Friday 10th July
FULL DETAILS OF ALL FESTIVAL EVENTS CAN BE FOUND IN THE 88 PAGE SOUVENIR PROGRAMME WHICH INCLUDES
A VOUCHER FOR 10% OFF TICKET PRICES (Tickets Available from 1st June)
7.30pm DWEEB – YOUTH BAND - [dweeb] with support band BOSH
[dweeb] are back!
After a resounding success at last year’s festival we welcome back[dweeb], who came together from various parts of the country in 2002, each bringing with them a wealth of musical training and a diverse mix of musical influences from the likes of Incubus to Miles Davis, from Red Hot Chilli Peppers to Steve Reich. Their sound is energetic rock music with a twist of jazzy funk. Their stage-show, although delightfully mental and wonderfully entertaining, exudes with a passion and sincerity that comes from their belief in God. [dweeb] have now played at some of the country's top venues including the London Astoria, and have captivated audiences of thousands at the Grassrootz festivals. They have a packed gig schedule taking them all over the country and it has finally brought them to Somerton! Through favourable media exposure in local press, magazines and radio appearing on BBC 3 in 2007, [dweeb] have alerted the attention of booking agencies and record companies alike as their fan base consistently grows. Their debut album “It came from Outer Space” was released in December 2007. In short, [dweeb] are proving to be one of the most exciting acts of the moment. “THE most entertaining band on the whole British scene" - Cross Rhythms. See www.myspace.com/dweebmusic
Support band for the evening is BOSH - Five gents who make music that not only gets inside your head, but into your heart. They make music to move you, and music to make you move. They’ve notched up 170+ gigs since 2004 and 10 releases since 1998.Their influences come from iconic British bands and result in churning Hammond organs, big drum sounds, intense bass grooves, gritty guitars and expansive soundscapes.
After two years honing the songs on the road BOSH went into the studio, emerging six months later to announce the arrival of their flagship album 'Sound the Alarms' released in April 2008. The album has been incredibly well received by critics and fans alike, spawning regular radio airplay for ‘Police Helicopter’, ‘Blacklines’, ‘Heaven Syndrome’ and ‘There Is’. There was TV airplay for the live video of ‘Police Helicopter’ too.
Unicorn Hotel Skittle Alley – Tickets £4.00 A voucher for 10% off ticket prices (Tickets available from 1st June) can be found in the 88 page Souvenir programme Click here for information
Sponsored by Overt Locke Ltd
8.00pm MY DARLING CLEMMIE BY HUGH WHITEMORE
Reflections on the life and times of Winston Churchill
With grateful acknowledgments to Lady Soames
PERFORMED BY ROHAN MCCOULLOUH
DIRECTED BY GARETH ARMSTRONG
“My most brilliant achievement was my ability to be able to persuade my wife to marry me” WINSTON CHURCHILL
“My Darling Clemmie” is the remarkable, moving and entertaining story of the woman who married one of the truly great figures of the 20th century: Sir Winston Churchill. “Compelling, engaging, intimately and beautifully realised. An unforgettable evening.” ROGER GRAEF, CHAIRMAN OF COMPLICITE THEATRE COMPANY
ROHAN McCULLOUGH “A fantastically talented and moving actress” (The Scotsman) began her career in the original cast of the legendary musical Hair and Jean-Louis Barrault’s Rabelais. She has also been seen as Antigone in Oedipus at Colonus (Manchester Royal Exchange) and in Les Liaisons Dangereuses (RSC). Her film appearances include Derek Jarman’s War Requiem and David Hare’s Strapless. She has given poetry and music recitals in London and at Arts Festivals nationwide. She has performed as narrator with leading American symphony orchestras, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl and The Boston Symphony at Carnegie Hall.
She has achieved her most notable success with her one-woman shows. During an extensive tour of Testament of Youth (based on Vera Brittain’s celebrated book) she appeared at The Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, and at the Brighton and Edinburgh Festivals, where she won the ‘Scotsman’ drama award. This tour was followed by a season at The Fortune Theatre, London. Her solo performance of Rose Macaulay’s The Towers of Trebizond was part of the official Edinburgh Festival and was selected as Critics’ Choice ‘Pick of the Performances’ by the Sunday Times. Rohan McCullough’s third one-woman show, The Tale of Beatrix Potter, has been seen at theatres and festivals throughout the country, and she was invited to Australia to give performances celebrating the centenary of Peter Rabbit’s first appearance. She has also taken The Tale of Beatrix Potter to America, touring from New York to California, where she appeared at the UK/LA Festival. She was also a guest artist at the Saito Kinen Festival in Japan. In the last few years, she has given poetry recitals with Sir Derek Jacobi, Edward Fox, and John Julius Norwich, and she appears frequently with Sir John Mortimer in his poetry and prose entertainment, Mortimer’s Miscellany. See www.indigoentertainments.com
HUGH WHITEMORE has written for the stage, films and television. His TV film, The Gathering Storm, which was about Churchill in the 1930s, won an Emmy, the Writers’ Guild of America Award, and the Broadcasting Press Guild Award for the best television drama of 2002.
GARETH ARMSTRONG has combined the roles of director and actor throughout his career. Following the success of his own one-man show Shylock, he has specialised in the realisation of many successful solo plays. He is also an author and broadcaster, and played three different running characters in The Archers
Parish Rooms - Tickets £6.00 A voucher for 10% off ticket prices (Tickets available from 1st June) can be found in the 88 page Souvenir programme Click here for information
Sponsored by Somerton Business & Trade Association
8 00pm THE FIREBIRDS with support band SAX AND THE CITY CHIC
Rock’n’Roll par excellence
Formed in 1981 and one of Europe’s finest Rock ‘n’ Roll bands it is great to have the boys back again in the Festival. The Firebirds are Jim Plummer, Richie Lorriman and Jason Bryant. The band is able to cover the complete spectrum of 1950’s and 1960’s music from Commercial Rock ‘n’ Roll Songs to Rockabilly, Harmonised Doo Wop, Instrumentals, Ballads and their own compositions. The band has undertaken extensive tours both in Britain and Europe. During 1992 they performed at the official opening of the Euro Disney Theme Park in Paris – the only British band to appear! - and in May 2000 they made their first visit to the USA playing venues in Memphis and Las Vegas. In 2002 they were honoured by being the only non-American band to be invited to play the Rockability Festival at the Carl Perkins Civic Centre in Jackson, Tennessee. More recently they have appeared in both Rome and Denmark and at the Paris Musical Festival and now they will be playing at The Somerton Arts Festival. Further information on The Firebirds at www.thefirebirds.com
The support band for the evening is dynamic duo SAX & THE CITY CHIC’. The pair made up of Sam and Laura will get you on your feet as you enjoy classic sixties music with a twist. Numbers such as ‘green door’ and ‘beep bop a luba’ played with a saxophone lead are sure to get you dancing. Sam is still in his teens but already a talented musician and singer, he plays guitar, harmonica and as the name suggest saxophone. The city chic’ is Laura, a professional singer, who adds another dimension to the performance. For a preview, check them out on their website. www.theladyandthesax.com
A selection of Bar-B-Q meats and vegetarian options will be available 1 hour before the start of the Event and throughout the evening.
The Festival Marquee Somerton Sports Club - Tickets £12.00. A voucher for 10% off ticket prices (Tickets available from 1st June) can be found in the 88 page Souvenir programme Click here for information
Sponsored by M & M Contractors (S W) Ltd