WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2026

 Previews, reviews, interviews, and recommendations with Steve Cooke

WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 21 MARCH 2026

Poetry Spotlight: Seamus Kelly

Previews: Ebor Studio Group Kickstarter Scheme, Street Eat returns to Rochdale Town Hall Square, The West End Tenors plus Matthew Kelly and George Costigan in New Production of Waiting for Godot.

Poetry Spotlight: Seamus Kelly

Originally from Nottingham I've lived and worked in Rochdale for over 35 years. I write about nature, place, people and society. I've been a freelance writer and poet for a number of years and enjoy not only creating for myself and commissions, but especially helping to inspire others to develop their own creative writing through projects and workshops for all ages, in community settings, schools etc.  

There was tapping, rapping in the forest.

There were cronking, gronking ravens.

There were gaggles of goldfinch gabbling,

and a hissss… of geese.

There was a tiny roar in the undergrowth.

There was croaking by the water’s edge.

There were feet stomping drumming on the hillside,

and muted echoes in the tunnels.

There was braying and baying across the savannah.

There were heavy hooves pounding on the steppes.

There was rumbling in the jungle,

and the rivers burbled and babbled.

There were shrieking, squabbling gulls on the landfill.

There were fulmars and terns circling the trawlers.

There was music beneath the waves,

haunted whale song through distance and time.

If we hear,

if we listen,

it might not yet,

be too late.      

This poem talks of some of the things we might lose if we don't start taking better care of our environment. A good start point is listening which then leads to understanding and understanding leads to action.         

Ebor Studio Group Kickstarter Scheme

By Steve Cooke

Ebor Studio Group is offering a recent graduate the opportunity to join our established creative community of 34 members in Littleborough, Rochdale.

“We believe in the power of the collective to create a sense of creative belonging that allows for artistic development. Meeting other professional creatives and receiving bespoke mentoring can make all the difference in building your career, why not do it right here in Rochdale?”

If you have graduated in the last two years and are looking for the next step, Ebor Studio Kickstarter Scheme might be the place to start.

To apply you must be a Rochdale based creative who graduated from a creative degree in the last two years.

What You’ll receive:

•          1 year Associate Membership with Ebor Studio Group

•          1 year personalised mentorship from experienced Rochdale based creatives

•          £100 stipend for travel and materials to fuel your artistic projects

•          An invitation to exhibit in our Associate Members Group Show in Spring 2027 during  Open Studios.

“My mentoring was tailored to my goals as a new graduate. The community at Ebor have been both supportive and motivating at this pivotal part of my career. The Kickstarter Scheme has been a great way to get advice from established artists who have skills and experience in areas that I wish to pursue.”

- Abi Black, 2025 recipient

Apply by midday Wednesday the 1st of April at https://www.eborstudio.co.uk/kickstarter-scheme

Street Eat returns to Rochd

ale Town Hall Square

Preview by Steve Cooke

Street Eat, the food and drink festival that attracts thousands of visitors every year is returning to Rochdale Town Hall Square for another serving of food, drink, free entertainment and live music on Saturday 30 May.  

Organised by Rochdale Business Improvement District (BID), Street Eat brings together local food and drink establishments, with visitors having their taste buds tickled and thirsts quenched as well as enjoying lots of free entertainment. Last year’s event attracted over 3,000 people and once again there will be tasty food from local restaurant chefs on the menu, with dozens of mouth-watering dishes served up including, Italian, Spanish, Indian, English, American and more.  

There will be free activities and rides for children, bars for the adults and a music stage serving up hours of fun for all ages. BID manager Paul Ambrose who organises the event said Street Eat showcases the vibrant and high-quality food and drink the town has to offer as well as being a great day out. He said: “It’s a fantastic event, giving us the opportunity to champion the very best local food and drink.  Street Eat brings friends and families together, celebrating our vibrant town centre eateries and showing what a foodie hotspot the town is. We do all we can to make the event as affordable as possible too and entry is free.”  

The line-up of traders for this summer’s edition is yet to be confirmed but will include tapas restaurant La Mancha, The Flying Horse Hotel, Vicolo Del Vino, Treehouse bar and many more.  

Councillor Sue Smith, cabinet member for culture and co-operation at Rochdale Borough Council said: “This is always such a great day out and Rochdale Town Hall Square is a wonderful setting. Street Eat is a great celebration of the incredible food and drink offer we have here in our town, but on top of that there’s so much to see and do with a full programme of live music and lots of free family fun.” 

