Slung Low, Holbeck’s own theatre company, present their fourth How To … Festival on Saturday (4 June 2016) at their base the Holbeck Underground Ballroom (HUB) under the viaduct on Bath Road.
It promises to be a day packed full of events recalling halcyon days and bygone times. Events, workshops, nostalgic reminisces, entertainment and affordable ‘£ Pay What You Decide’ performances for all. Slung Low are joined by Yorkshire Silents, Bread and Gooose Theatre, Julie-Ann Laidlaw, Doug Segal, Chris J Wilson and Gypsy Charms.
And because it’s the How To… Festival you can learn new skills in £paywhatyoudecide creative workshops throughout the day; learn how to make the entertainment and the food.
At 11.00am Indian Cooking Workshop
Discover how to cook delicious vegetarian Indian dishes and curries which you can then have a go at creating yourselves – all ingredients and equipment are provided for you.
At 2:00pm Beginners Tin Whistle
The Tin Whistle is the modern form of one of the oldest instruments known to humankind. In this hour long practical music workshop, the instructor will teach you to play a simple Irish march, demonstrate examples of jigs and reels and set you well on your way to becoming a competent player. Instruments provided!
At 3:00pm Dance The Roaring 20’s “In olden days a glimpse of stocking was looked on as something shocking…..“
Take a trip back to the Roaring 20s, the birth of jazz, where feet were a-tapping, hands were a-clapping and arms were a-flapping in newest and most outrageous dance crazes hot from America: The Charleston and the Black Bottom Stomp. Whether you consider yourself a beginner or a fully fledged flapper, there is something in it for you so come and kick up some dust…. Anything Goes!”
At 4:00pm The Memory Store
Do you have a mind brimming with memories? A keepsake with a story behind it? A song or poem that reminds you of a special time? Join Kate and Alison from Bread & Goose and contribute to our Memory Store. We will share stories and create objects, drawings, words or sound recordings to preserve moments that are important to you. All ages welcome. A signer available for hearing impaired participants. The Memory Store is an interactive installation that was first conceived during research into Alzheimer’s Disease for the touring theatre production Lost in the Neuron Forest. Contributions have been made by visitors and workshop participants from across the UK, and all of them are available for new visitors to explore and see what memories they evoke of their own.
At 5:00pm Yorkshire Silents
A selection of short silent films with live piano accompaniment from Mr Jonathan Best, including some of the earliest examples of hand-drawn animation and special effects, Yorkshire-made shorts by Holmfirth’s Bamforth and Company, and a two-reel comedy starring Marion Byron and Anita Garvin, the female Laurel and Hardy of the 1920s.
There’s a break for dinner at 6pm – Enjoy delicious food from Manjit’s Kitchen and refreshments from the HUB’s £1 bar with free tea and coffee. Relax in the HUB parlour and take a trip down memory lane.
At 7:00pm Vive La Varieté: Best of the Fest rounds off the day bringing us firmly back to the present with a bang! Julie-Ann Laidlaw of Blonde Ambition Events brings three of the UK’s finest contemporary Cabaret Artists to the HUB prior to their run at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Doug Segal (The UK’s best kept entertainment secret – TimeOut) provides comedy with seeming feats of mind reading & mind control. Prepare to meet Chris J Wilson’s alter-ego Christ on a Bike – the immortal disco-dancing lifestyle guru who saved mankind. And the Grand Dame of Scottish Burlesque Gypsy Charms serves up Marlene and Illicit Thrills in her very own bold, brazen and utterly uncompromising fashion (show contains adult content and themes).
The event has been funded by the Inner South Community Committee
There is a very limited capacity for all Festival workshops and performances so to reserve a ticket please email boxoffice@slunglow.org with the number of places you wish to book for each event and a contact telephone number.
