Bitesize Year 7 Taster Days

Day & Boarding School | Year 7 to 6th Form

for families with children in years 5 and 6 who would like to find out more about our high-performing, non-selective school withvery small classes and a creative buzz.

Weds 9 March & 20 AprilCall us to book a place01634 828115

Easter Revision Courses GCSE & A level

4-8 April & 11-15 April 2016Help boost your confidence and grade potential

CONTENTS

4 WELCOME5 5 REALLY GOOD THINGS6 NEWS10 WORKSHOP IT!11 MEDWAY LITTLE THEATRE12 EASTER SPECIALS14 THE GRAIN STORE16 BIG DATES 2016 – PULLOUT CALENDAR18 FILM

19 INDEPENDENTS X 3: NICK WALKER20 MUSIC 122 MUSIC 223 RIVERSIDE ONE24 THEATRE/COMEDY26 IN PRAISE OF RATTIGAN28 VISUAL ART30 THE ARTIST'S SPACE

Paul Doust is an experienced and qualified adult tutor. He trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London - and offers workshops and courses in all aspects of the theatre. Paul is also a produced and published playwright (and has written many episodes of the BBC's ‘Eastenders’).

Tracy Affleck recently started working for WOW Magazine in a Business Development role (hurrah!) and is delighted that Emma Dewhurst shares her love of tea and Kit Kat. When not working for WOW Tracy runs the Fantabulous Rochester Flea Market (therochesterflea.com) and is also studying an MA in Fine Art at the University of Kent making interesting things out of archive photos. She also loves Robert Downey Junior but realises that it will probably not go anywhere.

Nick Walker is the director of Rochester Kino, screening contemporary world cinema and classic films at various venues around Medway and in London. Nick previously wrote for The Guardian, was director of National Schools Film Week and is a freelance writer, teacher and film cinema/festival programmer. He currently works for London’s famous Phoenix Cinema. For more of Rochester Kino visit: rochesterkino.co.uk

WELCOME TO WOW! Your guide to the best of What’s On WhereMedway, Maidstone and the accessible beyond

We were delighted to welcome the good people of Canterbury (and even some in Whitstable) to our WOW readership with the February issue and feedback has been grand, thank you. To our long-time readers – thanks for standing by the magazine and also to all our new WOW Subscribers: your commitment is invaluable.

On that note, please get in touch if you are a new subscriber who did not receive your WOW magazine in February – we are ironing out the gremlins in the system and will, of course, add another month to your subscription.

As for March – take a look at our Easter Specials feature for all manner of good things! New WOW team member, Tracy Affleck, has been to visit the lovely Grain Store Studios (see p14) and we have made a ‘Big Dates’ pullout for you of the year’s must-go events, yay!

Emma Dewhurst editor@wowkent.co.uk

CONTRIBUTORS

Find us on Facebookfacebook.com/WOWMedway

@EmmaDewhurst7

EDITORIAL:editor@wowkent.co.uk0845 388 2243 (Calls cost 5p per minute plus your network’s access charge)

ADVERTISING:advertising@wowkent.co.ukNew advertiser & excellent series booking discounts available. All ads also appear in the online edition at wowkent.co.uk

FREE LISTINGS (magazine)listings@wowkent.co.uk

FREE/PREMIUM LISTINGS (website)Submit your content at wowkent.co.uk

DESIGN: A Stones Throw

PRINTING: Complete Print Group (CPG)9-10 Orchard Business CentreSanderson WayTonbridgeKent TN9 1QG01732 366666cpg-net.co.uk

PUBLISHER: Emma DewhurstWEBSITE: wowkent.co.ukPrint circulation: 10,000 copiesDistribution: Medway Towns, Maidstone, Gravesend & Canterbury

COPY DEADLINE for April issue:Wednesday 16 March

©WOW Kent magazine

All rights reserved. While every effort has been made to ensure that details in this publication are correct, we cannot accept responsibility for such. Readers are advised to check information listed, to avoid disappointment.

Views expressed by contributors and advertisers do not necessarily reflect those of the editor and publisher.

PHOTOGRAPH OF THE EDITOR BY RIKARD ÖSTERLUND

Cover image by A StonesThrow, see Easter Specials feature

BE A WOW AMBASSADOR!If you use any of our advertisers’ services, or attend an event because you saw it in WOW, please mention it – it really helps. Thank you.

REALLY GOOD THINGSTO DO THIS MONTH

5

5

RUST AND BLOOM Rochester Art Gallery has been on bit of a high lately, and continues to extend the boundaries of what is possible in its curation of this small, versatile space. Artist Hannah Maybank’s vast canvases have moved in until 15 May, exploring decay and renewal in her distressed surface, 3D paintings of flora in acrylic and latex. Impermanence, perfection and loss are all implied and the result is strangely moving.

JO ENWRIGHTOkay, not strictly this month, but you’ll be wanting to get this into your diaries now. Vicar Nathan Ward has pulled off another coup by attracting comedienne

Jo Enright to his Walderslade Village Cen-tre’s Arts Café on Sunday 3 April. Among her many credits, Enright has appeared alongside Peter Kay in ‘Phoenix Nights’ and plays the female lead Sue in ‘Life’s Too Short’, directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. She’s subtle and the humour is slow burn, but laugh you will.

SUFFRAGETTEIt’s hard to comprehend that little more than a hundred years ago a woman died in the name of gaining women the vote by throwing herself under the King’s race-horse at the Epsom Derby. The scene is one of the tense culminatory moments of ‘Suffragette’, a drama about the early days of the movement seen through the eyes of working class laundry worker, Maud. To commemorate International Women’s Day on 8 March, Rochester Film Society present a special screening at The Hugue-not Museum, Rochester. With a moving central performance by Carey Mulligan as Maud (and a surprising cameo from Meryl Streep as Emmeline Pankhurst) this is a go-see.

BROKENA little known part of my life involved taking a diploma in Community Dance at what was then known as The Laban Centre. During my time there I became

intrigued by the work of Motionhouse, crossing, as it did, the boundaries be-tween theatre and dance in a heart-stop-ping way. Their latest piece tackles our relationship with the earth: it will be bold, athletic and essential. See Theatre for details.

STORIES IN THE DARKThe magic lantern is a projection device invented in the 17th Century. The machines used the light of candles and oil lamps to produce shows that took people’s breath away as they saw projected moving images for the very first time. Over 19 & 20 March, artist Ben Judd curates an exhibition at Canterbury’s Beaney of nine specially selected artists who are using material from the Beaney’s unique collections, together with rare original magic lantern machines and beautiful Victorian slides, to inspire new work. Visual Art.

International Women’s WeekA great number of events will take place across Margate, Ramsgate and Broadstairs from 8 to 13 March, in celebration of International Women’s Week.

An exciting group of artists, performers, theatre directors and arts managers are collaborating to organise the 6 day series of events.

POW stands for ‘Power of Women’ and the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is Pledge for Parity with a more general emphasis on the role of women and girls in the world today. Events will include:

The programme is being finalised; for updates find them on Facebook or follow @powthanet on Twitter.

GO-CLUBBING

8-13March

The Historic Dockyard Chatham’s annual art competition is open for entries!

Open to emerging and professional artists, the competition culminates in an exhibition of selected works, curated by Hannah Conroy. The high calibre panel of selectors are Adam Chodzko (artist and Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at University of Kent), Hannah Conroy (Artist Pension Trust – formerly Folkestone Artworks Curator), Kathleen Palmer (Head of Art, Imperial War Museum), Victoria Pomery (Director of Turner Contemporary, Margate) and Nicole Mollett (Artist, and Director at Island Projects).

The competition is free to enter and this year’s theme is ‘Of the Sea’, with submissions invited across all art forms, including lens based media, sculpture and performance. Two prizes of £750 each will be awarded to artists: The Dockyard Prize, given to a work judged to give contextual relevance to the Dockyard’s historical legacy; and the Curators’ Choice award, which will be given to a work with global, social or political significance.

The exhibition will be hosted in No.1 Smithery: The Gallery from 6 May to 24 July 2016.Submissions must be made online: closing date is Wed 16 March.thedockyard.co.uk/plan/events/art-dockyard

ART IN THE DOCKYARD COMPETITION

Whitstable Biennale 2016Satellite

The Whitstable Biennale is a festival of performance, film and sound taking place every two years on the Kent Coast.

This year’s festival takes place between 4 – 12 June. The Satellite Programme provides a platform for artists wanting to display work alongside the Biennale. This programme, open to all, reflects the diverse artistic practices across Kent and beyond, and gives participants the opportunity to experiment and test new work with a large audience.

If you would like to find out more about how to apply to the programme, go to whitstablebiennale.com/programme/satellite/join

A new community space has opened in the Pentagon Shopping Centre which is available for affordable hire to community minded folks.

The space, called HeArt of The Community, is the result of a partnership between the Pentagon Shopping Centre and Nucleus Arts, who have recognised a local need for affordable space in which to run projects and meetings.

HeArt, which is on the first floor next to D&A Toys, can be hired at £5 per hour when a group or individual take out a 6 month membership for £20 and is available within Pentagon shopping centre opening times. Without membership the space can be hired at £10ph.

For enquiries contact Natasha at natasha.steer@nucleusarts.co.uk or call 01634 812 108.

• Talks, workshops and debates• Yoga and mindfulness sessions• Interactive performances• Music and poetry readings• Exhibitions and street art

New

spac

e

for

hire!

