Every Woman Every Man, Join the Caravan
Of love. Oh those old-fashioned rhyme schemes bumbling along there. So disarming. Local company Theatre Nation's excellent play Caravan of Love is soon to return from this year's socially distanced and Covid-safe Brighton Fringe and do a two-day run in…
Ohm Boy at Stella Dore
So Hugo Farmer might not be a name you're familiar with, but you probably will be familiar with his work via a certain well-known street artist who, for legal reasons, can't give him much credit. Hugo is a sculptor and…
Public House at the Dirty Old Gallery
The canvas of carpet. The heaven of slots. The Khaos of blackboard. And one of the more depressing football games you've seen in years. England v. Germany 2010. We lost Public from an appropriately rickety bench. Do not cross the…
Grounded: A Season of Screendance
Reviewed by Merlin Betts Screendance is a hybrid genre that does what is says on the tin: brings together the norms of screen, particularly cinema, and key elements of dance. Sometimes, but not always, this will mean actors dancing on…
Creation in Isolation
It’s not easy being an artist in lockdown. Our worst enemy is isolation: not having something to create about. That can be terrifying, with or without lockdown. But it’s not like suddenly being unable to show in a gallery stops…
Does England’s Creative Coast Care About Racism?
The answer turned out to be an interesting balance of possibly and, well, no, not very much. I picked the organisation known as “England’s Creative Coast” as a sample rather than looking over Hastings’ galleries, because ECC says things like:…
Waiting for Godot and What Future for Hastings Theatre?
Merlin Betts interviewed Patrick Kealey of Theatre Nation about what was going to be their upcoming production of Waiting for ; You’ve picked Hamlet and now Waiting For Godot as Theatre Nation’s relatively ‘mainstream’ theatrical debuts. Are you developing a…
Hastings Contemporary Robot-Assisted Gallery Tours and AltPitch 2021
Merlin Betts considers the news that a robot is propping up our contemporary arts centre. Doors Closed, Exhibitions Open As part of its efforts to reduce the spread of Coronavirus, HBC ordered that a number of businesses and attractions close,…
‘Virtual Spaces’ at The blackShed
By Gareth Stevens It will come as no surprise that The blackShed Gallery is closed during these times of ‘lockdown' – but for those of you who know the gallery’s irrepressible owner and director Kenton Lowe, this inevitable hiatus in…
Waiting For Godot: A Discussion
Merlin Betts talks to Theatre Nation and the cast of their upcoming performance of “Waiting for Godot’, playing at the White Rock Theatre on 25th and 26th March and the start of a substantial ; Patrick Kealy, from Theatre Nation…