Curated Culture 01.07.25
Our weekly recommendations round up from North East stages and cultural venues
Hello hello – hope your Tuesday’s has been one which deserves a ‘treaty’ prefix.
Whether you’re still shaking off the weekend or already knee-deep in the week’s to-do list, we’re here, as per, with a little cultural lift to carry you through.
We’d love it if you considered this mailout your weekly excuse to pause, scroll, and get inspired by all the brilliant things happening across the North East.
Just like we did last Tuesday and just like we’ll do a week to the day, we’ve gathered up a fresh batch of concerts, theatre, exhibitions, festivals and other excellent reasons to leave the house. From spontaneous nights out to future plans you’ll thank yourself for later – it’s all here.
If you’re new to the list - please accept an all encompassing welcome wave! - each Tuesday, you’ll find the following dropping into your inbox:
🗓️ Top Picks – A double handful of featured listings coming up over the next fortnight
📌 Still Showing – Treats still running from Curated Cultures gone by
📅 Now Booking – An early heads-ups on things that might well sell out
🎁 Subscriber Prize Draw – A sweet little bonus, just because
Speaking of which… this week’s prize is a pair of tickets to The Sky Tonight, the July show at the Life Science Centre’s Planetarium. It’s happening this Thursday (3 July) at 6.30pm, so do not tarry if you want in.
Full details and how to enter are at the end of the newsletter – but we recommend a good browse while you’re here. Plenty worth lingering over.
Thanks as always for reading and sharing – we’re nowt without you!
Sam (Wonfor) & Dave (Whetstone)
Like Chas and Dave, but with less hair and better accents
PS: If you haven’t liked/followed/high fived us on our socials, you can rectify that on Facebook, Instagram and Blue Sky
MUSIC: Katie Doherty and the Navigators
Where: Green Croft Arts, Gilsland; Hive in Nenthead; Alphabetti Theatre, Newcastle
When: July 11, 12 and 26, respectively
Bookings and info: katiedoherty.co.uk
It’s been a while since folk treasures Katie Doherty and the Navigators have been on stage together… but you know what they say about (exceedingly tuneful) buses.
The band return for three unmissable gigs this month, giving audiences all over the region a chance to soak up their soaring, soul-stirring sound in the flesh.
Blending fiddle, melodeon, and Katie’s top drawer vocals into something far greater than the sum of its parts, expect songs full of heart, hope and humanity.
THEATRE: A Room of One’s Own
Where: Alnwick Playhouse
When: Thursday, July 17, 7.30pm
Bookings and info: alnwickplayhouse.co.uk
Virginia Woolf has been in the news because 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of her novel Mrs Dalloway.
But this show, performed by Rebecca Vaughan who founded Dyad Productions in 2009, brings to the stage a later, though equally famous, Woolf publication.
A Room of One’s Own grew out of two powerful lectures she had given in 1928 at Cambridge University women’s colleges, explaining how women’s creativity had long been stifled in a world that favoured men.
If Shakespeare had had an equally talented sister called Judith, how would she have been able to express herself?
Famously, Woolf argued that “a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction”.
Dyad Productions call their show “a 21st Century take on a blisteringly brilliant pre-Ted talk”.
Catching the show on the Edinburgh Fringe last year, a British Theatre Guide reviewer noted Vaughan’s expert ability to engage an audience and commented: “Dyad has a knack for bending, snipping and rearranging pieces into a compelling form…”
THEATRE: Lasses Kicking Ass Touching Grass
Where: Live Theatre, Newcastle
When: July 2
Bookings and info: live.org.uk
Cabaret, community and celebration are on the starting blocks at Live Theatre as the finishing touches are being put to the return of Lasses: Kicking Ass and Touching Grass, coming to the venue on Wednesday (July 2).
Curated and hosted by North East theatre maker Rosie Bowden under her creative platform Rosy Cheek, the event will showcase female and non-binary performers from across the region.
The line-up will feature Helen Chong, Lucy Harries, Hope Brown King, and Zoe Allan, alongside local choir The Girls, Theys and Slays, a passionate collective led by Maya Torres.
A lovely touch to proceedings will see the evening start with ‘Girl Dinner’ - a community meal served in the theatre’s undercroft from 6.30pm. Guests are invited to bring a dish (nut-free with a list of ingredients), but everyone will be welcome to eat and enjoy, whether they contribute or not.
