’s colourful ideas and Rochford’s dynamic drum attack.

Andy Sheppard is one of the most compellingand charismatic saxophonists on the European jazz scene. A powerful soloist with a distinctive glowing tone, he has illuminated the bands of jazz greats George Russell, Gil Evans and Carla Bley.

Music

Friday 11 May 7.45pm £12.50

Reserved seating

‘Malcolm Martineau...the ever-immaculate accompanist...’The Guardian on Martineau’s recording of the Complete Songs of Poulenc

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Mélodies and Chansons By Jacques Brel, Debussy, Fauré and Poulenc

Baritone: Thomas OliemansPiano: Malcolm MartineauAccordion & arrangements: Bert van den Brink The wryly poetic songs of the master of French popular song, Jacques Brel, lie at the heart of this tour through the story of great chanson. Sung by the charismatic Dutch baritone Thomas Oliemans, the evening also includes pieces by Debussy, Fauré and Poulenc.

The arrangements are by Bert van den Brink, an extraordinarily versatile classical and jazz pianist/accordionist who has worked with musicians including Chet Baker. Join us for a sparkling evening of French (and nearly French) song.

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European Opera Days

Performance

Saturday 12 May 7.00pmFree (tickets must be booked in advance)

It Takes Two... Opera’s greatest duets

Experience a night at the opera unlike any other with some of the greatest double acts in opera. At this free, hour long event, meet lovers and heartless villains, kings and courtesans, and hearsome of the most magical and rarely heard duets.

This is a unique chance to hear the power and beauty of operatic voices up close. Directed by Daniel Norman.

Sacred Harp Singing Workshop

An uplifting workshop exploring this powerful singing tradition from the American Deep South. Come and sing the Sacred Harp book of spiritual songs and anthems in four part harmony, with no need for any musical experience.

Held in the Emerald Grand Hall (limited capacity)

Music

Wednesday 23 May 8.00pm £15

‘It’s a short list of jazz pianists who have the wherewithal to drop a J Dilla reference into a Thelonious Monk cover, but not many jazz pianists are Robert Glasper.’Los Angeles Times

Robert Glasper Experiment Black Radio Following a date at the Barbican Hall, Robert Glasper comes to Leeds to mark the launch of Black Radio, a landmark album that boldly stakes out his new musical territory in jazz, hip hop, R&B and rock.

Pianist extraordinaire Glasper is reshapingthe vocabulary of jazz. He has one foot planted firmly in jazz and the other in hip hop and funk. His unique sound blends his innate sense of melody and swing with the dance floor beats of the late great hip hop producer J Dilla.

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Music

Saturday 12 May 11.00amFree (tickets must be booked in advance)

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Music

Friday 25 May 7.45pm£12.50

Aurelio Martinez and the Garifuna Soul Band Laru BeyaWith support

Singer, guitarist and song writer Aurelio Martinez is the central figure in the recent resurgence of Garifuna soul - the unique Afro-American music of the Caribbean coasts of Belize, Guatemala and Honduras.

Martinez makes music that spans tragic historiesand ancestral ceremonies, combining African, Caribbean Indian and Latin influences. Sparked by a childhood in a tiny coastal hamlet, his musicis also influenced by his late friend and mentor, the Garifuna icon Andy Palacio. In 2011, he released his second album Laru Beya to widespread acclaim for his distinctive, soulful vocals and his talent as a songwriter.

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‘Part of the joy of this marvellous record lies in trying to pin down the different traditions floating in the air’The Sunday Times on Laru Beya

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Music

Saturday 26 May 7.45pm£15

Reserved seating

Cropper Welsh Roscoe TrioBeethoven Trio in B flat Op 97 ArchdukeHaydn Trio No 43 in CShostakovich Trio No 2 in E minor Op 63

Beethoven’s Archduke is one of the pinnacles of piano trio writing. Obsessive in its exploration of the possible combinations of the instruments – solos, duets, piano left hand, piano right hand, and of course the entire ensemble together, it is a breathtaking tour de force.

The Cropper Welsh Roscoe Trio comprises three of Britain’s finest chamber musicians: violinist Peter Cropper (ex-leader of The Lindsays), Moray Welsh (former Principal Cellist of the London Symphony Orchestra) and Martin Roscoe (pianist). This programme shows the trio’s versatility, technical brilliance and passion for music, which have made them one of the most sought after piano trios in the country.

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‘...playing with a torrential passion that was an immediate reminder of the virtues of seasoned musicianship. Three more experienced and insightfulplayers it would be hard to find....’The Sunday Times

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Film

Thursday 24 May7.45pm£5

Taste of CherryWinner of the Palme d’Or at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival, Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostami’s Taste of Cherry is an emotionally complex meditation on life and death.