TRAGIDOODLESWOW’s fabulous resident doodler, Ben Cameron, goes from strength to strength. Ben has a rather special campaign going on: he’s raising funds via Unbound for his first book, a compilation of Tragidoodles.

Ben says: “Along with the book I’m also offering personalised doodles, originals from the final book, weekly or monthly doodles in the post, social media avatars or even a mural!

Please think of this as ‘pre-purchasing’ rather than crowdfunding. If it hits target you will get a really well produced book and if it doesn’t you’ll get your money back.”

If you’d like to be part of Ben’s first book venture, go to unbound.co.uk/books/tragidoodles.

Want to contact Ben? bencameron@me.comstrangepaul.com

Rochester PhotoBook

ClubHosted by Medway-based

photographers Rikard Ősterlund and Tracy Affleck

is a local photographers’ forum to discuss influential and inspiring photobooks and current projects with likeminded others meets monthly on a Thursday

evening at INTRA, 3 37 - 341 High Street,

ME1 1DA. For their next meet, find them at facebook.com/

RochesterPBC.

Medway Book Club

Mon 21 March 7pm – 9pmSun Pier House, Chatham

ME4 4HF

Always glad of new members! A friendly club to discuss a chosen tome over a cup of tea or coffee. Books are selected randomly from

members' suggestions.

GO-CLUBBING

Lectures

talks

SOUTH CHATHAM PUBLIC LECTURE SERIES:

An excellent free public lecture series on the second Sunday of

each month.

13 March Mental Health and Christian

SpiritualityCanon Revd Gordon Oliver

10 April Jewish - Christian Relations:

Challenges and OpportunitiesDr Maria Diemling

6.30pm til 8pm. St William's Church Walderslade ME5 9LR

Admission is free and open to all.southchatham.org

VISITING ARTIST TALK:Oreet Ashery

Tuesday 15 March, 6.15pm Royal Dockyard Church,

The Historic Dockyard, Chatham, ME4 4TE

Free: book via kent.ac.uk/smfa/events.html

London-based, Israeli-born Oreet Ashery exhibits internationally. Her

work explores ideological, social and gender constructions via installation, video, live art and 2-D image making. She is currently a visiting Professor at

the Royal College of Art.

River views, art on the walls, airy space and with vegan and gluten-free options: the Sun Pier House Tearoom is offering Afternoon Teas for mums on Sat 5 and Sun 6 March. Pre-book by calling 01634 812 805 or email info@sunpierhouse.co.uk

FREE FAMILY FRIENDLY ACTIVITIES FOR ALL

FANCY A STALL AT THE ARTS MARKET? GET IN TOUCH! SPH wants to hear from all independent traders –

email: info@sunpierhouse.co.ukSee our Easter Specials feature, page 10.

MOTHER’S DAY

NEWSFLASH!WOW is a Finalist in the Publishing

category of the inaugural Kent Creative Awards 2016 - hoorah!

Awards Ceremony: 18 May. kentcreativearts.co.uk

TEACHING LANGUAGES TO ADULTSOne to one or class tuition available in French, Spanish, Russian, Italian and English as a Foreign Language.medwaylanguages.org.uk

Stephen Harries Stained Glass design and restorationE: stephenharries.glass@gmail.comT: 0779 608 0338Facebook: Stephen Harries Stained GlassRochester & Goldfinch Galleries Whitstable

Classes Now Available

Free Same Day Delivery Order online or tel: 01634 843 024

www.rochesterflorists.co.uk

Show how much you love your Mum with a lovely Flowery Hug

Workshops

and short

courses

available

1 Ridley Rd RochesterT: 07702 269972

E:Heatherhtt@mac.comhazelnut-press.com

1ST Sunday of the month

ARTS CAFE 6 MARCH:

MARK SHORTLANDTop stand-up and magician

3 APRIL: JO ENRIGHT

Leading comedienne

Free to all – Pay What You Want!Doors 6pm for 6.30pm start

Free to all – Pay What You Want!St William’s Church, Walderslade

Village Centre ME5 9LRsouthchatham.org

TEACHING LANGUAGES TO ADULTSOne to one or class tuition available in French, Spanish, Russian, Italian and English as a Foreign Language.

medwaylanguages.org.uk

9

WOWFILM MUSIC TALKSTHEATRE GIGS ARTSWeekly

new from Team WOW!A fun, weekly Round-up of

What's On WhereJoin our mailing list to

have WOW Weekly delivered FREE to your inbox:

To do this, go to wowkent.co.uk and click on

the Envelope icon on our Home page to add your email address

WOW WEEKLY IS A COLLABORATIVE EVENT!

We welcome your suggestions and will do our best to include your events in the relevant Weekly.

Email weekly@wowkent.co.uk or download OnRequest to share your

ideas (see News)

If you were unable to contribute to the Campaign but would still like to subscribe to WOW magazine, you can do so in two ways:

1. ONLINE: Go to bitly.com/WOW_Campaign which will take you to the Indiegogo campaign. Click on the ‘Featured Perk’ at the top of the Perks list and follow the steps.

2. BY MAIL: Please fill out the form on this page and send to WOW magazine, c/o Units F18&19, Featherstone House, 375 High St Rochester, ME1 1DA

Your name:

Your address (essential, so that we can send you the magazine):

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Your email address (important for when your subscription is due for renewal):

Please enclose cash or cheque made out to WOW MEDWAY in the sum of £25. Tick here if you would like to be added to our

mailing list and receive our new e-news, WOW Weekly, a fun round-up of the next 7 days.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE

TO BECOME A

Get WOW delivered

to your door for one year!

Help us become sustainable as a business

and get lots of other perks during the

course of 2016. We intend to invite

Subscribers to special WOW events and

generally spoil you for supporting us.

WOW

SUBSCRIBER!

23 SUBMARINES FREE VISUAL ARTS & POETRY WORKSHOPS

Become part of the incredible true story that is 23 submarines by taking part in one of the project’s excellent workshops taking place in March:

WHAT? VISUAL ARTS WORKSHOPBring along personal treasures rescued from the river or its banks, and use a selection of materials and mixed media techniques to create your own artwork, which could become part of a major installation touring Medway libraries from May to September.

WHO? Adults WHO’S THE TUTOR? This is one of a series of workshops with Päivi Seppälä and established local artists Alison Swan, Wendy Daws, Alison Boyce, and Malcolm Attryde.WHEN? Saturday 19 MarchWHAT TIME? 1 – 4pmWHERE? Gillingham Library and Community Hub, High Street ME7 1BGHOW MUCH? Free but booking is essential: call 01634 337799 or visit the library.

WHAT? POETRY WORKSHOP

Taking inspiration from lost stories and submerged objects which have been rediscovered in the River Medway, explore the art of writing poetry in one of a series of workshops.

WHO? AdultsWHO’S THE TUTOR? During the poetry workshops series, sessions will be taken with Dan Simpson and acclaimed local writers James McKay, Sarah Hehir, Sam Hall, Barry Fentiman, and Patience Agbabi.WHEN? Saturday 26 March

WHAT TIME? 1 – 3:30pm WHERE? Rainham Library, Birling Avenue, ME8 7LRHOW MUCH? Free but booking is essential: call 01634 337799 or visit the library.

For further information on these workshops or the 23 Submarines project, please contact Sarah May at Icon Theatre on 01634 813179. Email: sarah@icontheatre.org.uk.medway.gov.uk/23submarines

ILLUMINATING BEASTS IN CELEBRATION OF TEXTUS ROFFENSIS

Many medieval manuscripts were decorated with illuminated borders, and large colourful letters which were sometimes covered with beautiful designs. Images from the natural world were used including creatures, real and mythical.

WHAT? CREATE YOUR OWN ILLUMINATED LETTER WORKSHOP

The results of your work will form part of an exhibition at the beginning of June.

WHO’S THE TUTOR? Lettering artist Nick StewartWHO? Family workshop for parents and children (max 2 children per adult, minimum age 8 years old)WHEN? Saturday 5 March [This workshop is also repeated on Sat 21 May, 1.30-3.30pm)WHAT TIME? 9.30 – 11.30amWHERE? Rochester Cathedral, Garth House, The Precinct, Rochester, Kent ME1 1SXHOW MUCH? £10 deposit per family - returnable at the workshop. places must be booked in advance: contact Helen or Sue on 01634 810066. Email: educationofficer@rochestercathedral.org

There are a terrific series of workshops launching this month, for both adults and kids. Here’s our round-up!

WORKSHOP IT!

11

ART CLASSES AT SUN PIER HOUSEWHAT? DRAWING AND PAINTING

Relaxed and friendly classes. Various media used, including pencil, charcoal, pastels, watercolours and acrylic. The teaching is by demonstration and one to one tuition.

WHO? Adults. Suitable for beginners and more experienced students.WHO’S THE TUTOR? Michael ShaughnessyWHEN? Every Tuesday afternoon throughout March and on-goingWHAT TIME? 1.30pm – 4pm WHERE? Sun Pier House, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HFDETAILS? To learn more contact Michael on 01622 678 779. Email: shaughnessymichael@hotmail.co.uk

WHAT? ART GROUP MEDWAY

A new monthly studio art group. Make art in the company of others, share ideas and inspire each other. Some basic materials provided but also feel free to bring your own.

WHO? Adults: open to anyone with an interest in making art within a group setting.WHEN? Friday 4 March and on-going on a monthly basis.WHAT TIME? 6.30 – 8.30pmWHERE? Sun Pier House, Medway Street, Chatham ME4 4HFHOW MUCH? Suggested donation of £5 per person. DETAILS? At facebook.com/ArtGroupMedway

POLKA DOT ARTSEASTER HOLIDAY WEDNESDAY WORKSHOPS

WHAT? ART BASED RECYCLING WORKSHOPS with professional artists. Make something out of your rubbish! Fun and informative.