Also coming up at Live Theatre (on July 8) is Live Writes Summer - an 80-minute new writing showcase which offers a whole host of opportunities for theatre creatives of all experience levels - and gives writers the chance to see their work up on its feet - and up on the stage. Get along if you can.
EXHIBITION: Magna Carta and the North
Where: Durham Cathedral
When: July 11 to November 2
Bookings and info: durhamcathedral.co.uk
A wide-ranging programme of events to accompany Durham Cathedral’s summer exhibition of three rare Magna Cartas - celebrating the 800th anniversary of the 1225 issue - kicks off next week.
From July 11, alongside the display in the Cathedral Museum, visitors will be able to enjoy behind-the-scenes tours, family trails, interactive installations, and thought-provoking talks and debates, all designed to bring the legacy of Magna Carta to life for modern audiences.
The cathedral’s new events schedule spans July to November, inviting people of all ages to dive deeper into the historic documents' relevance and the broader social and cultural themes they inspire. Timed slots can also be booked to enable visitors to get up close to the historic exhibits.
EVENT: Art Car Boot Fair
Where: BALTIC, Gateshead
When: July 12
Bookings and info: baltic.art
Back at Baltic for the Summer Sizzler, the Art Car Boot Fair brings together more than 50 artists and makers from across the North and beyond. Expect affordable artworks, a chance to meet the creators, and a relaxed, vibrant atmosphere.
Among the other delights on the Sizzler menu are a zine exhibition, workshops, live music, a pop-up shop from artist Andy Welland, and a talk about the neighbourhood kittiwakes.
CONCERT: George Boomsma, watersmeet & Nadia Kadek
Where: The Glasshouse, Sage Two
When: Wednesday, July 9, 8pm
Bookings and info: https://theglasshouseicm.org/
The link between these acts is that all will feature in this BBC Introducing at the Glasshouse concert.
BBC Introducing has been offering new and unsigned artists airplay and audience building opportunities since 2007. Beneficiaries have included Sam Fender, Lewis Capaldi and Florence + the Machine.
Its partnership with The Glasshouse, in Gateshead, is region-wide.
George Boomsma, from Northallerton, is a singer-songwriter known for emotive vocals and soulful guitar playing. Lauren Laverne called him – or maybe his music – “gorgeous” on Radio 6 Music.
The Newcastle folk twosome who comprise watersmeet are Anna Hughes and Jessie Howard, partners in life and in music, we are told.
Their paths converged in 2022 and they released debut EP carried away last autumn. They have described their music as heartfelt songs with close-knit harmonies and lofty melodies.
Nadia Kadek is a young British-Indonesian artist who was brought up in Norfolk but now lives in London.
She is described as “a compelling new voice in contemporary music” whose songs are “both stark and deeply emotive”. Her debut single is called Feeling It All.
EXHIBITION: Where Were You Last Summer?
Where: Arts Centre Washington
When: Until August 30
Bookings and info: sunderlandculture.org.uk
A powerful new exhibition at Arts Centre Washington* is shining a light on the often-unheard voices of South Asian women. Where Were You Last Summer?, created by artists Padma Rao and Sehr Jalil, explores resilience, protest and identity in the wake of last August’s unrest.
Blending personal stories with visual art and archival material, the exhibition brings together deeply emotional narratives of women who have endured and resisted violence - often in quiet, everyday ways.
*In other Arts Centre Washington news, a free fair showcasing the work of a crowd of North East artists and craftspeople will be taking over the venue on July 12. Pop up performances and activities will also be on the cards… and it’s all free.
EVENT: With A Little Help from Their Friends - Stuart Maconie in Conversation
Where: Tyneside Cinema
When: July 15
Bookings and info: tynesidecinema.co.uk
Journalist, radio favourite and author Stuart Maconie takes a sideways look at The Beatles, focusing not on the Fab Four themselves but on the people who helped shape their journey, from school friends and managers to support acts and muses.
Based on his latest book With a Little Help from Their Friends, this special event, which is a collaboration between Tyneside Cinema and New Writing North, offers a different take on one of Britain’s most documented bands.
The evening includes a book signing hosted by Forum Books and a rare 35mm screening of Nowhere Boy. Lovely stuff.
EVENT: Ouseburn Festival
Where: Various venues across the Ouseburn Valley
When: July 5 and 6
Bookings and info: ouseburntrust.org.uk
Sprawling markets, live music music, boating, alpacas, pony rides, exhibitions, pop up galleries, storytelling and bucketloads of excellent vibes.
