The Week in Light & Sound
- Details
It will begin with performances by the Kaiser Chiefs and poet Lemn Sissay and will feature what's said to be the UK's largest water sculpture - an 80m-long fountain - on the River Tyne. On the opening weekend, members of the public will be invited to join in with wandering groups of dancers, while three choirs will make their way through the cities. John Lennon's last piano and the original Postman Pat models will be part of an exhibition of northern cultural creations at the Great North Museum.
Rolled Gold - The Rolling Stones have scheduled their first UK tour since 2006. The band will play five stadium dates as part of their No Filter tour this May and June. "It's such a joy to play with this band," said Keith Richards. "We're only just getting started really." The band last played the UK five years ago, with headline performances at Glastonbury and the BST Festival, but they haven't toured here for 12 years.
The group kick off the European leg of their tour at Dublin's Croke Park on 17 May, before playing the London Stadium on 22 May. Other dates include Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester, Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, the Principality Stadium in Cardiff and London's Twickenham Stadium.
"We are looking forward to getting back onstage in the summer," said Mick Jagger. "It's always exhilarating going to cities we haven't played for quite a while." "The Stones audience is the glue that keeps us together," added drummer Charlie Watts. "The best and most satisfying moment is when you are reaching the end of the show and they are all going nuts."
The band broke box office records on their 2017 European tour, with box office receipts of up to $11.7m (£8.3m).
Old Gold - Lulu is set to return to the West End for the first time in 30 years to take over the role of Dorothy Brock in 42nd Street. The singer replaces Sheena Easton in the show’s first major cast change since it opened in April last year, while Ashley Day will join the company as Billy Lawlor, replacing Stuart Neal. Lulu last appeared in the West End in 1985 when she played Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls.
Musical Notes - Les Miserables will tour the UK and Ireland later this year for the first time in nearly a decade. Producer Cameron Mackintosh has announced that the Broadway production of the Boublil and Schonberg musical will open at Curve in Leicester on 3 November before setting out on tour. It will visit the Bord Gais Energy Theatre in Dublin, the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh and the Manchester Palace Theatre for three weeks in each location. Further dates will be announced.
Golden Girl - Kylie Minogue will perform across the UK and Ireland later this year as part of a newly-announced tour. The Australian singer will hit the road in September and October to mark the release of her upcoming album Golden, having last embarked on a concert stint with a mini-tour of Europe in 2015.
Farewell - The Real Thing singer Eddy Amoo has died at the age of 73. A statement on the group's website described him as "a showman, a songwriter, and a legend in British music". "Eddy will long be remembered as a tour de force in British music and he will be sorely missed," it added. The Real Thing were the first all-black British band to have a UK number one single with You To Me Are Everything in 1976.
(Jim Evans)
27 February 2018
