Daily Info's recommended events for the week ahead, Thursday 23rd January - Wednesday 29th January
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As January comes to a close we've got an EP to make you dance, stimulate your brain box and help you celebrate Burns Night.
A comedy titan is getting a much-deserved exhibition at the Museum of Oxford. Ronnie Barker: Oxford’s Comedy Legend chronicles the star’s life and career which began in Oxford, shining a light on his journey to national icon status.
At the Oxfordshire Museum you can take flight with the Bird Photographer of the Year, featuring 70-80 winning photos from across the globe in a dozen different categories.
And lastly, a pair of Oxford museums are staying up late for some special evening fun. Mega Late! at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History is packed with crafts, tours and pop-up talks to celebrate the museum’s Breaking Ground exhibition. And the Story Museum are hosting another of their Adult Museum Lates, this time for Burns Night. There will be dramatic readings of Burns’ poetry, poems and songs from Creation Theatre and a Ceilidh, as well as snacks at the café and a bar throughout the night.
Ronnie Barker: Oxford’s Comedy Legend: Museum of Oxford, until Sat 19th Apr, Mon to Sat 10am to 5pm, pay-what-you-can.
Bird Photographer of the Year: Oxfordshire Museum (Woodstock), until Sun 23rd Feb, Tue to Sat 10a to 5pm, Sun 2 to 5pm, Free.
Mega Late!: Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Fri 24th Jan, 7 to 10pm, Free (booking required).
Adult Museum Late: Burns Night: The Story Museum, Sat 25th Jan, 7.30 to 10pm, £15-25.
Whatever stage (hehe) you’re going through, there’s enough range to this week’s theatrical options to entertain.
First up, the Oxford Playhouse hosts critically acclaimed dramedy The Shark is Broken. The show goes back in time - and behind the scenes - to the set of Jaws in 1974, where the actors and production team battled numerous problems making their fishy frightfest. The play was a smash hit on both Broadway and the West End, so should bring some thrills.
Equally gripping but more grounded is Mike Bartlett’s Bull, which runs at the Old Fire Station this weekend. A tense workplace drama, the show involves three colleagues competing to save their jobs, and explores how office environments can blur the lines between professional and personal conflicts.
Finally, Sondheim’s beloved musical Into The Woods is coming to the Playhouse stage next week thanks to student company Peach Productions. Sprawling meta-fairytale Into the Woods is an ambitious choice for any group, but Peach Productions has impressed us consistently with past shows, so it sounds like a night not to be missed.
The Shark is Broken: Oxford Playhouse, Thu 23rd - Sat 25th Jan, Thu & Sat 7.30pm, Fri 8pm. Tickets from £14.
Bull: Old Fire Station, Sat 25th - Sun 26th Jan, Sat 7.30pm, Sun 4pm. Tickets £15 - £19.
Into the Woods: Oxford Playhouse, Wed 29th Jan - Sat 1st Feb, 7.30pm (8pm Fri), Thu & Sat matinees 2.30pm. Tickets £14/standard, £12/student.
Tart Productions heads up our tips for nights on the town with their ever popular Queer Voices variety show. An open-mic format featuring poetry, standup, drag and cabaret from Oxford’s LGBTQIA+ community, it’s a welcoming and friendly celebration of new and emerging queer talent.
Then there’s a heaping helping of soul south of the border as Keith Fairbairn’s Groove Collective sways into the Tap Social. Special guest saxophonist Vasilis Xenopoulos and Mike Outram on guitar join Fairbairn’s legendary jazz percussion to create some irresistible Latin rhythms.
And Undercover Comedy’s new material night TBD returns to the Jolly Farmers for a night of out of pocket hilarity hosted by Chortle Student Comedy Award Winner and aspiring saint Catriona Dowden. With new acts and new gags, expect the unexpected from the ‘queer-led comedy coven’.
Finally, the Ultimate Picture Palace hosts a very unconventional ‘Byrne’s Night ’ viewing, trading in the neeps and tatties for a double bill of cult cinema featuring Talking Heads frontman David Byrne. First up, Byrne’s directorial debut True Stories, an offbeat take on slide-of-life rural America, followed by Jonathan Demme’s iconic documentary Stop Making Sense, chronicling the height of Talking Heads’ stardom in 1983.
Queer Voices: Pegasus Theatre, Fri 24th Jan, 7pm. Tickets £6-10.
Keith Fairbairn’s Groove Collective: Tap Social Movement, Tues 28th Jan, 7.45pm - 10pm. Tickets £9/£13.
Undercover Comedy: TBD: Jolly Farmers, Paradise Street, Mon 27th Jan, 7.30pm. Free.
Byrne’s Night: Ultimate Picture Palace, Sat 25th Jan, 7.30pm. Ticket £10-16 (concessions available).
It’s dark and cold out and gyms are crowded, but the mood boosting benefits of exercise can still be reaped through a good old fashioned boogie; with that in mind, here are some options to shake away the blues this January.
For families, Dancin’ Oxford will throw another of its popular Family Dance Party events on Saturday at Pegasus Theatre, with sessions at 11.30am and 2.30pm. Expect fun lighting, bubbles, games and upbeat, kid-friendly music played by a live DJ.
Meanwhile, for a weekly mood booster, Salsa Oxford offers Wednesday night classes for beginners at the West Oxford Community Centre - no experience or partner necessary. Alternatively, professional Belly Dance teacher Loreley Rice offers Belly Dance for Beginners and Tribal Fusion (for those with some experience) on Mondays at St Andrew’s Centre in Botley.
Family Dance Party: Pegasus Theatre, Sat 25th Jan, 11:30am and 2:30pm, tickets £5 - £7.
Wednesday Salsa Classes: West Oxford Community Centre, Wednesdays, 8pm beginners and improvers, 9pm intermediate and advanced. £10 each per class.
Tribal Fusion Bellydance and Belly Dance for Beginners: St Andrew’s Centre (Botley), Mondays, Tribal Fusion 6.30 - 7.30pm, Beginners 7.40 - 8.40pm. £9 per person, per class.
Oxford says goodbye to one of its biggest cinemas this week, as the Odeon George Street closes its doors for the last time on Tuesday. A fixture on the street since the 1930s (the whole history can be found here), you have a few more days to visit this venue, which is showing the likes of A Complete Unknown, Nosferatu and We Live in Time.
Also show at Odeon George Street is Presence, Steven Soderbergh’s ghost story. What makes this stand out so much is that the film is shot from the ghost’s perspective, making it more then your average spook show.
The other big film event this week is the announcement of this year’s Oscar nominees, and one of the big contenders is the sprawling epic The Brutalist. Brady Corbet’s new film chronicles an architect who comes to America after the Second World War and leaves his stamp on it. But be warned: the film is over 3 hours long!
Presence: Odeon George Street, Vue
The Brutalist: Curzon Oxford, Phoenix Picturehouse
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Donated phones can be dropped off at Asylum Welcome on Magdalen Road (Newtec Place, Unit 7, from 10am to 4pm on weekdays; follow Asylum Welcome’s Instagram for further details.
Image credits: BBC, Oxford Playhouse, Tap Social Movement, Pegasus Theatre, Asylum Welcome
