WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 19 SEPTEMEBER
previews, articles, reviews, interviews, and recommendations with Steve Cooke
WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 19 SEPTEMBER 2026
Previews: Portrait of Black Britain plus Arete Guasu
Reviews: EAST IS EAST and TLC in August
EAST IS EAST
Review by Steve Cooke
The Octagon’s 30th anniversary production of East is East, Ayub Khan Din’s thoughtful comedy of life in a Pakistani/English family in early 1970s Salford is an engaging homage to this modern classic.
It works extremely well in the Octagon’s intimate space with Rachana Jadhav’s big, impressive set spreading across about a third of the auditorium.
The three main acting areas encompass a central one that transforms from the Khan family’s kitchen to their business - a fish and chip shop, and briefly to their front parlour; another to represent their back yard, complete with the “shed” that bundle of nervous energy, youngster Sajit retreats to and “sunbathes” on top of in his protective but rather smelly parka. and another, representing the base of a factory chimney, with a balustrade where the brothers can be together, away from mum and dad.
The transformations are done entertainingly by the cast with music and dancing, Jane Lalljee’s lighting very effectively enhancing changes of locale.
Director Kash Arshad summarises the plot as being “the experience of being brought up in a Muslim household, with a white British mother and a Pakistani father, who ran his own business, with kids who felt not British enough to be British nor Pakistani enough to be Pakistani.”
Overbearing with self-importance dad George Khan is trying to rule his family for what he believes is the best according to religion and tradition. The breaking point comes when he attempts to make arranged marriages for two of his sons who see the world in very different ways.
Bhasker Patel skilfully portrays George as a complex character who can be comic, baffled, frustrated and violent.
On Press Night Ella [Samantha Power] received spontaneous applause when after being hit and humiliated by her husband feistily sees off the hyper-critical, self-important Mr Shah, father of the prospective brides. She convincingly portrays a northern working class woman holding everything together against all the odds.
Also creating very believable characters are Victoria Brazier as Auntie Annie, Danyal Ismail as Abdul, Zaki Ali as Tariq, Joeravar Sangha as Maneer, and Matthew Khan as Saleem, the four very different brothers, the hyper-energetic Maya Dhokia’s Meenah as the daughter with Rohan Macleod making the neurodiverse Sajit fascinatingly watchable.
I
t was good the see Chris Bisson, who played Saleem Khan in the much loved 1999 film version, in the audience thoroughly enjoying the performance.
East is East is a period piece reflecting fifty year old attitudes and behaviours but also predicating the very different paths the lives of young people from Pakistani decent were to take.
If you want to experience live theatre at its very best, then I can’t recommend East is East at the Octagon Bolton highly enough.
Tickets from £15, visit https://octagonbolton.co.uk/events/east-is-east
Age 14+
On until Saturday 3 October at 7.30pm with some 2.0pm matinees, Octagon Theatre, Octagon Court, Howell Croft S, Bolton BL1 1UR ·
Portrait of Black Britain
Preview by Steve Cooke
Cephas Williams presents Portrait of Black Britain - a significant large-scale photographic archive exploring what it means to be Black, living in the UK - opening at Aviva Studios, home of Factory International this October. Taking place in The Social, the free exhibition runs through the whole of October.
Portrait of Black Britain photographs and profiles a range of Black people living in the UK, highlighting the different roles people play in our community. Its focus is not only on high-profile people and success stories, but as many people from as wide a range of society as possible, aiming to make more Black people visible and to offer the next generation and wider society an authentic and holistic picture of Black existence in the UK and the 21st century.
The exhibition was originally commissioned for Manchester International Festival (MIF) 2021, with 116 portraits initially shown as a major public exhibition in Manchester’s Arndale Centre. Portrait of Black Britain has continued to grow since its launch and returns to the city where it was first presented this October, bringing together a total of 228 depictions of Black people living in the UK, from Manchester and beyond, including nine new portraits.
The concept was created by Cephas Williams at a time when candid conversations and dialogue about the Black community were taking a long-overdue centre stage, following the murder of George Floyd. In response, Portrait of Black Britain centralised, Black-led representation on what it meant to be Black in the UK at that moment.