Middle-aged Mr. Badii (Homayoun Ershadi) drives through the hilly outskirts of Tehran, searching for someone to rescue or bury him. He asks both a Kurdish soldier and an Afghan seminarist but both refuse.

The deceptively simple, meditative style of thefilm encompasses a tender humanism and formalgenius, imperceptibly building to become an enquiry into how and why we live. A remarkably rich celebration of human dignity.

Babur in London This short series examines contemporary violence and radicalism through the lens of the 16th century Mughal poet-warrior, Babur. With two performances of Edward Rushton’s new opera at the heart, we also present talks and a film to guide us into the world of Babur.

Dir. Abbas Kiarostami, Iran 1997, 99 mins. Cert PG. In Farsi with English subtitles.

‘My favourite film-maker of the decade is Abbas Kiarostami. He achieves a simplicity that’s so difficult to attain.’Michael Haneke (Dir. Caché, The White Ribbon)

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‘A thoughtful, illuminating exploration…erudite and measured.’Publisher’s Weekly on The Faith of the Faithless

Simon Critchley: Is this what democracy looks like?Simon Critchley examines the world we live in post 9/11. How have our ideas about terror and violence changed? What have been the consequences for our understanding of democracy, both at home and all over the world? And what do the events of the Arab Spring and the OCCUPY movement tell us about the future world political environment?

Simon Critchley is Hans Jonas Professor at the New School for Social Research in New York. His many books include Infinitely Demanding, The Book of Dead Philosophers and The Faith of the Faithless.

DARE lectures 2012.22

Words

Saturday 9 June 7.45pm £5

Words

Tuesday 29 May 6.30pm Free (tickets must be booked in advance)

On Peace and ConflictNima Poovaya-Smith, curator and director of Alchemy (an organisation based in Yorkshire fostering cultural exchange), presents selected artworks by Salima Hashmi and Nils Burwitz, and discusses them in the context of 21st century global conflict.

Held in the Emerald Grand Hall (limited capacity)

Babur: Poet, Warrior, LoverFirst Mughal emperor, merciless warrior, passionate poet, shameless self-publicist – Nima Poovaya-Smith and Aamer Hussein, Pakistani writer and critic, discuss the ‘real’ Babur.

Held in the Emerald Grand Hall (limited capacity)

Words

Wednesday 13 June6.30pmFree (tickets must be booked in advance)

‘Culture does not come in neat, isolated packages. Culture is messy and blurred. It overflows boundaries.’Nima Poovaya-Smith

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Performance

Thursday 14 & Friday 15 June 7.45pm£12.50

The Opera Group’s Street Scene, winner of The Evening Standard Award for Best Musical 2008.

The Opera Group Production, Co-Produced with Anvil Arts, Basingstoke and Opera North

Babur in London A new opera by Edward Rushton and Jeet Thayil

Following the success of their award winning production Into the Little Hill, internationally renowned company The Opera Group, return to the Howard Assembly Room with their new opera Babur in London.

In a London suburb four young men and women are preparing a terrorist act. As their mission draws closer, they are disturbed by the ghost of Babur, first Mughal Emperor, poet and warrior, who died 500 years ago.

Babur in London tells a haunting story of four young people in today’s society grappling with their beliefs, the consequences of their actions, and their feelings for each other. The piece combines the contemporary poetry of Jeet Thayil with original music by acclaimed composer Edward Rushton. Directed by John Fulljames (Associate Director of Opera at the Royal Opera House).

There will be a post performance talk on Thursday 14 June.

Suggested age suitability 14+

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‘Corrosively lyrical, jaggedly theatrical’The Times on composer Edward Rushton

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‘one of the most important bands of world music’The New York Times

Music

Thursday21 June7.45pm£12.50

Warsaw Village BandWith support

In this exclusive UK date, Poland’s Warsaw Village Band bring their thrilling folk music to Leeds in time for a summer party. Traditional Slavic melodies, drone harmonies and klezmer influences are thrown together with wild rhythmsbordering on reggae, to create a unique sound that redefines Polish village music. Played on the szuka (knee-violin), cello, dulcimer, hurdygurdy and baraban drum, the band refers to their raw yet accomplished sound as ‘radical roots style’ and ‘roots music from the ancient to the future.’

Winners of the BBC World Music Award and nominated for a Grammy, this show marks the release of their hotly tipped Scandinavian influenced new album Nord.

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Music

Saturday 16 June 7.45pm£12.50

Tcha Limberger Kalotaszeg Trio

Singer and violinist Tcha Limberger returns to the Howard Assembly Room, this time playing the music of the small Kalotaszeg region of Transylvania. These traditional laments, dances and szaporas are considered to be the most beautiful of all Hungarian music, bringing together Hungarian, Romanian and gypsy influences.

