Curated Culture 09.06.26
Our weekly guide to exhibitions, gigs, theatre shows, screenings and more assorted cultural distractions from across the North East. Calendars at the ready!
Hello and thanks for turning your attention to this week’s Curated Culture.
Below awaits our latest collection of things to see, hear, watch and experience across the North East in the days and weeks ahead.
You’ll also find details of our latest subscriber prize draw, with a pair of tickets up for grabs to see Christopher Eccleston perform Peter Flannery’s rarely heard monologue, The Name of That Song, on June 20 at Live Theatre (4pm). Details at the end.
Happy browsing!
Sam (Wonfor) and Dave (Whetstone)
Professionally pre-occupied with North East culture
SCREEN: Virgina Woolf’s Night and Day + Director Q&A
Where: Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle
When: June 15, 5.45pm
Bookings and info: tynesidecinema.co.uk
Before its UK cinema release, audiences at Tyneside Cinema have the chance to see Virginia Woolf’s Night & Day alongside the people who brought it to the screen.
Directed by North East filmmaker Tina Gharavi and featuring a cast including Haley Bennett, Lily Allen, Jennifer Saunders, Timothy Spall and Jack Whitehall, the film adapts Woolf’s novel of love, ambition and social change in Edwardian England.
Shot partly in the North East, with locations including Beamish Museum, the Lit & Phil and Newcastle’s Common Room, this special screening will be followed by a Q&A with Gharavi and members of the production team.
MUSIC: An Evening with The Futureheads
Where: The Fire Station, Sunderland
When: June 20
Bookings and info: thefirestation.org.uk
More than 20 years after they emerged from Sunderland’s fertile music scene, The Futureheads are taking to a home turf stage for a special evening of stories, songs and reflection.
Hosted by Sunderland Music City at The Fire Station, this one-off event will see Barry Hyde, Ross Millard, David ‘Jaff’ Craig and Dave Hyde look back on the journey from local venues to international stages.
Candid conversation, unseen photographs, tour tales and stripped-back performances are all being trailed as the band revisit the records, relationships and city that shaped them. A fitting finale to Sunderland Year of Music, and a rare chance to hear The Futureheads in a different way.
THEATRE: Pits, People and Players
Where: The Playhouse, Horden SR8 4NQ
When: June 11 to 13
Bookings and info: ensemble84.com
With a haste that almost seems indecent, Hamlet only just having been laid to rest, Horden’s new theatre company, Ensemble ’84, is back in action.
It’s a revival, due to popular demand, of last summer’s hit marking the 125th anniversary of the former pit village near Peterlee, County Durham.
The story of the village is predominantly the story of coal mining, as you’ll see in this dynamic telling.
Horden Collieries Ltd was formed in 1900, the landscape changed forever and the population grew… until the industry was swept away.
Musical numbers include We’re in the Money, Women of the Working Class and Close the Coalhouse Door, and the cast – once again - will be the County Durham residents who have found Ensemble ’84 a route into acting and an outlet for their talents.
It might not be Hamlet but tragically, this being what used to be known as the Durham coalfield, the body count is even higher.
Do act fast if you want a ticket – they’re being snapped up.
DANCE: This is Rambert
Where: Newcastle Theatre Royal
When: June 16 and 17 (Tuesday, Wednesday), 7.30pm
Bookings and info: theatreroyal.co.uk
It’s plain Rambert these days but under its various names – it was Rambert Dance Company until 2014 and before that Ballet Rambert – it has entertained audiences at the Theatre Royal for many years.
The company traces its roots back to 1926 when Marie Rambert, a Polish immigrant who had come to the UK via Paris and Berlin, formed a troupe from the students who attended the dance school she had established in London a few years previously.
They were the Rambert Dancers first but then, as Ballet Club, they performed at the Mercury Theatre which was owned by Marie’s husband, Ashley Dukes.
Much water has passed under the bridge since then. Dame Marie died in 1988 but her famous company goes on. Current artistic director is Frenchman Benoit Swan Pouffer whose recent triumphs for the company include Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby.
Next week’s programme features three “handpicked, bite-size, high-impact” pieces: Hop(e)storm by (LA)HORDE; Gallery of Consequence by Emma Evelein; and new commission In Crimson by Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber.
MUSIC: Pitmen Poets
Where: Various North East venues
When: June 27-July 12
Bookings and info: thepitmenpoets.co.uk
Three of the North East’s most respected folk musicians are back on the road as The Pitmen Poets.