Cephas Williams said: “Since MIF commissioned the exhibition in 2021, it's been great to see how many people have resonated with the work. Revisiting the photographs and exhibition has been both nostalgic and enriching and sharing it once again at Factory International’s new home offers audiences an opportunity to experience the scale and significance of the project in a new way.
“I think of the child who experienced Portrait of Black Britain for the first time in 2021 and how much can change in 5 years. Someone who was 5 is now 10; someone who was 15 is now 20. I often wonder how the exhibition may have inspired kids and adults alike, encouraging someone to pick up a camera or bring an idea they’ve had to life. As well as how the portrait series introduces its viewer to what it means to be Black through a positive and powerful lens.”
From the creator of 56 Black Men, Letter to Zion and the Black Network, the exhibition is part of a body of work that will ultimately lead to Cephas Williams building a collection of 1,000 photographic portraits of Black people living in the UK. The project is a continuing powerful and positive affirmation of the beauty in identity and diversity, and the fact that the Black community is not a monolith.
The exhibition will be shown at Aviva Studios in the Social for all visitors to the landmark cultural venue from 1 – 31 October.
Find out more on the event page https://factoryinternational.org/whats-on/portrait-of-black-britain-cephas-williams/
TLC IN AUGUST
Review by Dr Joe Dswon
August 05 Luke Jones piano: born in Wrexham began playing at five, making his debut recital at ten. He is currently a Kawai Artist, but today’s 1935 heritage Challen 8’ Grand became his own! He studied at Chetham's, the Conservatorio Perosi Campobasso, and gained the RNCM’s First-Class BMus, a master’s with Distinction and its prized Gold Medal. Concerto soloist and international competition winner. An extremely powerful player able to skilfully switch to quick changes in tempo, character and dynamics in this sparkling box of delights, contrasted jewels and gems. A sensational Chopin feast of Ballade No 4 and the complete set of 24 Preludes, Op 28 magnificently played, all from memory. Encore of Debussy’s Clair de Lune allowed us all to ‘warm down’!
August 12 More than Melody: happy and healthy popular contributors, the talented ladies’ choir ‘More than Melody’. Research has shown that singing in a choir is good for your wellbeing, and performers and audiences alike benefit from artistic events… even in a heatwave. Avuncular conductor, Jonathan Gibson RNCM horn graduate and now freelancer, has brought the ensemble to a high level of choral part singing. Pianist Brian Milligan provided fine accompaniments today. Something for every season and a tune for everyone. The ladies achieved their objectives through fun and fellowship and entertained us musically. Let us hope their sense of wellbeing increased as we all benefitted from a tuneful entertainment!
August 19 Daid Garvin-Daniels piano: Rochdale-born David Garvin-Daniels not only plays regularly and teaches at his wife’s school of music but also tunes and repairs, all to a high level; he is steeped in everything to do with piano. Like a Formula 1 racing driver who also tunes the engine! Following musical training at Chetham’s he became a Yamaha and Steinway technician serving top venues and artistes. He proved he could drive as well by playing Bach-Busoni, Beethoven, Chaminade, Debussy and Liszt superbly. The heritage Challen grand piano sounded terrific, freshly tuned and engineered by the player himself, a top champion class recital worthy of a Grand Prix.
August 26 Janke Dai bass clarinet & Chichi Li piano: Deep Reed Duo, founded in the UK in 2023, brings together these two wonderful virtuosos. Yanke is taking a PhD at Sheffield University following postgraduate studies at the RNCM. He has performed internationally, appearing at festivals and concert venues in the UK, China and the US. Chichi graduated with a masters with distinction from the RNCM where she now accompanies as well as at Sheffield. They are committed to bringing the lesser-known bass clarinet repertoire to wider audiences, while also developing new arrangements and cross-cultural programmes. They have performed at several UK and US venues and festivals. Repertoire from Mercadnte, Diethe, Schoeck, Hindemith, Bozza and Semler-Collery certainly raised the oft-unnoticed instrument’s profile.
Arete Guasu
Preview by Steve Cooke
As they plan for the exciting reopening of the reimagined and refurbished Touchstones the team continue to provide some excellent Touchstones Live Offsite events.
Coming soon is a unique multimedia performance inspired by enslaved Argentinian singers on a Rochdale-owned plantation.
