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Bolton: Theatre
One of the first British plays to have a working-class female central character, Stanley Houghton’s Hindle Wakes, first performed in 1912, rejected outdated attitudes in championing the role of women. Set in a fictitious Lancashire town, it tells the story of mill worker Fanny Hawthorn (Natasha Davidson, pictured) who spends a “scandalous” weekend in Llandudno with her employer’s son. But, their secret revealed, Fanny finds herself under pressure to become an “honest woman” and her overwhelming desire to pursue her own future seems to slip from her grasp as both families begin to discuss marriage, money and avoiding social ruin.
Glasgow: Music
Catrin Finch + Seckou Keita and Cruinn
If any concert sums up the global ethos of the Celtic Connections festival, it has to be this one. It unites Welsh harpist Catrin Finch, a major classical musician, with innovative Senegalese griot and kora master Seckou Keita in a near-telepathic performance which interweaves strands of the Welsh and African music traditions. Recommended.
London: Exhibition
This intriguing installation by Ruth Ewan brings to life the French republican calendar, in use from 1793 until 1805, which temporarily redefined and rationalised the Gregorian calendar, stripping it of all religious references. Bringing together 365 items used to denote the days of the year, ranging from a lettuce to mercury, Ewan’s work reflects on how radical ideas have been transferred, absorbed or lost within popular culture, while reopening their historic continuity to the present day. Also on display is her Jukebox of People Trying to Change the World, which invites visitors to choose tracks from over 2,200 politically and socially motivated songs.
London: Theatre
Peter Barnes’s The Ruling Class, first performed in 1968, gets a welcome revival at the Trafalgar Studios. It tells the story of the 14th Earl of Gurney, possibly mentally deranged, who after assuming the title finds himself at the centre of a ruthless power struggle as his scheming family strives to uphold their reputation. A ferocious mix of hilarity and horror, the Ruling Class mercilessly exposes the foibles of the English nobility.
