Tuesday 30 April 2013

Russian Dolls & Nesting

Someone who reads this Blog with more care and attention than is ever anticipated has asked "The Fairfield Music Festival is one festival within a Fringe Festival. What is the other one?" Never wanting to leave a question unanswered - unless we don't know the answer - we are happy to remind you all of the Litton Poetry Festival. Here is the programme:
FRIDAY 12TH JULY
7.00 – 7.45 PM    LAUNCH EVENT + Tickets for sale. Glass of wine on the house. ‘Lines in the Sky’- poems on balloons released.
8.00 – 10.00 PM    READINGS IN THE CHURCH – Nell Farrell, Kathy Towers, Conor O’Callaghan and JOHN HEGLEY. Tickets £6.00/£4.00 concs. BYO drinks. Pub will serve drinks in plastic cups if you ask.
SATURDAY 13TH JULY
10.00 – 11.00 AM    COFFEE IN THE HALL + Tickets on sale.
Bunting poems….Poetry Book Swap….Soundscape in church garden all day…Bookstall in church all day.
11.00 -  12.00 PM  FREE SESSION     Open Mic in the Church
11.00 – 1.00 PM    FREE SESSION    Choice of Write and Walk with Chris Jones or Film Show – ‘Bright Star’(Keats and Fanny Brawne)  PG certificate
1.00 – 2.00 PM    SOUP AND SANDWICH  in Church  £2.50  per person
2.00 – 2.30 PM   SCHOOL CHILDREN READING  (for ages 6 to 11) in the Village Hall or school
2.30 – 4.30 PM  WORKSHOPS  Tickets £6.00/£4.00 concs. cover all remaining events.
Starting to Write – Nell Farrell (Village Hall)
Poetry and Performance – Mark Gwynne Jones (Church)
Writing and Mindfulness – River Wolton  (School or ‘Woodstock’)
Down Your Local - a workshop with Conor O’Callaghan in The Three Stags Heads pub – leaving Litton Village Hall at 2.30pm for a 3.00pm start
Workshop for children – David Harmer in a parked bus (hopefully)!
TIME FOR A BREAK  Coffee, tea and cake at Litton Shop. Food at Litton’s  Red Lion, the Anchor and the Three Stags (good beer) on the main road (A623), and The George in Tideswell. Booking advisable for all pubs.
7.30 – 9.30 PM   READINGS IN THE CHURCH   BYO drinks as above
Three Derbyshire Poet Laureates:  Matt Black, River Wolton and Cathy Grindrod
9.30 – 11.30 PM  CEILIDH  with Fine Fettle band in the Hall (BYO drinks as                                                                                     above)
SUNDAY 14TH JULY
10.30 – 12 NOON   Coffee in the Hall  followed by POETRY GRAND SLAM


Looks like a fab weekend for those that struggle to cope with the excitement that is Buxton Carnival weekend!

Monday 29 April 2013

Festivals Within Festivals


The Buxton Festival Fringe only happens, of course, because there is a Buxton Festival. It is also probably the case that some other Festivals happen because the Fringe provides a space. This year we have two mini-festivals as part of the Fringe. One of these is a festival of music (and much more) at St Peter's Church, Fairfield. There is limited space on the Fringe website - here is more detail of what you'll find at St Peter's.

SATURDAY 6th JULY

Classic Cars with Fairfield Band during afternoon
Creams teas served in marquee. Other refreshments in church

MIDSUMMER MADNESS
Light hearted mixture of music and singing
Entry at door Adults £5 Conc £4. Doors open 6.30pm
Refreshments available during interval

SUNDAY 7th JULY

Classic Cars
Cream teas served in marquee. Other refreshments in church
Award winning AFFINITY SHOW CHOIR
Close harmony singing and much more
Entry at door Adults £7. Conc £6. doors open 6.30pm
Refreshments available during interval.

MONDAY 8th JULY

AFRICA ENTSHA
unforgettable evening of
African music, sung in English and Zulu,full of rhythm,
leaving the audience breathless and deeply moved.
Entry at door Adults £10. Conc. £8. doors open 6.30pm
Refreshments during interval

TUESDAY 9th JULY

REV CARL and Friends (behind the dog-collar)
evening of Country and Gospel Music
absolutely not to be missed, once in a lifetime event.
Entry at door Adults £6. Conc. £5.00 doors open 6.30pm

WEDNESDAY 10th JULY

Combined Childrens Choirs from
FAIRFIELD ENDOWED SCHOOL
DOVE HOLES JUNIOR SCHOOL
come and support these dedicated children and teachers
Entry at door Adults £3.

