The weather’s warming up nicely and the summer solstice and holidays are just around the corner. Music, festivals and summer go hand-in-hand and we have a fabulous line-up through July and August, starting on Saturday 5 July with Michael Law’s Piccadilly Revellers. Bandleader, vocalist and pianist Michael returns with a brand new, swinging, six-piece ensemble including Louise Cookman – the ‘Whitstable Nightingale’ – on vocals and Enrico Tomasso on trumpet, piano and double bass. Enjoy an evening of comic, sentimental and jazzy tunes from the ‘between the wars’ era.
Internationally acclaimed concert pianists Worbey and Farrell are much more than a traditional piano duet and come to Cornerstone on Saturday 19 July with Deviations On The Piano. From imitating the tones of a Spanish guitar on their instrument to displaying everything from Rachmaninov to their own verse, this promises to be a barnstorming blend of comedy banter and amazing ‘duelling’ piano.
Have you always fancied going to a festival but just can’t face the prospect of wading through seas of mud, communal showers and sleeping under canvas? Or perhaps you’ve done all that and really can’t bear to do it again? Fear not, Cornerstone has the solution, right on your doorstep, with the Sixth Annual Beer and Music Festival! From Friday 1 to Sunday 3 August you can enjoy three days of FREE music and the best local beers, ciders and food. M.A.I.A. are headlining and confirmed acts include Ellie Williams, Duchess, The August List, Fred’s House, Band of Hope, Reuben’s Rocket and The Isleys. Keep an eye on our web site for updates over the next few weeks.
Access All Areas, on Friday 25 July, offers a festival of workshops, activities and performances for adults with learning disabilities. Daytime activities will run from 10am to 3pm and include Music and Dance Special, Sensory Storytelling, Singing, Drama, Pampering, Nail Bar, Jewellery Making, Anjali Dancing and Drumming plus an art drop-in workshop will run all day from 10.30am to 3pm. Evening activities begin 6.30pm with Speed Dating, followed by Strictly Dance Event from 8pm until 10.30pm. All activites are free except Music and Dance Special (£3 on the door). Either drop in to any of the activities or call the Box Office to reserve a place in advance.
Children’s theatre production Curious Creatures features puppets, comedy, slapstick and live music plus lots of amazing natural history facts, on Sunday 20 July. Meet performing fleas, a gymnastic gerbil, learn how animals evolve, how they survive in the wild and how they can help us learn more about ourselves. Great fun for all the family from ages 4 and up.
As the school holidays roll on children may begin to get bored, and parents begin to feel a little frazzled. August summer holiday activities at Cornerstone run between 5 and 15 August and there are new courses including Circus Skills, Lino-Carving, Crafty With Willow and Crazy Comic Mash-Up as well as firm favourites Clay Sculpture, Drop-In and Doodle and Sci-Art School.
Cornerstone will be closed from Monday 18 until Friday 29 August (inclusive). This ‘dark period’ allows essential maintenance to be carried out.
The Cornerstone team wishes you all a wonderful summer!
CALENDAR
JULY 2014
1-6 Oxford Scribes: Write On, Exhibition, Tue-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-4pm. FREE admission. Celebrating calligraphic society Oxford Scribes’ 30th anniversary with an exhibition of members’ work.
10-31 Samantha Wadham: Interior Growth, Exhibition, Tue-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-4pm. FREE admission. Multidisciplinary Didcot artist Samantha Wadham interprets textiles through different materials and media.
Sat 5 Guitar: One-off Workshop for Adults, 2.30-4pm. Learn to play acoustic guitar, all abilities welcome and no music reading necessary. Bring your own guitar!
Sat 5 Michael Law’s Piccadilly Revellers, Music: Swing, 8pm. Michael’s the founder of the Piccadilly Dance Orchestra and returns with his new swinging six-piece, playing tunes from the ‘between the wars’ era.
Thu 10 Dance Connection presents: Beyond Limits, Hiring: Dance, Thursday 10 and Friday 11 at 7.30pm. Saturday
to 12 at 1.30pm & Anniversary Gala Night at 7.30pm (reception from 6.30pm). A cast of 100 talented young
Sat 12 dancers celebrate award-winning performing arts centre Dance Connection’s 20th anniversary.
Sat 19 Worbey and Farrell: Deviations on the Piano, Music: Popular Classical, 8pm. Internationally acclaimed concert pianists, they present a blend of comedy banter and amazing ‘duelling’ piano work.
Sun 20 Squashbox Theatre presents: Curious Creatures, Children’s Theatre, 2pm. Ages 4+. Learn lots about animals through puppets, comedy, slapstick and live music plus loads of amazing natural history facts.
Fri 25 Access All Areas. Please call for details, times and booking information. Cornerstone gives a day over to creative activities for people with learning disabilities. Fully accessible.
AUGUST 2014
1-3 Cornerstone presents the Sixth Annual Beer and Music Festival, Fri & Sat midday-midnight, Sun midday-10.30pm. FREE admission. This year’s festival has the biggest and best line up to date. No expensive tickets, no muddy fields, no overcrowding, just three days of FREE music and the best of local beers, ciders and food. Please see web site for up-to-date details of confirmed acts.
1-16 Samantha Wadham: Interior Growth, Exhibition, Tue-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-4pm. FREE admission. Multidisciplinary Didcot artist Samantha Wadham interprets textiles through different materials and media.
SUMMER HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES
August 2014
5-15 Drop-in and Doodle: Flower Power, 10am-4pm. FREE. All ages (children must be accompanied by an adult).
Create colourful cut-out floral silhouettes, inspired by our Interior Growth exhibition.
Tue 5 Clay Sculpture, 1.30-3.30pm. Ages 5-12 years (adult goes free when accompanied by a child). Explore circus themes and create your own colourful ceramic sculpture, perhaps a clown or Big Top! All materials included.
Wed 6 NEW! Lino-Carving, 10.30am-12.30pm. Ages 8-12 years (adult goes free when accompanied by a child). Make a lino-carved stamp with your initials in fancy lettering and use it to print with. Materials included.
Thu 7 NEW! Circus Skills, 10.30am-4.30pm. Ages 7-13 years. Learn lots of fun skills with Circus Bezercus -juggling, diabolo, plate spinning, unicycling and stilt-walking. Show off your new skills at the end of the workshop.
Fri 8 NEW! 3-D Screen Printing, 10.30am-4.30pm. Ages 7-11 years. Use some great new bits of kit to screen-print designs onto card and then use it to construct buildings and structures. All materials included.
Tue 12 Sci-Art School. Ages 5-7 years 10.30am-12 noon. Ages 8-11 years 1-2.30pm. Three session course
to exploring the art of science and the science of art. Paint, sculpt and draw whilst learning about the natural Thu 14 phenomena of the world around us. All materials included.
Fri 15 NEW! Crafty with Willow! 10.30am-12.30pm. Ages 5-12 years (5 & 6 year olds to be accompanied by an adult). Have fun crafting all kinds of creatures and creations from willow. All materials included.
Fri 15 NEW! Crazy Comic Mash-Up, 10.30am-4.30pm. Ages 8-13 years. Learn how to make a comic and how to use Apple laptops to make a cartoon animation. Use iStopmotion and Comic Life to create your own comics with pictures and drawings. No previous knowledge necessary.
Full details of our summer programme can be found on our website http://www.cornerstone-arts.org, with online booking facility.
CORNERSTONE ARTS CENTRE, 25 Station Road, Didcot, OX11 7NE
Box Office: 01235 515144 open Tuesday to Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 11am-4pm. Closed Monday.