WHO? 6-14yrsWHEN? Wednesday 30 March & Wed 6 AprilWHAT TIME? Two sessions per day: 10am-12 noon and 2-4pm. WHERE? Polka Dot Arts 54 London Road Teynham ME9 9QNHOW MUCH? £7 per session includes light refreshments and all materials.

Booking required as places are limited:01795 522566Facebook: Polka Dot Arts polkadotarts.co.uk

MEDWAY LITTLE THEATRE2016 marks the 58th Season of Medway Little Theatre, the diminutive playhouse situated on St Margaret’s Banks, Rochester. MLT is a public theatre open to all which was converted from a disused warehouse into a 108 (now 96) seat theatre in 1958. In 1995 MLT acquired the freehold of their current premises on St Margaret’s Banks, which are happily situated just a short walk away from the new Rochester rail station and easily accessible by car and bus.Membership is available for audience members, offering a newsletter, reduced price tickets and for those who wish to become full members, the opportunity to act or work backstage in any capacity, with or without experience.Take a look at Paul Doust’s article on page 25, in which he extols the virtues of playwright, Terence Rattigan. Doust’s production of Rattigan’s timeless classic ‘The Browning Version’ appears at Medway Little Theatre between 11 – 13 March.For more details please contact the Membership Secretary Nan Morran at nmmltm@gmail.com

Medway Little Theatre, 256 High Street, Rochester, ME1 1HY.

FORTHCOMING PRODUCTIONS:

4-5 March 2016CHILDREN’S WORKSHOP PRODUCTIONDirected by Carol Scott10-12 March 2016THE BROWNING VERSION by Terence RattiganDirected by Paul Doust7-16 April 2016FRENCH FANCIES A farce by Georges FeydeauDirected by Sarah de Oliveira12-21 May 2016A DOLL’S HOUSE by Henrik IbsenDirected by John Munson16-25 June 2016A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM by William ShakespeareDirected by Linda Russell5-16 July 2016DUNCAN RAND ONE-ACT PLAY FESTIVALMLT has two active youth sections:YOUTH WORKSHOP (12-18 yrs) meets on Saturday mornings 10.30am - 12.30pm CHILDRENS WORKSHOP (7-11 yrs) meets on Saturday afternoons 2pm – 4pm.£2 per session. All abilities and experience welcome. The classes work on acting skills and confidence-building through acting and performance games, with the opportunity to take part in plays, either acting or working backstage. For information, please contact us at mltyouth@outlook.com

easter specials

WOW’s round-up of holiday events to suit all

RATS BAY SHINDIGSat 2 and Sun 3 April, 10am – 4pm

Free family friendly activities to entertain all ages!

Celebrating all the good bits of the west end of

Chatham, Sun Pier House Gallery and Tearoom will

be throwing a big-arty-birthday-party to celebrate

their 2nd Birthday.

• River trips from Sun Pier

• Large Art Market

• Traditional games

• Live music• Workshops and more

Fancy a stall at the Arts Market? Get in touch! SPH

wants to hear from all independent traders –

email info@sunpierhouse.co.uk

FESTIVAL OF STEAM AND TRANSPORT 27 and 28 March 2016The Historic Dockyard ChathamEaster Sunday and Easter Monday

• New for 2016: Display of iconic Movie Motors with movie music • Classic and vintage cars; locomotives; steam traction engines and motorbikes• Traditional steam fun fair (all rides are free with your admission ticket, so you can ride again and again)

• Live street entertainment, including Dizzy O’Dare with their not-to-be missed Giant Balloon Show • Animal Petting Corner with Valley View Alpaca Farm• Indoor Soft Play and outdoor play areas• Call the Midwife tours• Traditional Farmer’s Market

More information and advance tickets at:thedockyard.co.uk/steamandtransport

ROLL UP, ROLL UP!

WOW’s round-up of holiday events to suit all

THE ROCHESTER FLEA EASTER SPECIAL

Easter Saturday 26 March 11am – 4pm

Gordon House Hotel, 91 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX

The monthly ‘fantabulous’ Rochester Flea has become a

firm favourite with those who love a good old rummage

of a Saturday. Admission is free.

• Easter Egg Bargain Hunt for kids

• Easter Bakes• New ‘Suitcase Spot’• Furniture• Vintage• Handmade• Vinyl• Bric a Brac and Wot Nots!

HURRY! There are a limited number of stalls still available.

Contact Tracy Affleck at therochesterflea@gmail.com.

therochesterflea.com

FAVERSHAM HAT FESTIVAL

Easter Saturday Sat 26 March

A colourful annual festival started by Rachel Thapa-Chhetri, when she opened her new business, The Hat Shop, in 2014. The day begins with festival highlight, The Hat Parade. Assemble at The Hat Shop in West Street at 11am, together with Town Crier, Jack Spratt, and a group of wandering minstrels.

• Compete for one of the best hat prizes or just enjoy the occasion. You can even enter your dog! (for which there is a special prize).

• Non hat wearers are welcome to watch the spectacle and are encouraged to line the streets and cheer for their favourite hats.

• The Parade makes its way to the Alexander Centre in Preston Street, where there are a series of events throughout the day, including:

• A Hatter’s Fair with local craft and wares on sale

• Screening of ‘Easter Parade’ with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers at the Alexander Centre after the judging

• Afternoon Tea Dance and evening Hatter’s Dance with live music by the K D Jazz and Dance Band.

The festival encourages people to be wild and outrageous, utilise their creative flair and create something a little different (it’s also fine to wear your old favourite). The most important part of the festival is the coming together of the community in a shared way.

For more information: Rachel Thapa-Chhetri (01795 227071)

The Hat Shop, 110 West Street, Faversham ME13 7JBFind them on facebook.com/FavershamHatFestival

ROLL UP, ROLL UP!

Talk about contrasts. One minute I’m driving along the familiar M2 motorway with its infinite grey flatness stretching before me, the thunder of lorries and the dull natter of voices on the radio my only sounds for company. The next minute I’ve taken the motorway exit into a different world and everything becomes calmer. Grey turns to green as the English countryside takes over: open fields, winding roads; tall hedgerows; horses in their stable and the odd tractor. No lorries now, only the distant barking of dogs and nearby birdsong. In no time at all I have reached my destination, the beautiful Grain Store Studio at Brenley Farm in Faversham. As I get out of my car I take a moment to breathe in my surroundings: the M2 feels like a million miles away.

The reason for my visit is that I have heard good things - lots of really good things, in fact, about the Grain Store Studio (or the GSS as it’s sometimes known). Not only through the usual social media chat but via real word of mouth conversation. The GSS has been recommended to me on a number of occasions and the buzz speaks volumes, so I am excited to visit for the first time and see for myself what the space has to offer.

Opened in the autumn of last year and managed by artist Nick Berry with his good friend, writer Julian Pickering, the idea for GSS developed after Nick graduated in Fine Applied Arts at Christchurch Canterbury and needed a space to create his work.

Around this time, the grain store became available on his parent’s farm and he decided to spend twelve months renovating it, creating, in addition to a personal working environment, an artists’ community space - one which he felt should be ‘by the people for the people’.

The incredibly spacious layout of the building lends itself perfectly to multiple uses. There are work areas, teaching spaces and an exhibition space. The teaching area is light and bright, with an amazing large wooden table. It’s very reasonable to hire – only £15 an hour for 1-4 hours and £10 per hour for 5 hours or more, which can be spread across a week. This also includes use of all the facilities including glass room, kiln, kitchen and mould making room, making for the kind of affordable value so often needed by artists developing their practice.

Both Julian and Nick are keen to create a vibrant atmosphere: “We really want as many individuals as possible teaching, working and selling here. This year we would love to have a full roster of classes, and we’re delighted to say that two of these classes have already been scheduled.”

Grain Store GoldTRACY AFFLECK visits the Grain Store Studio, a new Art Workshop, Teaching and Exhibition space in Faversham

grainstorestudio.co.ukPots image: potsandprints.com

“We really want as many individuals as possible teaching, working and selling here".

The next monthly market takes place over the weekend of 19 and 20 March, with the next on 16 and 17 April.

The next monthly market takes place over the weekend of 19 and 20 March, with the next on 16 and 17 April. Take a trip to this most tranquil of settings, give a little kick start to your creative spirit and experience the Grain Store Studio’s growing community of likeminded people in its fledgling first year.

The Grain Store Studio, Brenley Farm, Brenley Lane, Boughton, Faversham ME13 9LY. T 07596 908529. E: nick14berry@gmail.com

Studio Rental: £30 per week with added perks

Membership (24/7 access + further perks): £100 per month

Day Pass with use of art facilities: £10

15

UPCOMING CLASSES AT GRAIN STORE STUDIO

DRAWING CLASSES WITH MARTIN DODKINS

First Saturday of the month, 10am - 3pm. £75 (all materials included). Class size: 8 – 10. Upcoming dates: 5 March and 2 April. Email: martin.dodkins@btopenworld.com

PAINTING CLASSES WITH TRISH WOOD

Second Saturday of the month (unless stated), 10.30am – 3.30pm. £80 (all materials included).

Upcoming dates: 9 April & 7 May. Email: patricia.wood217@gmail.com.

