Find it all a little too overhyped and mushy? If you are looking for something different to the dozen red roses and dinner out this Valentine’s week, there are events happening in the Harrogate district that may be an option for you and your loved one.
Whether you’re into the supernatural, a night at the Opera or just an evening of laughter, here are four ideas for an interesting, if less romantic, night out.
My Bloody Valentine – Ouija Event
If you really are anti-Valentine’s and seeking something sinister this year, Paul Forster and Dead Northern’s séance may be an option.
The event will take place on the rooftop of the Yorkshire Hotel in Harrogate on Saturday 11 February, from 7pm – 10pm.
Organisers say guests can expect “a cross between an interactive séance and a psychological spook show”. There will be a Ouija board present at the event – some may even attempt to connect with spirits passed.
Tickets include entry to the event and a hot meal in the intermission.
Guests are invited to bring a personal item with them to add value to their experience.
Ticket prices start at £33.30.
For more information, click here.
Four Weddings and a Murder
Keeping in line with the darker side of love, an immersive murder mystery event, Four Weddings and a Murder, will take place at Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate.
The event will run from 7.30pm – 10.30pm on Friday 24 February.
Guests join a group of friends celebrating a wedding, during which a murder takes place. The audience are invited to help solve the murder before it’s too late.
The night includes a three-course meal. Guests can also upgrade their tickets to include an overnight stay in the hotel with breakfast the following morning.
Tickets for the event start from £51.
Find more information here.
Read more:
- Family of WWI soldier find where he was killed – by chance
- New Masham restaurant wins Michelin Guide accolade
Royal Opera House Live: The Barber of Seville
On a slightly more romantic note, if culture is what you are looking for this Valentine’s, Everyman Cinema is hosting a live stream of the Royal Opera House’s adaptation of “The Barber of Seville”.
The Everyman Cinema is located in the centre of Harrogate.
The Italian comic opera tells the story of a young girl, Rosina. After falling in love with a mysterious suitor, Rosina must use her cunning wit and disguises to outsmart her calculated guardian.
The live stream will take place on Wednesday 15 February at 6.45pm.
Click here for more information.
Harrogate Theatre: Bouncers
Budding thespians might fancy a trip to the local theatre this Valentine’s. John Godber Company presents “Bouncers” at Harrogate Theatre.
The play will run from 13-15 February, with both evening and matinee performances.
The play follows four friends reliving a night in a Yorkshire disco in the 1980’s. Guests can expect all aspects of the night out on stage, including the DJ and even a fish & chip van.
Tickets for the play start at £18.
Find more information here.
Harrogate district festival launches £7,000 search for classical singers
A leading Harrogate district arts festival has launched a nationwide search to find and reward talented young classical singers.
The Northern Aldborough Festival’s New Voices Singing Competition offers a prize fund of £7,000.
The winners will also receive performance opportunities at leading UK music festivals, including Leeds Lieder, Newbury Spring Festival, Ryedale Festival and Music@Malling, as well as the Northern Aldborough Festival itself.
The judging panel includes Dame Felicity Lott, one of Britain’s leading sopranos,
Robert Ogden, the festival’s artistic director, said:
“Hundreds of young singers graduate every year with dreams and aspirations to become professionals, but the majority have to seek temporary work while they build their careers.
“A competition success can be a turning point for a young artist. Our festival has, from its inception, strived to support and nurture young talent.”
The winner will receive The Seastock Trust Prize of £5,000, with a second prize of £1,500 from The Yorkshire Music Future Fund, and a third, audience prize of £500.
St Andrew’s Church in Aldborough hosts many of the festival events.
The competition is open to solo singers and ensembles of up to eight performers, and celebrates classical vocalism in all its forms. It is open to vocalists aged 21-32 years-old. Deadline for entries is Friday 14 April, 2023.
Mr Ogden, who is also an opera singer, said:
“At a time when the arts sector — particularly opera — has faced funding cuts, we feel a competition to help launch singing careers is of its time. What’s more, there are very few significant open vocal competitions north of London.”
The judging panel also includes the artistic director of The Early Opera Company, Christian Curnyn, director of Leeds Lieder, Joseph Middleton, and artistic director of the Northern Aldborough Festival, Robert Ogden. The panel is chaired by Sir Andrew Lawson-Tancred, chairman of the Northern Aldborough Festival.
Read more:
- Ripon museums secure more than £400,000 from Arts Council
- Professional musician from Harrogate returns to give recital
The semi-final and grand-final will be performed live to audiences at the end of this year’s Northern Aldborough Festival, which is hosted in the North Yorkshire village from Thursday 15 to Saturday 24 June 2023.
It will be the 29th festival and highlights include trumpet star and winner of BBC Young Musician of the Year, 26-year-old Matilda Lloyd and the youngest winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition for 40 years, Sunwook Kim.
World-class opera singers to perform in Aldborough tomorrow
World-class opera singers used to performing in New York and Paris will be at the picture-perfect village of Aldborough for a production of Handel’s Theodora tomorrow evening.
