A week-long festival of club classics, soul, jazz and burlesque in the magical Spiegeltent will ignite Harrogate from Friday 29 June to Sunday 8 July.
Part of the Harrogate International Festivals 2018 programme, the pop-up venue has taken on legendary proportions in the town with its appearance marking the start of the town’s festival summer season. It returns this year with support from Grants for the Arts and Arts Council funding.
Charlotte Woods, Music and Education Manager at Harrogate International Festivals, said: “Crescent Gardens will come alive with the return of our 20th century travelling dance hall, bar and entertainment saloon. We promise an infectious energy, fun, and a unique chance to see and hear something truly different to the norm. Expect the extraordinary.”
Starting in sultry style with Benoit Viellefon and His Hot Club, the finest musicians on the London jazz scene promise flair and vintage romance as the 1930s Parisian café scene meets American jazz, Louis Armstrong-style.
Guest Curator of 2018’s Spiegeltent programme is the singer-songwriter, Ayanna Witter-Johnson, who’ll also be performing. The MOBO-nominated jazz vocalist, composer and cellist brings the seemingly opposing worlds of classical and contemporary music together, with alternative R&B. She’ll be performing a new commission written especially for Harrogate Festivals.
The Gypsy Queens are the band the stars trust to get the party going, with legions of famous fans including Robert De Niro, David Beckham and Prince Harry. Famed for their riotously entertaining performances, the A-list entertainers promise their trademark dynamic, energetic charm.
The semi-free jazz drum-and-sax duo and MOBO winners, Binker & Moses, have been hailed as part of a new type of jazz in the UK, creating sounds that work on dance floors and festivals as well as jazz clubs.
There’s a chance to step back to the 90s with a screening of the cult classic 24 Hour Party People, starring Steve Coogan. The film will be followed by a Q&A and exclusive House DJ set from Graeme Park, one of the DJ’s responsible for the legendary Hacienda in Manchester.
The award-winning House of Burlesque return with the Queen of provocateurs, Miss Tempest Rose, in a rip-roaring evening full of high-end glamour, joyful satire and creative cabaret; boogie the night away post-show in a Silent Disco.
Winner of the Kenny Wheeler jazz prize, Misha Mullov-Abbado, has performed at Ronnie Scott’s and the 606 Club. The 2017 BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist’s debut album was picked as one of the Telegraph’s Best Jazz Albums of 2015. His second album, Cross-Platform Interchange wowed the critics.
Audiences can also keep an eye out for free lunchtime concerts each weekday.
There are only a handful of Spiegeltents left in the world. The unique hand-hewn tents are built of wood, mirrors, canvas, leaded glass and detailed in velvet and brocade, each has its own personality and style. With limited capacity in the pop-up venue, audiences are encouraged to book early to avoid disappointment.
www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com for the full programmes. Box Office: 01423 562 303