Operated by by sister company Rising Moon Productions, our dedicated events space can be used for theatre, comedy, live music, events and everything in between.
Events in June–July 2022
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Saturday Night Special: Lauren Young
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Saturday Night Special: Lauren Young
If Amy Winehouse and Tom Waits had a love child with a sweet, sweet voice, that blessed infant might not sound unlike Lauren Young. An accomplished classical pianist who can turn her hand to jazz, blues and even soul, Young creates a strikingly original sound, colouring her self-penned songs with an expansive emotional palette. But this is not painting by numbers! From big lush arrangements to whispered heart-break lullabies, the pain, the joy and the wonder are as real and tangible as Young’s Stockport roots. A rare jewel in Manchester’s grimy crown. Do not miss this artist!
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Saturday Night Special: Mark Greer, Clive Mellor, Andy Yates
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Saturday Night Special: Mark Greer, Clive Mellor, Andy Yates
Clive Mellor's hard fought skill and chutzpah have made him the go -to harmonica player for a gang of heroes of Brit -pop, he's teamed up with his amigo from The Lonesome & Penniless Cowboys, Mark Greer for this great Saturday Night Special event.Mark learnt slide guitar from a railway guard, aged 14, this is now his instrument of choice in repertoire encompassing, country, blues, gospel and glam rock. Andy Yates' erudite and insightful songs are backed by a fierce and determined rhythm infused with a pub rock ethic. Clive and Mark also starred in Cannon and Ball the musical, written and produced by Andy Yates. Rollmopski build on a foundation of music concrete with blocks of analog electronic instrumentation fashioning an explosive but beguiling phantasmorgraphia of noise and melody -
Verbose - with Talya Stitcher and Alex Calver
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Verbose - with Talya Stitcher and Alex Calver
Manchester's award-winning spoken word event - every last Monday of the month at The King's Arms! Verbose brings a vibrant mix of spoken word and live literature from a talented bill of open mic acts and wonderful headliners. Expect poetry, prose and everything in between from a real community vibe that gladly welcomes all newcomers.
Tickets are FREE at the point of service but donation tickets are available and greatly appreciated! Our open mic bill is now FULL for this event.
HEADLINERS
TALYA STITCHER
Talya is a cat-obsessed, challah-loving, pottery-attempting poet and photographer, whose work has been described as “warm and relatable, with an ability to vibrantly capture the small moments”. She produces Sounds Queer in Sheffield, celebrating and platforming Yorkshire’s queer community. Credits include UK New Artists 2021-22, Homos and Houmous, Ilkley LitFest Slam, Roundhouse Slam, and Leeds Queer Film Festival.
“Cinematic” – Joelle Taylor
@talyastitcher (Instagram)
@soundsqueer.sheffield (Instagram/Facebook)
@sounds_queer (Twitter)
ALEX CALVER
Alex Calver broke out in the poetry scene almost as gradually as he's figured out his identity; slowly at first, and then all at once. Starting in slam poetry, Alex has competed against some of the country's best young poets and even, on occasion, won. He's taken this success to mean that he's finally found something he's good at, and has since worked on giving back to the community that helped him so much.
Launching his own event, Poetry+, in April 2018, Alex has consistently attempted to push the boundaries of what spoken word is, and what can be done with it. Moving away from the Slam style that he grew so accustomed to, Alex's work explores the intricacies of identity, relationships and belonging, and the causes and effects of mental health and LGBTQ+ issues.
Alex is a member of the London Queer Writer's Collective, competed as part of Bath Spa's UniSlam Team for two consecutive years before becoming their co-coach and the UniSlam Social Media Manager, and is currently working on his first collection.
His status as a trans poet has been turning heads across Europe, through his performances at Edinburgh Fringe's acclaimed BBC Slam, Grizzly Pear's 'Community' event where he collaborated with fellow trans poet, Mikey Barnes, and the European Forum Alpbach in Austria where he taught and performed poetry in July 2019.
After taking a pandemic-curated hiatus from spoken word, Alex has returned to the scene reinvigorated, utilising it as a platform for activism through personal and narrative-led poetry.
"Like an old man whispering to his house plants, Alex's gentle presence will guide your mind to the light." - Shaun Hill
"He is the embodiment of a poem." - Rebecca Tantony
"Alex confronts vital themes - scary, but important subjects and sentiments - and does it in a way that will hook your heart strings and pull you into tomorrow." - Jasmine Gardosi
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Deskjockey Records Presents: The Welly House Band with Rodney and Harpanskraft
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Deskjockey Records Presents: The Welly House Band with Rodney and Harpanskraft
Desk Jockey Records are from Greater Manchester who found inspiration in Salford’s musical ancestry.
Although none of the members are originally from Salford, they studied and lived in the city, moved by the artistry that originated here.
“There’s such a scope of creative things going on in Salford. All the link to the Manchester bands that come from Salford, and looking through the lens of theatre you’ve got so many venues, like the New Adelphi theatre, or you’ve got the Lowry or even in here where we’re sat right now is a staple of Manchester theatre”,
Bringing you an evening of experimental, and sometimes dissonant music, this event will encourage the audience to be part of the performance.
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The Crisp Review: LIVE
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The Crisp Review: LIVE
As the unending expanse of the pandemic stretched out before him, Adam Evans set out to achieve one thing: receive crisps to taste, for free, from crisp manufacturers. Thus, 'The Crisp Review' was born. Using his thorough, if fairly confusing, T.A.S.T.E system (Texture, Amount, Satisfied?, Taste and Economy) Adam diligently reviewed every crisp after crisp, only occasionally giving up several times in his quest for that elusive free crunch.
18 months and over 50 reviews later, a box arrived containing seven free packets and an overwhelming sense of success. Now, Adam has a new goal: milk this idea to death. Expect crisps, a documentary about crisps, games involving crisps, graphs about crisps and *potentially* (sponsor pending) a packet of crisps.
Instagram: @the_crispreview
TikTok: @thecrispreview -
The Crisp Review: LIVE
–
The Crisp Review: LIVE
As the unending expanse of the pandemic stretched out before him, Adam Evans set out to achieve one thing: receive crisps to taste, for free, from crisp manufacturers. Thus, 'The Crisp Review' was born. Using his thorough, if fairly confusing, T.A.S.T.E system (Texture, Amount, Satisfied?, Taste and Economy) Adam diligently reviewed every crisp after crisp, only occasionally giving up several times in his quest for that elusive free crunch.
18 months and over 50 reviews later, a box arrived containing seven free packets and an overwhelming sense of success. Now, Adam has a new goal: milk this idea to death. Expect crisps, a documentary about crisps, games involving crisps, graphs about crisps and *potentially* (sponsor pending) a packet of crisps.
Instagram: @the_crispreview
TikTok: @thecrispreview -
Dreams of Decay 2
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Dreams of Decay 2
We enjoyed last time so much, there was no way we weren't going to do it again!This time we will be joined again by three excellent electronic extravaganzas in the form of :Gary FisherPillcat 23 (Lauren Bolger and Neil Francis)La Loba (Amy Horgan and Rachel Goodyear)+ Neon Eyes (Tara Corns & Miriam Avery) dj set to get you all dancing afterwards.