About Stroud Arts Festival
With a mission to encourage and support creativity, Stroud Arts Festival has promoted and supported the arts in the Stroud District since 1946. Through an annual festival of events it has brought world class artists and performers to our venues, giving residents the chance to experience the highest quality artistic performances on their doorstep.
The Bristol Ensemble, 2023
Local creativity has been catalysed through the Stroud Arts Festival’s grant scheme, with projects, performances, workshops and exhibitions all benefiting from financial support and wider publicity.
Over the past 25 years, local artists have received around £300,000 in total to support their events and improve their practices.
Glos Printmaker’s Co-op, 2022
In Our Own Words: Spoken Word, 2023
Artistic Director
Welcome to Stroud Arts Festival’s 78th year!
I’m delighted to bring you another programme of events, this year with a darkly gothic flavour, focusing on the effect the arts have on our emotions.
Join us on a journey through horror and melodrama, to joyful jazz and poetry; from brilliant baroque music, to soul-stirring operatic arias.
Prepare to be hooked by classic storytelling, powerful visual art and evocative film, and of course - consummate musicianship.
Come and share these diverse, engaging events. Revisit the familiar. Open yourself up to the new.
Stroud Arts Festival 2024 –at a glance
Stroud Arts Festival’s 78th programme takes place in three venues around town with six main events showcasing the finest talents in music, drama, film, spoken word and opera.
Spanning two weekends, we hope to provide something for everyone in this mixed programme for the Autumn season. With a darkly gothic drama, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in a solo performance by Mark Stratford, followed by a silent horror movie, The Phantom of the Opera with live music by harpist Elizabeth-Jane Baldry, the first weekend at Lansdown Hall brings us classic storytelling to thrill us and chill us as the nights draw in...
Music and words come together in the Sub Rooms on Thursday when musicians The Carducci String Quartet, The Dave Ayre Trio and writer Anthony Burton bring us Re-Connected, a specially conceived blend of musical styles and poetry.
The final weekend transports us to another time with trio ZAREK playing baroque music as it would have been heard by the audience of the day, on period instruments, in the splendid acoustic setting of St. Laurence Church.
Then back again to the Sub Rooms for two afternoon Relaxed Opera Performances in our inclusive show, created for the festival, and the season finale, An Evening at the Opera –a recital from singers Abigail Sudbury, Alistair Sutherland, Naomi Kilby and our ensemble of musicians led by Dave Ayre.
Check our website for more activities and details of our art exhibition.
We hope you enjoy the season!
Stroud
Stroud
Stroud
Silent Film Diary of a Lost Girl, 2023
Will Todd’s Mass in Blue, 2023
Saturday 19 October
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Robert Louis Stevenson Adapted and performed by Mark Stratford
7.30pm
Lansdown Hall & Gallery
GL5 1BB
Tickets: £12.50, Under-18s £5
Age guide: 12+
First published in 1886, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a mystery tale about the conflict between good and evil, still relevant to the modern day with its themes of identity and addiction.
In this faithful adaptation, Stevenson’s gripping narrative is brought vividly to life through a combination of powerful story-telling and masterful character creation.
Mark Stratford’s solo performance is a tour-de-force, conveying each character through gesture and voice alone.
***** reviews
“A gripping one-man show. Stratford’s performance held the theatre spellbound...It is a model of what a one-person play should be...Be prepared to be scared - and entertained” (ReviewsGate)
Sunday 20 October
The Phantom of the Opera
Rupert Julian 1925 (93 mins)
Silent film with harp accompaniment by Elizabeth-Jane Baldry
7pm
Lansdown Hall & Gallery
GL5 1BB
Tickets: £12.50, Under-18s £5
For the third year running, acclaimed harpist, Elizabeth-Jane Baldry, returns to astonish us with her live accompaniment to a classic silent movie. The only silent movie harpist in the world, this time she provides the score to one of the cinema’s greatest horror thrillers, The Phantom of the Opera.
A Gothic tale of obsessive love, loss and death first released almost 100 years ago, it still retains its ability to scare and shock! Protagonist, Lon Chaney’s performance remains one of the benchmarks of the horror genre and his iconic look the result of his own creation. Audience members screamed and even fainted in its first screening. Be prepared!
Elizabeth-Jane Baldry’s uniquely rich tones have graced numerous film and TV soundtracks screened in over thirty countries and she has performed to sell-out audiences in the US and Europe.
Band & Songwriter
Thursday 24 October
Re-Connected:
The Carducci String Quartet & The Dave Ayre Trio featuring
Anthony Burton
7.30pm
The Sub Rooms, GL5 1AE
Tickets: £20, Under-18s £5
Following from the success in 2022 of the journey through our local heritage and the music it inspired, we now take you on a journey exploring the emotions created by the power of the performing arts.
An exhilarating exploration of musical styles from our local and internationally renowned classical and jazz musicians
The Carducci String Quartet, and The Dave Ayre Trio.
Written especially for this programme, writer and broadcaster
Anthony Burton delivers words from the heart expressing the range of emotions music inspires. Be prepared for passionate performances of poignant, uplifting, awe-inspiring and profoundly moving music with spoken word.