Billy Mitchell, Bob Fox and Jez Lowe have come together again for a “greatest hits” tour celebrating the songs, stories and characters of the region’s mining communities.
First brought together for a one-off commission 15 years ago, the project has grown into a much-loved tribute to working-class life, blending traditional material, original songs and plenty of humour along the way.
Drawing inspiration from Pitmatic poet Tommy Armstrong and the rich heritage of the coalfield, this is a heartfelt, entertaining evening from three artists whose roots in the North East run deep.
Look out for our full preview in the coming days after we popped in on rehearsals for the tour.
THEATRE: Mother?
Where: ARC, Stockton and Live Theatre, Newcastle
When: June 18-19 and June 30, respectively
Bookings and info: arconline.co.uk and live.org.uk
Parenthood is often described as rewarding, life-changing and magical. Less often do people talk about the exhaustion, frustration, doubt and relentless pressure that can come with it.
Drawing on the real experiences of mums and primary caregivers from across Teesside, this verbatim production offers a “funny, honest and unflinching look at modern motherhood”.
Created by North East Culture Award winner Rachel Stockdale (Fat Chance) it explores the highs, lows and everyday realities that rarely make it into the parenting manuals.
Read our interview with Rachel Stockdale
MUSIC: Paul Young - Songs and Stories
Where: Playhouse Whitley Bay
When: June 11
Bookings and info: playhousewhitleybay.co.uk
Forty years on from the chart-topping success of debut album No Parlez, Paul Young is inviting audiences on a personal journey through his career.
This intimate show will combine acoustic performances of classic hits with stories from the road, the recording studio and some of music’s biggest stages.
Alongside memories of Live Aid, Band Aid and global success with songs including Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home) and Every Time You Go Away, the North East audience could also hope to get some stories from the singers’s appearances on Tyne Tees music show, The Tube in the early eighties.
FAMILY THEATRE: Azra Glow
Where: Gosforth Civic Theatre
When: June 13
Bookings and info: gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk
A dragon’s egg, a glowing world and a journey powered by light and movement lie at the heart of Azra Glow, an imaginative blend of circus, dance and storytelling inspired by the books of Risaria Langley.
Created by director Penella Bee, the production follows Azra as she discovers an ancient bond between dragons and their keepers.
LED hoop performance, illuminated dragon puppets, UV flags and atmospheric music help bring the story to life, while a relaxed, sensory-friendly approach makes it accessible to a wide range of audiences.
After the performance, audiences are invited to stay and meet the dragons and dancers.
There will be more North East performances in the autumn at Queen’s Hall Arts, Hexham (Sept 27); Hartlepool Town Hall (Oct 10); and Arts Centre Washington (Nov 7).
FESTIVAL: Alnmouth Arts Festival
Where: Alnmouth, Northumberland
When: June 20 and 21
Booking & Info: alnmouthartsfestival.org.uk
The pretty coastal village becomes a magnet for culture vultures during its annual weekend festival.
This year’s ticketed attractions include the Rev. Richard Coles who will be ‘in conversation’ on the morning of June 20, talking about his life as pop star, priest, broadcaster and author. Oh, and his latest Canon Clement mystery, A Death on Location.
He’ll be back later to read from his first children’s book, the recently published A Heist Before Bedtime.
Scottish pop band The Bathers will entertain in the evening.
Sunday’s attractions include Of Sea & Scarp, a discussion between poet Nancy Campbell, artist/archaeologist Rose Ferraby and archaeologist Prof Melanie Giles. Guitarist Mark Boden and his group Flamenco con Fusion will round off proceedings.
Dozens of artists will exhibit over the weekend and there will be free entertainment on the beach, the green and elsewhere.
Meanwhile Scarpland, an exhibition by Rose Ferraby, opens at the Old School Gallery, Alnmouth, on June 12 (until July 12), drawing on the North Yorkshire artist’s study of rock art, hill forts, bogs and beaches.
She’s hosting a workshop at the gallery, including a coastal walk, on June 23 (10am to 4pm). Tickets via theoldschoolgallery.co.uk
JAZZ: Courtney Pine
Where: The Glasshouse, Gateshead
When: Saturday, June 13, 8pm
Bookings and info: theglasshouseicm.org
Think of the sax and the chances are you’ll think of Courtney Pine who has championed the instrument for decades – although he plays several instruments and started out learning the clarinet.
