Out & About Spring 2019

From a truly British modern classic to a whimsical feelgood musical, local theatre has much to offer this spring says arts editor TRISH LEE. Some amazing art exhibitions will also put a spring in your step as you put your best foot forward for the forthcoming Open Studios, a chance to see local artists at work. For arts news and reviews, see N2 each week in the Newbury Weekly News Pick of the ARTS

Bouncers The Corn Exchange, Newbury Thursday, March 14 to Saturday, March 16 www.cornexchangenew.com ‘ Bouncers is not so much a play as it is a social phenomenon’, The Guardian reported back in the day. Now all the gang are back out on the town, the boys, the girls, the cheesy DJ, the late night kebab man and the taxi home, all under the watchful eyes of the Bouncers. More than 40 years after the first version of Bouncers was staged at the Edinburgh Festival, multi award-winning writer John Godber has updated his most popular work. Lucky Eric, Judd, Les and Ralph have returned to tell the tales of a Yorkshire nightclub, as this modern classic sees the boys catapulted into the 21st century, with contemporary music and an updated script to boot. This one’s worth getting dressed up for. Catch the John Godber Company in association with the Theatre Royal Wakefield on its three-day run in Newbury, part of a national tour. John Godber classic on tour

A personal perspective

Elizabeth Blackadder from the artist’s studio Willis Museum and Sainsbury Gallery, Basingstoke March 29-June 12 www.hampshireculture.org.uk Dame Elizabeth Blackadder is one of our greatest living artists: the first woman to be elected both to the Royal Scottish Academy and the Royal Academy, she was given the prestigious title of Her Majesty’s Painter and Limner in Scotland in 2001. Such public accolades highlight her long and distinguished career, but her art remains quietly personal. Her compositions of cats and flowers are colourful and calming, and reflect a Japanese influence. She has charted a very individual course throughout the second half of the 20th century and beyond, unswayed by fashion. This specially curated exhibition, drawn mainly from the artist’s studio, shows the breadth and variety of Blackadder’s work and celebrates an exceptional career.

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