Art & Culture

Ashton is hosting its first-ever street art festival this weekend

Art Battle just keeps growing.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 17th May 2024

The people of Ashton are set to be treated to their first-ever street art festival this weekend as Art Battle Manchester is set to descend on the market town.

Running for over a decade now, Art Battle MCR has gradually been building a loyal following across Greater Manchester and now they’re taking their talents over to Tameside.

Dubbing it the ‘Ashton Underlined Paint Jam’ (very, very good punnage there), the free festival will see over 20 of the UK’s top street artists arrive in Ashton to transform the hoardings outside the town hall into a dynamic outdoor art gallery. 

Curated by internationally renowned street artist, Jay Sharples, the town’s inaugural Paint Jam promises to be a lively celebration of art, culture, and community, whilst also being crucially free for all to attend.

Set to deliver fun for all the family – no, we don’t mind using that old chestnut when it’s actually true – the day will also feature live music from local DJs, top-notch food from local independents and activities for all ages.

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For instance, kids will be able to unleash their creativity with supervised spray-painting sessions, as well as enjoying dynamic break-dancing and skateboarding performances will provide entertainment for the whole family.

It’s all about expression this weekend.

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Kicking off from 10:30am and running until 5pm on Saturday, 18 May outside Ashton Town Hall, you don’t need to book tickets, just simply turn up and soak up the colour and creativity.

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Art Battle co-founder John Macaulay said of the event: “The Ashton Underlined Paint Jam is right up our street – it brings art outside the gallery for the enjoyment of all.”

Funded through the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) for Communities and Place for the Ashton Creative Improvement District awarded to Tameside Council, the Ashton Underlined Paint Jam aims to enhance the cultural vibrancy of Ashton town centre and get people creating.

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And if you’ve never been to an Art Battle event in Manchester before, trust us, you’re seriously missing out.

Credit: The Manc Group

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

Featured Images — Art Battle MCR

Art & Culture

Thousands of FREE tickets to The Big Night of Musicals at AO Arena have been released

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia

There are thousands of free tickets up for grabs to attend ‘The Big Night of Musicals’ in Manchester next year which features a variety of theatre classics.

The curtain has risen once again as returning favourite, The Big Night of Musicals, is coming to AO Arena for a fourth year.

Hosted once again by the one and only Jason Manford, this event contains segments from some of the world’s greatest theatre productions.

Fronted by The National Lottery, this showcase is a thank you to all players whose money has supported more than 20,000 theatre-related projects totalling £1.3 billion.

These funds have been used on many performing arts resources including restoring theatres and enabling hundreds of musical-related projects to commence.

This isn’t something to be missed out on as the bill is shaping up to be one of the event’s biggest to date featuring stars from the West End and some of the most notorious shows.

Attendees can expect to hear some familiar favourites in the likes of Bat Out of Hell, Here & Now: The Steps Musical, Mean Girls and more.

There’s even an exclusive preview of the upcoming theatre adaptation of a Disney superhero as snippets from ‘Hercules’ will be performed live.

Guests even have a chance to be in the same room as musical theatre legend Carrie Hope Fletcher as she takes on the role of Calamity Jane in the theatre show of the same name.

Dear Evan Hansen is also on the bill and if you aren’t free for the musical ensemble, it’s running at Palace Theatre Manchester from 18-22 February next year and tickets are available right now.

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This event has a super varied lineup too, from throwback pop bangers to Wild West heroines, this night really caters to everyone.

In true musical style, there will be big, bold performances and, of course, lots of excellent surprises all set to make a fantastic night of live music at the AO Arena.

All National Lottery players have the chance to reserve up to four tickets, the only cost is proof they’ve purchased a product from the National Lottery and a £2 booking fee per ticket.

Tickets for the ‘Big Night of Musicals’ on 25 January are already on sale you can try your luck at grabbing some free seats HERE.

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

Featured Image — Publicity Picture (Supplied)

Art & Culture

National Portrait Gallery to debut ground-breaking digital exhibition in Salford

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

The National Portrait Gallery has announced a ground-breaking new experience that’s set to make its debut at MediaCity in Salford.

Some of the world’s most famous paintings will be brought to life in an immersive digital exhibition, called Stories – Brought to Life, that will tell the stories behind iconic portraits.

FRAMELESS Creative has partnered with the National Portrait Gallery on the project, which will be the first major touring art experience by any UK art institution and makes up a long-term partnership called National Portrait Gallery Unframed.

Those who attended the hugely popular and acclaimed Van Gogh Alive experience will already know a little of what to expect – famous paintings reimagined with digital projections, visual effects, and audio technology.

FRAMELESS has been granted access to the National Portrait Gallery’s collection to create Stories – Brought to Life, which will tell the tales of people who have shaped history, from the Tudors to the present day, in an innovative new way.

While the exhibition will premiere here in Greater Manchester next year, there’s a planned national and international tour to follow.

The National Portrait Gallery will be debuting a ground-breaking digital exhibition in Salford / Credit: MediaCity

Rich Storton, general manager at FRAMELESS Creative said: “We are delighted to announce this new long-term partnership with the National Portrait Gallery. We hope that by unleashing the power of digital storytelling we can help the Gallery to bring art to a whole new audience.

“We’re living in a changing world and there is a real need for new experiences that help open up art and culture to new audiences and crucially help ensure that national institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery and their incredible collections continue to be accessible and have cultural significance for the next generation.

“MediaCity is a vibrant cultural hub attracting a hugely diverse audience. This combined with its proximity to major transport links and focus on technology made it an obvious choice for premiering our first experience.”

Rosie Wilson, Director of Programmes, Partnerships and Collections at the National Portrait Gallery said: “The National Portrait Gallery aims to share our unique collection of portraits with as wide an audience as possible and explore the human stories that shape our history and culture.

“This exciting new partnership with FRAMELESS, inspired by our Collection, will enable us to take these stories outside of the Gallery walls and bring them to life in new, innovative ways.”

Caroline Aikman, Director of Marketing, Brand and Place at MediaCity said: “We are honoured that the National Portrait Gallery and FRAMELESS have chosen MediaCity as the first stop on the tour of this unique immersive experience.

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“We’ve hosted many arts and culture events, experiences, festivals and exhibitions over the last few years and we can’t wait to welcome visitors to Salford when the experience opens its doors in May next year.”

For more information head HERE.

Featured image: FRAMELESS (via Supplied)

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