Audiences have been raving about the 5* Christmas fairytale with a “sassy spin” since it arrived at Sale’s flagship arts centre last month.
And there’s not long left now to grab tickets to see it for yourself.
In case you hadn’t heard, towards the end of November, the previously-unloved and ill-fated ugly sisters arrived at Waterside in Sale to “sing some songs, right some wrongs, and tell it how it is” in a brand-new musical play.
The play is titled The Not So Ugly Sisters, and it’s inspired by everybody’s favourite fairytale, Cinderella.
Presented by award-winning children’s theatre makers, Wrongsemble – in a co-production with Leeds Playhouse and Red Ladder – audiences lucky enough to have already see it have been calling The Not So Ugly Sisters a “funny, fast-paced family show”.
ADVERTISEMENT
According to an overview for the jam-packed show, the action centres around Dolly and Barb in their hairdressing salon on the day of their sister Cindy’s wedding to Prince Smarming. Thinking that they have not been invited to the so-called event of the year, the sisters gather to share their story and wash their woes right out of their hair.
With the salon phone only ringing for customers to cancel their blow-dry appointments, it’s time for the sisters to tell the much-loved story from their perspective.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Hell hath no fury like a hairdresser scorned.”
Waterside says the family-friendly show runs at just under an hour with no interval, and is filled with “up-tempo original songs, puppetry, and funky moves.”
Older children and adults are also bound to love the sassy spin on this classic fairytale, with plenty of references to Love Island, cancel culture, and cracking tunes.
ADVERTISEMENT
It’s been dubbed the perfect family outing this festive season in a COVID-secure environment.
Giving a little more insight into the show’s stay at Waterside Sale, Elvi Piper – Artistic Director at Wrongsemble – said: “We’ve been waiting for two years to entertain the good people of Manchester with this ultimate family feel-good festive feast of a show – which has something in it for everyone.
“Live theatre is well and truly back with a fairytale bang.”
The Not So Ugly Sisters runs at Waterside until Saturday 1 January 2022, and a range of different tickets and ticket packages are still on sale.
Tickets start from just £12, and milk and cookie packs are also available to pre-order.
A Manchester city centre clinic is offering a pioneering non-invasive facial refresher treatment
Danny Jones
Listen, we all have those days where we look in the mirror and don’t feel our best, but for many of us the prospect of things like botox and dermal filler can be understandably daunting — so it’s a good job there’s now a pioneering new alternative to facial treatments right here in Manchester.
SkinViva Clinic over at St John’s Court in the city centre has been offering a wide variety of both non-surgical cosmetic and anti-ageing skin treatments across North West since 2008, and their latest facial refresher package offers a unique service here in 0161.
Known simply as ‘NeoGen‘, this non-invasive treatment simultaneously targets multiple aspects of the health and appearance of people’s skin using unique Nitrogen Plasma Technology, an approach that few clinics in Manchester currently offer and is distinct from most other traditional skin treatments.
Most importantly for many people who are typically hesitant when it comes to facial treatments, it’s worth reiterating that you receive a pre-consultation before you even get started and this is a strictly no-needle procedure.
Using medical-grade nitrogen gas to create pulses of Nitrogen Plasma, a controlled thermal energy is created and can be precisely delivered to the skin and can improve things like wrinkles and lines around the eye areas, skin tightening, as well as acne and pigmentation issues across all skin types.
Once again, SkinViva is one of the first and only clinics in central Manchester to offer this new treatment and allows clients to walk away feeling younger and fresher without changing the shape of their face. The answer still hasn’t changed either: not a single needle in sight.
Better still, not only can the procedure – which can only be carried out by fully qualified skin and medical practitioners, by the way – help get rid of those fine lines, wrinkles and the little things that might bother you about your appearance, but it also helps stimulate skin regeneration and renewal.
Promoting collagen production for a tighter, smoother and younger-looking complexion, this exclusive facial treatment isn’t just hard to find anywhere in Manchester, it also has results that are estimated to last up to a full year afterwards – i.e. much longer than the likes of botox and fillers.
FAQs
Do I need a consultation before treatment?
We would always recommend having a consultation before treatment. The consultation will be with either the Skin Therapist or Clinician, depending on what package is booked.
Consultation and treatment can be done in the same appointment; however, a patch test will be needed for clients having over 1.2 joules on their first treatment.
How many treatments will I need?