The entertainment and music line-up will be announced in April.  

Admission is free and Street Eat will run from 11am to 7pm. For more on the line-up visit rochdalebid.co.uk or rochdale.gov.uk/YourEvents and search #StreetEatRoch on social media. 

The West End Tenors

Preview by Steve Cooke

After selling out arenas across Europe, The West End Tenors embark on their first UK Tour, bringing their smash hit show to Middleton Arena.

The cast of The West End Tenors have starred in musicals such as Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Mamma Mia and Miss Saigon, as well as performing at Windsor Castle for the Royal Family, the BBC Proms and the Eurovision Song Contest.

Celebrating the greatest triumphs of musical theatre and film, “their spine-tingling vocals are not to be missed, leaving audiences breathless from start to finish”.

Watch the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTdYu40rE8s

Tickets from £25.20 (inc. £1.20 cmsn)

Visit: https://www.yourtrustrochdale.co.uk/whats-on/events/the-west-end-tenors/book/?instance=536402

Leading men from London’s West End combine in a powerhouse of vocal talent on Saturday 16 May 2026, 19:30 at Middleton Arena, LCpl Joel Halliwell VC Way, Middleton, Greater Manchester M24 1AG

ENO’s Angel’s Bone at Aviva Studios this May.

Preview by Steve Cooke

This powerful new production from English National Opera brings together internationally acclaimed opera singers, boundary-pushing vocal artists and an award-winning creative team.

Director Kip Williams makes his ENO and UK opera debut with Angel’s Bone, marking the continuation of his long-term creative collaboration with designer Marg Horwell. Horwell’s recent successes include The Maids at the Donmar Warehouse, The Picture of Dorian Gray on Broadway, and the current West End production of Dracula starring Cynthia Erivo.

The cast features leading interpreters of contemporary opera including Allison Cook as Mrs Xe and Rodney Earl Clarke as Mr Xe, alongside rising Scottish tenor Matthew McKinney as the Boy Angel and visionary Swedish vocalist Mariam Wallentin as the Girl Angel. Countertenor Keith Pun completes the vocal line-up, with the music conducted by Baldur Brönnimann and James Ham.

Together, this world-class team will realise the haunting and urgent opera by composer Du Yun and librettist Royce Vavrek. A Pulitzer Prize-winning work that confronts exploitation, power and humanity with extraordinary musical force.

Mr and Mrs X.E, are a desperate couple facing financial crisis and a crumbling marriage and they long for a better life. When they discover the two bruised and battered angels in their garden, they bring them inside to nurse them back to life.

Care quickly turns to control. The couple seize the opportunity to exploit the spiritual beings in pursuit of fame and fortune.

Brutally clipping the angels’ wings to exploit this heavenly gift, the celestial beings are subjected to degrading, inhumane practices.

Two angels fall to earth and land in the middle of a broken marriage. Heaven help them.

Care becomes contempt and love becomes loathing in this dark, unsettling parable from contemporary composer Du Yun and librettist Royce Vavrek.

The Chinese-American composer, performance artist and activist won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Angel’s Bone, which is her second opera. In 2019, she was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Breaking with operatic tradition, Angel’s Bone fuses multiple musical genres, spoken word and immersive staging in an uncompromising tale of modern slavery and human trafficking.

An English National Opera production in collaboration with Factory International and BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, this UK premiere of the Pulitzer-prize winning opera will be staged at Aviva Studios, Manchester in May 2026. The chorus will be performed by Manchester based ensemble, Kantos Chamber Choir.

Royce Vavrek’s libretto explores the dark forces that drive people into the murky underworld of human trafficking. This is underpinned with Du Yun’s eclectic style, ranging from chamber music and cabaret to electronica to punk.

Director Kip Williams adds dynamic staging that immerses audiences in the production. By using projection and multiple viewing angles, Williams invites audiences to question their own part in the exploitation of the celestial beings.

Director Kip Williams is making his ENO and UK opera debut with Angel’s Bone. This production marks the continuation of his long-term creative collaboration with award-winning Designer, Marg Horwell whose recent successes include The Maids at Donmar Warehouse, The Picture of Dorian Gray on Broadway, and an upcoming production of Dracula starring Cynthia Erivo in the West End.

12 - 16 May 2026

The Warehouse, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ

Standard tickets from £45 to £49

Concessions available including Aviva £10 Tickets

A booking fee of £1.50 applies to all tickets.

