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Award-winning musical Jesus Christ Superstar to kick off 2023 UK tour in Manchester

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Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 2nd March 2023

Award-winning musical Jesus Christ Superstar is heading out on a UK tour later this year, and it’s kicking things off here in Manchester.

Following several acclaimed and sold-out runs in the West End, as well as an extensive tour right across the US and Canada, it’s now been announced that the Olivier Award-winning reimagined production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s celebrated musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, will take to the stage at some of the country’s best-loved theatres.

Liverpool, Newcastle, Sheffield, Bradford, Sunderland, and Blackpool are just a handful of the Northern locations the show will be stopping off at – with several other major UK cities also on the lineup.

But what better way to kick things off than with a visit to see us here in Manchester?

Jesus Christ Superstar will be taking over Manchester’s Palace Theatre for a two-week run from Monday 11 – Saturday 23 September 2023.

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Featuring music and lyrics by Emmy, GRAMMY, Oscar, and Tony winners Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, this version of the beloved production first staged all the way back in 1971 was reimagined by London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre – which is actually where it originated – and is headed up by director Timothy Sheader and choreographer Drew McOnie.

Unfamiliar with the award-winning production? A global phenomenon that has wowed audiences for decades, Jesus Christ Superstar’s iconic 1970s rock score was originally released as a concept album and opened on Broadway in 1971 at the Mark Hellinger Theatre.

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The show is set against the backdrop of an extraordinary series of events during the final weeks in the life of Jesus Christ, as seen through the eyes of Judas.

The legendary score includes smash-hit songs like ‘I Don’t Know How to Love Him’, ‘Gethsemane’, and the stand-out ‘Superstar’.

Jesus Christ Superstar to kick off 2023 UK tour in Manchester / Credit: Supplied

Speaking ahead of the start of the UK tour, the show’s producer David Ian said: “I am thrilled to be taking this award-winning production on tour in 2023 and 2024.

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“Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre has created a fresh and bold new version of a beloved classic, which will enthrall both longtime fans of the show and delight those seeing it for the very first time”.

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Starting from just £13 per person, tickets to Jesus Christ Superstar at Manchester Palace Theatre are now on sale and being snapped up fast.

Grab yours here.

Featured Image – Supplied

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Benson Boone has announced a headline gig in Manchester – and it’s a big one

Danny Jones Danny Jones Benson Boone Manchester gig tickets

American pop sensation and unrivalled king of unnecessary front flips, Benson Boone, has just announced his first-ever headline Manchester arena gig as part of a new arena tour.

The solo artist and acrobatic chart-topper has seen a meteoric rise in the US and, as is usually the case across the Atlantic, he’s become increasingly popular over here too.

Benson may have performed here in Manchester before as part of the 2024 MTV EMAs and for a small show at The Deaf Institute, but now big fans have the added Boone of getting to watch a standalone show at one of Europe’s leading indoor entertainment venues.

Announced on Friday, 30 May, the 22-year-old will be making his way across the pond from Washington for a limited run of UK concerts, with a date at Co-op Live arena being one of just five dates.

Extending his ‘American Heart Tour’ ahead of the release of his eponymous sophomore record, with this autumn leg, Co-op Live will mark his individual visit to 0161.

The Grammy-nominated artist has earned several nods of recognition already for his first album, Fireworks & Rollerblades, which was released just last spring.

He has been described as among the current trend of male singers who fit into the American Idol and ‘Voice audition pop’ genre (a term recently coined online), along with the likes of Teddy Swims, Shawn Mendes, Alex Warren and others.

Regardless of the slightly tongue-in-cheek term, he’s become a huge hit around the world and landing him is still a big coup for the venue that has already welcomed similarly massive pop contemporaries like Swims, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo and more.

In case you’re wondering just how big a deal he is over in the States, even this early in his career, his domestic headline dates sold out in seconds, quite literally…

The last time he visited Co-op Live was to perform at the most recent MTV EMAs

Benson Boone is coming to Manchester on Monday, 27 October and will be playing just two other British venues: The O2 in London (two nights) and the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.

Safe to say you don’t want to miss this one if you like soaring vocals and lots of flipping.

General admission tickets go live at 10am on Thursday, 5 June, but Co-op Members can gain access via the arena’s official pre-sale window from the same time on Tuesday (3 Jun).

You can get ready to grab yours HERE.

We’re pretty excited by the pending arrival of another trending pop name very soon as well.

The UK’s 2025 Eurovision act Remember Monday has announced a Manchester gig

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Press Shots/Audio North

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A brand new grunge and hard rock festival is kicking off in Manchester

Danny Jones Danny Jones Broken Knees Fest 2025 Manchester

Manchester grungers, hardcore heads, and fans of all things rock, pay attention because there is a brand new festival coming to the city centre – and it has possibly the best name for a live music event we’ve heard in some time.

Ahem… let us introduce you to Broken Knees Fest.

Yes, donning a name that feels increasingly more relatable the closer we get to the wrong side of 30, Broken Knees Festival 2025 marks the inaugural edition of Manchester’s newest series of rock and grunge gigs, helping spotlight rising artists across the genres from within two crucial grassroots venues.

Very loud music inside tightly-packed, small-capacity rooms? It’s a winning formula that never fails. It’s about time we broke a sweat – here’s hoping the knees just about hold out.

Hosted in the heart of the Northern Quarter, which continues to thrive as a creative hub for new music and art of all forms, the festival will be debuting at small-cap favourites Gullivers and Castle Hotel just across the road.

As you can see, the lineup is full of up-and-coming talent within the guitar-driven space, but you can bank on more than a few bringing their die-hard fans to fill the place out to the rafters.

It doesn’t matter if you prefer punk, hardcore, grunge or another specific sub-genre found somewhere in between the ever-sprawling rock spectrum, there’s something to suit all alternative tastes at this one.

With the likes of Bohmen, Mavis, One Dimensional Creatures and Smother headlining the first-ever iteration of the festival across four stages, you can expect plenty of energy and even more noise.

Set up by the events group of the same name, Broken Knees Promotions, who help platform rock and alt acts across Greater Manchester and beyond year-round, this is more than just a festival: it’s a grassroots celebration through and through.

Best of all, if you’re interested, you don’t have to wait long because it’s kicking off next month.

castle hotel gigs
gullivers gigs manchester
Gigs go off in here. If you know, you know… (Credit: Audio North)

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Broken Knees Fest 2025 is happening on the weekend of 21-22 June, and you’ll be glad to hear that, as a brand new event, prices have been kept nice and low.

The early bird window had prices starting from just £12, and although this tier has now sold out, day tickets are still only £15 while a full weekend pass will set you back £25.

You can grab yours HERE.

Until then, why not dive into another load of new Manchester music? We round up artists from all genres each month; we’ll also confess to leaning slightly more towards the heavier stuff from time to time.

Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | April 2025
More coming at the end of May.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Press shots (supplied)

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