Spooky goings on kick off the week on stage in Aberdeen
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GHOST stories, stand-up comedy and a Neil Diamond tribute act are just some of the shows coming to the Music Hall, His Majesty's Theatre and the Lemon Tree this coming week.
Tomorrow (Monday) sees a haunting night at His Majesty's. Are you feeling brave? If you are, come along and learn all the secrets of what goes on when the theatre goes dark. When the only thing to guide you is the Ghost Light. Follow the rules: keep your hands inside the car (so to speak) and you will be safe, as we tell the tales that every theatre has to tell.
The show gets under way at 7.30pm. Tickets cost between £33 and £37, available from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
Running from Thursday to Saturday The Barber of Seville by Scottish Opera is back by popular demand. Sir Thomas Allen (The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni) creates a riotous production of Rossini’s beloved comedy. The action centres around Figaro, one of opera’s most delightful characters and perhaps the only voice of reason in a world of young love and old foolishness.
When Count Almaviva sets his sights on the beautiful Rosina, he enlists Figaro – barber, fixer, and all-round man of action – to help woo her. It is no easy feat; Rosina’s guardian Doctor Bartolo keeps her under lock and key with the intention of marrying her himself!
The multiplying disguises, pranks and daring escapes engineered by Figaro are enhanced by Simon Higlett’s enchanting designs, bright with Spanish colours. This revival is sung in English for a fresh spin on Rossini’s larger-than-life characters and antics.
With Rossini’s signature toe-tapping ensembles, high-speed patter and lively arias, this masterpiece is a joyful theatrical experience packing in one comic scene after another.
His Majesty’s Theatre is the place to be for this with curtain up at 7.15pm. Priced from £23 to £67, tickets can be bought from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
The same evening across at the Music Hall there is bound to be a chuckle or two when Ross Noble takes to the stage with his solo stand-up tour Jibber Jabber Jamboree.
He invites you to join him for an evening of the sort of inspired nonsense that has cemented his place as the supreme master of stream of conscious freewheeling stand up.
This is a chance to see Noble live on stage in his natural habitat.
His performance begins at 8pm. Tickets costing £31.50 are available from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
There'll be a touch of the paranormal in the Lemon Tree on Friday when Uncanny: I Know What I Saw comes to town.
Join Danny Robins, creator of the smash hit BBC Radio 4 paranormal podcasts Uncanny, The Battersea Poltergeist and The Witch Farm and award-winning West End play 2:22 – A Ghost Story, for the biggest investigation into the paranormal ever.
In Uncanny: I Know What I Saw, you’ll be immersed in the sights, sounds and scares of brand new, real-life stories of the supernatural, from ghosts and poltergeists to UFO sightings and other strange encounters. Watch as these creepy, thrilling tales are brought to life on stage by Danny and his ever-present team of experts.
Is what happened genuinely supernatural or can it be explained? Are you #TeamBeliever or #TeamSceptic? You’ll even have a chance to share your own stories, if you dare.
Starting at 7.30pm, tickets are £26 from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
Also on Friday the tunes of Neil Diamond will be filling the Music Hall at 7.30pm thanks to Hello Again – The Neil Diamond Songbook. Billed as the world’s greatest celebration of the life and work of Neil Diamond the show takes you on a musical journey through his glittering 50 year career. From The Bang Years to the present day you’ll soon be singing along to all the hits including Sweet Caroline, Cracklin’ Rosie, Forever in Blue Jeans, Song Sung Blue, Hello Again, Love on the Rocks, America and many more.
Tickets cost £31.50, available from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
Saturday sees a craft market set up its stalls at the Music Hall showcasing crafters and small business owners in the north-east. Find unusual and exotic jewellery, crystals, gifts and one off creations all under one roof.
Getting under way at 10am, entry is free.
In the evening over at the Music Hall there will a chance to enjoy the Mendelssohn Piano Concerto with Benjamin Grosvenor. Championed by Franz Liszt, and inspired by unrequited love, Mendelssohn’s sparkling First Piano Concerto is something of an overlooked masterpiece – but the electrifying British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor is just the musician to reveal its fiery virtuosity as well as its delicate, Chopin-like beauty.
Maxim Emelyanychev contrasts Mendelssohn’s brilliance with the turbulent drama and high emotions of Brahms’ gripping Tragic Overture, as well as Schumann’s most original Symphony. Celebrating his longed-for marriage to his beloved Clara Wieck, No 4 plunges you into deep drama and stormy emotions before its joyful, exhilarating conclusion.
The show starts at 7.30pm with tickets priced £14-£32, available from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