Giving Limberger’s mobile, heartbreaking voice a chance to fly, he is joined for this concert by two of the great exponents of Kalotaszeg music, Berki Viktor on bass and Toni Rudi on Brac.

‘Tcha Limberger seems to be made entirely out of music’The Observer

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OverWorlds & UnderWorldsFrom the imaginations of The Quay BrothersLeeds Canvas for the Cultural Olympiad 2012.

Music, dance, art, light, film, a flood – esteemed film-makers and animators, The Quay Brothers use the city of Leeds as their canvas, transforming public spaces and creating unforgettable free experiences. Discover strange happenings, a mysterious river and extraordinary apparitions as composers, choreographers and artists from the region create something which will alter the way we see, remember and talk about the city.

Featuring composer Gavin Bryars and the Opera North Children’s Chorus.

Find out more: www.overworldsandunderworlds.com

Friday 18 – Sunday 20 MayVarious locations across Leeds

‘Director Veenapani Chawla vividly brought home music, dance, movement, craft forms, dialogue integrated in one performance language...’The HINDU

GanapatiAdishakti

Indian dance company Adishakti travels to the UK for a very special series of performances as part of Ludus Festival Leeds. The myth of Ganapati, the elephant headed god, explores the cycle of creation, destruction and return. This piece brings alive the many versions of Ganapati’s birth story in brilliant visceral theatre and dance, while the rhythms of South Asian folk music charge the performance with texture and energy.

A rare chance to see the finest of contemporary Indian performance in the UK.

Presented by Ludus Festival Leeds in association with stage@leeds and DARE.

Performance

Thursday 28, Friday 29 &Saturday 30 June 7.30pm£10

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Leeds Canvas is a partnership between Opera North, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds Art Gallery, Northern Ballet, Phoenix Dance, Yorkshire Dance, Leeds Met Gallery and Leeds City Council.

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TicketsBox Office: 0844 848 2727Opening hours: Mon–Sat 9.30am–8.00pmhowardassemblyroom.co.ukAll events have unreserved seating unless otherwise stated.

Save 20%Simply buy an equivalent number of tickets for two or more different shows displaying the Save symbol at the same time and you will receive 20% off your tickets.

DiscountsOver 60, Leeds Card Holders: 10% offAge 19 – 26, Full Time Students: £3 off18 and under, Pension Credit, JSA, Income Support,Incapacity Benefit, Disabled People: 25% off (essential carer free)

All discounts are subject to availability and do not apply to tickets for £5 and under. Only one discount per ticket. Proof of status must be shown. Booking fee applies to tickets over £5 purchased by phone or online. Please contact Box Office for further information.

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Howard Assembly RoomEntrance via Leeds Grand Theatre46 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU

HOWARDASSEMBLYROOM&LEEDS GRAND THEATRE

Photographs: Apollo: For All Mankind (pg 2 & 3) by Tom Arber, The Cardinall’s Musick (pg 4)by Dmitri Gutjahr, National Opera Studio (pg 5) by BrianSlater, Carousel (pg 6) by Neil Armstrong, Felicity Lott(pg 7) by Trevor Leighton, Participate (pg 10) by Brian Slater, Trio Libero (pg 12) by Malcolm Watson, It Takes Two... (pg 14) by Tristram Kenton, Babur in London (pg 25) by Sarah Beaton, OverWorlds & UnderWorlds (pg 29) by Guy Farrow.

The information in this leaflet is published in goodfaith, but changes mayoccasionally be necessary.In the event of unforeseen circumstances Opera Northreserves the right to change the performers or performance.

Events on 12 May in association with European Opera Days.

Events on 29 May, 9 & 13 June in association with Alchemy.

April4 The Cardinall’s Musick 7.45pm20 National Opera Studio 7.30pm21 The Carousel Waltz 7.30pm27 Written on the Wind 7.45pm 28 Participate Workshop 10.30am28 High Society 3.00pm30 Dancing on Broadway with Kim Brandstrup 7.30pm

May10 Andy Sheppard: Trio Libero 7.45pm11 Lunch time recital 1.05pm11 Mélodies and Chansons 7.45pm12 Sacred Harp Singing Workshop 11.00am12 It Takes Two... European Opera Days 7.00pm 23 Robert Glasper 8.00pm24 Taste of Cherry 7.45pm25 Aurelio Martinez 7.45pm26 Cropper Welsh Roscoe Trio 7.45pm29 On Peace and Conflict 6.30pm

June9 Simon Critchley 7.45pm 13 Babur: Poet, Warrior, Lover 6.30pm14 & 15 Babur in London 7.45pm16 Tcha Limberger 7.45pm21 Warsaw Village Band 7.45pm28, 29 & 30 Ganapati 7.30pm

Box Office: 0844 848 2727howardassemblyroom.co.uk

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