The number of treatments will depend on your skin type, skin condition and results sought. The before and after photographs give guidance on the level of skin improvement of real clients showing the number of treatments, weeks after treatments and the energy levels used.
This number of sessions will be discussed during your initial consultation and there will be various packages offered to suit your individual needs and expectations.
Is the procedure painful?
During your low-energy treatment, you might feel a slight discomfort. After treatment, it has been reported that many clients feel the skin is warm and radiating a little heat, not dissimilar to the feeling of sunburn.
For high-energy treatments, your practitioner will advise on pain management options.
What will my skin look like?
A layer of your skin will not be removed during treatment but depending on the type of treatment you have received; the outer layer of treated skin will eventually start to flake or peel. Your provider will tell you when you should expect to see this happen.
Some areas of your skin will appear pink in colour. This normal post-procedure condition is called erythema. Your provider will advise you on how long this is expected to last.
Is there a downtime after treatment?
At the lower energy, there is minimal downtime, and it can even be performed during your lunch hour for you to return to work afterwards.
At high energy, downtime is between 5 and 7 days.
How long will results last?
The results of a NeoGen treatment are long-lasting and the improvements can continue to develop for up to 12 months
What is the difference between treatments with the Skin Therapist compared to the Clinician?
The difference is the energy levels available for use: Skin therapists can only go up to 1.4 joules and clinicians can use 0–4 joules if deemed necessary.
As always with this sort of thing, we obviously urge you to go away and do your research about NeoGen and you can always head over to SkinViva’s website to find out more information about the treatment.
They’re offering a 30% discount on first-time NeoGen treatments to the first 30 people who claim the offer on the non-invasive new treatment, as well as a variety of other non-surgical aesthetic treatments and injectables if trypanophobia (yep, fear of needles) isn’t a problem for you.
At the end of the day, every single one of you is beautiful, we all know that, but if you feel like a small facial treatment could you give a confidence boost and feel even a little bit better, then maybe give the SkinViva Clinic in Manchester a gander.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Supplied/SkinViva Clinic
Sponsored
Manchester’s most beautiful restaurant Fenix to throw luxurious Moonlight Parties this bank holiday weekend
Daisy Jackson
Fenix, the stunning Greek-Mediterranean restaurant that opened last year in Manchester, is launching a series of Moonlight Parties with special events for the Easter weekend.
The luxurious two-storey venue has created the events to continue their vision to bring a taste of Mykonos to the city centre.
With these Moonlight Parties, they’re capturing the world-famous nightlife of the Greek island, with international DJs playing into the early hours.
The bank holiday weekend parties will be taking place in the beautiful ground floor nest bar, where golden grasses ripple from the ceiling and clever illusions make it seem as though a wall of fire is flickering above the bar.
Fenix has programmed a unique line-up of events for the upcoming four-day Easter weekend.
The high-end restaurant and bar will kick things off on Thursday with international percussionist Kami, joining their resident DJ Christian, who’ll also be behind the decks on Friday.
Then on Saturday, there’ll be a performance by the incredible Jano, before Sunday concludes with Mykonos’ very own international DJ Anthony from Zuma Mykonos.
This will be the first of a series of late-night parties for Fenix, which is already establishing itself as one of Manchester’s best destinations.
The restaurant opened last November, from the Permanently Unique group that’s also behind the city’s beloved Tattu.
As well as its beautiful interiors and lighting that mimics both sunny days and moonlit nights, there’s a menu of meat and fish cooked on an open fire, a wealth of pasta and rice dishes, and meze-style small plates.
Fenix’s Moonlight Parties will kick up a notch for Easter WeekendCocktails at Fenix in Manchester. Credit: The Manc GroupFenix’s Moonlight Parties are creating a new late-night offering in Manchester
And then there’s the bar, where incredible cocktails fall under four categories – Earth, Air, Water, and Fire – each served in custom glassware.
Fenix has already been receiving rave reviews, including from national critics like the Observer and Guardian tastemaker Jay Rayner.
For the Moonlight Parties, there’ll be a range of packages available, including the exclusive Half Moon package (a table for four with a selection of mixers and meze board, a bottle of Laurent-Perrier Rose, and a bottle of patron silver, for £400.)
Each of Fenix’s Moonlight Parties will start at 10.30pm and run until the early hours.
The series starts on Thursday 28 March with events running until Sunday 31 March.
Details of the May Bank Holiday Moonlight Parties line-up will be released soon.