Elvis Costello and The Imposters for Festival of Voice

Elvis Costello and The Imposters has been announced to headline the Festival of Voice which takes place at various venues in Cardiff from Thursday 7th to Sunday 17th June 2018.

Elvis will be performing on the final day, Sunday 17th June, on the main stage at the Wales Millennium Centre.

Also newly announced is Beninese vocalist and activist, Angelique Kidjo who performs her latest project, a reinterpretation of the classic Talking Heads album ‘Remain in Light’, on Saturday 9th June.

As well as headline music shows, the second announcement from Festival of Voice includes new multi-arts and theatre projects, commissioned especially for this year’s festival. Experimental psych-pop purveyor Gwenno will present Edrica (15 June), a live electronic audio/visual performance celebrating the life and work of patchwork pioneer Edrica Huws, the impact of motherhood on creativity, and the parallels between creating modern electronic music and patchwork stitching.

Other female-led premieres created for Festival of Voice include: Welsh actress and singer Carys Eleri’s Lovecraft (from 5 June), a one-woman science-comedy musical looking at the scientific underpinnings of love and loneliness in our modern society; Highway One (from 5 June), directed by Mathilde López, a touching and absurdly funny tale of the tribulations of travel in search for meaning, featuring live performances from Katell Keineg including songs from her forthcoming album; Double Vision (from 6 June), a new thriller and multisensory inclusive experience inspired by Hitchcock and Lehman from Cardiff-based gig theatre specialists, Gagglebabble, featuring an original score from Lucy Rivers performed by a live band fronted by 9Bach’s Lisa Jên; and Camille O’Sullivan performs the songs of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds with Cave (12-13 June), a theatrical exploration of the dark and light of Nick Cave’s music from the enigmatic Irish singer story-teller.

Graeme Farrow is the Artistic Director of Wales Millennium Centre and Festival of Voice. He is looking forward
to the second instalment of the event. "Women and song are at the heart of this year’s new commissions. They will move you, make you think, laugh, and even frighten you. You can’t see these shows anywhere else but in Cardiff and we are showcasing some of the extraordinary talent we have here in Wales."

Music show highlights:-

Thursday 7th June 19:00 - Donald Gordon Theatre: Billy Bragg, Nadine Shah, Voices of Protest - £16-26.50
Saturday 9th June 20:00 - St John's Church: Laura Veirs + support - £17.50
Saturday 9th June 19:00 - Wales Millennium Centre: Angelique Kidjo - from £17.50
Monday 11th June 21:00 - Donald Gordon Theatre: Gruff Rhys and BBC National Orchestra of Wales - £17.50-29.50
Monday 11th June 21:00 - St John's Church: Words and Music with Patti Smith - £20
Tuesday 12th June 19:30 - Donald Gordon Theatre: An evening with Patti Smith, Lenny Kaye, Tony Shanahan - £25-40
Tuesday 12th June 21:00 - Wales Millennium Centre: Camille O' Sullivan performs the songs of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds - £18
Wednesday 13th June 21:00 - Wales Millennium Centre: Camille O' Sullivan performs the songs of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds - £18
Wednesday 13th June 21:00 - New Theatre: Susanne Sundfor + Novo Amor - £18
Thursday 14th June 19:30 - Donald Gordon Theatre: Passenger + support - £17.50-29.50
Friday 15th June 18:30 - Sherman Theatre: The Tiger Lillies: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency - £20
Friday 15th June 18:30 - Richard Burton Theatre: Karine Polwart: Wind Resistance - £20
Friday 15th June 19:30 - Wales Millennium Centre: Gwenno - from £17.50
Saturday 16th June 13:30 - Richard Burton Theatre: Karine Polwart: Wind Resistance - £20
Saturday 16th June 18:30 - Sherman Theatre: The Tiger Lillies: The Ballad of Sexual Dependency - £20
Saturday 16th June 18:30 - Richard Burton Theatre: Karine Polwart: Wind Resistance - £20
Sunday 17th June 13:30 - Richard Burton Theatre: Karine Polwart: Wind Resistance - £20
Sunday 17th June 19:30 - Wales Millennium Centre: Elvis Costello and The Imposters - from £37.50

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Festival of Voice is also inviting women (including those who identify as women or non-binary) and girls to raise their voices with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take part in PROCESSIONS, a mass participation artwork to celebrate one hundred years of votes for women. On Sunday 10 June, women and girls in Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh and London will walk together, wearing either green, white or violet to represent the colours of the suffrage movement and standing for “Give Women Votes”. Produced by Artichoke and commissioned by 14-18 NOW, the UK’s arts programme for the First World War centenary, PROCESSIONS will appear as flowing rivers of colour through the city streets, creating a living portrait of women in the 21st century (register from 8th March at processions.co.uk). 

Two of Wales’ national companies present brand new work. Marking the centenary of women’s suffrage and incorporating many of the anthems and songs of the suffragette movement, Welsh National Opera presents a new 'Cabaret Opera', Rhondda Rips It Up! (14 June). The production tells the story of the remarkable Welsh suffragette, Margaret Haig Thomas and features an all-female cast and creative team with composition by Elena Langer and a libretto by Emma Jenkins and stars Lesley Garret. The following evening, WNO also present a concert conducted by Music Director Tomáš Hanus, featuring distinguished German soprano Angela Denoke with the WNO Orchestra (15 June), with a programme that includes Berlioz’s Summer Nights – one of the most magical of all orchestral song-cycles.

National Theatre Wales collaborate with renowned Manchester-based theatre company Quarantine on English (from 14 June), which looks at language, migration and identity. Made in Wales but with a global perspective, this performance pulls pop songs apart, tears grammar to pieces and invites all the languages in the room to be heard.

Audiences can also look forward to powerful vocal displays from several international collectives including Reykjavíkurdætur (9 June), a 10-woman-strong rap collective from Iceland; A Filetta (8 June), a Corsican vocal group whose six members’ vocals soar and intertwine with three-part polyphonic songs; and Tank and the Bangas (8 June) bring their flawless marriage of rap, spoken word and neo-soul as one of the most distinctive groups to come out of New Orleans. And Welsh multi-instrumentalist Ali Lacey aka Novo Amor supports Norwegian folk-songstress Susanne Sundfør (13 June) for an evening of compelling storytelling and arresting vocals.

The festival’s music programme also features last year’s Welsh Music Prize winner, The Gentle Good (14 June), known for his intricate guitar playing and timeless folk melodies, supported by Ivan Moult, with special performances from both artists as they’re joined on stage by the Mavron Quartet. Vibes player and multi-instrumentalist Orphy Robinson presents Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks (10 June), bringing together some of the UK’s top jazz players to reinterpret Van Morrison’s 1968 masterpiece. And Atlantic Arc Orchestra (14 June) sees a vibrant collaboration of respected traditional musicians and singers from both the Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.

 

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