That’s right friends, the Ouseburn Festival is back to flood Newcastle’s urban valley with culture and good times. Little more to say really. If you’ve been, you’ll be going back*. If you haven’t been, GET INVOLVED.
*We once opted (and attempted) to watch the Wimbledon final on a tiny iPhone in the blazing sunshine rather than miss it… and we bloody LOVE Wimbledon.
POETRY: Rebirth
Where: Lit & Phil, Newcastle
When: Thursday, July 3
Bookings and info: litandphil.org.uk
And still the lockdown projects keep on coming, showing that creativity was one silver lining to the terrible Covid cloud that hung over us five years ago.
During the pandemic, Fran Edwards and her daughter, Jennifer Jones, began to compensate for the physical separation of lockdown by writing poems to each other.
Or as IRON Press, who have published their poems, put it, “they began exploring how they related, the one to the other, through the light and the dark.
“They spoke to each other through poetry, uncovering, holding and feeling all of the complexities that can come with mother-daughter relationships.
“In the sharing of their words, they hope that others too can feel the pleasure of discovery, insight and healing that they found on this journey.”
Rebirth is the latest publication from Peter Mortimer’s long established IRON Press, based in Cullercoats, and you can hear the two women read at the launch where there will also be music from Dylan Mortimer.
It’s a ‘pay what you wish’ event.
ART: Harold Offeh and Saelia Aparicio
Where: Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art
When: From Saturday, July 5
Bookings and info: baltic.art
Two new exhibitions open this weekend at Baltic by artists inspired by the future, mythology and the environment.
Harold Offeh will continue the tradition of a hands-on attraction in the ground floor gallery by transforming it in to a sci-fi playscape.
Via The Mothership Collective 2:0 (the original was in 2006) he invites visitors of all ages to stop at various ‘stations’, using sound, text and objects to imagine potential futures.
“The project is an invitation to play, make and speculate about future possibilities and desires,” he says.
“We want to make space and the conditions for creativity, curiosity and joy as fundamental to any form of change.”
Also opening is A Joyful Parasite, an exhibition by London-based Spanish artist Saelia Aparicio which represents his biggest commission yet.
A multi-disciplinary artist, Aparicio uses found and re-used materials such as glass, steel, wood and even human prostheses.
His Baltic exhibition will feature new sculptural works and animated figurines evolving from his interest in the porous boundaries between humans and their environments.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, July 12 Baltic hosts its annual Art Car Boot Sale, featuring 50 stalls run by local artists and makers and various workshops and pop-up performances.
THEATRE: The Skriker
Where: The Studio, Newcastle Theatre Royal
When: July 8-11
Bookings and info: theatreroyal.co.uk
Marking its 10th anniversary, Newcastle Theatre Royal’s actor training programme Project A presents its final production of the year in the newly refurbished Studio Theatre.
Caryl Churchill’s The Skriker blends horror, naturalism and magical realism in a tale of love, loss and transformation. Following a shapeshifting fairy’s pursuit of two young women through modern-day London, the play is unsettling, lyrical and timely.
STILL SHOWING
Comedy: Chris Cantrill and Elaine Robertson, The Fire Station, Sunderland, Jul 10
Choral: Northern Proud Voices, Newcastle Cathedral, Jul 4
Classical: Shostakovich’s Leningrad, Sage One, The Glasshouse, Gateshead, Jul 6
Screen: Transaction, ITV2 and ITV X, Full series now available
Dance: Matthew Bourne’s The Midnight Bell, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Jul 8-12
Exhibition: Works by Nathan Coley, Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until Mar 1, 2026
Exhibition: Light Takes The Tree, RePUBlic Gallery, Blyth, Jul 4 to Aug 7
Screen: 28 Years Later, Cinemas all over the place, on general release now at most cinemas. 🎥 Read our report from Newcastle gala screening
Exhibition: The Wonderful World of the Ladybird Book Artists, Ushaw Historic House, Chapels & Gardens, near Durham, until Aug 31
Musical: Hamilton, Sunderland Empire, until Jul 26. 🎭 Read our review.