As well as the various working areas, there is potential to develop the amazing loft space which exists in the building, which could potentially be a big studio, or even a darkroom. Nick and Julian are open to ideas and keen to support whatever the market dictates. It is this openness and willingness which is popular with the growing number of artists who are already excited to be a part of this new venture. One of these, ceramicist and printmaker Laura Brown, (potsandprints.com) told me:

“It has been a great privilege to be involved with Julian and Nick from the beginning of their journey. What a breath of fresh air they both are – with no formalities and ears that are very much open. They have a genuine interest in others, with an ability to encourage and inspire one to get making. Add to this the wonderful location of the Grain Store Studio and you have a winning formula.”

Another part of this winning formula are the monthly Art Markets, for which visitor numbers are increasing steadily. As well as being a great showcase for the artists, the Art Markets are a fantastic opportunity to introduce the space to a wider audience. And if this isn’t enough to lure you to visit, there are also beautiful and reasonably priced B&B facilities at Brenley Farm (brenley-farm.co.uk), and a bunk house for larger groups wishing to stay over.

MARCH8-13: POW Thanet International Women’s Week – Margate, Ramsgate, Broadstairs26: FAVERSHAM HAT FESTIVAL27 & 28: FESTIVAL OF STEAM AND TRANSPORT. Dockyard, Chatham

APRIL / MAY2-3: RATS BAY SHINDIGFree family festival for all Sun Pier House, Chatham23: THE ENGLISH FESTIVALRiverside Country Park, Rainham23 Apr-2 May: LOOPING THE LOOP FESTIVAL Festival of live arts, East Kent28 Apr-2 May: MAIDSTONE FRINGE FESTIVAL Kent-grown music fest30 Apr-2 May: SWEEPS FESTIVAL Rochester30 Apr-8 May: WISE WORDS FESTIVAL

JUNE3-5: ROCHESTER DICKENS FESTIVAL3-19: SOUTH EAST OPEN STUDIOS4-12: WHITSTABLE BIENNALE 12: ARTISTS IN THE WOODS Oare Gunpowder Works11-26: MEDWAY PRINT FESTIVAL

JULY1-16: DEAL FESTIVAL OF MUSIC AND THE ARTS2-3: BIG DANCE WEEKEND8-10: KENT COUNTY SHOW9: MEDWAY RIVER FESTIVAL23-29: WHISTABLE OYSTER FESTIVAL16-24: MEDWAY OPEN STUDIOS & ART FESTIVAL16-24: SHEPPEY PROMENADE FESTIVAL

ARTS STUFF WORTHY OF YOUR DIARY IN 2016

17

ARTS STUFF WORTHY OF YOUR DIARY IN 2016D

ATE

S20-23: HOMESPUN Music festival in Medway23-24: RAMSGATE CARNIVAL WEEKEND

AUGUST

5-12: BROADSTAIRS FOLK WEEK6 & 7: WHISTABLE REGATTA6 & 7: SOMETHING FOR THE WEEKENDRiverside festival, Gravesend27-29: MILITARY ODYSSEY, Kent County Showground27 & 28: bOing!, Canterbury. Kent’s International Family Festival

SEPTEMBER

3 & 4: FAVERSHAM HOP FESTIVAL10: WILL ADAMS FESTIVAL Gillingham9-11: WHEELS & FINS, Joss Bay, Broadstairs. Action-packed music and extreme sport festival

17: MAIDSTONE ART MARKET17 & 18: SALUTE TO THE 40s The Historic Dockyard, Chatham23-25: FUSE INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL25: CAPSTONE FESTIVAL A celebration of outdoor pursuits

OCTOBER15 Oct-5 Nov: CANTERBURY FESTIVAL Kent’s International Arts Festival

NOVEMBER

18-27: FOLKESTONE BOOK FESTIVAL

DECEMBER

3 & 4: ROCHESTER DICKENSIAN CHRISTMAS

PULLOUT CALENDAR ›››››

17

FILM

LIVE EVENT

ODEON CHATHAMLeviathon Way, Chatham ME4 4LL 0871 224 4007

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE LIVE: BORIS GODUNOVMon 21 Mar 7.15pmThe marvellous Bryn Terfel sings the title role in Musorgsky’s opera about the perils of power. This is a new production by Richard Jones. Running Time: About 3 hours 20 mins, including two intervals.

THE RAILWAY CHILDRENEaster Monday 28 Mar 2pmYork Theatre Royal’s production of E. Nesbit’s tearjerking classic children’s novel.

Also, NT LIVE: HANGMENThu 3 Mar 7pm. See Paul Greengrass Cinema for details. odeon.co.uk/cinemas/chatham/151

AFTERNOON FILM TREATCentral Theatre, 170 High Street, Chatham ME4 4AS01634 338338

Tickets £4.50 in adv, £5 on door inc hot drink and teacake. £12 when you book three After-noon Treats.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (A) 1962Tue 22 March 2.30pmDir: Robert MulliganCast: Gregory Peck, John Megna, Frank OvertonHarper’s Lee classic novel brought stunningly to the screen. 130 minsmedwayticketslive.co.uk

MAIDSTONE FILM SOCIETYHazlitt Theatre, Earl StreetMaidstone ME14 1PL01622 753922Membership £24; Couples £42; Senior/Student £19; Guest £4Enquiries: info@maidstone-film-society.org.uk Membership enquiries: 01622 746 078

STILL ALICE (12A) 2014 Mon 7 Mar 8pmDir: Richard Glatzer, Wash WestmorelandCast: Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin

Award-winning performance by Moore as the linguistics professor dealing with the onset of Alzheimer’s Disease. 101 mins

THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA (U) 2013Mon 21 Mar 8pmDir: Isao TakahataOscar-winning animation. See opposite.137 minsmaidstone-film-society.org.uk

NUCLEUS ARTS CREATIVE RIVERSIDE HUB13 Military Road Chatham ME4 4JG

FAMILY FRIENDLY SCREENING:THE LORAX (U) 2012Sat 19 Mar 10.30amDir: Chris Renaud, Kyle BaldaCast: Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Danny de VitoColourful animated comedy. 86 minsnucleusarts.com

ROCHESTER KINO @ BROOK THEATRE170 High St, Chatham ME4 4ASFortnightly on Wednesday Evenings at 7.30pm. Screening the best of cinema classics and Contemporary World Cinema. £7, £3 students. Twitter: @RochesterKino

GHOSTBUSTERS (PG) 1984Wed 16 Mar 7.30pm

Dir: Ivan ReitmanCast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold RamisGhost removal antics make for a hilarious modern classic. See opposite. 145 mins

BROOKLYN (12A) 2015Wed 30 Mar 7.30pmDir: John CrowleyCast: Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson An Irish immigrant lands in 1950s New York. See opposite. 111 minsrochesterkino.co.uk

ROCHESTER PICTURE PALACE @ THE HUGUENOT MUSEUMEvery other Tuesday at 7.30pmThe Huguenot Museum (above Medway Visitors Centre)95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX £6, £3.50 students.

SUFFRAGETTE (12A) 2015 (UK)Tue 8 Mar 7.30pmDir: Sarah GavronCast: Carey Mulligan, Anne-Marie Duff, Helena Bonham-Carter

Special screening to commemorate International Women’s Day. This gripping historical drama charts the rise of the movement advocating the right to vote for women. With two guest speakers. See 5 Really Good Things (p5). 106 mins

THE LOBSTER (15) 2015 (USA)Tue 22 Mar 7.30pmDir: Yorgos LanthimosCast: Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, Olivia Colman

This darker-than-dark absurdist tale from the director of ‘Dogtooth’ satirises the rules of engagement and relationships,

with the habitual singletons in a prison-like hotel under threat of being turned into animals if they fail to find a suitable partner. 118 mins

CHILDREN’S FILM CLUB @ THE HUGUENOT MUSEUMThe Huguenot Museum95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX. £3 per person.

Relaxed screening.NEXT SCREENING is in MAY: A CAT IN PARIS rochesterfilmsociety.co.uk

PAUL GREENGRASS CINEMA@THE WOODVILLE Woodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD

NT LIVE: HANGMEN by Martin McDonaghThu 3 Mar 7pm

Live screening of the Royal Court Theatre’s acclaimed production of McDonagh’s latest, which has recently transferred to the West End. You’d have to fight to get a ticket, so don’t! See it here. (Also at Odeon Chatham).

BOLSHOI BALLET LIVE (Encore): SPARTACUSSun 13 Mar 3pmThe company’s signature ballet, an epic tour de force. With choreography by Yuri Grigo-rovich.

This is the Encore screening of a Live performance direct from Moscow. £10, £12woodville.seatlive.com

INDEPENDENT FILM

19

X3MARCH PREVIEWS BY NICK WALKER

ROCHESTER FILM SOCIETY @ ROCHESTER PICTURE PALACE

SUFFRAGETTE (2015)TUESDAY 8 MARCH 7.30PM

Writer Abi Morgan ('Shame', 'The Iron Lady') and director Sarah Gavron's ('Brick Lane') tough, raw, bleak-looking film makes the suffragettes' dilemma feel immediate and real. The main protagonist is Maud (the excellent Carey Mulligan) an east London laundry worker in 1912 who is abused by the system: because she’s poor and because she’s a woman. The film plays out through her world weary yet newly embattled Suffragette eyes. Also watch out for Meryl Streep who makes a brief cameo as Emmeline Pankhurst. The film is at its dynamic best in conveying the claustrophobia of repression and the burgeoning realisation some grievances are impossible to swallow. A celebration of the lasting impact of activism.

