Stone Roses: Made Of Stone (music)

To Cineworld for today's post and a potentially nostalgic journey for anyone who was a Stone Roses fan longer ago than perhaps they care to remember. A new documentary film, Stone Roses: Made of Stone is to get its premiere screening at a 'secret' London venue on the 30th of May. The event, which will be attended by the band and the filmmaker Shane Meadows, will also be simultaneously broadcast to 100 cinemas across the UK, one of which is our Cineworld in Sovereign Harbour.

He is most famous for This Is England, but I think my favourite of the Shane Meadows films I've seen is Le Donk and Scor-zay-zee, a spoof music documentary which starred Paddy Considine and Olivia Colman. Perhaps it paved the way for Made Of Stone, perhaps not! Named after a song on their first album, the film includes some early footage of The Stone Roses, but its primary purpose is to document their 2011 comeback. Shots of their rehearsals are interspersed with clips of reverent fans and the film culminates with their sold-out gigs at Manchester's Heaton Park. I have heard that several of the 100 preview cinemas have already sold out their screenings, but Cineworld has tickets available at the time of writing. Made Of Stone gets its nationwide release on the 5th of June.

Cineworld, Thu 30th May, 19:00.
Tickets £14.20 adults, £12.10 seniors and students, available online, by calling 0871 200 2000, or in person from the machines in the foyer.

Suddenly At Home (theatre)

If you read my post on the 5th of May about Murder Weapon, you might already be anticipating the Murder in The Park season of plays coming to the Devonshire Park Theatre throughout June. Suddenly At Home will be performed during the second week - from the 11th to the 15th.

Written by Francis Durbridge in 1973, Suddenly At Home is set in the 1970s and is staged in a single room of a flat. Durbridge also wrote the popular Paul Temple radio series which expanded into novels and films. Suddenly At Home is the first of his eight plays. This talking Scarlet production will star Marcus Hutton and Ben Roddy, both of last year's Playing Dead and Rope, and Patric Kearns.

When Glenn Howard decided to get rid of his wealthy wife - firstly to enjoy her money, secondly to avoid spending the rest of his life in Bermuda, and thirdly to free himself for another woman - he worked out a complicated but seemingly foolproof plan which would not only keep him in the clear but involve his wife’s former lover, detective-story writer Sam Blaine. But, the plan depends on the co-operation of another person, Sheila Wallis, an attractive woman to whom Glenn is apparently devoted. All appears to be going well for Glenn until the unexpected arrival of the formidable Remick.

Devonshire Park Theatre, Tue 11th to Sat 15th Jun, 19:45. 
Wed and Sat matinees, 14:30.
Tickets various prices, available online, by calling 01323 412000 or in person from the Box Office and the Tourist Information Office.

Special Offer for the Murder In The Park Season: Book all 4 plays for £14 each, Book 3 plays for £16 each (Applies on top price tickets only at the evening performances, no other concessions apply, must be booked at the same time).

Animal Crackers (film)

I might finally get Dave along to one of the Under Ground Theatre Sunday matinees because the chosen film for June is the Marx Brothers feature, Animal Crackers. Dave is a Marx Brothers fan and sometimes bemoans the lack of their films on TV anymore!

Filmed in 1930, Animal Crackers was the last film that Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo filmed in New York. It was directed by Victor Heerman and written by Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby and George S Kaufman. The story had started the year before as a Broadway musical also written by Kaufman together with Morrie Ryskind. The Marx Brothers had starred in the Broadway version with Margaret Dumont who joined them for the film.

A vague storyline holds the film together. Captain Geoffrey T Spaulding (Groucho Marx) attends a dinner party held in his honour by Mrs Rittenhouse (Margaret Dumont). During the party, a valuable painting is stolen and Captain Spaulding investigates. The other Marxes attempt to 'help' getting themselves into all sort of bizarre and hilarious situations in the process. There are great comic set-pieces, sharp one-liners that are still amongst filmgoers' favourite quotes today, and several original songs including Why Am I So Romantic? sung by Lilian Roth.

Under Ground Theatre, Sun 16th Jun, 14:30.
Tickets £6.50 to include tea and cake after the film, available online, by calling 0845 680 1926, or in person from the Box Office or the Tourist Information Office.

The Big Garden Party

Did you go to the Big Garden Party at Stone Cross Nurseries last Summer? It was such a success that they are holding another event this year and it's only two and half weeks away - on Saturday the 1st of June! Please start your Sun Dancing!