For ticketing and box office related enquiries, please contact tickets@factoryinternational.org or call 0333 322 8679 (phone lines are open Tuesday to Friday, 10am to 6pm).

18+ Only

Running time: 90 minutes (no interval)

The audience will be standing throughout the show. Accessible seating and viewing areas for visitors with mobility impairments are available to pre-book when purchasing a ticket.

Please note this production depicts difficult themes including human trafficking, sexual exploitation, violence, drug, smoking and alcohol misuse, as well as death. We recommend reading our full advice on content before booking, which can be found on this page:

https://factoryinternational.org/whats-on/angels-bone under Access: Advice on Content.

This show is still in creative development and may contain flashing lights. Please check back on this webpage closer to the date for further updates.

Matthew Kelly and George Costigan in New Production of Waiting for Godot

Preview by Steve Cooke

Matthew Kelly and George Costigan star as Estragon and Vladimir in a new production of Waiting for Godot, alongside Gbolahan Obisesan, Michael Hodgson and Eric MacLennon.

In a barren wasteland, two men wait for someone who may change their lives - but also might never arrive. As they pass the time, dark humour and bickering becomes the only way to keep going in a world where nothing gets better - and perseverance is the only form of defiance.

George Costigan (Vladimir) is a familiar face to television and stage audiences alike. Known for his acclaimed screen roles in Happy Valley, Gentleman Jack, Calendar Girls, Line of Duty and more, Costigan’s theatre work includes Long Day’s Journey into Night (HOME), The Weir (Royal Exchange Theatre), Faith Healer (Pitlochry Festival Theatre) and In Fog and Falling Snow (York Theatre Royal).

Matthew Kelly (Estragon), well known as the host of Stars in Their Eyes, has also appeared on TV in Benidorm, Inside No. 9, Casualty and Cold Blood, as well as stage appearances in Oh What a Lovely War and Blue Remembered Hills (Octagon Theatre, Bolton) The History Boys (Sheffield Crucible) and Noises Off (West End).

Together, Kelly and Costigan stand among the UK’s most distinguished stage actors, bringing decades of friendship and craft to Beckett’s timeless play. The pair have shared a long history both on and off stage, last appearing together in Of Mice and Men at Birmingham Rep – a performance that earned Matthew an Olivier Award for Best Actor. Now reunited, their camaraderie promises to offer a fresh take on Beckett’s iconic duo.

The cast also includes Gbolahan Obisesan The Mountaintop (Young Vic & national tour) as Pozzo, Michael Hodgson Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth (Royal Shakespeare Company) as Lucky with Eric MacLennan Cyrano de Bergerac (Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester & West End) as understudy.

Dominic Hill, Citizens Theatre Artistic Director commented, “Waiting for Godot feels like the perfect play for today's uncertain times - timeless, funny, unsettling and full of humanity. To have Matthew and George take on these roles is a real gift. They’re not only two of our most accomplished actors, but also long-time friends, and that connection brings a warmth and depth to their performances that I think will be captivating and deeply moving to watch.”

Visit: https://octagonbolton.co.uk/events/waiting-for-godot#dates-and-times

Wednesday 15 April – Saturday 2 May 2026 at Octagon Theatre Bolton.

RECOMMENDED

Saturday, 21 March 2026

Rochdale Town of Culture in Poems - event with Poet Laureate Sammy Weaver, Rochdale's Young Poets in Residence and guests

Celebrate the grand finale of Rochdale’s Poet Laureate year with an afternoon of poetry, performance, and local voices at Number One Riverside.

Enjoy poems that capture the creative energy of the borough, with stories that leave you inspired and proud to be local. This event is a relaxed, welcoming experience for anyone who loves words, or is just curious to discover them.

Be part of the launch of the Poetry Anthology and see the full Rochdale in Rhyme exhibition of 40+ poems created over Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester’s Town of Culture. A celebration of creativity, community, and the power of words.

Free and open to everyone, so come along and soak up the atmosphere.

The event will take place from 1.30pm - 3.30pm

Free / Pay What You Want

Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale , OL16 1XU

Wednesday, 25 March 2026

Toad Lane Concerts - Rochdale's Weekly Music at Lunchtime

This week we have - Louise Taylor soprano & Jill Taylor mezzo (duets) Jonathan Ellis piano

The concert series has been held at St Mary’s since 2001 and was granted the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2020.

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

Doors open 12noon, concert starts 12.30pm - 1.30pm

St Mary in the Baum, Toad Lane/St Mary's Gate, Rochdale OL16 1DZ