Arete Guasu is the Indigenous term for the “Great Feast” of the indigenous Ava Guaraní people of Northern Argentina – a celebration where the living encounter their ancestors. It represents remembrance, gratitude, and the connection between past, present, and future.
La Esperanza sugar plantation in Jujuy was owned by the Leach Brothers, British industrialists from Rochdale. In 1905, the German anthropologist Robert Lehmann-Nitsche made early recordings of songs performed by members of the Ava-Guaraní, held at the time in bonded labour on the plantation. The songs were recorded under degrading conditions and without free consent, as part of an anthropological study on people whom Lehmann-Nitsche himself described as “primitive.” Degrading photographs of the people were also taken.
Performer Rafael Montero is a descendant of the people heard in these recordings and depicted in these photos. His performance draws upon the songs recorded by Lehmann-Nitsche, recounts the story of their forced appropriation, and concludes with a participatory indigenous reconciliation ceremony.
Tickets from £10.50 (inc. £0.50 cmsn) https://www.yourtrustrochdale.co.uk/whats-on/events/arete-guasu/book/?instance=699602
Friday 23 October, 19:30-21.00, Touchstones Live Offsite, Touchstones at Rochdale Ukrainian Centre, Elmfield, 15 Mere St, Rochdale OL11 1HJ
RECOMMENDED
Saturday, 19 September 2026
Steampunk Festival
Rochdale Town Hall is set to host an exciting new Steampunk Festival, brought to life by the organisers behind the much-loved Haworth Steampunk Weekend.
This new event will transform the Town Hall and Square into a vibrant hub of costume, craft, performance, and alternative heritage. It will celebrate the artistry, eccentricity, and community spirit that define Steampunk culture while showcasing Rochdale as a place where creativity and heritage meet in the most spectacular way.
Free / Pay What You Want
10:00
Rochdale Town Hall, The Esplanade, Rochdale, Greater Manchester, OL16 1AZ
Saturday, 19 September 2026
Lego Club - Rochdale Central Library
Free
Every other Saturday. Get creative with Lego and join our free club, suitable for all the family. There's Duplo available for younger siblings.
families with children aged 2 and over, and teenagers.
No need to book, you can just turn up.
2pm - 1pm
Rochdale Central Library, Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale OL16 1XU
Saturday, 19 September 2026
Code Club - Rochdale Central Library
Every other Saturday. Come along and learn how to code at our Code Club.
For families with children aged 7 and over, and teenagers.
No need to book, you can just come along.
The sessions will be fun and informal.
Free
11am - 12pm
Rochdale Central Library, Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale OL16 1XU
Sunday, 20 September 2026
Heritage Open Days: Middleton Heritage Trail Guided Walk
Join us for this guided walk, which will take you around Middleton’s Golden Cluster of Architecture and History. Discover Middleton’s oldest church, as well as some of its architectural gems, designed by eminent Middleton architect Edgar Wood, among others. Find out more about the town’s links to the Jacobite rebellion and the Peterloo Massacre. Whether you a local or a visitor, you are sure to enjoy this walk, which will take you around the highlights of Middleton’s renowned Golden Cluster.
This walk is largely pavement based, with some steps and one hill from the Old Grammar School to St Leonard’s Church. Accessible toilets are available at Middleton Library and Middleton Arena.
Your tour guide for this event will meet you outside on the car park just at the front of St. Leonard's Church.
Contact on day: Alexandra Fairclough
Telephone number: +447956226699
Free / Pay What You Want
13:00
St Leonard’s Church, St Leonard’s Square, Middleton, M24 6DJ
Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Toad Lane Concerts - Rochdale's Weekly Music at Lunchtime
This week we have - Sara Donnelly soprano (Queensland & RNCM) & Tim Kennedy piano (Cambridge Univ & RNCM staff)
Running every Wednesday, Music at Lunchtime is a weekly live classical music concert series that has been going since the 1960s. The sessions were initially run at the old Rochdale Art Gallery by the local authority, but since May 2001 have been run by volunteer-enthusiasts and artistic director, Dr Joe Dawson.
£6
Phone: Dr Joe Dawson 01706 648872
St Mary in the Baum, Toad Lane/St Mary's Gate, Rochdale OL16 1DZ
Doors open 12noon, concert starts 12.30pm - 1.30pm
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