It is 40 years since his debut album, Journey to the Urge Within, was released and entered the UK Albums Chart top 40.
To celebrate four decades at the forefront of British jazz, he is on the road with this retrospective tour, Out of the Ghetto: A Modern Day Jazz Story.
Along with the familiar material will be some that has never been released.
In the intimate setting of Sage Two at The Glasshouse, there should be quite an atmosphere as a famously accomplished musician – soloist, collaborator and principal founder (when still only 21) of the Jazz Warriors big band – does what he loves.
EXHIBITION: Joan Eardley
Where: Granary Gallery, Berwick-upon-Tweed
When: Until October 11 (Wed to Sun, 11am to 4pm)
Bookings and info: maltingsberwick.co.uk
The exhibition is Joan Eardley: The Sea at Catterline, to give the full title, Catterline being the fishing village on Scotland’s north east coast where the artist spent much of her relatively short life.
Born in Glasgow in 1921, Eardley found inspiration in this wild but dramatic spot with its ever-changing landscape and sea – and she captured it in paintings whose textured surfaces feature grasses and sand worked into thick paint.
The exhibition focuses on works Eardley made during the last five years of her life (she died in 1963) when it is said she was at the height of her powers. Often she would work outside in challenging conditions.
Also on display is work by artists who were part of Eardley’s creative community including Lil Neilson and Margot Sandeman.
It has been curated in partnership with The Fleming Collection of Scottish art and is part of the Royal Scottish Academy’s 200th anniversary celebration, RSA200: Celebrating Together.
CLASSICAL: Imogen Cooper & Paul Lewis
Where: The Glasshouse, Gateshead
When: Saturday, June 13, 7.30pm
Bookings and info: theglasshouseicm.org
A Mozart programme and two celebrated pianists on the stage of Sage One must mean the Concerto No. 10 in E flat major for two pianos, K. 365.
That should be worth the ticket price alone.
Dame Imogen Cooper must find the Gateshead venue to her taste as she was here just recently, with mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly.
Now, as she nears retirement, she returns for one last time to bring the current classical season at The Glasshouse to a close in scintillating style.
Dinis Sousa will conduct Royal Northern Sinfonia as it lines up for a programme which also features Mozart’s overtures to the operas La Clemenza di Tito (The Mercy of Titus) and Don Giovanni.
Rounding off proceedings, appropriately in the circumstances, will be Piano Concerto No. 27, Mozart’s last, composed in 1791 and premiered (with himself at the keyboard) just months before his death at the age of 35.
This concert is also being livestreamed on The Glasshouse YouTube channel.
FAMILY: Northumberland Miners’ Picnic
Where: Woodhorn Museum, Ashington
When: Saturday, June 13 (10am to 5pm)
Booking & Info: northeastmuseums.org.uk
The annual event is a celebration of coal mining heritage and a chance for families to enjoy music and activities for all ages.
Heritage displays, talks, exhibitions and food and drink from local independent producers will also fuel what promises to be a lively occasion.
But it begins in thoughtful fashion with the traditional service at 10.30am, honouring miners who worked in Northumberland’s pits and remembering those who died.
Ashington & District Male Voice Choir will perform a special piece, Woodhorn Disaster, naming those who died in the 1916 Woodhorn Colliery disaster.
A programme of main stage music, compered by Bread & Butter Theatre Company, will feature brass bands, the choir Northern Proud Voices and cool sounds from Ladies of Midnight Blue.
There will be opportunities to get creative ahead of the Bugs & Beasties parade at 2.10pm and throughout the day playwright Ed Waugh will give talks about the Cramlington train wreckers and the 1926 general strike.
His new play about the incident is to be performed at the Theatre Royal on July 12.
STILL SHOWING
Theatre: Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Sunderland Empire, until Jun 27
Theatre: Gerry and Sewell, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Jun 9-13
Theatre: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, People’s Theatre, Newcastle, Jun 9-13
Ballet: Sleeping Beauty, Gala Durham, Jun 10
Music: NASUWT Riverside Band, Gala Theatre, Durham, Jun 13
Comedy: Kelly Rickard: Burning Love, The Stand, Newcastle, Jun 14
Exhibition: Wild Africa, Gallerina, 1 Victoria Road, Darlington, Jun 13 to Jul 25
Comedy: Mark Watson - Before It Overtakes Us, Queen’s Hall, Hexham, The Witham, Barnard Castle; Alnwick Playhouse, Jun 11, 12, 13
Music: Lily Allen, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Jun 16
Exhibition: The Visitors, The Storehouse, Berwick Barracks, Jun 11 to 27
Screen: The Fortune, Channel 5, from Jun 2, 9pm
Screen: Smoggie Queens, BBC Three and BBC iPlayer, available now
Screen: This Is Not A Murder Mystery, UTV and streaming on Channel Four, available now.