ROCHESTER KINO @ BROOK THEATRE

GHOSTBUSTERS (1984) WEDNESDAY 16 MARCH 7.30PM

Simply the original and the best… has it really been 32 years? It is an odd mixture of genres that works so well – a ghost story that combines action adventure with comedy and high-tech special effects. Essentially a wonderful lampoon of supernatural horror films, the story revolves around a trio of unemployed scientists who have been kicked off campus and are now freelance ghost catchers for hire, tasked with ridding the demons from another dimension inhabiting a New York apartment block. The comic talents of Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd and the great Bill Murray under the guidance of director Ivan Reitman have left us with an eternally fond moment in cinematic history. All together now…“Who You Gonna Call?”

MAIDSTONE FILM SOCIETY @ HAZLITT THEATRE

THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA (2013)MONDAY 21 MARCH 8PM

An astonishing finale for director and Studio Ghibli co-founder Isao Takahata (‘Grave of the Fireflies’) is a remarkable film. The story comes from a 10th-century Japanese legend about a reluctant princess trying to get back to the forests and hillsides of her childhood, but in the great director’s hands, it becomes a meditation on life’s heartbreaking quickness. The animation is so gorgeous throughout that any given frame could pass for a masterwork. The film has the muted colour palette and loose brush strokes of old Japanese paintings, and its attention to the details of movement is incredible. A somewhat melancholic swansong, it blends the director's prior occupations and provides a perfect canvas for a final visual flourish.

See Film (opposite) for full listings.

MUSIC 1

SUPPORT HOMESPUN’S CAMPAIGN!

Medway’s independent music festival, Homespun, now in its 3rd year, is running a crowdfunding campaign.

Homespun’s aim is to celebrate the best of Medway music together with some interesting acts from other parts of the country. The festival is run by a small band of volunteers with the assistance of the wider music community in Medway. Most gigs are free and the cost of the bands is covered by the venues, mainly pubs. For the small number of larger gigs tickets are sold to cover the cost of venue hire, sound equipment and artists. In 2015 Homespun broke even for the first time.

The team narrowly missed out on booking a couple of exciting acts last year simply because the financial risk was a bit too eye watering, so the campaign hopes to raise funds in order to: · Book more interesting

and/or well-known bands · Be able to use better

sound and lighting equipment

· Do more publicity and promotion to attract more people and spread to more venues.

This year’s festival runs from 20 to 23 July.

TO CONTRIBUTE to the campaign, go to Indiegogo.com and search for Homespun 2016. There are a number of very cool perks available too!

ANCHORIANS JAZZ CLUBDarland Avenue, GillinghamFri 18 Mar 8.30pm: JAZZ: DEREK NASH EXPERIENCE with three members of Jools Holland’s Rhythm and Blues

Orchestra for the first gig of 2016:DEREK NASH (sax) CHRIS STORR (trumpet) and DAVE SWIFT (bass). Also featuring NOEL MCCALLA on vocals who sang for ten years with the Manfred Mann band. £10. Enquiries: 01634 365352 or 07544312743.

THE BARGE63 Layfield Road, Gillingham ME7 2QY 01634 850485Music starts 9pm, free entryWed 2 Mar: BARDS @ THE OPEN MIC. Fri 4 Mar: THE GAFFERS. Sat 5 Mar: LORIN JANE FORSTER BAND + FLAWLESS CARBONFri 11 Mar: PORCH SWING BLUES. Sat 12 Mar: THE WAX COLLECTOR. Wed 16 Mar: INSPIRATIONAL! AN EVENING OF MUSIC & POETRY. Thu 17 Mar: A TRIBUTE TO PETER ‘POPPIT’ GUNTHORPE 1949 – 2006Fri 18 Mar: ANDY TWYMANSat 19 Mar: THE DREDGERMEN + SUPPORTWed 23 Mar: ROSIE EADE & FRIENDS. Fri 25 Mar: THE BLUSINGER DUOSat 26 Mar: UNKNOWN REPORT + MARTIN MORRIS + THE OUTER SEASONSthebargepub.co.uk

BROOK THEATREOld Town Hall, The Brook, Chatham ME4 4SEBox Office 01634 338338Sun 6 Mar 8pm: STEVE TILSON & JEZ LOWE UK Acoustic/folk scene singer-songwriters with music, chat and banter. £12Thu 31 Mar 7.30pm: RICHARD DIGANCE – LIVE ON STAGE Digance sings, plays guitar and tells stories. £16.50medwayticketslive.co.uk

CENTRAL THEATRE170 High Street, ChathamBox office: 01634 338338Sat 5 Mar 7.30pm: THANK YOU FOR THE MUSIC ABBA and the Bee Gee’s concert show. £21, £23. Sun 6 Mar7.30pm: BOOTLEG BEATLES Classy tribute with video imagery and orchestral ensemble. £27, £29

Sat 19 Mar 7.30pm: WHITNEY: QUEEN OF THE NIGHT With West End star Rebecca Freckleton delivering all the classics. £18, £20medwayticketslive.co.uk

COOPERS ARMS10 St Margaret’s Street, Rochester 01634 404298Music starts at 7pm. Free entrySun 6 Mar: OAKLAND BROTHERSSun 13 Mar: PEPPER & RUFUSSun 20 Mar: TALKING BOOKSun 27 Mar: FREELOADERSthecoopersarms.co.uk

EAGLE TAVERN124 High Street Rochester ME1 1JT 01634 409040Sundays 12 noon. Thursdays 7pm. Free entry.Thu 3 Mar: TOP GUNSSun 6 Mar: JIM MULLEN ORGAN TRIOThu 10 Mar: GLAMTABULOUSSun 13 Mar: CHRISTIAN BREWER QUARTETThu 17 Mar: BROKENSun 20 Mar: MICHAEL COATES QUARTET with DAVE REES WILLIAMSThu 24 Mar: CAKEHOLESun 27 Mar: TBCtheeagletavern.org.uk

EARLS30 Earl Street Maidstone ME14 1PS 01622 751286Doors 9pm unless stated. Free entry. Thu 3 Mar: MAKE SOME NOISE Fri 4 Mar: TIMMY MOORE Sat 5 Mar: THE MOFOS. Fri 11 Mar: ARRY & THE HAT STANDSSat 12 Mar: VINCE VORTEX & THE CUCUMBERSThu 17 Mar: MAKE SOME NOISE. Fri 18 Mar: FREEDOM CAGE. Sat 19 Mar: SPITROASTSun 20 Mar: COVER UPThu 24 Mar: ROCKSTOXFri 25 Mar: BDC. Sat 26 Mar: ROCK. Sun 27 Mar: RELICSearlsmaidstone.co.uk

NEW VENUE!THE FLIPPIN‘ FROG318 High Street, Rochester ME1 3ET

Regular intimate unplugged gigs for local solo acoustic artists at this excellent independent micro pub. From 8.30pm. Free entry2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month, so far we have booked... Tue 8 Mar: WILLIAM HARPER Tue 22 Mar: KIRSTY MACLEOD Find ‚Unplugged Tuesdays at the Frog on Facebook.

THE FLOWERPOT96 Sandling Road, Maidstone ME14 2RJ 01622 757705Free entry. Every Tuesday from 8.30pm: OPEN JAM NIGHT: ELECTRO-ACOUSTIC PLUG-IN AND PLAY Full sound system available. Weekends: Regular live music. Doors 9pm. see website for details. flowerpotpub.com

THE GOOD INTENTJohn Street, RochesterRegular live music and events.Find the at facebook.com/good.rochester

GULBENKIAN THEATREUniversity of KentCanterbury Kent CT2 7NBBox Office: 01227 769075Sat 5 Mar 7.30pm: COLYER-FERGUSSON CONCERT (please note this concert is held in CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL’s nave). Featuring Berlioz’ Symphonie fantastique, with which Berlioz blew away the orchestral conventions of the time (written 1830) and Beethoven’s Mass in C. Tickets £22, £18, £14, £10, £8.Thu 10 Mar 7.30pm: Folk in the Barn presents THE POOZIES Pioneering all-female folk band cross folk with pop, soul, country, Scottish Gaelic and more. £15, Student £7.50.

Fri 11 Mar 7.30pm: SOME HIGH LOWS AND LOW HIGHS OF TWENTIETH-CENTURY MUSIC CULTURE Students studying in the University of Kent's School of Music and Fine Art give a concert exploring some of the most

Tues 1st UKULELE JAM NIGHT Wed 2nd DELTA LADIESThurs 3rd PASS THE CAT DUOWed 9th THE STRANGERSThurs 10th THE MERCURIALSTues 15th MIKEY D'S FUNTIME QUIZWed 16th FRAN MCGILLIVRAY & MIKE BURKEThurs 17th DAVEY MALONE & THE LONGTAILSMon 21st COCKTAIL NIGHTWed 23rd NATHAN & JANE (USA)Thurs 24th THE RACHEL LOWRIE TRIOWed 30th CELTIC CAPERSThurs 31st ASH MANDRAKE

IAN HARRISON - GUITAR LESSONS• 15 years teaching / playing experience throughout

the UK, Europe and US• Emphasis on enjoyment, lessons individually

tailored to help you become the guitarist you want to be!

