Celebrating five years of bringing internationally acclaimed artists and performers to Liverpool, The Capstone Theatre is delighted to announce its new autumn 2015 Season, which boasts a diverse collection of the finest cutting edge jazz, contemporary dance, gripping theatre, and film classics plus the return of the Cornerstone Arts Festival.
The new season commences on Thursday 24th September with the return of the popular Capstone Classics series, which screens a different classic movie each month. The first in the series Salaam-e-Ishq follows six different couples all with one common problem – love. This continues on Thursday 22nd October with the award winning Indian comedy Lage Rago Munha Bhai which sees light-hearted gangster Munna Bhai fall for Radio D.J. Jhanvi. Along with his partner in crime Circuit, see the lengths Munna will go to in order to win Jhanvi’s heart. Bringing the series to a close on Thursday 19th November is Om Shanti Om a tale of tragedy, betrayal, hope, perseverance and timeless love as Om Prakash Makhija a Bollywood Artiste, and Bollywood actress Shantipriya fight through generations – for their love.
The venue continues to bring the very best offerings from the Jazz and contemporary music scene throughout the season. Starting with one of the brightest talents around today, Manchester based trumpeter, composer, arranger and band-leader Matthew Halsall and the Gondwana Orchestra will present music from the new album Into Forever as well as works from When the World Was One and Fletcher Moss Park. After their incredible performance at 2013’s Liverpool International Jazz Festival, Mercury Prize and MOBO Award nominees Roller Trio return on Friday 23rd October. Propelled to fame in 2012 with their visceral stew of thrash rifts, tricky time signatures and rollicking melodies, the trio will be performing tracks from their highly acclaimed second album Fracture.
Audiences can expect uplifting melodic jazz with hypnotic swirling melodies, Afrobeat, township rhythms and gospel-fired hymns with the Philip Clouts Quartet on Friday 30th October. Then U.K. composer, saxophonist and band-leader Julian Argϋelles proves why he is so influential to a new generation of British jazz musicians, when his band come to The Capstone on Wednesday 4th November as part of an extensive U.K. tour to promote their new album Tetra. Grew Quartet will take listeners on a musical journey on Tuesday 10th November with their music ranging from cool, reflective lyricism, high velocity intensity, through to more playful, jazz influenced melodic and rhythmic areas. World class pianist and composer Yaron Herman completes the season’s jazz line-up on Saturday 14th November. Widely regarded as one of the leading musicians of his generation, he brings his unparalleled style of ‘real time composition’ and wild improvisational flare which culminates in a rare music form that is playful, cinematic and stunning.
There is also a superb array of classical concerts from world class musicians including Stephen Hough who performs at The Capstone on Tuesday 20th October in a spellbinding programme of romantic preludes and eludes as part of Rainhill Music Festival. This is followed with the renowned Liverpool String Quartet who present Classical Beatles on Friday 13th November. Fall in love again with the Beatles classics as they are expressed in exquisite string quartet and piano arrangements. The leading artists from the British Horn Society Festival perform on Sunday 15th November including Jean-Pierre Dassonville, Timothy Jackson, Roger Montgomery and players from the B.B.C. Philharmonic Orchestra with a morning recital and early evening Gala concert. Italian composer Alessandro Stella brings the classical programme to a close with his concert White Sceneries on Thursday 3rd December which centres upon contemporary music for solo piano, and draws on elements of minimalism and new simplicity styles as featured in his last two albums The Chain Rules and Midwinter Spring.
Other musical highlights throughout the season include Liverpool Hope’s Sonic Interactions concert on Monday 2nd November. Now in its sixth edition, it joins forces with the University of Liverpool to showcase new and innovative electroacoustic works from staff and student composers from both institutions.
Then, following the success of his Unity Theatre show last year, Andy Frizell presents a remarkable concert which includes music spanning 30 years and is once again joined by illustrious Theatre Orchestra on Thursday 12th November. Finally, Allerton Brass return to The Capstone on Saturday 12th December for their third consecutive festive concert Christmas Crackers featuring a selection of festive music with something for all ages.
