Theatre comes to Ropery Hall

with Adam Phillips

THEN & NOW

Tom Robinson presents an evening of songs and stories from fifty years wandering the wilder shores of the Record Industry. Classic hits such as War Baby, Up Against The Wall, and 2-4-6-8 Motorway rub shoulders with a Radio 1 ban for being Glad To be Gay, rocking against racism with The Clash, writing songs with Elton John, headlining Glasto with Peter Gabriel, drug smuggling in East Germany, two nervous breakdowns and a year in tabloid hell after falling in love with a woman. Plus fan favourites from his vast back catalogue, spanning Café Society in 1975 to his acclaimed 2015 comeback album Only The Now.

BEN POOLE is an internationally applauded, award winning blues, rock and soul guitarist, singer and songwriter hailing from the United Kingdom. Nominated as one of the “Best Blues Guitarists in the world” just prior to the 2 year pandemic hiatus alongside names such as Eric Clapton, John Mayer, Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Joe Bonamassa & many more by the USA’s ‘Guitar World Magazine’ Ben Poole is very much at the forefront of the talent rich blues/rock scene on a worldwide scale.

A now internationally recognised touring and recording artist since beginning his career playing on the local UK blues circuit aged 16, Ben Poole has also received critical acclaim from some of the most renowned blues and rock musicians in the world such as Jeff Beck, Gary Moore, John Mayall, Beth Hart, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Walter Trout, Richie Kotzen, Philip Sayce and many more. Besides this he has graced the covers of, as well as receiving awards and accolades from some of the most respected publications and organisations, including being voted in the top 15 best blues guitar players in the world a few years ago by the biggest selling guitar magazine in Europe (Total Guitar Magazine/Music Radar).

“Truly astonishing” – Classic Rock Magazine
“F***ing amazing!” – Jeff Beck
“A REALLY good player” – Gary Moore
“So amazing!” – Beth Hart

Little Wander presents…

Ria Lina – Riabellion

Following her killer debut tour, Riawakening (Top Ten Best Stand-up Shows of 2024 – Telegraph), the wickedly funny Ria Lina realised she wasn’t just awake, she was ready to rebel. Expect a relentless stream of hilarity as Ria explores the state of the world, the eternal battle of the sexes, and the delight of Zhrowing life up in the air after years of following the rules. 

Much loved in the industry, this multi-award winner commands the stage with a whirlwind of energy and leaves audiences breathless with laughter. Her extensive list of credits includes Live At The Apollo, Have I Got News For You?, Mock the Week, cohosting Pointless, Lovestruck High, Richard Osman’s House of Games, The Last Leg and Celebrity Mastermind.

“Fearless, provocative, and very funny” (The Scotsman), Ria Lina is a highly accomplished comedian, writer and actor. After a critically acclaimed stand-out debut on Mock The Week (BBC), Ria has quickly become a household name. A hugely admired act on the UK comedy circuit, this multi-award-winning artist commands respect from the moment she walks onstage and delivers with natural ease, energy and fierceness. Ria is the most prominent Filipina comedian in British stand-up. She has a BSc in Experimental Pathology, an MSc in Forensic Science and a PhD in Virology under her belt, so it’s not only Ria’s comedy that’s highly intelligent.

“There isn’t a comedy venue in the country that shouldn’t be fighting for her” The Scotsman
“Ridiculously gifted” The Evening Standard
“Engaging, endearing and eye-opening” Time Out
“I have no doubt she will hold her own so easily that she’ll have a hand free to hold someone else’s too” The Guardian

Please note 16+ only

A midsummer Nights concert at St Mary’s Church as Saxophonist Snake Davis joins Barton Community Band for a night of rousing popular tunes.

Concert at St.Mary’s Church – DIRECTIONS
Children/Students £8 Standard £15 Premium £18 Restricted Views £12

6 Things About The Hot Seats!

1. We like to play music, stringband music. We call it stringband music because it’s just too difficult to try and get into whether it’s old time, bluegrass, ragtime, country, or general freakout music.

2. We have done so since 2002, mostly based out of Richmond, VA.

3. We’ve been to lots of places, including all throughout the USA, the UK, Ireland, and a little piece of Europe. Some of our festival highlights have been: Tønder, The Richmond Folk Festival, Red Wing Roots, Celtic Connections, The Shetland Folk Festival, The Orkney Folk Festival, South By Southwest, Floyd Fest, Bristol Rhythm and Roots Festival, The Watermelon Park Festival, The Northeast Kingdom Music Festival, Didmarton Bluegrass Festival, Maverick Festival, HebCeltFest, Speyfest, Leicester Summer Sundae and multiple occasions at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (including a Herald Angel Award in 2006).

4. We have recorded 13 albums of various lengths and media. Our most recent is The Hot Seats Present: Travis Randy – Smooth As Silk.

5. We like to: play fast, be funny, spasm, herk and jerk, eat exotic and frightening things, and ride in a van.

6. We are Jake, Josh, and Ben; with help from Rudy, JM, and Charles

Paul and Karen came together through their love of traditional music cut through with
experimentation, boldness, humour and risk. Their first duo album Coracle had five
star reviews and led to them touring widely across UK and European Festivals.
Both composers and improvisers, they now celebrate over twenty years of close
collaboration and original music playing as a duo and with other bands and large
scale projects.
Expect ethereal to turn gutsy, passion to be tempered by a good laugh and a tide of
improvisation which means no two evenings are ever the same.
Paul Hutchinson is a BBC Folk Award Best Live Artist nominee with Belshazzar’s
Feast, a much-feted accordion player and teacher. He’s equally at home on the
concert stage, playing dance tunes for enthusiastic revellers or running workshops.
His previous collaborations with Hoover the Dog, Pagoda Project and The Maniacs
produced albums and performances that drew five-star reviews.
Karen Wimhurst is a widely commissioned composer ranging from chamber
works to music theatre and large-scale, collaborative productions.
Eclectic in nature, her own distinctive music manifests diverse traditional
and jazz influences alongside a strong grounding in contemporary classical
music. Latest works include Synthetica, an online opera in collaboration
with MoDiP; Heart of the Matter, a bijoux chamber opera for Bass and piano
featuring in Tete a Tete opera festival 2024; Freedoms for mixed choir and
cello; a Song for Dorset one of the featured composer in the lockdown A
Song For Us project and Jump, a solo work for clarinets, insect and
amphibian sounds, featured at the British Library event Small but Perfectly
Formed hosted by Martha Kearney.

This performance is part of our Member’s 241 Offer. Please ask for details.