• All ages and abilities welcome• First lesson at introductory rate,

discounts available for block bookings• Fully CRB/DBS checked• Member of Registry of Guitar Tutors

0784 7023 330 ianharrisonguitar@gmail.com www.ianharrisonguitar.com

21

French

A farce about husbands, wives, lovers and inlaws

Tue 5th Apr - Sat 16th Apr

Georges Feydeau’s

Medway Little Theatre, 256 High Street, Rochester, Kent, ME1 1HY

Box office 01634 400322www.mlt.org.uk

Translated by Michael BathDirected by Sarah De Oliveira

Professional tuition in maths & English

172b High StreetRochester ME1 1EX01634 400240rochester@kip-mcgrath.com

Qualified teachersIndividual tutoring programmesMedway 11+ preparation

MAN OF KENT ALE-HOUSE

MARCH 2016

Proudly serving Kent Ales, Lager,

Ciders and Wines, alongside

German and Belgium Beers

prominent works of the twentieth century, all of which straddle a pop/classic divide, including the ‘B’ side of The Beatles’ album Abbey Road. £7, Student £5. Venue: Colyer-Fergusson Hall (next door to Gulbenkian).

Sat 12 Mar 8pm: BEAUTIFUL MUSIC TOWN PRESENTS Monthly music night in the Gulbenkian Cafe, featuring the best in emerging bands and singer/songwriters from the Kent music scene and beyond. £7, Student £5.Fri 18 Mar 7.30pm: MUSICAL EXPRESS An evening of concert band and big band standards – from Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington and Sousa to Philip Sparke’s dramatic Orient Express. £13, Student £7. Venue: Colyer-Fergusson Hall (next door to Gulbenkian).

Sat 19 Mar 7.30pm: IMOGEN COOPER Internationally renowned pianist plays Liszt, Schumann and Schubert. £15, Student £10. Venue: Colyer-Fergusson Hall (next door to Gulbenkian). Sun 20th Mar 5pm: BACH – ST JOHN PASSION Cantata Choir and Cantata Camerata. £15, Student £10. Venue: Colyer-Fergusson Hall (next door to Gulbenkian). thegulbenkian.co.uk

HASTINGS ARMS FUNCTION ROOMLower Rainham Road (leading to Danes Hill)Gillingham ME7 2YDFree parkingThu 31 Mar 8.30pm: Musicians of the ROCHESTER SWING PRESERVATION SOCIETY with special guest, top London vocalist HELEN KEATING. Doors 8.30pm. £7 entry. Raffle and nibbles. For more details or to reserve a table tel: 01634 712217 or check website. sukotto5.wix.com/rsps

HAZLITT THEATREEarl Street, Maidstone, ME14 1PL 01622 758611 EXCHANGE STUDIO: Fri 4 Mar 7.30pm: I GOT GERSHWIN Robert Habermann’s sings and tells the story of the composer’s career. £16.50parkwoodtheatres.co.uk

THE LADY LUCK18 St Peters Street, Canterbury CT1 2BQFree entry. Over 18s only.Thu 10 Mar 8pm: FUNKE & THE TWO-TONE BABY + ANDY TWYMAN + SPADE & ARCHER . Thu 17 Mar 8pm: HEALTHY JUNKIES + BUGEYE + THE MOTHERS OF MEMPHIS + MAN EAT MONKEY.theladyluck.co.uk/live-music

MAN OF KENT ALEHOUSE6 - 8 John Street, Rochester Tel: 07772 214315Tue 1: UKULELE JAM NIGHT Wed 2: DELTA LADIESThu 3: PASS THE CAT DUOWed 9: THE STRANGERSThu 10: THE MERCURIALSTue 15: MIKEY D'S FUNTIME QUIZWed 16: FRAN MCGILLIVRAY & MIKE BURKEThu 17: DAVEY MALONE & THE LONGTAILSMon 21: COCKTAIL NIGHTWed 23: NATHAN & JANE (USA)Thu 24: THE RACHEL LOWRIE TRIOWed 30: CELTIC CAPERSThu 31: ASH MANDRAKEFind them on Facebook.

MARLOWE THEATREThe Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787Sun 6 Mar 7.30pm: ALEXANDER O’NEAL Soul singer direct from the USA. £37. Sun 3 Apr 7.30pm: CHRISTY MOORE Legend of Irish music. marlowetheatre.com (booking fees apply)

THE MIDDLE EI8HT1-2 Town Pier, GravesendDA11 0BJ 01474 328947Live artists/musical acts every

Friday from 8 or 9pm, indie bands on Saturdays and Sunday jam sessions starting at 2.30pm. Open mic night every Wednesday from 8pm. Full backline supplied.themiddleei8ht.co.uk

ORCHARD THEATREHome Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000 Sun 13 Mar 7.30pm: PARTON SINGS PARTON £23.50Sun 20 Mar 7.30pm: RAT PACK LIVE £20,£24, concs availableMon 21 Mar 7.30pm: THE PUPPINI SISTERS – THE HIGH LIFE TOUR Vintage stuff. £25, under 21s £12, concs available.Mon 28 Mar 7.30pm: LULU Grammy-nominated veteran singer still packs a punch. £30 - £40 (VIP package £80).orchardtheatre.co.uk (booking fees apply)

PIZZA EXPRESS MUSIC ROOM32-34 Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PF 01622 683548Doors 7pm, show 8.30pm unless stated.

Fri 4 Mar: MOTOWN SIGNED, SEALED & DELIVERED £18.Sun 6 Mar doors 12 noon, show 1pm: MOTHER’S DAY SPECIAL TREAT: SOUL GRENADES. £15.Sat 12 Mar: BEVERLEY CRAVEN – LIVE IN CONCERT £25.Fri 18 Mar show 8pm: THE KATIE BRADLEY BLUES EXPERIENCE. £12.Sat 19 Mar: BARB JUNGR with Laurence Hobgood. £25.Fri 25 Mar: SOULED OUT PARTY BAND. £18.pizzaexpresslive.co.uk

POCO LOCO58-60 High St, ChathamSat 26 Mar 8.30pm: Elron Presents 'THE NIGHT BEFORE EASTER' with PUNCHING SWANS + OH CAPTAIN + A WEREWOLF + KILL RPNZL

ROCHESTER CATHEDRALThe Precinct, RochesterSun 6 Mar 7.30pm: CARMINA BURANA Carl Orff’s masterpiece sung by King’s Rochester and King’s Chorus. £12, concs £10. Book via Eventbrite. rochestercathedral.org

SUN PIER HOUSEMedway Street, Chatham Tue 8 Mar: OPEN MIC & SHOWCASE Doors at 7pm, music from 7.30pm. Sunspot: THE OUTER SEASONS Every second Tuesday of the month. £3 entry, free for performers. To book a spot get in touch at: sphopenmicnight@gmail.com

UNIVERSITY OF KENTGalvanising Shop Performance Space, The Historic Dockyard, Chatham, ME4 4TETue 29 Mar 12.00-1.00pm: ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE LUNCHTIME CONCERT A chance to hear from SMFA students studying band and ensemble playing. FREE but booking via www.kent.ac.uk/smfa/events.html

THE WHITE HORSE46 London Road, Maidstone Sat 5 Mar: BITTEN BY MONKEYSSun 6 Mar: JAM NIGHTFri 11 Mar: WILDWOOD JACK. Sat 12 Mar: BLOODSTONE BLUE. Sun 13 Mar: JAM NIGHT. Thu 17 Mar: THE SOUNDCASTERSSat 19 Mar: PROJECT 5Sun 20 Mar: JAM NIGHTSat 26 Mar: KELLLY’S HEROESSun 27 Mar: JAM NIGHTwhitehorsemaidstone.co.uk

THE WOODVILLEWoodville Place, GravesendDA12 1DD Box Office: 08442 439480Thu 24 Mar 1pm: LUNCHTIME CLASSICAL CONCERT: CLARE DENIZ & ALAN BROWN. Cello and piano duo.£5woodville.co.uk

MUSIC 2

2323

It’s open! On 25 February 2016 Nucleus Arts and Jamie Johnson launched Riverside One, a project that has been long been close to the singer-songwriter’s heart.

Situated close to Chatham Library and the Brook Theatre, next to Chatham Bus Station, Riverside One is a centre for all things music: a fully furnished, brand new recording studio, rehearsal studio and live music venue.

If a building had a mission statement, Riverside One’s would be to provide that vital first port of call for a newcomer to the music industry seeking advice, lessons or just an empathetic space to hang out (a chillout lounge has been included as part of the package), and at the other end of the spectrum give professional artists an affordable way to rehearse and record. The Recording fees are all inclusive and come with a producer, engineer, editing and mixing facilities.

As well as the music side of Riverside One, there are also eight studios available to rent to local businesses/creatives at just £1 per square foot – but hurry if you are interested: six of the eight have been taken already, bringing a lively diversity to the building. A music producer snapped up one of the first studios, with Escape Plan, an escapist team building event taking another and a pole fitness class another.

Being on a short-term lease, Riverside One will not always inhabit its current home: the building will eventually be knocked down and returned to Fort Amherst for restoration as part of the Lottery funded Command of the Heights project. However, Nucleus Arts are already in discussions about a more permanent fixture for the music studios once the building is returned to Medway Council.

Speaking for Nucleus Arts, Claire Poynter told me: “In the meantime we are very grateful to the Council for allowing us to use the space in the interim, as it has given us a good stepping stone to show how this type of community project it needed within the Medway Towns, especially within Chatham.”

It is intended that Riverside One is a place where anyone can come together, regardless of age, background or education, to develop their music skills, make further contacts, rehearse, record and perform (the building is also available for music venue hire). As such, it is a lively addition to facilities

Riverside One’s Introductory Prices:

REHEARSE

Main Rehearsal Room: 4 hrs, £40. £13 ph

Small Rehearsal Room: 4 hrs, £30, £11 ph

RECORD

All packages include a producer, engineer, editing and mixing with CD/digital copy.