Immersion Theatre presents Romeo and Juliet on Wednesday 14th October for the first in this season’s theatre productions. Boldly relocating the action to 1980’s England this tragic story of forbidden love and bitter rivalry promises to be a gritty, visceral and highly accessible spectacle. On Tuesday 27th October half-way between dance and drama, Sweetshop Productions present I Loved You and I Loved You which tells the true story of gifted composer Morfydd Owen whose life was emotionally complex, yet her art remains rapturous and transporting. I Burn for You, an atmospheric new musical theatre work based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula comes to the Capstone on Wednesday 28th October. Created by composer Ian Wilson the show features renowned Hungarian metal vocalist Attila Csihar in the lead role of the Vampyre.
The Capstone’s partner organisation Milapfest also returns this season with a selection of free events delivering a wonderfully diverse celebration of the finest Indian music, dance and culture. Highlights include Sur Sangam on Saturday 26th September with beautiful Indian music from the incredibly skilled sarod player Pandit Ranajit Sengupta, versatile Khayyal siger Shirin Sengupta, virtuoso percussionist Kousic Sen and Rakesh Chauhan. Then Tabla Tarana on Saturday 31st October an Indian percussion concert celebrating the music of one of the U.K.’s most admired musicians, Kousic Sen, a tabla player whose intense and energetic performances add a new dimension to the traditional concert experience.
2015 marks the fifteenth annual Cornerstone Arts Festival which returns from Friday 20th – Saturday 28th November and as ever brings together music, drama, dance and art in a series of events, performances and workshops featuring world class artists as well as rising talents.
Meet the Grand Dame of anarchic dance in an irreverent and glorious solo show; Liz Aggiss is The English Channel opens the festival on Friday 20th November. On Saturday 21st November Fallen Angels Dance Theatre take audiences on a roller-coaster of emotions with Upon Awakening which explores a real life story of adversity on a journey from addiction. Recently selected B.B.C. Music Magazine’s ‘rising star’ pianist Clare Hammond presents an imaginative and enterprising programme with Hände on Monday 23rd November. The year is 2093 in a world where libraries and books have long been forgotten until Roberta Price is desperate for adventure and to rediscover the power of imagination in Take a Hint Theatre Company’s Tales That Time Forgot on Tuesday 24th November. Also on Tue 24th November is Poles Apart the scorching new comedy written and directed by John Godber which examines the role of the theatre in the life of the working man and the role of the working man in the life of the theatre.
The festival continues on Wednesday 25th November as the Cornerstone Graduate Company present UNIT a collection of interlocking solos, duets and group pieces all centred on the exploration of relationships inspired by superheroes and villains of comic strips. New keyboard sextet Grand Band perform on Wednesday 25th November. Featuring six of New York City’s top pianists Vicky Chow, David Friend, Paul Kerekes, Blair McMillen, Lisa Moore, and Isabelle O’Connell this stunning collection of performers create a powerful sonic force. Born of classic Gothic novels and visually inspired by early silent films Tooth and Nail Theatre Company present Parlour Games on Thursday 26th November an inventive, funny, playful and disturbing work of physical theatre. On Thursday 26th November actor and art historian Paul O’Keefe recreates John Ruskin’s celebrated lecture as it was first delivered at the Philosophers Hall in Ruskin on Turner. Enjoy an evening of music from around the globe on Friday 27th November with Cornerstone Festival’s Ensembles in Residence featuring the string orchestra Gli Archi del Cherubino, St Paul’s Chapel Choir, and the Jazz musicians Craig Hamilton and Sim Flora. Bringing the festival to a close Milapfest presents Ramprapanna Bhattacharya and Kousic Sen on Saturday 28th November with captivating, energetic and vibrant music from the two performers.
Another full and varied programme in what promises to be the most ambitious, diverse and entertaining season to date for Liverpool’s International Arts Venue. Full times, dates and prices of all performances go the Cornerstone Theatre’s Website.