THURSDAY 11th JULY

JAZZNOTES Fabulous Jazz Swing Band
Entry at door Adults £7. Conc. £6 doors open 6.30pm
Refreshments available during interval

FRIDAY 12th JULY

ELVINO and The Ragged Company
Country Rocka Hoola
Entry at Door Adults £7. Conc £6 doors open at 6.30pm
Refreshments available during interval

During the Musical Festival week there will be a exhibition of paintings by Mara Edwards. A talented local artist her work will on display in St Peter's Church from 11am to 4pm.

Full Programme of Fringe 2013 on Website

The full programme for this year's Buxton Festival Fringe is now on the Fringe website.

This year there are 170 different events; 601 separate performances or showings; 46 different venues. We are a fairly modest bunch but the sheer size and scope of the Fringe - taking place in a town of less than 25,000 people over a period of 19 days - is astonishing.

Our thanks to the hundreds - probably thousands - of performers, artists and musicians who have shown once again that they have confidence and trust in Buxton and are prepared to come here and share their skills and talents.

We also thank all those people who have opened up venues so that the Fringe can take place and be accessible to so many people.

It is now up to the audiences to show their faith and join us between 3-21 July. There really is something for everyone - with many events free of charge

The printed programme will be available in 5 weeks time - in the meantime use the website to start planning your Fringe 2013!

Thursday 18 April 2013

Where did all that time go?

Not so long ago - about January 3rd probably - we were sitting around in Fringe Towers thinking this "Festival will pick up soon. Expect it will take off eventually." And now, all of a sudden - as though no one ever told us, we've only got 3 and a bit days left for entries to be submitted. [Well entries can come after April 21st but they may not get into the printed programme]. So despite calendars, diaries, electronic reminders and the like we are left with that initial question "Where did all that time go?" Philosophical questions of this nature are easy to pose and impossible to answer we suspect.

Anyway let's make this as clear as we can. If you want to enter the Buxton festival Fringe 2013 - which starts on Wednesday July 3rd and finishes on Sunday July 21st - and if you want to guarantee that your entry appears in the printed Fringe programme to be published on June 1st - then you must submit your entries by midnight on Sunday April 21st. In short - get your skates on.

Just time and space now for one interesting bit of gossip. Negotiations are at an "advanced stage", sources tell us, with Buxton Brewery for a special Fringe beer for 2013. The Buxton Brewery produces a range of craft beers including the already legendary Wyoming Sheep Ranch. We look forward to this co-operation - especially the tasting.

Various stages of chaos will reign over Fringe Towers for the next week as the final programme is assembled, edited, corrected, revised and generally reshaped. It may mean that your postcards will go unanswered for a while. Apologies for any of that. We love you all dearly.

Saturday 6 April 2013

The rain in Spain...

...well you know the song and it turns out to be true. The Blogs are just back from the wettest Easter Spain has had for 65 years - which didn't stop it being a whole lot of fun. We left the Blog in capable, professional hands but no news was judged worth reporting apparently. What! Sunderland appoint an ex-fascist and Michael Gove is still ruining education. Come on Britain! #wecandobetter. Whoops. Sorry - this is Blogger, not Twitter, easy to confuse the two yet the discourse is so different...

Well, what has been going on Fringewise? We now have 130 events all properly paid for and entered - with barely two weeks to the closing date and 3 months to Fringe Sunday. But are we panicking? Probably should be.

The programme at Underground Venues is taking shape - though the final details are still to be confirmed. Some old friends and favourites are back. There will be another double dose of George Telfer - reprising his roles as Richard Burton and Graham Chapman. It's easy to take George for granted. Don't, he's a genuine treasure and to be loved and appreciated.

Young Scott Allsop will be back on home turf with some songs born out his time in Egypt. I haven't seen Scott since he was a curly-haired mop-top at the Community School playing his Dire Straits licks. Will be interesting to see what Cairo has taught him.

One final reminder: tickets for the Buxton Festival are now on sale and some events are sold out - so don't delay. One final plug for friends and supporters at the Opera House: immediately the Fringe ends (Sunday 21st July) a season of "Summer Pops" starts at the Opera House. Check the line-up but it includes the mighty Bellowhead and Jack Bruce [not on the same bill!] These shows will sell-out so don't delay. Quite different - one of our favourite comedians, Stewart Lee, is back at the Opera House in October. Don't disappoint us.