The performance will take place on the opening day of the two-week Northern Aldborough Festival, which hosts some huge names in jazz, opera and pop music.
Theodora will be the biggest performance in the festival’s 29-year history and will be performed in the 14th century St Andrew’s Church, which is rich in history.
The Stray Ferret dropped in on rehearsals at the church this morning and met Robert Ogden, the festival’s director.
He said:
“There isn’t a huge amount up north where you can go to a small rural community like Aldborough and hear world class artists that have just stepped off platforms in London, Paris or New York.
“You can get very close. Some stages are bigger than this church, so you’re right in the thick of it hearing these world class performances.”
Theodora is being played by soprano Fflur Wyn and directed by Joe Austin, whose recent credits include Katya Kabanova at the Royal Opera House.
It will include a line-up of soloists, chorus and orchestra under the baton of Baroque specialist, Julian Perkins.
Mr Ogden called the opera “a tragic tale”.
“It’s about persecution and a small sect of Christians in Pagan times that are in hiding practicing their religion. There’s an edict from the emperor that says anyone who doesn’t worship the pagan god will be killed.
“It does take quite a dark turn but it’s very moving. It’s about a noblewoman called Theodora who is very devout and a young Roman soldier who who wants to rescue her.”
Read more:
- Boroughbridge Town Council ‘very concerned’ about state of road
- Rural property firm opens office in Boroughbridge
Other festival highlights
The festival, near Boroughbridge, will also include an appearance by the British bass, Sir John Tomlinson, who will star in a new opera by John Casken based on Shakespeare’s King Lear.
There will also be performances from Blur’s Britpop rebel rock star turned cheesemaker, Alex James, and classical guitar player Sean Shibe.
Other acts include an evening of jazz by Claire Martin and clarinetists Julian Bliss performing with leading pianist James Baillieu. Clare Hammond, a leading light on the UK piano scene, will play Schubert, Stravinsky and Schumann.
As well as established names, the festival supports young talent. It hosts a Young Artists Showcase, as well as the upcoming harp and saxophone duo, The Polaris Duo.
On the final evening, the grounds of Aldborough Manor will be opened for the festival finale, an outdoor concert with fireworks that often attracts around 1,000 people.
The last night concert features Harrogate-born vocalist Alex Denny of The Big Cheese, with high-voltage pop and rock covers, supported by So 80s, who set a light show to 80s tracks.
To book tickets for Theodora or any of the other events visit here.
Ripon Choral Society returns with Verdi’s RequiemRipon Choral Society will perform Verdi’s Requiem in its first live performance for 20 months.
The music was chosen because it fits the theme of remembrance, which the concert has adopted to honour the victims of covid.
Musical director John Dunford said:
“In choosing music for our return to rehearsals, I was conscious of the great loss of life, nationally, across the world, and from within our own membership.”
“The Verdi Requiem is a monumental, moving and theatrical work and few choral works capture the imagination like it.”
The 140-member choir will make its return at Ripon Cathedral on Saturday, November 13.
Read More:
- Harrogate Male Voice Choir to resume meeting after 18 months
- Music-loving Knaresborough couple nominated for choir award
The soloists include Samantha Hay (soprano), Anna Burford (mezzo-soprano), Gareth Daffyd Morris (tenor) and D’Arcy Bleiker (bass), accompanied by Orchestra D’Amici.
The choir welcomes anyone to its evening rehearsals at St John’s Church in Sharow, near Ripon, every Wednesday from 7.30pm to 9pm.
Dunford said:
“I am convinced there are a lot of people who think this is not for them and I am even more convinced they would love what we do if they gave us and themselves a chance to experience it.
“This requires time and is not instant, particularly if you have not done this sort of singing before, but it can all be learnt.”
The concert will start at 7.30pm. Tickets cost £23 for reserved seating or £20 for unreserved.
For more information click here.
Dame Emma Kirkby to sing at Bach masterpiece in HarrogateWorld renowned soprano Dame Emma Kirkby will be one of the soloists at a performance of J S Bach’s Mass in B minor in Harrogate next month.
The event will take place at at St Peter’s Church on October 8.
The combined choirs of St Peter’s Church and Vocalis chamber choir will be joined by the Harrogate Bach Players.
The other soloists include James Micklethwaite, Aoife O’Connell, Emma Stannard, and Andrew Greenan.
Dame Kirkby, who started as an amateur singer, was awarded the Queen’s Medal for Music in 2011.
Read More:
- Harrogate Male Voice Choir to resume meeting after 18 months
- Micah Richards tackled by Harrogate council in bid to go green
John Longstaff, director of music at St Peter’s, has organised the performance.
He said:
“it’s a wonderful and very difficult piece of music, extremely joyous and celebratory at times.
“I’ve loved it all my life but never had the opportunity to direct it and to perform it with the line-up of soloists and orchestral players who we have joining us, is a dream come true.”
Tickets cost £15. Call 07425161425 for more information.