The Arts Section

Graveyard of despair – ungrievable lives

DORCHESTER Corn Exchange gallery is the setting for a powerful and challenging exhibition, Ungrievable Lives, from Saturday 18th to Monday 20th October, open from 10am to 4pm, with free entry. There is also a free panel discussion on Saturday from 4 to 6pm, and a diversity flag workshop on Sunday from 11am. Ungrievable Lives brings…

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Cosi Fan Tutte, Opera Project at the Tobacco Factory

OPERA Project, the company that first appeared in the South West in 1996 at the Iford Festival, where 14 productions were staged over the next eight years, moved to Bedminster’s Tobacco Factory in 2003 and has been performing in the former cigar packing factory sporadically ever since. The Iford productions saw student friends Jonathan Lyness…

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Blithe Spirit, Salisbury Playhouse

NOEL Coward’s timeless comedy Blithe Spirit was just the thing war-ravaged Londoners needed in 1941, and it might just provide the lift we need in these crazy, frightening days 84 years later. Anthony Banks’ new production is played out on a stylish set designed by Terry Parsons, an opulent Art Deco drawing room with its…

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The executioner’s story

GALLOWS humour is a curious aspect of the human psyche – laughter is the best antidote to fear, probably. The laughs are dark and the subject matter even darker when Ha Hum Ah Theatre brings its new play, Making A Killing, on tour locally, with dates starting on 28th October at Taunton, and coming to…

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Phillip Goulding’s take on Gogol classic at Salisbury Studio

THE next play on stage at the Ashley Road Studio Theatre in Salisbury is an English version of Nikolai Gogol’s classic The Government Inspector, from 13th to 18th October. The adaptation, by Philip Goulding, is sub-titled A Little Local Difficulty, and will be directed by the writer’s brother George, a Studio stalwart. The action of…

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New album from Ninebarrow

DORSET’s much-loved folk duo Ninebarrow are releasing a new album at the beginning of October, a celebration not only of the vocal harmonies of the two musicians but also of the joy of choirs singing together. The Hour of the Blackbird marks a departure for Jon Whitley and Jay LaBouchardiere, who have worked with two…

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Tangled up in Rome

TANGLE Theatre brings its unique African-Caribbean style to a new Shakespearean production on tour this autumn, continuing this exciting company’s commitment to presenting classic dramas in new and surprising ways. This year’s tour bring Julius Caesar, to theatres across the region until 25th October. With a cast of five, this fast-moving production drives through the…

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It’s the economy – stupid!

A PHRASE from an American strategist that has become a truism of political campaigning, It’s the economy, stupid!, provides the title for a new play by Worklight Theatre, coming to Dorset on a short tour with Artsreach, on Friday 10th October at Buckland Newton village hall, Saturday 11th at Briantspuddle, both at 7.30pm, and Sunday…

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Somerset artists at St Barbe

SOMERSET artists James and Kate Lynch, who live on a hill overlooking the Somerset Levels, have both had work selected for The Life of the Fields, a major exhibition at St Barbe Museum and Art Gallery in Lymington, one of the most adventurous and prestigious galleries in the area. The exhibition runs to 10th January…

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Reggae changed the world

TORONTO-based singer-songwriter Duane Forrest will take the audience on an acoustic journey through the roots of reggae and the global influence of Bob Marley in his show, Bob Marley – How Reggae Changed the World, at two Artsreach concerts – at Chetnole village hall on Sunday 19th October and West Stafford on Monday 20th, both…

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