Swallow Theatre Programme
March to June 2012

March 25th 2.00 – 5.00 pm
An open afternoon at the Theatre – Join us in celebrating the launch of our 17th season! Look round the theatre, browse the collection of photos and programmes of the past, talk to David over tea, coffee and cakes and hear tales of the Swallow.

March 29th at 7.30.pm
European Arts Company
This excellent company were at the Swallow Theatre last year with a programme of five short plays by Chekhov. They return with a double bill of dark comedies by Harold Pinter
The Dumb Waiter and The Lover
Tickets £10

April 12th at 7.30 pm
An Evening with Nigel Clark
Solo Acoustic Guitar
Nigel Clark is the guitarist of the fabulous Tim Kliphuis Trio. He returns to the Swallow to perform solo guitar arrangements of some of the most beautiful and best loved music in recent history, including Gershwin, Porter, Kern, Berlin, Rogers and Hart, Lennon and McCartney and Django Reinhardt.
Tickets £8                Sponsored by Ketview Kitchens



April 20th at 7.30 pm
Annual General Meeting
Our business meeting will be followed by the first performance of
Option 27
a new play by David Sumner.

April 21st at 7.30 pm
Bayou Seco – Cross Cultural Music of the South West
Ken Keppeler and Jeanie McLerie, also known as Bayou Seco, celebrate the energetic music of the South Western part of the USA. They both have Celtic heritage, Jeanie's ancestors hailing from the silk weavers and bobbin winders in Kilbarchan and Ken from the County Mayo and County Tyrone area of Ireland. Their special brand of Southwestern Chilegumbo – Cajun two-steps, waltzes, polkas and rancheras, chotis, meringues and huapangos, and perhaps a broom dance – is cross-cultural, multi-lingual and extremely participatory !
Tickets £8

April 26th at 7.30 pm
An evening with Simon Chadwick
Simon Chadwick, an expert in the historical harp traditions of Scotland and Ireland, will demonstrate his beautiful replica of the medieval Queen Mary harp. With a fascinating evening of tunes and anecdotes, Simon will discuss the history behind the clarsach and the old harpers, and play highlights from the music of the old Gaelic world.
Tickets £8





May 18th at 7.30 pm
The Great Entertainers
An entertaining presentation looking at the varied lives and careers of stars:
Alastair Sim, Peter Ustinov, Joyce Grenfell and Margaret Rutherford.
Alastair Sim is one of the most revered actors of his generation, appearing in such films as Green for Danger, Laughter in Paradise and Scrooge. Peter Ustinov: writer, director and actor, was probably one of the most talented stars ever to grace a London stage or a Hollywood movie!
Margaret Rutherford and Joyce Grenfell worked alongside each other in When the Sun Shines and Demi-Paradise as well as the 1951 classic: The Happiest Days of Your Life.
This entertaining talk looks at their lives and includes excerpts from plays, poems and films, and will undoubtedly throw up many a surprise!
Tickets £8

May 25th and 26th at 7.30 pm
RLT presents
One Big Blow
by John Burrows
with original music by Rick Lloyd.
Set in a coal mining village in the 1980s, One Big Blow portrays the two sides of the miners' lives – the tough conditions under which they work and the effect this has on their health, and their escape from this when they play in the colliery brass band.
This production has played to sell out houses in venues such as the national Coal Mining Museum for England, Wakefield; The King's Head, Islington and Buxton Fringe. It is going to be part of Tameside MBC's contribution to the 2012 cultural olympiad as their theme is brass bands.
Tickets £10

June 2nd at 7.30 pm
Archie Fisher
Master guitarist, singer and songwriter Archie Fisher is among Scotland's foremost troubadours. He was born in Glasgow into a large singing family. Early influences on his musical development were his father's appreciation of many musical styles and his mother's native Gaelic. Since ending his 27 year stint as the host of BBC Radio Scotland's award-winning Travelling Folk programme, Archie has been touring extensively in North America. He is currently working on his second album for the American Red House Records label with producer and expert instrumentalist Peter Ostroushko.
Tickets £8                                                                    Sponsored by 

June 24th 2.00 – 5.00 pm
Garden Party
A variety of stalls – books, plants, home baking etc – plus refreshments and live music.