Exhibition: Eugene Schlumberger, RePUBlic Gallery, Blyth, until June 13
Exhibition: Foundation Press – Starting Lines, BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, until Aug 30.
Exhibition: The Graduates, National Glass Centre, Sunderland, until Jul 31.
Radio: Si King on Desert Island Discs, BBC Sounds/iPlayer
Exhibition: Vivienne Westwood: Rebel – Storyteller – Visionary, The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, until Sept 6
Exhibition: Following the Eagle, Segedunum Roman Fort, Wallsend, until Oct 3
Exhibition: Picture This: Someone Like Me, Great North Museum: Hancock, until Jan 2027
Exhibition: Portrait Award 2025, Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle, until Sept 5
Exhibition: Enigmas, RePUBlic Gallery, Blyth, ongoing
Exhibition: Rebel Women of Sunderland, Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens, until Aug 1
Screen: Torvill and Dean - The Last Dance, streaming on ITVX
Screen: Jools Holland’s New Orleans Jukebox, BBC iPlayer
Radio: Tom and Lauren Are Going OOT!, BBC Sounds
Exhibition: For All At Last Return and first major UK exhibition by filmmaker and artist Saodat Ismailova, Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, until Jun 7, 2026
Exhibition: Out of the Darkness, Mining Art Gallery, Bishop Auckland, until December
NOW BOOKING
Music: Summer Parties at The Fire Station, Sunderland, Jul 31 to Aug 20 (including Kula Shaker, Maximo Park, Ibiza in Symphony, Pale Waves and Mickey Callisto)
Theatre: Barnum, Newcastle Theatre Royal, Aug 11-15
Screen/Event: Off The Rails: Film Screening and Q&A with Sally Phillips & Jules Williamson, Gosforth Civic Theatre, Aug 14
Theatre: The Last Laugh, Darlington Hippodrome, Aug 18-22
Music: Jack White - LIVE 2026, Newcastle o2 City Hall, Aug 29
Theatre: Othello, Northern Stage, Newcastle, Sept 11-26
Comedy: Flo and Joan, Gala Durham (Sept 19) and Tyne Theatre and Opera House, Newcastle (Nov 27)
Theatre: All At Sea, Live Theatre, Newcastle, Sept 24-Oct 10
Music: Alison Moyet, Sage One, The Glasshouse, Oct 15
Screen: Halloween All Nighters, Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle, Oct 24 and 31
Event: My Royal Life - An Audience with Lucy Worsley, Stockton Globe, Nov 2
Theatre: Billy Elliot, Sunderland Empire, Nov 4-28
Music: The Script, Utilita Arena Newcastle, Nov 5
2027
Comedy: Amy Gledhill - Thanks for Having Me, The Stand Newcastle, Apr 22
Comedy: Ed Gamble - Fresh Hell, Newcastle o2 City Hall, May 28
Theatre: Hadestown, Newcastle Theatre Royal (Jun 1-5) and Sunderland Empire, Nov 9-13 (Tickets on general sale, Jun 17)
Classical: Piazzolla’s Four Seasons, The Fire Station, Sunderland, Jun 27
COMPETITION TIME
Welcome to our latest newsletter prize draw - offering our subscribers an exclusive opportunity to win tickets to see or do something great.
This week, we’ve got two tickets to see Christopher Eccleston perform Our Friends in the North* writer, Peter Flannery’s rarely seen monologue, The Name of That Song at Live Theatre, Newcastle (June 20-21).
Billed as a “stunning one man play about the journey of love, memory and music”, demand for tickets have led to extra matinee performances being added - and we’ve got two tickets for one of them (June 20, 4pm).
*Later this year, a new stage adaptation of Our Friends in the North by Live’s artistic director, Jack McNamara will premiere at Newcastle Theatre Royal (Oct 15-24) in a North East co-production between the two venues alongside Eastlake Productions.
HOW TO ENTER:
To be in with a chance of winning, simply email MePlease@culturednortheast.co.uk using the subject line: ‘I’ll Name That Song by email’ by 5pm on Sunday (Jun 14)
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.