Full day (8 hrs): £200

½ day (4 hrs): £120

Recording: £35ph

EP package: 2 full days rec. £380

PERFORM

Live music venue for hire. Get in touch.

Riverside One Studios, 3 Dock Road, Chatham ME4 4SLEmail: info@riversideonestudios.co.ukTel: 07501 482964Web: riversideonestudios.co.uk

RIVERSIDE ONEChatham’s new music studios are open. EMMA DEWHURST takes a look at what’s on offer

Rehearse Record Perform

ARTS CAFÉ AT ST WILLIAMS CHURCHWalderslade Village Centre, ME5 9LR

Sun 6 Mar, doors open 6pm: MARK SHORTLAND One of the top stand-up and cabaret magicians in the country. The café operates a ‘Pay What You Want’ scheme, to make it accessible to all. For more information email arts@southchatham.org.

BROOK THEATREOld Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4SEBox Office: 01634 338338

Wed 9 Mar 7.30pm: TALES FROM STUMP WOOD From Icon Theatre’s Youth Company. For 12+. £5, concs £3.Fri 11 Mar 8pm: DIZZY O’DARE presents CABARET OF CURIOSITIES BURLESQUE SPECIAL Glamour, style and sizzle. £12.50.medwayticketslive.co.uk

GULBENKIAN THEATREUniversity of KentCanterbury CT2 7NB01227 769075

Thu 3 and Fri 4 Mar 7.30pm: MOTIONHOUSE presents BROKEN. Highly athletic dance. Recommended: see page 5. £12, Student £8

Sun 6 Mar at 12 noon and 2pm: M6 present TADPOLES Visual and energetic play about rivalry, strengths, weaknesses and superheroes! For ages 5+. Runtime 45 mins. £8, Family Groups 4+ £6.50, Baby on lap (0-18months) £1.

Mon 7 & Tue 8 Mar 7.30pm: THE BROKE 'N' BEAT COLLECTIVE A mash up of hip hop, theatre and puppetry

suitable for ages 13+. £12.50, Student £8.50. Runtime 70 mins.

Sat 19 (5pm & 7pm) Sun 20 (11.30am & 3pm) & Mon 21 (10am & 12 nooon) Mar: KITE.

A play without words inspired by the world of indoor-kite flying and stories such as ‘The Snowman’ and ‘The Red Balloon’. With originally composed music, dance, puppetry and, of course ,kites. For ages 7+. £8, Family group (4+) £6.50, Baby on lap (0-18months) £1 thegulbenkian.co.uk

MARLOWE THEATREThe Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787

Tue 8 – Sat 12 Mar 7.30pm, Thu & Sat mat 2.30pm: SINGLE SPIES by Alan Bennett. Classic comedy masterpiece. £21.50 - £34, concs available.

MARLOWE STUDIO:Wed 16 & Thu 17 Mar 8pm: BACKSTAGE IN BISCUIT LAND Tourettes drama. For 14+. £12.50

Wed 23-Fri 25 Mar 8pm: THE BEST THING Love and morals in the Swinging Sixties. £12.50, concs available

Tue 29 & Wed 30 Mar 8pm: FAKE IT ‘TIL YOU MAKE IT Life affirming show about clinical depression and men. £12.50

marlowetheatre.com (booking fees apply)

MEDWAY LITTLE THEATRE 256 High Street Rochester ME1 1HY 01634 400322

See Paul Doust’s feature about his production of Terence Rattigan’s THE BROWNING VERSION (10-12 March) on page 25 and our round-up of MLT’s forthcoming shows, also in this issue.

mlt.ticketsource.co.uk

ORCHARD THEATREHome Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000

Mon 29 Feb – Sat 5 Mar 7.30pm, Thu & Sat mat 2.30pm: CHICAGO Award-winning musical. £20-£39.50Tue 8 – Wed 9 Mar, Tue 7.30pm, Wed 2pm & 7.30pm: INTO THE HOODS: REMIXED A Zoonation and Sadler’s Wells co-production. £25, concs available. Wed 23 – Sun 27 Mar, various times including daytimes: Jacqueline Wilson’s HETTY FEATHER. Olivier-award nominated production. £15-£24.50, family tickets available.orchardtheatre.co.uk (booking fees apply)

THE WOODVILLE AUDITORIUMWoodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD 08442 439480

boxoffice@gravesham.gov.uk Thu 10 Mar 7.30pm: AUSTEN’S WOMEN £10-£12.woodville.co.uk

COMEDYARTS CAFÉ AT ST WILLIAMS CHURCHWalderslade Village Centre, ME5 9LR

Sun 3 Apr, doors open 6pm: JO ENRIGHT See 5 Really Good Things, page 5. The café operates a ‘Pay What You Want’ scheme, to make it accessible to all. For more information email arts@southchatham.org.

GULBENKIAN THEATREUniversity of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NB01227 769075

Sun 6 Mar 7.30pm: DANE BAPTISTE featuring support from Kae Kurd. ‘Observational comedy at its finest’ (The Independent). Suitable for 16+. £12, Student £10. Wed 30 Mar 7.30pm: RICHARD HERRING – HAPPY NOW? In

his twelfth solo stand up show, the comic examines whether we are can ever hope to be or are meant to be truly content. Suitable for ages 16+. £15thegulbenkian.co.uk

HAZLITT THEATREEarl Street, Maidstone, ME14 1PL 01622 758611

Sat 12 Mar 8pm: MARGARET THATCHER, QUEEN OF SOHO 15+. £16.50.Fri 18 Mar 7.30pm: SO COMEDY LIVE ON THE ROAD £13.50 parkwoodtheatres.co.uk

MARLOWE STUDIO: The Friars, Canterbury CT1 2AS 01227 787787

Sat 12 Mar 8pm: FUNMBI OMOTAYO Hilarious show that took Edinburgh by storm. Adult themes. £11

Fri 8 Apr 8pm: ALUN COCHRANE: A SHOW WITH A MAN IN IT £12

Sat 26 Mar 8pm: THE MARLOWE COMEDY CLUB with JARLATH REGAN, Rob Auton, Glenn Moore and Kieran Boyd. Adult themes. £14. marlowetheatre.com (booking fees apply)

ORCHARD THEATREHome Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000

Tue 15 Mar 8pm: RUSSELL KANE Stand-up. £17orchardtheatre.co.uk (booking fees apply)

THE WOODVILLE STUDIOWoodville Place, Gravesend DA12 1DD 08442 439480boxoffice@gravesham.gov.uk

Thu 31 Mar 8pm: LAUGHING BOY COMEDY CLUB: Kerry Godliman, Rob Deering & Tom Allen. £10, or £14.50 with curry.woodville.co.uk

THEATRE/COMEDY

25

WRITER DIRECTOR PAUL DOUST CELEBRATES A MASTER PLAYWRIGHT This spring, Medway Little Theatre based in Rochester presents an evening of drama celebrating the work of one of the most particular of 20th century British playwrights. Our company numbers more than thirty in total - from one of the youngest members of the theatre’s youth group to actors in their seventies, even eighties. Quite an undertaking then. But why now? And why this playwright? I’m the person who’s directing the show, so perhaps I can offer some answers.

“Few dramatists this century have written with more understanding about the human heart”.

These are the words of Michael Billington (theatre critic of The Guardian) on hearing of the death of Sir Terence Rattigan in 1977. What seemed true to Billington then has been proven, thoroughly and again and again, in more

recent years. Extremely successful and much acclaimed revivals have revealed the remarkable delicacy and compassion of Rattigan’s work. What might not be so obvious, though, is how he achieved it.

As a playwright myself I’m fascinated by stage craft; the simple nuts and bolts. So, too, was Rattigan - and he was a master of it. He was also, as I’ve said, a particular playwright. Very. And it’s this unique particularity, I believe, that gives me, and so many others, so very much.

Rattigan worked on a tiny canvas; the hopes, desires and ferociously repressed emotions of the English middle classes. But he brought to this world the pin-point dexterity universal to all great drama. This, in my opinion, is why his stories have such a hold over audiences and why actors queue up to play his characters - quite literally (the room was packed when I held auditions for this production). One of the few acting ambitions I have left myself is to appear in Rattigan’s

heart breaking ‘The Browning Version’. For the moment though, I’m more than happy to be helping other actors dig out and share its gripping twists and turns. This tiny, tightly compressed tragedy runs for little more than an hour, yet delivers a mesmerising and unforgettable emotional impact - and forms the second half of our Rattigan evening.

Before that are rehearsed readings from some of the playwright’s other best loved work, including ‘Flare Path’, ‘The Deep Blue Sea’, his little known farce ‘Harlequinade’ and one of the very last plays he ever wrote, ‘In Praise of Love’. Well, Rattigan has given me so much already - surely he won’t mind giving me, now, the title for an article?

Paul Doust runs workshops and courses in all aspects of the theatre - including acting, directing, voice work and playwrighting. Email pdtheatreworkshops@hotmail.com

IN PRAISE OF RATTIGAN

“Few dramatists this century have written with more understanding about the human heart”.