Starting at midday, the Party will continue all through the afternoon and evening right up until 11pm. As well as the essential Beer Tent and Food, there will be a Kid's Play Area and Carnival Rides. Plus, to create the perfect festival atmosphere, there will be two music stages starting at 12.15. On the Main Stage you can hear The Riverboys, Beve and the Beatroots, Otti Albietz, The Move-ons, Snakebyte and The Harkes. And on the Acoustic Stage will be Will Read, Charlotte Staples, Ed Stokes Band, Jayne Ingles, Garry Wonfor and The Boogera Brothers.

Stone Cross Nurseries have held quite a few events recently which made great use of the versatile non-garden-centre space they have available. The Pentacle Drummers Wassail was great fun and there has also been an art exhibition.

Tickets £5 adults, £3 children, £15 family of up to five, available online and (presumably) in person on the day. Ticket holders will receive a wristband which will allow them access to the event all day.

An Evening with Tom Lehrer and Flanders And Swann (musical theatre)

My favourite two 'serious' theatre companies have both surprised me by branching off into musical comedy this summer. The Green Room Productions' Just Joyce is at the Under Ground in August and, much sooner, Bootcamp Theatre are presenting An Evening with Tom Lehrer and Flanders And Swann at the Little Theatre in the middle of June.

Actually on for two evenings, the 14th and the 15th of June, An Evening with Tom Lehrer and Flanders And Swann will feature many famous comic songs including ‘Poisoning Pigeons in the Park’, ‘The Gnu’, ‘The Masochism Tango’ and ‘The Hippopotamus’, all performed by Steve Scott with Eric Retallick at the piano. Both the American songwriter Tom Lehrer and the British duo of Michael Flanders and Donald Swann composed most of their songs during the 1950s and 1960s. Political satire and social commentary characterised their work and many songs have endured to still be well-known now, even if their source has been obscured. Perhaps sadly, they are often still just as relevant! Lighter songs such as The Hippopotamus ("Mud, mud, glorious mud") are simply great fun to hear.

Little Theatre, Fri 14th and Sat 15th Jun, 19:45.
Tickets £10 / £9, available online or by calling 0845 680 1926.

Liz Brown (artist)

Great Dixter
by Liz Brown

A member of Eastbourne Painters, I most recently saw Liz Brown's work alongside that of Fiona Morrison at the group's Birley Centre exhibition, a part of the Eastbourne Festival. Liz is another artist who makes a wonderfully striking use of colour and I made sure to snap up some of her greetings cards. They are so beautiful that I think I will have trouble parting with them when birthdays come around!

Liz Brown is originally from Worcester. She obtained a BA (Hons) in Art and Design from the University of Brighton and has also done a Post Graduate Course in Art Teacher Training. Currently her teaching is done through Catalyst Arts, "the educational organisation that is seeking to encourage a renaissance in the creative arts." I don't know when Liz will next be publicly exhibiting her paintings near Eastbourne, but I am told that she has work at Heathfield Art and Books gallery, Blue Ginger gallery in Malvern, and Arts in Healthcare at the Eastbourne District General Hospital. Can the public just walk into the DGH to see art? I have no idea!

Catalyst Arts is based at St. Elizabeth’s Church Centre on Victoria Drive in Eastbourne. Their 2013 programme includes a variety of taster sessions and short courses in painting, drawing and stitching. Liz Brown's "Introduction to Mixed Media" is tomorrow - sorry for far too short notice here - but she is also teaching a four-date Mixed Media course through July.

Buddy Presley Show (music)

The premiere of a brand new show of vintage music is coming to the Under Ground Theatre on the 8th of June. Starring Dave B, The Buddy Presley Show is an exciting evening recreating the feeling, look and sound of the heady days of 50s and 60s rock’n’roll. Buddy Holly's music will make up the first half of the show with Elvis Presley's songs for the second half.

Dave B has been performing rock'n'roll professionally for over 14 years and specialises in being an Elvis tribute artist. He was originally captivated by the music of Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley when he was just nine. His break came in 1998 when he auditioned for and won Whatever You Want, a BBC TV series searching for a new star to play Buddy in Buddy The Musical in London's West End.

Dave will be joined at the Under Ground by his band: drummer Gary Richardson (Stargazers, Slammers Maximum Jive Band), guitarist Corrado Di Ianni (Crazy Jay and The Partytimers, Blues Shakeout), and bass player Neale Hobday (Slammers Maximum Jive Band). This band formed in late 2011 and are currently based in London. They have spent the last year perfecting their sound in preparation for this new show which will tour through 2013. The Buddy Presley Show also showcases vocal group The Harmonaires. I've chosen the cover of Devil In Disguise for the YouTube clip at the end of this post. There are lots more videos of the band on their YouTube channel so you can get a real sense of their music.

Dancing shoes at the ready!

Under Ground Theatre, Sat 8th Jun, 20:00.
Tickets £12 (£10 concessions), available online or in person 'on the door'.