Festival: Blythfest, various Blyth venues, until Jul 5
Exhibition: Going Back Brockens, The Warehouse, Newgate Centre, Bishop Auckland, until July 5
Exhibition: Guiding Entities, MIMA, Middlesbrough, until Nov 23
Exhibition: Cedric Morris, Artist, Plantsman & Traveller, Granary Gallery, Berwick-upon-Tweed, until Oct 12
Exhibition: The Coal Town Collection – Mik Critchlow Gallery, Woodhorn Museum, Ashington, permanent display
Exhibition: With These Hands, Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle, until September 27
Exhibition: Shakespeare Recovered, Palace Green Library, Durham, until Nov 2
Audio-Visual: The Mother Goose Series, The Glasshouse, Gateshead, until July
Exhibition: Richard Hobson retrospective, South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, until Nov 2
Exhibition: Ali Cherri/Laura and Lancaster, BALTIC, until Oct 12
Exhibition: Joséphine: A Woman of Taste and Fashion, Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until March 2026
Exhibition: Magna Carta and the North, Durham Cathedral Museum, Jul 11 until Nov 2
Music: Nick Cope – I’ve Lost My Bobble Hat, The Glasshouse, Gateshead at 11am on Oct 29
Theatre: Mary Poppins, Sunderland Empire, Oct 1-25
Music: The Young’uns Big Boro Bash, Middlesbrough Town Hall, Nov 15
Big screen: Expo Sunderland Pavilion, Keel Square, Sunderland, throughout 2025
NOW BOOKING
Events: Summer in the City, events programme run by NE1, running in Newcastle city centre through school summer holidays - all dates and activities open for booking now
Theatre: Ordinary Decent Criminal, Live Theatre, Jul 23-25
Music: BBC Proms, The Glasshouse, Jul 25-27
Event: Standing on the Shoulders - 800 Years of a Woman’s Life, Old Low Light Centre, North Shields
Comedy: Laughing Stock Comedy Festival, Coronation Road, Seaton Carew, Jul 27
Music: Jack Broadbent, Cluny 2, Newcastle, Aug 1
Event: Gosforth Beer Festival, Gosforth Civic Theatre, Newcastle, Aug 1
Event: Strange But True Crime with Jennifer Rees, Sunderland Empire, Sept 7
Comedy: Carl Hutchinson, Gala Theatre Durham, Sept 11-12
Comedy: Elis and John - That Feels Significant, Tyne Theatre and Opera House, Oct 2
Music: Deacon Blue, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Oct 6
Event: Mercury Music Prize 2025, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Oct 16
Screen: Tees Valley International Film Festival - An Evening with Tim Healy, ARC Stockton, Nov 6
Music: Orchestra of Opera North, Darlington Hippodrome, Nov 17
Comedy: Laffs for Kids, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Dec 14
2026
Theatre: Weird, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Jan 31
Theatre: Dita Von Teese - Nocturnelle, Stockton Globe, Feb 11
Event: Sunday for Sammy, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Feb 15
Music: Something About George - The George Harrison Story, Darlington Hippodrome, Feb 18
Comedy: Aisling Bea, Gala Theatre Durham, Mar 7
Theatre: Mean Girls, Sunderland Empire, Apr 6 (Tickets on sale Thurs, Jul 3)
Music: Suzi Quatro, Sage One, The Glasshouse, Apr 8
COMPETITION TIME
Welcome to our latest newsletter prizedraw, offering our subscribers an exclusive opportunity to win tickets to see or do something great.
This week, we’ve got a pair of tickets to The Sky Tonight - the July show in the Life Science Centre’s Planetarium.
But please note - the event is happening on THURSDAY (July 3) at 6.30pm - so this is a quick fire prizedraw.
For those who haven’t had the pleasure, The Sky Tonight is a live, presenter-led show that explores the stars, mythology and astronomy of the night sky.
Beginning with a clear view of the sky exactly as it appears on the evening in question, the audience will learn how to find North and identify three constellations, with a spotlight on Hercules, best seen in summer.
The myth behind Hercules will also be explored via an animated retelling of The Epic of Gilgamesh, the ancient tale that inspired the constellation.
The evening ends with a deeper look into the Hercules constellation, revealing the galaxies hidden within it – and what they tell us about the early universe.
Ooh, and you get to vote for which planets in our solar system you’d like to visit.
HOW TO ENTER (quickly!):
To be in with a chance of winning, simply email MePlease@culturednortheast.co.uk using the subject line: DON’T DILLY DALLY - IT’S ON THURSDAY! by noon, (12pm) on Wednesday (TOMORROW!), July 2, 2025.
The winner, who will be selected at random, will be notified within 48 hours of the entry deadline.
Terms and conditions: Only subscribers to the Cultured. North East newsletter are eligible to enter the Newsletter Prize Draw competition. Prizes are as stated - subject to availability - and non-transferable. No cash alternatives will be offered. You must be over 18 years of age to enter. The Editor’s decision is final.