26 Feb – 15 May ‘16Rochester Art Gallery and Craft Case, Medway Visitor Information Centre,

Ground Floor, 95 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1LXFree admission www.enjoymedway.co.uk

RUST & BLOOMWorks by Hannah Maybank

Craft Case: Ceramics by Emma Clegg

designreprolithodigitalstoragefulfilmentdistribution

9-10 Orchard Business CentreSanderson WayTonbridgeKent TN9 1QG

e: enquiries@cpg-net.co.ukt: 01732 366666

www.cpg-net.co.uk

North West TF 2008 8/9/08 17:19 Page 36

DESIGN l POS l LITHO l DIGITAL STORAGE l FULFILMENT l DISTRIBUTION

TONBRIDGE KENT

e: enquiries@cpg-net.co.uk t: 01732 366666

www.cpg-net.co.uk

DARTFORD CREATIVE PRESENTS

Both sessions 6pm, The Mick Jagger Centre, Shepherds Lane, Dartford, DA1 2JZ Email: michelle@icontheatre.org.uk

‘KNOW YOUR CREATIVE BUSINESS’

A series of free sessions designed to provide creatives with the knowledge and power they need to succeed within the creative industries

Wednesday 30 MarchSELF PROMOTION ON A SHOESTRING – how to use social media to get results!Wednesday 27 AprilGETTING STARTED – business start up and enterprise skills for creatives.

INTERNATIONAL PROJECTIONS FESTIVAL 2016

FRIDAY 18 - SUNDAY 20 MARCH

A major free arts festival, at the University of Kent. Spread across both the Canterbury and Medway campus, and with satellite events within the Canterbury City Centre, the festival celebrates the exciting and varied theme of projections. Visitors will enjoy film screenings from award winning film-makers, light and sound installations, a drive-in cinema, opportunities to delve into the world of Oculus Rift, live soundtracks being performed to silent films and a whole host of exciting events which explore projections of thought, voice and even the future.

For more information contact projections@kent.ac.uk. facebook.com/projectionsfest or on twitter @projectionsfest

THE BEANEY HOUSE OF ART AND KNOWLEDGE18 High Street, Canterbury CT1 2RA 01227 862162Mon to Wed 9am to 5pm, Thu 9am to 7pm, Fri and Sat 9am to 5pm, Sun 10am to 5pm. To Sun 3 Apr: FIRMIN & POSTGATE: THE MAKING OF SMALLFILMS. Exhibition about the creators of children’s programmes such as Bagpuss and The Clangers. ‘Please Pay What You Can’. To Sun 6 Mar: MAY THE TOYS BE WITH YOU Vintage Star Wars Toys and original Cinema posters. ‘Please Pay What You Can’. From Sat 19 Mar to Sun 19 Jun: BENN JUDD: STORIES IN THE DARK, CONTEMPORARY

RESPONSES TO THE MAGIC LANTERN Part of International Festival of Projections (see above).

To Sun 20 Mar: MAN MADE Exploration of humans’ creative impact (positive and negative) on a range of environments. Selling Exhibition.

40 years: Canterbury Archaeological TrustFrom Fri 25 Mar to Sun 24 Apr: 40 YEARS: Canterbury Archaeological Trust, achievements and discoveries of the last 40 years. Free Admission, drop in.thebeaney.co.uk

BELOW 65 GALLERYGilbert & Clark Frame and Print 65 High Street Maidstone ME14 1SR 01622 685146 Open Mon-Sat 9.30am-4.30pm. Free entry

Tue 1 – 22 Mar: FLEUR ALSTON Photographic digital montages exploring the idea of the Mandala and bringing life into order. cargocollective.com/fleuralstonphotographygilbertandclark.com

FRANCIS ILES GALLERIES103 High Street Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 843081Open Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm. Free entryQUARTERLY COLLECTION ONE The first of the new style exhibitions. Featuring the work of Susan Evans, Katya Gridneva and Jeremy Sanders. Plus new works from the Gallery Artists.francis-iles.com

THE GRIND COFFEE HOUSEAppledore Court, Hildenborough CrescentAllington, Maidstone ME16 0PA 07857 587752Open Mon - Sat 8am - 4pm.Throughout March: SPRING 2016 EXHIBITION by members of MVAN (Maidstone Visual Artists Network).grindcoffeehouse.co.uk

GUILDHALL MUSEUM High Street, Rochester ME1 1PY 01634 332900Open Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. Free entryTo Sun 10 Apr: THE GAMES WE PLAYED: CHILDHOOD BOARD & CARD GAMES This new exhibition explores some of the most popular, as well as a number of lesser known, board and card games from the 1920s through to the 1970s.

HUGUENOT MUSEUM95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 789347Opens Wed-Sat 10am-5pm + Bank Hol Mon 10am-4pmArtworks and treasures. £4, concs £3, family £10, under 5s free.huguenotmuseum.org

MAIDSTONE MUSEUM & BENTLIF ART GALLERYSt Faith's St, Maidstone ME14 1LH 01622 602838Open Mon - Sat 10am-5pm, closed Sun & Bank Holidays. Sat 5 Mar – Sat 30 April: WOMAN OF GENIUS Using works from the 16th century onwards from the Museum's collections, alongside original artwork by Vicki Cooke, this exhibition is about the magnificence of female artists.museum.maidstone.gov.uk

NUCLEUS ARTS272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP 01634 812108 Gallery: Mon- 10am-4pm (café to 5.30pm) Closed Sun. Free entryTo 1pm on Wed 2 Mar: LGBT HISTORY MONTH.From Thu 24 Mar to 1pm on 6 Apr: SRI-LANKA EXHIBITION Photographs by TOMMY REYNOLDS. Meet the Artist 27, 29 & 31 Mar 11am-1pm.nucleusarts.com

NUCLEUS ARTS ROCHESTER 75 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 812108Open 9am-5pm Mon-Fri; Sat 10am-5pm; Sun 11-4pmShop gallery, café and garden.

ROCHESTER ART GALLERY & CRAFT CASEMedway Visitor Information Centre 95 High Street Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 338319 Open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10.30am – 5pm (closed on Sundays till Mar). Free entry

To 15 May: RUST AND BLOOM: WORKS BY HANNAH MAYBANK. An exploration into the subject of decay and renewal through paint and flora. See p5.CRAFT CASE: Ceramics by Emma Clegg.

ROYAL ENGINEERS MUSEUMPrince Arthur Road, Gillingham ME7 1URTel: 01634 822839Open Tue-Fri 9am-5pm; Weekends & Bank Hol: 11.30am-5pm

Normal admission charges apply. Throughout March: EXHIBITION: THE GREAT LINES. This exhibition by local artist Chris Norman draws attention to the Great Lines Heritage Park and other historic sites which were once very important for the defence of Chatham Dockyard.re-museum.co.uk

STEPHEN OLIVER STUDIO & GALLERYOrchards Shopping CentreHigh Street, Dartford DA1 1DN 01322 278674Open Thu - Sat 10am-4pm; Sat to 5pm.Affordable contemporary art.stephen-oliver-art.co.uk

XROSS-POLYNATION GALLERY3-4 Starnes Court, Maidstone ME14 1EB 01622 299043Throughout March: THE BIRTH OF DIASPORA Irish Art Exhibition.xrosspolynation.co.uk

Storiesin the DarkContemporary responses

to the magic lantern

For exhibition updates follow @The_Beaney

Saturday 19 March to Sunday 19 June 2016

thebeaney.co.uk

Image Credit: Samuel van Hoogstraten, The Shadow Dance, 1675

Please pay what you can

A co-commission by The Beaney and Whitstable Biennale

The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge18 High Street, Canterbury

VISUAL ART

Storiesin the DarkContemporary responses

to the magic lantern

For exhibition updates follow @The_Beaney

Saturday 19 March to Sunday 19 June 2016

thebeaney.co.uk

Image Credit: Samuel van Hoogstraten, The Shadow Dance, 1675

Please pay what you can

A co-commission by The Beaney and Whitstable Biennale

The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge18 High Street, Canterbury

Ann Welch works out of two locations, a small village in Lesvos, which provides many of her artistic themes from Greek life, and West End Studios in Chatham, Kent. Despite her local connections, her work has been shown and collected on an international scale, including museums in the United States, Greece and England. Her versatility with respect to media is notable: her work ranges from watercolours to wall-size frescoes, from still lives and landscapes in watercolour and oil to commissioned iconography.

Ann is also a curator with several shows and installations to her credit. Her icons can be found in places of worship throughout Kent. Ann teaches, and has a following for her courses in iconography.

Her work is on display in Kent during March and April:

March ‘Lost Empire’ evokes places that trace their pasts to the Ottoman Empire. The paintings cover an expanse from Sinai to Trebizond.

Runs Tue 1 to Mon 28 March at Café Moroc, 369 High Street, Rochester ME1 1DA, open Mon – Sat 10am – 3.30pm. Meet the Artist: Thu 3 March 5 – 6pm.

April: Ithaca’ is a show inspired by the artist’s visits to ancient destinations. Runs 5 – 17 April at Creek Creative, 1 Abbey Street, Faversham ME13 7BE, open Tue – Sun 10am – 4pm. Fundraising event for volunteers dedicated to saving lives in Lesbos: Thu 7 April 6 – 8pm.annwelch.co.uk

THE ARTIST’S SPACE

Tea in Sinai by Ann Welch

31

A nostalgic and quirky exploration

of the nation’s favourite (and lesser known)

board games from the 1920 to the 70s.

The Guildhall Museum

High St, Rochester, Kent ME1 1PY

Phone: 01634 332680

www.guildhallmuseumrochester.co.uk9 FEB - 10 APR 2016

Free F amily Funf air

thedockyard.co.uk/steamandtransport

d i s c o u n t t i c k e t s o n l i n eSupported bySponsored by