Riley Theatre Brochure - Autumn 2022

Welcome

As the days get colder and the nights draw in, we invite you to warm your hearts and hands at our iconic venue. This season we’re delighted to be welcoming companies for the very first time, including the inimitable Spoken Movement, the striking Avant Garde Dance and celebrated Vincent Dance Theatre

Additionally, this year we’ve launched COLOUR Festival, a series of events embracing Black history, arts and culture. Each event has been specially handpicked to resonate with our community, including performances, films and discussions, intended to delight, entertain and spark conversation.

This season we’ve also made a conscious effort to keep ticket prices low for our events, in a bid to make theatre affordable in uncertain times.

We look forward to seeing you.

Sharon Watson mbe, dl CEO & Principal, Northern School of Contemporary Dance

Offers and discounts

NSCD Students

Students enrolled at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance are eligible for £5 tickets for select performances. Proof of student ID is required.

Group bookings

Groups are entitled to one free ticket for every ten purchased. Group offers are automatically applied to your basket if available.

E-gift vouchers

Give the gift of dance and treat your loved ones to live performance. Choose from a range of voucher values available. Redeemable within 2 years via the Box Office and online.

For full terms and conditions visit: nscd.ac.uk/riley-theatre/offers

Family Honour Spoken Movement

Family Honour tells the story of a Ghanaian family’s beginnings, and their struggle to stay together.

Through a brilliantly unique meeting of hip hop and theatre, the work examines the impact of upholding religious and gender expectations on one’s mental health, asking in what ways is it important to maintain family honour.

Originally a duet from international choreographer Kwame Asafo-Adjei, the work won France’s prestigious Danse Élargie in 2018. Now expanded as a full-length ensemble production, witness a raw exploration of family and personal trauma, putting you in the front seat for tense, honest confrontations that go generations deep.

This production contains the threat of violence and psychological abuse

Interpretations - Siren Calls: To An Illusive Journey

Commissioned by Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage, and composed by Philip Herbert with two independent choreographic interpretations by Monique Jonas and Thomas Tawala Prestø, Siren Calls: To an Illusive Journey seeks to honour the Windrush generation and crystallise their experiences.

The film showcases behind the scenes footage of the making of the shows, including interviews with the producer, composer, choreographers and musicians. Interpretations - Siren Calls: To an Illusive Journey is a unique look into a multifaceted creative practice. A voice of hope, aspiration and dreams that generations still have to navigate.

A discussion – A Wise Monkey Knows Which Tree to Climb: Perspectives on Decolonising Black Dance will be held after the film with Artistic Director of Tabanka Dance Ensemble, Thomas Tawala Prestø and Artistic Director and CEO of Serendipity, Pawlet Brookes mbe.

Radical Visions Toussaint To Move

Radical Visions is back! After two sold-out, 5-star events at Sadler’s Wells, multifaceted performing artist Akeim Toussaint Buck returns to Leeds to curate a unique night for COLOUR Festival.

Radical Visions invites people to gather to experience powerful, contemporary performance exploring race, unity, ancestry, and power. It intentionally commissions, showcases and celebrates artistic work and artists from the Global Majority while cultivating community and allyship.

This edition of Radical Visions includes performances from Gerrard Martin and Sonny Nwachukwu, with music by the dazzling Radical Visions House Band plus spoken word by guest poets. Opening and closing ceremonies hosted by Muti Musafari.

Karrell

Illegal Dance Avant Garde Dance

#BlackBoyJoyGone

#BlackBoyJoyGone is a hybrid documentary film by and for black men, exploring mental health, trauma and finding strength through brotherhood.

Funded by BFI Doc Society and directed by Ashley Karrell & Isaac Ouro-Gnao the film blends interviews, poetry, dance and storytelling, capturing the lived realities, and the hopeful perspectives of Black men in the North, the Midlands and London.

Working collaboratively with mental health organisations and individuals in the UK, including the charity Mind, The Survivors Trust and Black mental health professionals, the project has reached far and wide to amplify the voices of Black men who are often marginalised and underrepresented in accessing support and wellbeing services.

Stuart Hollis

Hold Tight Vincent Dance Theatre

Home

where our story begins.

it’s a condition, a feeling, a

shapes who we are.

not always a place

of connection.

Tight explores how adverse childhood

abrupt change and separation

have a lasting impact on young people’s lives.

four adults and three young people on stage, accompanied by testimonies from care-experienced teenagers in the UK and folk songs

with Ukranian refugees in Poland, Vincent Dance Theatre’s production

on home, family

belonging and how, when we long

just have

Rainbow Butterfly Ella Mesma

Maja has a big imagination and would LOVE to be a Rainbow Butterfly and fly all the way to the Moon!

Inspired by the four stages of the lifecycle of a butterfly, this interactive children’s piece tells a story of transformation through the eyes of a child, using aerial silks painted by textiles artist Zephyr Liddell and a story book published, illustrated and written by the company.

Rainbow Butterfly takes inspiration from traditional storytelling to weave a tale using aerial circus, contortion, contemporary & Hip Hop dance.

After each performance children are invited to take part in a mini workshop allowing them to hold on to the silks, play in the space and for parents to take pictures.

Sat 26 November

& 1pm

RJC Dance Christmas Show

Award-winning RJC Dance Youth Provision engages young people from all backgrounds, representing our diverse society. This inspiring performance showcases the talents and skills of members aged 9 -19 years alongside the Boys Production Project, highlighting creativity via the performing arts.

Get

How to book

Visit rileytheatre.com

Opening hours

Our Box Office is open 10am – 4pm Monday to Friday and one hour before the start of every performance.

Concessions

The concessionary rate is available for under 26s, over 60s, full time students, the unwaged and those with a registered disability. Proof of eligibility is required.

Call our Box Office 0113 219 3000

Payment

All major credit / debit cards are accepted. We regret that reservations cannot be made. Please note tickets are non-refundable unless a performance is cancelled.

Riley Theatre reserves the right to change or cancel performances. Information contained in this brochure is subject to change, details correct at time of going to print.

Support us

Please consider adding a donation to your ticket purchase. Donations help secure our future for generations to come.

Planning your visit

Access

Riley Theatre is wheelchair accessible and wheelchair users are entitled to one free ticket for an accompanying guest or carer. Please call the Box Office to book. For more information on access and our facilities please visit rileytheatre.com or ring our Box Office.

Ticket collection

We kindly ask that you collect your tickets at least 15 minutes before the start of the performance to ensure timely entry.

Latecomers

Latecomers may be required to wait until a suitable break in the performance before being admitted to the theatre.

Café

Our café serves a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages both pre-performance and during the interval on performance evenings.

How to find us

Riley Theatre is located in the same building as Northern School of Contemporary Dance.

Riley Theatre, Northern School of Contemporary Dance, 98 Chapeltown Road, Leeds LS7 4BH

Riley Theatre is easily accessible from Leeds City Centre.

Getting here and parking

Bus: Regular services 2, 3, 3A, 48 from Leeds City Centre to NSCD. For routes and timetables visit wymetro.com

Car: Free parking is available for theatre goers. Riley Theatre is approximately a five minute drive from Leeds City Centre, just beyond the Sheepscar Interchange.