Matthew Denton, violin
Michelle Fleming, violin
Eoin Schmidt-Martin, viola
Emma Denton, cello
Dave Ayre, double bass
James Ayre, drums
Tom Berge, piano
Saturday 26 October
ZAREK Trio:
Bs and Bees
Baroque music by Bach and Buxtehude, with a decisive nod towards a world that inspires and sustains us
7.30pm
St. Laurence Church, GL5 1JL
Tickets: £16, Under-18s £5
Performing on period instruments, ZAREK aim to capture the joy and musical exchange amongst the artists, connecting with the music, each other, the audience, places, and ideas.
The ‘Bs’ are Dieterich Buxtehude and Johann Sebastian Bach, two composers whose cross-pollination led to the flowering of a style which defines German music of the High Baroque. Bach once walked almost 300 kilometres to meet the Danish Buxtehude, one of his key influences, and hear him perform. The ‘Bees’ connection to this programme is symbolic, ZAREK recognising the harmony of the beehive and the vibrations through which they communicate.
Find out more in the programme as the harmony of the beehive, the geometry of the honeycomb, and the vibrational dance are mirrored in the counterpoint and melodic invention of these two composers’ music.
Rebecca Harris, violin
Jan Zahourek, viola da gamba
Oliver John Ruthven, harpsichord ZAREK Trio is supported by the Continuo Foundation.
Sunday 27 October
Opera is for Everyone Relaxed Performances
2pm & 3.30pm
The Sub Rooms, GL5 1AE
Tickets:
Free
(booking required)
Inspired by gothic tales of yore and created by our own unique ensemble of musicians, featuring sopranos Abigail Sudbury and Naomi Kilby, and baritone Alistair Sutherland, we present a specially prepared new work, embracing the wonderful music of Mozart, Donizetti and Strauss.
These relaxed performances welcome people of all ages and backgrounds, especially those who may find it difficult to attend traditional types of performance. With plenty of space to move around, no requirement to sit still, gentle lighting and a quiet space adjoining, these events are designed to be truly accessible and inclusive.
The performances are free entry but booking is required as places are strictly limited. Donations are welcomed in support of Stroud Arts Festival’s ongoing commitment to inclusivity in the arts.
Supported by the Gloucestershire Community Foundation & the Hitchins Family Trust
Sunday 27 October
Opera is for Everyone
An Evening at the Opera
7.30pm
The Sub Rooms, GL5 1AE
Tickets: £16, Under-18s £5
Join us for a glamorous evening of opera and an enchanting musical journey exploring themes of love and mystery. With music by Mozart, Dvořák, Donizetti, Barber, Strauss and many more. Performed by our trio of highly acclaimed and experienced opera singers with our ensemble of instrumentalists.
Abigail Sudbury trained as both a nurse and an opera singer. Early in her singing career, she discovered the joy of inclusive music-making and has been encouraging others to sing and participate ever since. She now works as a singing teacher, a SEND music workshop leader, and runs an inclusive singing group.
Alistair Sutherland joined Opera Holland Park in 2010 where he was selected as 2012 Christie Collins Young Artist. He continues to work with the company as a chorister and comprimario. With OHPInspire, Alistair performs in hospitals and care homes and works on a variety of different education and outreach projects as a performer and facilitator. Naomi Kilby trained at Birmingham Conservatoire and Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. Naomi has performed all over the UK and Europe, and works regularly both with the charity Lost Chord, and with OHPInspire. Recently, Naomi sang the title role in Handel’s Semele with Richmond Opera, and returns to Opera Holland Park in their summer 2024 production of Pagliacci.
Stroud Arts Festival 2024
Acknowledgements
Stroud Arts Festival’s activities are made possible by the legacy from local patron of the arts, Margaret and Netlam Bigg, who were passionate about promoting education in the arts within Stroud and the Five Valleys.
We would like to thank the Gloucestershire Community Foundation and The Hitchins Family Trust for their support towards our Relaxed Performances.
With grateful thanks to all of our volunteers who help to make these events happen.
We are pleased to acknowledge our local venues & staff: St. Laurence Church, Stroud
Brochure / Print acknowledgments:
Concept, design & layout: Sophie Ayre
Print: Wheatley Printers Ltd, Stroud GL5 2BX
N&P Print Ltd, Stroud GL5 5EQ
Saturday 19 October, 7.30pm
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Lansdown Hall & Gallery
Sunday 20 October, 7pm
Silent Movie: The Phantom of the Opera Lansdown Hall & Gallery
Thursday 24 October, 7.30pm
Re-Connected: The Carducci String Quartet & Dave Ayre Trio
The Sub Rooms
Saturday 26 October, 7.30pm
Bs and Bees: ZAREK Trio play Bach and Buxtehude St. Laurence Church
Sunday 27 October, 2pm & 3.30pm Opera is for Everyone: Relaxed Performances
The Sub Rooms
Sunday 27 October, 7.30pm Opera is for Everyone: An Evening at the Opera
The Sub Rooms